“That was impressive,” Falkner said, as Dallion returned to the column space. “I recognized some of the advances, but most of them were completely new. Where did you learn them?”

If Nil was present, he would probably have choked to death, laughing at the question. The truth was that a large part of Dallion’s repertoire remained improvisation. As the library echo liked to say, his combat was more reaction than strategy. At times that helped, but it definitely was wasteful on the stamina side.

“Not sure I can answer that.” Dallion tried to sound mysterious about it. To his astonishment, it worked, because it got Falkner to not with a serious expression.

“I understand what you mean,” the boy whispered, moving closer. “I won’t say a word.”

“I know you won’t.” Dallion replied with a nod. For the moment, he was just happy that the ruse would stop the boy from asking further questions. “How fast did you defeat it?”

“Oh, much longer. Father wanted me to be able to do it without losing any health, so I had to be very careful. But really, wow. Watching you fight it without using acrobatics was something. Most people without acrobatics fail when facing this guardian.”

“There are other guardians?”

That was new. Back in the Dherma shrine, the guardians remained the same, no matter how many times one took the trial. Dallion knew all too well. At one point he had faced the Sandstorm dragon way too many times for his own good, only to be defeated each time. If there was a way for him to have faced something else, there was a chance he might have increased his level faster. Then again, the echo in his awakening room might have prevented him from doing that.

“It depends on the shrines. Sometimes the guardians vary. I’m not sure how it’s here, but back home there are three shrines that are different from the rest.”

“Good to know.”

As Dallion made a step forward, the eleven columns glowed. The space between them filled up—similar to what had happened in the last awakening shrine he had been in—leaving a single one for him to pass.

“I’ll be leaving now,” Falkner said with a note of fear in his voice. “Thanks for letting me see the fight.”

“Won’t you—”

Before Dallion could finish his sentence, the boy had vanished. That was untypical, although with the way awakening shrines worked maybe there was a reason for it. Just in case Dallion waited for a few seconds more. When nothing happened, he walked through the archway.

His surroundings changed again, although this time it wasn’t a new landscape that appeared, but a tunnel. Looking back, Dallion could see all the way to the entrance area. Forward, though, was another matter. There didn’t seem to be anything but darkness three steps back, as if the tunnel was forming as he walked.

“Is there anyone out there?” Dallion asked. There was no answer. “Anyone out there who can hear me?”

I guess there’s no one, he thought. In any event, no one for the moment. Last time someone had appeared and there was no reason for this time to be different. At least—

“Yep, you’re right there.” A loud voice boomed.

A large hall emerged around Dallion. It was made entirely of stone with two massive fireplaces, red with flames. Two stone tables emerged from the ground, each covered with bronze candelabras. As far as Dallion could see, there were no chairs, any type of other furniture at all, as if the entity who made the hall was hinting that this wasn’t a place in which mortals should remain for longer than they had to.

“You’re right about that as well,” a large bearded man clad in flowing red armor said. As he moved closer, Dallion could see that the man’s hair and beard were also crimson red. If he had to make a guess, this had to be another of this world’s deities.

“Centor?” Dallion asked.

“Maybe.” The man smiled. “That’s not the question that needs answering, though. And no, this won’t be like your previous test. No trickery or mind games here, just a simple decision. Well, that and a few other things.”

The red-haired clapped his hands. As he did, part of the wall melted, revealing a massive metal door.

“That is the second gate. All you have to do to pass through is to open it.”

Dallion looked at the gate, then back at the man. This was rather simple. It was too simple even, and in that lied its complexity. There had to be a catch somewhere.

“It’s not exactly a catch,” the other said, reading his thoughts. “As I said, you have to make the choice whether to continue or not. And don’t worry, this isn’t a one time thing. Should you choose, you can walk away and return in another few years. Some do, some don’t.”

“What’s the choice?”

“Before I tell you, there is one more question. Do you really want to know?”

Dallion blinked.

“Any explanations I give you regarding the second gate you are to share only with people who’ve already gone through it. I believe you’re aware of the principle?”

All too well, Dallion thought. Several times so far, he had people tell him they can only talk about things that he already knew. Of course, in the case of his grandfather, he suspected that there was another reason.

“How many have agreed, but then refused to continue the trial?”

“More than you think.” The large man frowned. “There is one more thing. All that hear the explanation are not to discuss this with anyone, including people who had passed through the gate. An additional cost, if you will.”

“And if they do?”

There was a long moment of silence. The man who Dallion believed to be one of the Seven Moons remained still as a statue until finally he shrugged.

“It depends, but in most cases, their awakened powers are sealed. Too harsh some would claim, but that’s the bare minimum to show how serious this matter is. So, what is your first choice? Do you want an explanation or do you prefer to return later?”

That was hardly a question. Dallion had come here with the intention of becoming a double digit. It was the one thing he had no doubt about. If he had, he wouldn’t have taken the final step in the first place.

“Go ahead.”

“Beyond this door lies the means for you to level up. You won’t have to rely on awakening shrines to level up anymore, you might also be able to learn a few new abilities. Yes, I know you’ve been wondering which of the many abilities to choose. Pass through the door and you’ll be given the chance to learn a few of them, maybe even more than a few. However, it also opens you up to danger.”

Dallion swallowed. Inadvertently, his mind wondered what this danger could be.

“No, everyone who’s passed the gate won’t become aware of your existence,” the man sighed. “There are too many double-digit awakened for any to take note. However, you will become a potential target for all of them. You see, up to now the Seven Moons protected your awakened room. Even with your permission a person cannot do any real damage, at least not many could. Once you walk through that door, all this would change. You would acquire the ability to enter people’s awakening rooms and by doing so lose the protection you’ve had.”

That was quite an interesting change. Sort of like entering a player combat area. It seemed like a simple enough rule and also explained why people had warned him not to share his awakened room with anyone else. The reason Kalis had been so adamant about it back during the chainling hunt was because he was a double-digit and had a lot to lose.

“So, if I walk through I’ll get new skills and powers?”

“Definitely. As I said, you’ll be able to increase your level at will, not to mention skills. It will require some effort, of course.”

“And I have to do that now?”

“You only need to go through. You don’t have to level up if you don’t want to. It’s only to confirm your choice. When you open the gate, you open it for everyone, not only yourself. And there’s no closing it unless you get your powers are sealed altogether.”

So that was the catch. Technically, it was a choice, but it was a choice that one had to make in order to keep on growing. Delaying the decision was pointless, and from what Dallion could see, walking away was as well. Now the logical progression started to make sense: when one became an awakened they learned how to level up items; upon becoming a full awakened they could level up areas and make echoes of themselves; at double digits, they gained the ability to level up themselves and use echoes to protect themselves from the effects of others. Interesting what the next stage was going to be like?

“And the level cap?” Dallion asked.

“The level cap remains at the next gate. When you reach it, you will know. Keep in mind, though, that awakening is a lot more difficult than it was until now. It won’t be enough to find a shrine. You’ll have to fight for every level.”

“I understand.”

“Oh?” The man in glowing armor crossed his arms. “In that case, open the door and proceed.”

There didn’t seem to be any more to it. Dallion hesitated for a few more moments, then walked to the massive gate and pushed. With a creak, the gate opened.

Looking inside, Dallion expected to see a vast and complicated maze filled with traps, creatures, and guardians to defeat. Instead, he found a single room with a blue rectangle floating in the middle.

You are Level 10

Confused, Dallion took a step forward. As he did, a small cat-like creature ran towards him from somewhere and started rubbing against his leg.

“Nox?” Dallion looked at the creature. There was no mistake—this was his crackling familiar. Looking at the walls of the room, Dallion could see his harpsisword, the dartbow, as well as the standard skill items he had. What is this?

“Welcome to your awakening room,” the voice boomed once more.

Dallion turned around, only to see that the gate was gone. The wall was bare, just as it had always been.

“From here on every level you want to gain, you must earn by defeating the traps and monsters in yourself,” the voice continued. “There are no maps or guides. Every level is made of you alone, and you make it as you clear it just as you did when you first appeared here.”

The awakening room, Dallion thought back to the first time he had arrived in this world. Each time he leveled up or learned something new, his awakening room would expand, and now he knew why. It also meant he had a choice.

“Come along,” Dallion told Nox, then hurried out into the corridor. From there he had the option to go to his arena chamber or the library room… or so it had been until now. Dallion noticed that a new direction had been offered—a corridor where a wall had been. Drawing his harpsisword, Dallion went down there.

The torches that used to light up the corridor were now replaced by lanterns. As expected, after a while Dallion reached a T-junction.

You are at a crossroads.

Choose the item that will serve you best.

This again. Dallion waved through the blue rectangle, making it disappear into the air. Two sets of items were placed at each end of the branching corridor: shoes to the left and gloves to the right. Thanks to the time spent reading in the library ring, Dallion knew the skills that corresponded to the items. Shoes were linked to acrobatics, while gloves to athletics. The logic left something to be desired, but at least he was offered the choice. In a way, it was the choice he was afraid of getting.

Apparently, this was why every awakened received one more skill upon passing their double digit trial.

Athletics or acrobatics. Both were useful, and both could be easily combined with the skills Dallion had already mastered. Initially, acrobatics seemed the logical choice. He had seen others use it to perfection, as well as combine it with ranged weapons to become a lethal precision instrument in battle. However, would that be best suited for him? The man in red had said that he could acquire other skills. If that was true, it meant he had another option.

“Both of these are cool, but they aren’t the item that will serve me best,” Dallion said.

The blue rectangle appeared once more. Dallion smashed it almost immediately, as it did.

“I want my third option.”

The blue rectangle appeared yet again, and was smashed out of existence yet again.

“You say I’m at a crossroads. If that’s so, why are you only giving me two paths instead of three?”

“Meow?” Nox meowed, uncertain what Dallion was doing.

The blue rectangle emerged anew, only this time it was much darker. Dallion reached out to smash it again, but as he hit it, the rectangle flew back. Instead of breaking into pieces, it broke the wall, starting a new corridor that didn’t exist before. Then, six feet in, it finished revealing a new item—a blacksmith’s anvil.

“Thanks.” Dallion smiled. While it might make things a bit more difficult in the short term, this was what he wanted.

FORGING skills obtained.

You’ve broken through your tenth barrier.