After the deal with Optik.
Now came the real part.
Tomorrow, Dirga would return to The Gemspire Ring, this time not as a spectator—but as a contender.
His goal: 500 Devil Gold Coins.
Enough to contact Sasa across realms.
Enough to send the message that could change everything.
Right now, he only had one coin left. Just one.
Night had fallen in Sector X.
The city didn’t sleep—especially not here, in the arena district. Neon glyphs pulsed on the buildings, illuminating the streets in flickers of crimson, violet, and infernal gold.
The scent of grilled meat, gunpowder, and Zarion-brewed liquor lingered in the air.
Dirga walked alone through the buzzing streets, eyes scanning for a place to rest.
He needed to find a cheap inn.
Somewhere with a bed, a lock, and maybe a working shower.
He finally found a run-down establishment tucked between a gambling den and a tattoo parlor. The sign above the door was half-broken:
"The Broken Dream - Rooms & Booze."
Inside, the lobby was dimly lit and smelled faintly of blood and smoke. The receptionist—a limbless demon fused into the wall—grunted through a rusted speaker.
"One night. Private room. Ten silver."
Dirga paid and took the key without a word.
The room was small, the bed hard, and the walls thinner than paper. But it was safe enough.
He dropped his jacket on the floor, leaned back against the headboard, and stared at the ceiling.
That was the deadline.
Three days before the tournament organizers might contact the participants.
Three days to send a message across realms to Sasa—his only known link to this chaos.
But what if Sasa lied?
What if the tournament had contacted him already, and Dirga’s chance was slipping away?
Or worse... what if they couldn’t confirm Dirga’s eligibility without Sasa’s validation?
Dirga clenched his fist.
No more waiting. No more doubts.
But just as he started to settle onto the hard bed, something pulsed behind him.
A faint vibration. A sharp hum, like a mosquito in the dark. No, not a mosquito. The Crimson Core.
It was reacting. Flaring. Calling.
He had completely forgotten.
He hadn’t meditated once since that battle. Not since the throne room. Not since the Butcher.
But meditation wasn’t just rest. It was a pathway. A bridge between his Concept and his evolution.
And now, the Crimson Core was reminding him.
Dirga sat cross-legged on the cold stone floor, spine straight, eyes closed.
Darkness flooded his senses. But not empty. Not silent.
Gravitational pull. Pressure. Depth.
The sensation of falling into himself—into a singularity that had no bottom.
A consuming singularity forged in isolation. Grants increasing gravitational dominance and existential pull as it evolves.
Physical enhancement initiated. Reinforced durability, reaction time, and adaptation under gravitational pressure.
Gravity Pull : Creates a gravity field within 10-meter radius that draws targets toward a central point.
Gravity Sense : Detects objects and lifeforms based on gravitational disturbance, even without sight.
Gravity Surge : Generates a gravity core within 5 meters that exerts pull on everything in a 5-meter radius.
Telekinesis (Lv. 3) : Enables precise manipulation of objects within visual or sensory range. Weight limit increases with focus and Concept synchronization.
Dirga remained seated, cross-legged in meditation.
But his thoughts drifted—
This system... what exactly is it?
At first, it was something Sasa introduced—projected from a card he handed over like a mentor bestowing a key.
But now? The card was long gone. Yet Dirga could still access it.
The Status Window still opened with a thought.
Still responded to him.
"Is this built into me now?" he wondered.
A question for Sasa, perhaps—if he could ever reach him again.
But for now, there was something else. Something glowing beneath the surface.
Dormant Soul Points. Five of them.
Waiting to be claimed.
Dirga reached inward again, touching the core of his Concept. The Black Star flared to life within him—hungry, gnawing, spinning in silence.
He fed the points in—
The Black Star swallowed them without hesitation.
And as it did, Dirga felt it—
The pull of gravity intensifying.
The weight of existence folding deeper into his essence.
His soul... denser. His center... stronger.
Only after it quieted did his mind start spinning again.
Why only five Soul Points?
He’d killed more than five enemies, hadn’t he?
He began counting, just to be sure:
The Oni in the cursed castle.
But... did the Butcher even count?
Kaela hadn’t just killed him.
She had erased him—wiped him from existence with that god-like hand of judgment.
No soul left to claim. No energy to harvest.
Could you really gather something from what was never allowed to die properly?
Dirga furrowed his brow, still deep in meditation.
"Maybe... it doesn’t work that way," he muttered aloud.
Maybe the finishing blow mattered.
Or maybe there was more to it—a requirement.
"Maybe the soul only drops if the opponent is a certain level... or grade..."
He exhaled, letting the thought scatter into the dark.
The rules were unclear. Hidden.
Like everything else in this twisted realm.
For Sasa, maybe. Or someone who knew more than him.
His chest tightened. Thoughts slowed.
For a second, the world tilted sideways—then stilled.
The Black Star was heavier now.
But amid that weight, one truth pulsed—clear, steady, unshakable:
His Concept was growing.
The Black Star was evolving.
And if he kept feeding it—kept understanding the rules of this world—
Then one day, soon, he’d be ready.
Ready to stand among devils.
Ready to break realms.
A consuming singularity forged in isolation. Grants increasing gravitational dominance and existential pull as it evolves.
Physical enhancement initiated. Reinforced durability, reaction time, and adaptation under gravitational pressure.
Gravity Pull : Creates a gravity field within 15-meter radius that draws targets toward a central point.
Gravity Sense : Detects objects and lifeforms based on gravitational disturbance, even without sight.
Gravity Surge : Generates a gravity core within 10 meters that exerts pull on everything in a 5-meter radius.
Telekinesis (Lv. 4) : Enables precise manipulation of objects within visual or sensory range. Weight limit increases with focus and Concept synchronization.