Chapter 15: The First Rift

“We should delve into it,” Theos announced, his expression dead serious.

Asterion clicked his tongue. He had known Theos would say that—and he understood why. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. At their age, nearly everything they could extract from such a rift would change the way they progressed, potentially giving them a noticeable head start for the rest of their lives, especially if they only needed to divide both the records and rewards between the two of them.

From the mana signature emanating from the rift, Asterion could tell it was Iron-ranked and shouldn’t contain monsters far beyond their strength. Using his spatial perception to probe deeper, he noted that the mana within was dense and untouched.

Still, he knew such assumptions were dangerous. Many had died taking that risk. But the rewards, should they succeed, would be incredible.

Temporary rifts could appear almost anywhere, lasting anywhere from hours to months, sometimes even years. Stabilizing them was one of the abilities he had been working toward and studying for—but this was the first time he had ever seen one in person.

Given its secluded nature, he was almost certain this rift had never been delved before. The mana inside felt dense, untouched. If they went in, they could potentially find incredible treasures and grow far more powerful… or they could just die.

Their family would definitely disapprove, and if they weren’t alone, they would have already been told off for even considering it.

Asterion weighed their options. They had enough gear to delve, but they lacked support and numbers. Worse, they had no idea what was inside—or whether they could even leave before completing the rift.

And if they didn’t decide now, the rift would likely close forever.

He met Theos’ gaze, seeing the unwavering resolve in his friend’s eyes. He knew exactly how much of a monster Theos was in combat—and Asterion was no slouch either.

With the herbs they had gathered, he could patch himself up in an emergency. He steeled his own resolve, tired of being sheltered by their family and unwilling to pass up such a life-changing opportunity.

“Alright, but we need to go now. It’ll close any second,” Asterion said, offering Theos his wrist.

As if to underline his point, the rift warped, its edges distorting violently as it threatened to collapse. Both of them jerked in surprise before Theos grabbed his wrist—

And with a burst of movement, Theos launched them both into the rift.

They found themselves in an environment almost identical to the one outside—but the sheer density of mana in the air made it immediately clear they hadn’t missed their window. Streaks of off-colored metal ran through the rocky cliffs, their surfaces jagged and uneven. Above them, a sky stretched wide, framed by towering trees whose thick roots jutted out from the cliffside, weaving through the stone like grasping fingers.

Asterion and Theos immediately moved back to back, lowering themselves into combat stances, ready for an ambush.

Fortunately, nothing came. They let out a breath of relief as they scanned their surroundings, muscles still tense from anticipation.

They had held on to each other to minimize the chance of being separated—a precaution that had proven necessary. The portal had tried to pull them apart, its magic straining against their grip.

Asterion had pushed back against it, though he knew he had little to no real impact on the outcome. Still, he was glad for the experience, the strange sensations of moving through the gate and interacting with its magic granting him many new insights he would ponder once they had made it out alive.

They stood on a rocky pathway, the cliffs looming a few meters above them. The immediate difference was impossible to miss—no snow, and a much warmer temperature than the world outside. But what truly caught Asterion’s interest were the streaks of oxidized metal running through the rocky walls.

“I don’t recognize that metal,” he noted, stepping closer. “With the amount of magic in the ore, it’s probably worth a small fortune if mined.”

“Too bad we didn’t bring any mining equipment,” Theos remarked, his tone edged with amusement but still focused as he surveyed their surroundings. He glanced down both passages before crouching, running his fingers across the rocky and muddy floor in search of tracks.Top of Form

“Some of the boars came through here,” Theos noted before straightening. “Do you sense anything with your Spatial Perception?”

Asterion shook his head, his mind already weighing their options. They could follow the boars' tracks deeper into the ravine or try to climb up the rocky cliffs to get a better vantage point. With Theos’ strength and his own ability to manipulate gravity, scaling the rock face would be easy enough.

"Let me climb up the ravine real quick to get a better vantage point. I'd rather not get boxed in by whatever creatures inhabit this space."

Theos looked up, inspecting the cliffs. "Do you need a boost?"

Asterion followed his gaze but had already scanned for the most stable section of the cliff without obstacles in the way. He pointed to a ledge behind Theos. "That one will do."

Theos secured his mace at his waist and crouched down, bracing himself.

Asterion gave him a quick count to three before sprinting forward, reducing his personal gravity just as Theos launched him upward. With the combined force of his leap and the boost, he soared over the lip of the cliff, reapplying his normal weight just in time for a controlled landing.

Asterion looked around but found mostly a quiet forest, not even his Spatial Perception picking up anything out of the ordinary. Picking out the largest tree nearby, he quickly climbed it, which was a breeze with his personal gravity reduced.

Once at the top of the pine-like tree, he let his eyes sweep over the pocket space, even making out the edges of the rift through the distortion in space visible to the naked eye. That filled him with some relief, as realms could come in any size, with the largest he had read about being as vast as a planet. Those, however, were usually permanent rifts—more the exception than the rule—while temporary realms were generally on the smaller side.

At first, he couldn’t make out much more than rock faces, ravines, and scattered greenery dotted with pine-like trees. Then, a flicker of colorful movement in the distance caught his eye. Leaning forward, angling himself for a better view, he focused his sharp gaze until the shapes became clearer—scaly, bipedal creatures moving among the trees, their bodies flashing dark blue, dark red, and light green.

He narrowed his eyes, waiting for one of them to step into a clear gap between the trees so he could properly identify them. Twenty seconds passed.

Then one of them did—and he frowned.

Climbing swiftly down the tree, he jumped down into the ravine, landing near Theos, who was already watching him expectantly.

“Kobolds,” was all he said.

Theos grimaced. Kobolds were among the worst things they could have encountered. Not because they were particularly strong or dangerous, but because they always came in large numbers. And despite not being among the more powerful species, they were clever. Some even joined civilization, but most stuck to their tribal dens, where they thrived on ambush tactics, traps, and overwhelming their enemies through sheer numbers.

“I’ll be able to spot their traps a mile away,” Asterion said. “But their numbers are going to be a serious issue. I doubt we’ll get lucky enough to take out multiple groups without at least one escaping—or making enough of a ruckus to bring the rest down on us.”

“I guess this is exactly why we’re supposed to delve rifts in groups,” Theos muttered. “If I had a full set of armor, I’d be able to tear them apart.”

“We should start absorbing the ambient mana,” Asterion suggested. “Strengthen ourselves as much as possible before we engage.”

Theos nodded as they headed for a small alcove nearby where they wouldn’t be immediately spotted, and where Asterion’s Spatial Perception would pick up anything approaching them first.

One of the primary benefits of delving into a realm was that the ambient mana wasn’t just denser, but it also carried a unique quality. If absorbed and added during mana refinement, it not only made the process drastically more efficient but also strengthened the body and nourished the soul—similar to obtaining records from killing monsters, achieving great deeds, or consuming elixirs.

Once the mana in the alcove they had taken refuge in began to grow thin, they moved on, repeating the process for several hours, all the while evading a truly absurd number of traps that the kobold had scattered throughout the network of ravines.

Asterion’s spatial perception proved invaluable during this time, enabling them to avoid not only the traps but also the occasional patrols of kobold hunters.

“I believe that was the last of the wild boars,” Theos whispered, bending over a rock caked with blood from a kobold trap that had yet to be reset. A trail of blood led towards the location they knew the kobolds had established their camp.

“Shit, that means we won’t be able to shift the blame onto a stray boar,” Asterion murmured, his mind working overtime. “We should find an elevated position with enough cover and fight them from there.”

Theos nodded, and they backtracked to a rocky outcropping that would be easier for him to scale.

Once they reached the outcropping, Asterion swiftly ran up to it, using a protruding rock as a stepping stone. With a leap, aided by the removal of his personal gravity, he landed almost gracefully at the top. Looking down, he watched as his friend began to slowly climb his way up.

“You know, it would be much easier if you just let me sit on your shoulder,” Asterion teased, looking down at his friend as he ascended the rock face.

“You’d love to cling to me like a baby monkey, wouldn’t you?” Theos grumbled in response, the strain in his voice evident.

Asterion bent down as Theos’ hand finally reached over the lip of the rock. He grasped it to help pull him up, straining as he worked to overcome his friend's passive resistance with his gravity magic, lifting him over the edge.

“There are still some dense pockets of mana up here,” Theos remarked, his gaze sweeping over the area. “Also, that rocky outcropping over there looks promising as a defensive position.”

Asterion nodded. “It also overlooks their camp. Try and see if you can’t count how many we’re dealing with.”

Theos raised an eyebrow. “And what will you do?”

“I’ll go collect some rocks for you to throw. Even with a solid defensive position, hurling rocks at them with your Titan’s Throw ability will take down at least a few.”

Theos nodded, gripping Asterion’s shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. Their eyes met, each reflecting the same quiet determination. With a final glance, Theos let go and made his way toward the outcropping, leaping across the gaps of the ravine. Meanwhile, Asterion turned his attention to levitating a few sharp rocks from the ravine floor.

After filling his pack with sharp rocks, Asterion wandered to one of the more distant pockets of mana. Once there, he lowered himself behind a rock, ensuring he wouldn’t be spotted by any wandering kobolds, and took a deep breath, circulating his mana.

He remembered the times when circulating his mana had felt like moving molasses through clogged pipes. He still wasn’t as fast as the rest of his class, but that was understandable. He possessed far more mana than most and was still in the endless process of compressing and refining it.

Interestingly, the rift mana made each cycle easier, as the mana became more compressed. If he had to describe it, it felt sharper—he felt lighter, despite the weight of the pack full of rocks. He was confident that if he were to arm-wrestle himself before entering the rift, he would easily win.

The sensations were intoxicating, and he understood, with newfound clarity, why permanent rifts were jealously guarded by the families that owned them as even a fraction of what he got out of this rift mana would be a great boon.

He peeked up from his position, watching Theos, who was carefully surveying the area from behind a rocky outcropping. Asterion knew he would need to return soon, drop off the rocks, and gather more.

They would need every advantage they could get. Hopefully, once they had established a solid defensive position, they could take out one or two packs of kobolds to even the odds.

The scaly beasts would undoubtedly try to swarm and kill them the second they were aware of their presence, as rift beasts were rarely anything more than single-minded monsters, especially for anything below gold-rank.

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