Catalyst of Enigma

In the colossal-sized forest, Aizer, who was now eating one of the apples he had bought earlier, lay sprawled out on a huge tree branch, his thoughts wandering.

*Crunch*. Biting into the apple, Aizer reclined on the ground, gazing up at the sky which was covered with tree leaves. The juices from the apple slightly nourished his throat.

Though Aizer appeared calm and relaxed on the surface, inwardly his mind was in complete turmoil as he focused his attention on his soul. Currently, Aizer was concentrating all his energy on reshaping it. As though he had severed his connection to the world, he lay there motionless, his body trembling slightly from time to time.

After five minutes had passed, Aizer sat up, looking at his clenched fist. "Success," he muttered to himself as a faint smile appeared on his smooth, polished face.

After five continuous attempts of trial and error, Aizer had finally succeeded on his sixth try. He had wrapped his soul around his ability.

What did this mean for him? one might ask. It meant Aizer no longer had to worry about losing control or being consumed by his own power... well at least for now since it was only a temporary solution

Some time ago, while Aizer was still reading the book, he had come across a problem—the instability of his attribute. To the world, it wasn't surprising or strange that the darkness ability was inherently unstable. Over the years and decades, the world had gradually adapted to the random disappearances that would occur every so often. People gradually got used to it.

Although there had been panic and bewilderment initially, the leaders of their respective continents had issued statements explaining the phenomenon. Over time, fear in people's hearts slowly dissipated. After a century, the random disappearances became an accepted part of daily life.

For others, it was not a matter worth their concern. But for Aizer, it was a serious problem. Having been transmigrated to a completely new and dangerous world, he had no intention of leaving it so soon. With a look of desperation, he had searched the book frantically for ways to suppress his ability from going berserk.

As if his prayers had been answered, he had found a solution and that was to create a soul core.

Letting out a deep sigh, Aizer slumped to the ground.

"Ha... I finally managed to succeed," he muttered as he brought his hand close to his face.

Focusing on it, he felt something stir within. Deep inside his body, a round, almost luminescent sphere pulsed with energy, faintly lighting the surrounding area. As this happened, Aizer began to feel the energy in the air converging, being drawn into his body and absorbed by the glowing soul within him.

Feeling this, Aizer exhaled softly. [Everything is going according to plan,] he thought.

Now came the final step. Aizer wasn't completely sure how to proceed, but recalling the book's contents, he sat up straight and circulated energy from his soul into his left arm.

Though difficult at first, Aizer quickly got the hang of the process, gradually increasing the energy flow to his hand. The sensation of manipulating his soul and controlling Elkris for the first time still felt surreal to him. Yet, he didn't give up, continuing to inject more energy into his arm.

His control over the elkris was far from perfect and much weaker than that of a normal awakened. But this couldn't be helped. After all, he had only a book to guide him, which barely touched on the subject, unlike other newly awakened individuals who had teachers to guide them.

As he continued channelling energy into his arm, Aizer soon noticed a change. His once smooth, delicate-looking skin began to darken, and the aura leaking from his body gradually faded before disappearing entirely.

Slowly, tendrils of living darkness began wrapping around his forearm. They coiled tightly around the flesh in an almost serpentine-like motion, pulsing and constricting as if alive.

The shadows clung to his forearm like a second skin, shifting with unnatural fluidity. They sank into his veins and knuckles, transforming his arm into something both human and inhuman.

Watching the scene in silence, Aizer smiled as he waved his arm from side to side, observing the reaction. Seeing no change, he pulled out a notebook from his spatial bag, writing down observations and testing a few things with his newfound power. This went on for several hours before he finally collapsed on the large tree branch, succumbing to the rest his body had been desperately craving.

...

1 day later Aizer woke up, his body feeling slightly refreshed, as he stood up stretching.

Today he had decided something.

[Today,] he thought, [I'm leaving this tree branch to find some food...]

Removing his socks and shoes, he stored them in his bag and glanced at his feet. Focusing, he willed thin layers of shadow to move towards him. The darkness crawled up his body, some staying around his feet, others climbing higher.

Observing the process, Aizer repeated the steps he had practised the previous day. He guided the shadows around his torso to his forearms and fingers, sharpening them into claws one by one. Then, he repeated the process for his toes, forming claws at the ends of his feet.

Looking at his arm, Aizer frowned.

[It seems like I can only cover my forearm and fingers for now. I could try to cover my whole body, but that would be far too taxing on my mind,] he thought. [Maybe the more I practise, the easier it'll get.]

Glancing at his feet, he sighed. [I want to leave more shadows on my arms because it looks so cool... But I can't leave my feet unprotected.] Reluctantly, he shifted some of the shadows from his arms to his feet, wrapping them completely, stopping just above his ankles.

"Mmm, this'll have to do," he muttered. "I don't want to step on something foul in this creepy place. It's not the strongest material in the world, just shadows strengthened with elkris, but for now, it'll suffice."

Placing his bag over his shoulder, Aizer walked to the main trunk of the tree, familiarising himself with walking in his shadow-formed "shoes." Once there, he began climbing, making his way toward a vine that connected to a neighbouring tree.

In the darkness-cloaked forest, Aizer was like an ant climbing a colossal tree—a tree riddled with monsters, just like the rest of the trees in this eerie, ominous forest.