Awakening: I Ascend Alone

Chapter 42: What Only He Can See

Melvin stood close to the fireplace, where thick slabs of wolf meat sizzled over the open flames. With a tall, wooden picker in his hand, he skewered the meats on the makeshift rack hanging above the fire before he turned to his companions.

The trio were now inside the cave, with Melvin taking care of roasting the meat for food, while Aurex dissolved the snow they gathered with a hot wood for water.

Keth just sat in a corner, not interested in handling any task. Although she was the one who provided the nonflammable glass container Aurex used to collect water.

The fireplace, the wood, the rack, and even the rocks that were going to serve as a sitting place for them had all been there as they entered the cave. That proved that someone or a group of people had once resided in the cave. It was now a matter of who and where those people were.

"Phew," Melvin sighed and turned back to his work.

Thanks to Aurex, the duel he could have had with Keth had abruptly come to an end. He had imposed his ability on them by encircling them during the moment Keth was giving her lectures.

"First to leave the circle loses."

That statement had been what Aurex claimed he set against them. However, as it turned out, as fight-fueled as they were, they hadn’t noticed him. So, both of them had lunged at each other at the same time. Everything only dawned on them when the boy exclaimed, "Stop!" just as soon as they crossed the circle he had trickily drawn around both of them.

The fight, hence, was dismissed as a draw.

’So that was how his ability works?’ Melvin thought.

As powerful as it seemed, the ability still needed determinants that triggered its activation. If there was no one to go against Aurex’s set rules, then it could be powerless.

This explained the reason the Academy trained and always made sure the Climbers learned how to get involved in combat-oriented fights by freely providing each of them with replicas to use in place of weapons should they face such a situation where their abilities were powerless. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t have that opportunity as others did.

But it didn’t matter.

Unlike them, he heard a real Soul Signature instead of replicas... and he had personally honed his combat skills to his current level.

Melvin thought for a bit and surmised. "Will I be able to alter the rules of his abilities so the effects don’t apply to me?"

Pondering on this question for a bit, Melvin thought he could but just couldn’t figure out how at the moment. He was going to check out a few assumptions later on. But that implied he would have to engage in a one-on-one battle with Aurex.

Shaking his head, he waved that last thought away. Due to Aurex’s interruption, he had gotten his duel with Keth postponed until whenever. He would rather not involve himself in a new one. Besides... besides...

Melvin turned and saw Keth currently staring at the mysterious drawings on the cave walls. She sat on the rock, her legs pulled up a bit into a bevel, while her hands crossed over them.

’Can she understand it?’

Melvin suddenly hoped she could. The short battle with her earlier had no doubt made him understand why the girl was referred to as the school genius. He had previously thought it was all tied to her ability... and the fact that she received an "Origin" upon awakening. His judgment was wrong.

She was not just a genius. But also a prodigy.

Melvin’s mind reeled to the moment of lectures she had given him. He reimagined her concept of infinity and true alignment. Now that he memorized it with a clear mind, he even saw how supernatural mastering such a thing was.

The question is, did she find it out by herself? Or was it among what they were taught in school? If the latter became the case, does it mean Aurex also understood it? Or was she also called a genius because she had understood and grasped the concept before anyone else?

Still on the topic, Melvin envisioned a life where he had mastered this true alignment of a thing. Or where he could be able to even create infinity out of nothing.

’Damn, it had looked almost useless when she explained it. But now that I imagine it...’

"Melvin? Melvin."

Melvin’s attention was called back as he saw a hand waving before his eyes. Without taking note of who it was, he rushed to the meats on the rack and turned them over for the final time. Luckily the meats hadn’t burned.

With practiced ease, he began to lift them with the picker and turn them onto a wide, flat rock.

"Melvin," the voice called again.

Melvin dropped the last piece of meat on the flat rock he carried with his free hand and turned to meet Aurex.

"Are you okay?" Aurex asked.

"Sure, I am," Melvin replied and began to walk to the circle where they were going to soon have a small feast.

Aurex hesitated for a while, then shook his head and joined the chef.

***

The fire of the fireplace crackled softly in the corner of the cave, its golden-red glow dancing across the rough walls with its shadows and chasing away the cold that lingered in the air. Melvin, Aurex, and Keth sat in a loose circle of rocks around it, each holding strips of roasted wolf meat.

For a while, no one spoke.

Only the quiet sounds of chewing, and the occasional shifts of boots against stone as Melvin watched Keth distance herself from Aurex. She still looked angry with him for having interrupted her duel earlier.

On that topic, Melvin suddenly wondered. If he had carried on with Keth, what was the slightest possibility that he could win against her? Without his ability, he thought he couldn’t beat the girl on mere combat skills. Because she too was skilled at wit... and had even taught him a bit of what he honed into his skills.

Leaning back slightly, Melvin dismissed the thought and rested his weight on one hand as he finished the last piece of meat. It wasn’t the best thing he had ever tasted, but right now, it was more than enough.

Across from him, Aurex was already licking grease off his fingers without shame, while Keth, sitting by the side, ate in small, measured bites, her expression calm as always, like nothing that had happened earlier had shaken her in the slightest. But her reactions proved the reverse regardless.

When they were done, Melvin dusted his hands lightly and lifted his gaze. His eyes drifted toward the cave wall, toward the part on the same wall he had seen drawings on coming to explore the cave.

Nothing had changed about it.

He frowned slightly, then looked back at Keth, who was chewing the last chunk of meat in her mouth.

"Do you understand those drawings?" he asked, tilting his head toward the wall.

Keth blinked, and with chunks still in her mouth slurred, "...Drawings?"

Then she swallowed the chunks and turned to look at where Melvin was pointing. Her brows knit together in confusion. Her gaze lingered there for a moment, scanning the surface of the wall.

Then she looked back at him.

"What drawings?"

Aurex didn’t miss the chance to jump in. He shifted a bit with his rock toward Keth. On the other hand, the girl widened the distance more. But then, Aurex stopped, turned to the wall, and just like Keth, he didn’t seem to be seeing anything.

"Wait," he said, leaning forward with a half-smirk. "Don’t tell me you’ve started seeing things now."

Melvin didn’t respond immediately.

Aurex continued. "Just a few minutes ago, you were completely out of it while roasting the meat. I thought you were just tired, but now this?" He shook his head. "What’s wrong with you?"

Melvin’s eyes narrowed slightly.

For a second, he said nothing.

Then he exhaled and gave a small nod.

"Nothing," he said simply. "Maybe I’m just... a bit agitated.

Aurex shrugged and leaned back, clearly unconvinced but not interested enough to press further. For now, Keth also carried the same expression as she picked up the water container beside her.

However, Melvin began to think of the moment Keth had sat down, staring at the direction of the images on the drawing. Was she not seeing it then? Or was she pretending now?

Melvin’s jaw tightened slightly.

’No... her response didn’t feel like a lie.’

Which only made it worse. Because if she truly couldn’t see it... then that meant he was the only one who could.

The thought settled heavily in his chest.

Everything was even becoming more mysterious. What could be the implications that made only him able to see those strange images?

Nothing.

Another question with no answer.

And just like every other time, no clue where to begin.

Melvin shook his head and reached for the container beside him, lifting it to his lips. The water inside was bland, almost tasteless, but he drank it anyway, long and steady, as if trying to wash down not just the food, but the thoughts that refused to leave his head.

When he was done, he lowered it and let it drop lightly onto the cavern floor.

Then he looked at Keth again. This time, his gaze was more direct.

The gray-eyed girl noticed an intense stare and turned to meet Melvin’s eyes.

"What?" she asked.

"Uhm, I’ve just been thinking. By the way," he said, his tone calmer now, "why didn’t you kill that winged lycan?"

Keth didn’t respond immediately.

So he continued.

"You had the chance. More than once." His eyes locked onto hers. "But you held back."

There was a brief pause, and having not gotten a reply from Keth, he added quietly, "Why?"

"Because, with it dead, we won’t be able to enter the gate!"