“There’s another room added,” Dallion said as he walked back into the corridor.

One down, three to go. While it seemed just a game, Dallion felt quite drained, as if he had done everything the tokens described. This was probably why it wasn’t recommended that anyone did multiple leveling levels in one go. Part of Dallion wondered whether he shouldn’t take his chances with the copyette in the real world.

Gen stood in the corridor, leaning against a wall when Dallion walked out. The echo had chosen to wear a combination of black and green clothes, keeping Dallion from thinking he’s looking in a mirror.

“Smart move in there,” Gen said. “Of course, you could have won much faster.”

“Next time. What are you going to turn this room into? A casino?”

Gen looked at the door, then shook his head.

“Nah, I’ll leave it empty for when it’s needed. The way things are going, you might need a dedicated room for each group of skills.”

“Well, better get ready for two more.”

On cue, another door emerged in the corridor less than a few steps away. Clearly, the realm knew when it was to expand and provided the appropriate challenge.

I would seriously advise you to reconsider, dear boy, Nil said. Rushing things rarely is a good strategy.

It’s not like I have a choice. Dallion grabbed the door. You yourself told me that I’m no match for a copyette as I am now.

I doubt you’ll be a match in two levels either. The only difference will be that you’ll return to the real world exhausted and unable to react in any way. It’s just like the game. The strength and effort you put into leveling up, you’re not getting back. Leveling one level might be a good idea, but any more you’ll end up in a worse state than when you were before.

I can take a rest if I need to, Dallion grumbled mentally.

Sleep isn’t food, and despite how simple a trial might seem, you need plenty of that afterwards.

There was some logic in what Nil was saying, but Dallion chose to ignore it. He had a plan, and he was sticking to it, despite the difficulties. Everything relied on him getting his perception to twenty, even more than the leveling itself. At that level, he’d be able to learn how to see layers and be able to forge sky silver items, and more importantly, see the levels of guard markers that would let him use armor as an effective weapon.

Pushing through the obligatory blue rectangle, Dallion continued down the new corridor. Less than ten feet away, a second door appeared.

Music and forging, Dallion thought.

The new door was completely made of iron and in near flawless condition. The only weak spots were the hinges and the handle.

Carefully, Dallion took the handle and opened the door. The large slab of iron slit open like the vault of a safe, allowing Dallion to enter. So far, everything looked familiar. Seeing the person expecting him inside, though, it was taken aback.

“Falkner?” Dallion blinked. “What are you supposed to be?”

“Sorry, Dal.” The echo of Falkner replied.

“Sorry?”

“Sorry that I’m your trial. I know you need to get past me, but you’re not ready.”

Dallion looked at the room. It was rather large, though completely empty. There was a complete lack of furniture or decorations, nothing but a large iron door behind Falkner.

“You’re my trial?” Dallion stepped forward, already considering how to proceed. He knew that Falkner was a noble and had been trained far better than Dallion could hope for. Even so, his level remained lower.

“I’m part of it.”

“We don’t need to fight,” Dallion added a few notes of surrender in his words. He could see that Falkner didn’t want to fight. Hopefully, a slight nudge through his music skills would end this part of the trial.

“Always the same Dal.” The boy smiled. “You’re using music to get me to surrender without fighting. But you’re not doing so for your sake alone. You really prefer that your opponents surrender to you. That might sometimes work on guardians, but people are a different matter. Most of the time they don’t want you to succeed and are prepared to do whatever it takes to stop you. Even cheat.”

“That doesn’t sound like something you would do.”

“You’re right. I won’t.” Falkner summoned a pair of swords. “I don’t have to.”

Dallion split into three instances and just in time. Without warning, Falkner dashed forward, then leapt in the air, ten feet before reaching Dallion. At that point, he too split into three instances, each attacking its own target.

“Shield,” Dallion shouted in all three instances, forgetting that the piece of equipment remained back in the Gremlin’s Timepiece. The victory from the previous trial was still fresh in his mind, creating the impression that he had won the shield. Sadly, that was nowhere near the case. The only shield Dallion had now was the standard buckler he had chosen at level one.

The instances of Falkner performed two identical thrusts and an arc attack, aiming to slash Dallion’s thought. In two of the cases, the weapons hit their target. In the third, though, Dallion managed to combine his acrobatics and guard skills to evade both blades safely.

“Lux!” Dallion shouted, summoning his Nox Dagger.

Falkner didn’t pause his attack, continuing with three new instances. The fact that Dallion could now fly didn’t bother him in the least. When Dallion flew across the room, Falkner merely continued forward, then used his acrobatic and athletic skills to jump off the wall and perform another attack.

Metal hit metal as the Nox dagger made a crack in one of the blades. Unfortunately, for Dallion, the other one hit.

CRITICAL WOUND!

Your health has been decreased by 50%

A red rectangle appeared. Ignoring it, Dallion made another attack, aiming for the blade’s weak spot. The attack proved successful, slicing the weapon in two.

Lux, keep me away from him!

The firebird obeyed, shifting Dallion’s position with a poof, moments before Falkner’s next attack split the air.

What the heck?!

The intensity of the battle was unlike anything Dallion had experienced so far. There was no hidden meaning, no puzzle he had to solve, just pure combat skills and reflexes, and so far, it seemed that Dallion’s were lacking.

Was this what it was like fighting a noble? Even if Falkner hadn’t reached the level required, he had polished his current skills to the point that it practically made no difference. It took Dallion two familiars just to keep up.

“You passed the second gate,” Dallion said, relying on his music skills to gain even a small advantage. “When did that happen?”

“A few days ago,” Falkner replied. There was no telling whether the real Falkner had done so, not that it mattered much in this instance. “I’ve almost caught up to you. The difference is that I know how to use my skills, and you don’t.”

“Is that the trial?” Dallion asked as Lux poofed him to another corner of the room to avoid another attack. “I’m supposed to maximize my skill efficiency?”

A series of bolts split the air, heading towards Dallin. Creating two instances of himself, Dallion deflected the bolts with his buckler, all the time keeping one eye on Falkner. The little monster had turned out much more dangerous than he had imagined.

“The trial is merely the means to show you whether you have what it takes to continue on. And you don’t.” Falkner stopped attacking and calmly started walking in Dallion’s direction. “You haven’t even figured out what flaw you need to resolve. I had hoped that seeing me would give you a hint, but apparently not.” The blade he was holding disappeared, replaced by a chain.

Lux, get me close!

With a popping sound, Dallion appeared right above Falkner. The position was perfect. Summoning his dartbow, he fired a bolt at the boy while striking at him with the Nox dagger. Both attacks hit their target, causing Falkner to disappear in a puff of silver particles. However, that wasn’t the only thing that happened.

CRITICAL WOUND!

Your health has been decreased by 50%

A second red rectangle appeared above Dallion.

What?! Dallion looked behind him. In the final moment before being returned to his awakening room, he managed to get a glimpse of another Falkner holding a single blade.

An echo, Dallion thought. Of course! He should have thought of that. There was no reason that an echo couldn’t create an echo of its own. This was a trial, after all, and the skills were shared.

You have failed to defeat your fears.

You won’t be able to shape your destiny for another 24:00.

The blue box glowed brightly in front of Dallion’s face, but he couldn’t see it. His mind was elsewhere, trying to come to terms with what just happened. It had been clear that completing three levels would be a next to impossible task, but Dallion had honestly believed he could manage. This wouldn’t be the first time he fought enemies significantly stronger than him.

After his victory against the general, Dallion’s confidence had received a massive boost—he expected the following trials would be easier, if only marginally. Instead, he had been utterly defeated in the very next fight that had taken place. Worse, with this loss, he had pretty much sealed his fate in the real world as well.

“Dallion?” Nil snapped his fingers next to Dallion’s left ear. “Are you still with us?”

Dallion glanced sideways, still unable to utter a word.

“Ah, good, you’re with us,” Adzorg’s echo replied, very much relieved. “For a moment I thought something serious had happened.”

“More serious than this?” Dallion asked in a dark tone.

“You could have suffered some permanent effects, for one thing.” It remained unclear whether the echo was being objective or he was just trying to make Dallion feel better. “The important thing is that you managed to level up and got a taste of what level nineteen would require. The best solution would be for you—”

“There is no solution, Nil. I was relying on these three levels.” Dallion felt like crying. Worse, he felt real existential dread seep into his very being. What would happen to him now?

“Yes, your failure is quite unfortunate, but it’s not the end of the world.” Nil paused for a few moments. ” Although with that attitude, it might as well be. Tell you what, why don’t you get some sleep?”

Dallion stared at him, as if the echo had spinach stuck in his teeth.

“It’s not as good as real world sleep, but it helps put things in perspective. And before you come up with some gloom and doom argument, what do you have to lose? Time remains still in the real world, so you might as well take that nap.”

The logic was so absurd that Dallion couldn’t think of anything to counter it with. Awake or asleep, nothing was going to change. What was more, Dallion could spend decades in his awakening realm before returning to reality.

“Come along.” Nil grabbed him by the hand and pulled him through the room.

Seeing the state of their owner, Lux and Nox eagerly followed. It all seemed exceedingly strange, almost surreal, as if Dallion was in a dream that had gone bad. Without a word, he allowed himself to be dragged to the realm’s forge, where a crude bed was waiting for him, next to the forge fire.

“Here we go,” the echo said. “I know it’s not much, but that’s all I could manage with the present limitations. If you want something better, you’ll have to make it yourself.”

“Sure,” Dallion sat down on the side of the bed. It felt uncomfortable, almost as rough as his bed in his old home back in Dherma village.

“Everything will be alright.” The old man smiled. “You just need a little nap. You’ll see.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Yes, that’s right.” The echo nodded. “Forget about the last fight and focus on what you’re supposed to do. Everything else will come later.” He tapped Dallion on the forehead.

Everything turned black.