The Rise of the Enhancer

Arakh groaned as his senses returned in fragments. The cold, hard surface beneath him. The faint metallic tang of blood on his lips. His eyes fluttered open to dim, pulsating light above. 'I'm... still alive?' he whispered, the words tasting foreign, like a borrowed miracle.

He made a run for it and immediately knocked on the wall. "HEY! HEY! CAN YOU HEAR ME?! HAYAM! REIKH!"

Meanwhile, outside the wall, there was no one who could hear his plea.

Arakh's breath turned rapid as his back slid down the wall. His eyes barely had any energy left. "Is this it... the great Arakh's demise."

What do you want to be, Arakh?

Arakh's brows rose slightly as he remembered Reikh's question. "I want to be..."

His mind wanders, and the image of his father comes up: The son of a rich man, he had everything he needed when he was young but lost it all after his father's death. He gained most of his money by asking his old mother.

"I want to be rich."

Then the image of her mother comes up: a woman who loved a young man for his arrogance, handsomeness, and of course, the rich family behind him. She was a beauty before the financial stress and the struggle. However, she revealed her true self when her husband ran out of money to spend. Yet, she was not exactly a bad mother, but really, a bad wife.

"I want to be a king, to have many beautiful wives that accept me... for who I am."

Then the image of her grandmother: The kindest woman he had ever known. However, her love is killing herself. She knew her son was good-for-nothing but still, she willingly sacrificed everything for him, truly a remarkable woman.

"I want her... to see me succeed."

"Heh," Arakh raised his head up and remembered the training ground. "I could beat Lorelai because she was haughty and was blinded by anger, but, the next fight I would lose for sure, and when the years come by, she will have better gear, better knowledge, better techniques, the gap will be so big that I give up in the present time."

Arakh's gaze slowly fell and saw the altar. He strained to get up and walked toward it. His steps echoed in the dome before he ascended the stairs. 

The table was as plain as it could be, but the book on top of it was something else. It was pulsing with resonance.

"Enhance Codex." Arakh traced the beautiful lettering down with his finger. However, unbeknownst to him, the vortex pattern outside the wall was filled up and made the wall ordinary once more.

---

"Over here... HUH?!" Reikh's eyes opened wide, "It's gone..."

"Where is it?" the village head asked.

"It's over there, behind that stone wall," Reikh said, pointing it out.

"What?!" Arakh's mother exclaimed from behind. She rushed forward and tried to move the stone away but nothing.

"Out of the way woman!" Arakh's father pushed his wife away, "Arakh! Arakh! Can you hear me?!"

"Do something, Lark," said Arakh's mother. "He is your son."

"Step back!" Arakh's father stepped back. His eyes sharpened, and his arms were riddled with purple lightning. "Thunder Fist!!" the entire forest trembled.

"Oh no," Arakh's grandmother knelt down on her knees. She covered her tears after seeing the wall didn't budge. "My grandchild, my sweet grandchild, he didn't even... he didn't even get to enjoy life yet..."

The village head comforted the grandmother. "I'm sure Arakh is in a great place."

Arakh's Father slumped down before his shoulders curved down with his knuckles on the ground. 

"I...I'm sorry uncle, if only we pulled stronger, this wouldn't have happened," Reikh buried his fingers into his hands, before he was hugged by his parents.

"It's not your fault, Reikh," said Arakh's mother. "It's no one's fault; Do you know where Master Braun is? Maybe we can get his help!"

"I already did, but he already departed to Elabra City," said Reikh. "It's impossible to reach him now."

"We can get the guards in the city to help out, maybe..." said Arakh's mother.

"Forget it, Nafa. The guards won't act without some money, and even if you don't have enough sum they won't even take it as a report," Lark exasperatedly said as he looked up at the insurmountable wall.

"Lark, LARK! Your mother!" the village head called out.

Lark turned his head over the shoulder with eyes widened in horror as he saw her slumped down.

---

Back inside the altar. 

The smell of old parchment riddled his nose. He could see with naked eyes the brimming glow, he tried to weave into it and noticed that it wasn't floating dusk. It was a golden aura, so powerful, naked eyes found no effort to be able to see it.

Arakh gulped, as he gently lifted the cover. His eyes traced the first lines of text. 

"Hello there successor, my name is Darath Anubis."

"Darath Anubis?!" Arath exclaimed, rumaging his memories of ten years, "Who is that?" Wait a minute... an old man's voice is speaking directly inside my head!

"For so long now I have waited for this moment, alas, it happened after my death."

I can't stop the monologue!

"Congratulations on passing the trial, this dome is designed to test the resonators based on their levels of mastery with no second chances. So be proud."

Arakh's eyes opened wide. What did he say? To test the resonator based on their levels of mastery, so that was the test for Beginner Resonator? But wait, if that's the case...

Arakh's got a flash of epiphany. The moment where Rheikh touched the vortex wall, the latter had already become a Beginner Resonator. The coming of age while Arakh still lacks a year.

So that's why the dome didn't activate? It stopped the moment Hayam and Reikh went outside and that is why the wall resealed itself! But that also means that... I'm actually unworthy.

"You have no idea how long I waited for a worthy student, or two, or more, I... actually don't know how many you are right now, hehehe."

Okay, I guess I am worthy.

"The codex is called Enhancer Codex and contained such knowledge, basically the power to imbue; imbue your weapon, or yourself"

Imbue myself?

"Imbue myself? Hah, did I get that right? But it is! Imbuing your weapon is like a job for a master blacksmith, but with my tutelage... wait... my book... or codex... you can do that on your own. Saves a lot of money... now where was I? Oh right, what about enhancing yourself? Your body is the temple or something like that, I forgot the exact phrase... but holy hell, once I learned how to enhance my own body I was at the top of the world, though... the risk is high.

Risk, I wonder what kind.

"A pop vein here and there, bicep tear, your six-pack bloated, your hair bald, bones broken, fever, cold, blind, and many other, oh I panicked one time when my penis... hmm maybe I shouldn't talk about my penis."

"WHAT? WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR PENIS?!" Arakh's shout echoed into the abyss.

"Anyway, that said, I think your personality might get an impact as well, but who knows. However, you shouldn't let this technique be known to others, especially not to Croix, if that old coot is still alive he will hunt you down, I hope somebody killed him already."

What about the penis, old man?!

"The seal will unseal for good once you master the first level of body enhancement, if not... then you are going to stay here FOREVER!"

Answer me!!!

The pages of the book feverishly folded to the left until it stopped on the designated chapter. Arakh looked down and sure enough, it was the Body Enhancement chapter. 

Arakh looked down before his lips quivered. He grinned from ear to ear, "Haha, hahahaha! I can't even resonate with the element yet!" his desperate laugh was accompanied by tears before he sat down by the altar.

"Looks like I'm going to die starving later on," His eyes drifted him to sleep.

The sun's shift was over and the moon took its. The stars adorned the sky then the clouds had time to show their vibrant colors. The blue sky to the night sky. A puppy dog to a grown one, a seed to a big tree, a kid into an adult. 

Huh? Still the same place huh, when will I get to die?

Arakh stretched his hands as he yawned. "Hmm? That's odd, now that I think about it, I never starve."

I'm sure a week must have gone by, a month most likely... or is it longer?

Arakh closed his eyes, his jaws clenched. His mind was absent, but his will was seeking. A frequency, a call, a destiny. Then a crack was heard, above his head forming a phenomenon. A single purple lightning was repeatedly striking thunderously.

His eyes snapped open. His lips trembled in excitement, "A year has passed!"