"What’s... going on? Am I awakening my talent or something?"

A solitary speck of gold materialized within the endless whiteness, gradually bleeding outward across the blank canvas. Deep crimson and polished marble violently painted themselves over the surrounding emptiness, quickly weaving together to construct a towering throne at the far end of his vision.

Broad stone steps cascaded down from the royal seat to meet the invisible floor while towering marble pillars erupted from the ground, reaching upward toward a nonexistent ceiling. Since the rest of the world remained entirely blank, the vivid scene sat suspended in the void like a framed masterpiece hanging in an empty gallery.

Solomon furrowed his brows as he cautiously shifted his weight, testing the unseen ground with his bare foot.

’I know people have awakened their talent in dire situations, but... honestly, I have been in a more dire situation than that one. Not to mention, my ability is already awakened. I just have to figure out how to use it.’

Just as he took a step, thunderous applause suddenly erupted from every direction. The roaring cheers of an invisible crowd echoed through the painted pillars while hundreds of shadowy silhouettes flickered into existence across the steps and the surrounding hall.

A grand figure draped in royal garments sat perfectly still atop the central throne. Solomon clenched his fists and took another hesitant step forward, listening as the cheering morphed into a chaotic chant honoring a victorious warrior.

Before he could process the shifting environment, a tall figure casually walked right past his shoulder. The man wore pristine white steel armor adorned with intricate gold filigree, and a spotless white cape fluttered behind his broad back with every stride.

Resting his gauntleted hand on the hilt of a massive executioner’s sword sheathed at his hip, the warrior continued toward the throne.

Solomon widened his eyes, immediately recognizing the intricate armor and the sheer scale of the weapon. The S-Rank boss from the labyrinth, the exact same Paladin that just obliterated the arena, was currently strolling up the marble steps as a living, breathing human being.

’What kind of magic is this?’ Solomon wondered, dragging a hand down his face. ’Did the explosion trap me inside a memory?’

He rubbed his temples and looked back at the blank white space surrounding the illusion, completely failing to grasp the mechanics behind this bizarre situation.

The old man atop the marble throne clapped his hands together and leaned forward with a wide grin stretching across his wrinkled face.

"Your blade delivered us from total ruin, my champion," the king announced to the armored warrior. "We have finally conquered the heretics and claimed victory in this holy war because of your unmatched strength. From this instance, you are officially promoted as a Paladin."

The Paladin kept his pristine white helmet tucked securely under his left arm. He stared blankly at the polished floor tiles while his jaw muscles tightened visibly. His fingers squeezed the hilt of his massive executioner’s sword.

"The Grand Priestess has communed directly with the heavens." The king raised both hands toward the painted ceiling. "She revealed that the glorious God Lumina will send a divine angel down to our palace very soon. The heavens will grant us absolute decrees regarding the spoils of this war and guide our newly expanded empire."

The Paladin gripped his weapon tighter and turned his back to the royal seat without uttering a single word of acknowledgment. His metal boots clicked loudly against the marble as he marched straight down the wide steps toward Solomon.

He passed right through Solomon’s shoulder like a fleeting phantom, leaving behind a brief chill.

Suddenly, the vibrant crimson and gold colors of the throne room began to melt. The marble pillars dissolved into white mist, washing the entire illusion away like wet paint sliding off a canvas.

Fortunately, the blank void did not last long before a completely new palette of colors violently splashed across Solomon’s vision.

The sky above him painted itself in terrifying shades of bright red and burning gold. Piercing shrieks echoed from the clouds above as Solomon looked up and watched dozens of winged figures plunging from the heavens.

Beautiful angels with pristine white wings plummeted toward the ground with gashes torn across their chests. Golden blood rained down upon a chaotic battlefield below.

The burning sky on the right side of Solomon’s vision suddenly rippled and tore open. A grand stone chamber painted itself over the falling angels.

The Paladin stood in the center of the room while the chaotic sounds of slaughter echoed from a large open balcony. The massive wooden doors slammed against the walls, and a woman wearing an elegant golden gown rushed inside.

Solomon recognized her immediately from the old journal he read at a museum. Princess Emilia La Eden possessed flowing silver hair and piercing blue eyes.

’So this is really a memory of the ancient kingdom,’ Solomon thought, wiping a smear of blood from his bruised ribs. ’The Paladin must be showing me his past before the corruption took him over.’

Emilia rushed toward the armored warrior and grabbed his gauntlets. "You must ride out to the vanguard right now. You hold the title of Paladin, and the entire kingdom needs your blade to turn the tide of this battle."

The warrior gently pulled his hands away from her grip. "I took a solemn vow to be your personal knight long before anyone handed me this white armor. My only duty is to protect you from harm. I joined the royal army simply to stay by your side, so titles and military promotions mean absolutely nothing to me."

Emilia stepped back and shook her head furiously. "Our people are dying out there in the mud. We must fight for them, and the heavens will surely reward our faith. The gods will send their divine light to save us from this tragedy."

The Paladin struck his armored fist against the stone wall. "The gods brought this exact tragedy right to our doorstep! This is a petty dispute between two divine beings, and they are using our home as their personal arena. Mortals bleed in the dirt while the immortals command them from the safety of the clouds."

He gestured wildly toward the balcony as a massive explosion shook the palace foundations. "They started this massacre, yet they refuse to step foot on the actual battlefield. Our kingdom burns to the ground, and your so-called saviors abandon us to face the slaughter entirely alone."

Emilia clasped her hands over her mouth and backed away from his sudden outburst.

"This conflict will never actually end," the Paladin continued, dropping his voice into a desperate rasp. "The gods cannot perish. They will fight today, and a decade later they will drag another generation into their endless feud. The innocent will bleed again, and this exact cycle will repeat itself for centuries."

He dropped to one knee and reached out to grasp her trembling hands. "Leave this doomed palace right now. We can ride far away from this madness and build a quiet life together in the eastern valleys. Let the immortals destroy each other without us."

Emilia stared down at the kneeling warrior with wide, conflicted eyes. Before she could answer his plea, the stone chamber began to melt away into white mist. The painted illusion dissolved completely, plunging Solomon back into the void as the horrific sounds of the holy war resumed.

’Oh, come on! If you are going to show me some memories, don’t stop at such cliffhangers! I wanna know what happens next!.’

❖ ❖ ❖

N/N- Sorry for the delay guys. I lost my data, and I have been trying to recover it. Haven’t found a solution yet and I most likely never will. Updates should be daily now.