Aspiring Recluse

Chapter 9 : Enter! Chronos

The second-floor raid put a huge imprint on the three of us, making us want to be strong for what was to come. I wondered if there was a fit place for us to raise our strengths. When the Towers appeared, the surroundings also started to change. Many things were adapting to the towers. Forming new constructs in the meanwhile. Many unnatural landmarks were getting created. The most famous of them is Mount Chronos. A famous mountain where time ceased to flow. It was as if the time flow was to be completely different than our normal world. We knew our next destination, a place where one could get stronger within a very small amount of time. Well, a small amount of real-time but the time taken in the mountain would be equally adequate. "Hey, Haru and Mayumi. I feel like we're not ready for the coming floors yet.. And should find somewhere suitable to train more. There's this mountain called Mount Chronos. Where time doesn't flow. This would be good for us to train at." The two reluctantly agree. We make up our minds and resolve. And so the next day dawns on us. We give our final goodbyes for who knows how long we'll be in the mountain. Telling sensei and Ron to take care of themselves. The route that followed the mountain was devastating. Completely overshadowed by trees. To an extent when even light wouldn't pass through easily. Crooked paths, led by steep hills. The path to get to the top of the mountain was horrendous. It'd been a few days since we started. Our food supply was depleting. But we were approaching the top. Another few days pass. It was finally the day, We reached the top. Our hardships were finally over, we celebrated by cooking some food and making camp to stay there for the night. "Woah, the night sky looks so beautiful from up here. I could stay here forever!" Said Mayumi. The ever-glowing moonlit sky looked beautiful. The stars shimmered and twinkled. We proceeded to make places for us to sleep for the night. The wind was chilly, it gave me goosebumps. We almost couldn't sleep the whole night. Crickets chirping, strong winds blowing. We had spent almost a week climbing the mountain. But in reality, it had only been 10 minutes since we departed from the Dojo.

This new sense of time would take a lot of time to get a good grasp on, It was certain. The being that controlled and had the authority of the mountain woke us up at Dawn. A tall old man, with a huge beard and big muscles. He called out to us. "You dare trespass my authority? Who are you to come walking into my domain." He said. "We wish to become stronger, for the sake of fulfilling my teacher's dreams." I Proclaimed. "Ho.. You are quite the interesting young fellow. A lot of people came to this mountain. But ran off after seeing me. You.. You. Are different." I Hesitate. "We seek power.. Strength that can be used to fight evildoers. Will power to oppress the wrongdoers." "If that is what you seek, I shall grant you that wish." He chants something and puts a mark on our bodies. He explains to us that it. "The mark that has been put on you.. Is like a crest, it gives u a limited amount of authority in my domain. Like calling out to me and several other actions. It also gives u the ability to not feel hungry nor tired while being inside here." This was great news. We could train all we wanted. Worn our bodies out without having any severe consequences. We have a nice chat with Kronos. He tells us the history of this place. "One day.. I woke up on this mountain, in a land which I could not recognize. But I understood my purpose. It was to guard it, and let people who were worthy into it." We chat for several more hours. The sun had set, we ate dinner and slept. Even though we didn't get tired or sleepy. It was a natural thing to do." The next day, we trained all day long without any breaks. And didn't break a single sweat. But I felt the improvement after a few days of non-stop training. A few weeks had passed and more people were coming into the mountain. Dozens got rejected. And a select handful who made it in. while training, a group of people approached me. They were as old as me from what I saw. Two guys and two girls. They introduced themselves to us. "We are Asahi and Hirito, and those two are Toki and Yui." I introduced myself to them. "Hello, my name is Akita" They were shocked "You're one of the three people who solo-cleared floor two in a party of three?!?! Oh my god." "Hahaha.." I nodded it off . We talked for a while. They said that they went through the same change in the floors. Asahi had a body of iron if he focused his mind and soul. Hirito could move with the speed of light if he did the same. But on the other hand, Toki could create a barrier if she cried her heart out. And Yui.. Yui was a monster. She snapped into a state of killing once she was unconscious for a certain amount of time. Which made me think that these "Powers" were given to a select few people. Since I hadn't seen anybody else with these powers. And I guessed they were awakened once the selected one was in a state of desperation. I sensed no hostility nor bad intentions from them. So I guided them to our little camp to let them meet with Haru and Mayumi. They came back from hunting for food and training at dusk. I introduced the group to both of them. It was awkward at first but they talked and found similar interests. I was happy with their bonding and took a breather. today was a remarkable day.