As the atmosphere moved farther away from the Hollow Crossroads, the realm changed. There were not many trees. The light was bright, but still tainted with a dull hue of violet, as though the sky had in fact never known sorrow. And in the farthest distance, Vaen was burning-a bright city enclosed in a skin of crystal walls, and the towers were spiraling like glass vines piercing the heavens.
But no sound arose.
There was no market noise, no laughter, no chaos.
[SYSTEM ZONE: City of Vaen – Neutral Zone]
Population: 10,000+
Emotional Output: Suppressed (≈ 4%)
Status: Emotionally Drained Society
Key Objective: Locate the Fountain of Feeling
A man greeted at the gates with no expression.
"Welcome to Vaen. Emotions are an obstacle here. Attachments are dangerous. Be efficient."
He left without further ado.
The streets inside were immaculate, too immaculate. Children played in silence; lovers held hands without smiles; merchants traded without haggling.
"This place feels...wrong," Lyra whispered.
"No," Alistair replied. "This place feels secure. Security at the price of emotion."
They learned that Vaen had been a land of passions and joys before being ravaged by war. The Null King, a ruler sustained by emotions, had brought despair upon the land, which in the end had almost annihilated the realm. The desperate people locked away their own emotions in a legendary artifact-the Fountain of Feeling.
But the Null King defiled the fountain. Now dormant, it was inaccessible except behind the Seven Gates of Self, each gate bound to a core human experience.
To awaken it, someone must face the Gates and relive their most fragile truths.
[SYSTEM QUEST UNLOCKED: Fountain Reawakening – Gate 1: The First Goodbye]
Entry Requirement: Emotional Capacity ≥ 10%
Warning: Entering a Gate exposes you to permanent emotional imprinting. Consequences unknown.
In front of them stood the obsidian arch with sentient writing. The glowing runes scalded the arch with phrases:
"To open this door, offer the memory of a goodbye you never healed from."
No one among them moved.
Until Alistair stepped forth.
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Inside Gate 1 – The First Goodbye
The rain poured in the alley, and he stood there drenched. Young again. On the other end, with her suitcase in hand, was Lyra, her face so pitifully set in pain unspoken of.
This was their first break, before marriage, before forgiveness.
He remembered how she had walked away.
Now he was following her.
He wouldn't let her leave.
In this memory, he chose differently.
[Memory Reshaped – Internal Truth Resolved]
[Emotion Surge: +9% – Regret, Hope]
[Skill Upgrade: Echo Barrier → Emotion Ward]
Now repels despair-based effects.
The moment Alistair crossed the gate, Lyra dashed toward him. Not walked, but ran.
And for the first time, she traced his face with her fingertips, as though she needed to feel him right there.
[Group Emotion Link Activated – Alistair & Lyra Sync 25%]
Bonus Unlocked: Shared Cooldowns, Split Damage
The people of Vaen looked at them with what might have passed for longing.
The gate shimmered.
One down. Six to go.
[Current Emotion Levels]
Ren: 9%
Yumi: 12%
Alistair: 19%
Lyra: 17%
[SYSTEM WARNING: Null King Awareness Rising]
"He feels your hearts. And he hates the sound of them beating."