Return Of The Strongest Player

A Child Of Shadows.

Shivers shot down Eleanor's nonexistent spine, and her ethereal body morphed into mere particles of dust before dissipating into the abyss. The abyss opened its eyes, displaying what seemed like a smile.

A smile to the world.

To remind it of its existence.

*

As Eleanor jolted awake from her slumber, the sunlight caused her eyes to sting. Rubbing her eyes with much intensity, she pressed her racing heart, attempting to piece together what had occurred before her very eyes.

'What the fuck…' Eleanor muttered internally, unable to comprehend the occurrences.

The Child Of Shadows… The Abyss… It was all too confusing. She was unaware of either of those terms. The Abyss was not merely a word, but something much deeper, much more profound.

Something she didn't dare delve into.

"Amused?" The voice spoke once again, but this time, a sense of mysteriousness seemed to be laced within. Instead of being casual, the voice seemed to be able to represent multiple emotions, as if there was not a single piece of solidity.

Like the voice was foreign to the world.

"Definitely not," replied Eleanor, stabilizing her breathing once again. Although scared out of her mind, the princess didn't dare reveal her emotions, as that was a sign of vulnerability. She could not be vulnerable before a foe.

Soft chuckles reverberated across the forest, as finally, a tiny figure revealed himself.

With porcelain skin and childish features, the boy that appeared before Eleanor seemed quite young; perhaps ten to twelve years of age. His hair was stark black, while his eyes seemed to contain the abyss itself within.

With dark attire (robes), and a tiny dagger strapped to his waist, the boy seemed like an assassin, just like many other players taking part in the trial on the Second Floor. He seemed to fit in perfectly, except for his tender age.

Children usually didn't enter the tower and most of those who did perished very quickly due to their lack of physical strength and cognitive maturity.

Eleanor was surprised to see that a child seemed to be the mastermind. She had already assumed that the shadows that crept up the young man's body belonged to the child, judging by the aura he exuded.

'He looks like the child nestled within shadows…' Eleanor muttered internally, her eyes widening slightly.

But she was not scared anymore.

"The Child Of Shadows…"

"Who?" The boy inquired, cocking his head innocently. His eyes glistened with genuine curiosity, to which Eleanor simply narrowed her eyes, disbelieving of anything the child did. He could never be trusted.

"Did you kill that guy?"

"Oh, so you saw that? Yeah, it was me. Is it so wrong, though?"

"No," replied Eleanor. "Frankly, I don't give a shit. But those shadows…"

The child let out soft laughter, covering his mouth using his palm. "Humans are so easy to scare… They always fear the unknown, no matter how dangerous or harmless it may be. They are not calculative of anything they've never witnessed before."

Eleanor remained silent.

"Those shadows… Do you wish to know what they are?"

Eleanor nodded slightly, still visibly on guard.

"Of course, I'll tell you," said the child, laughing. "Just repeat my name."

"Your name?"

"Chasmal, Umbral… Whatever you wish to call it. Just say any of my names."

Eleanor was about to utter one of his names when suddenly, her voice vanished. Her vocal cords stiffened as if refusing to obey her commands. With her mouth wide open, she continued trying, but to no avail.

'Why can't I say it?'

Even the child was surprised, as he cocked his head while furrowing his brows at the unusual occurrence. No matter how much Eleanor tried to force the words out, her body did not react how she wished it to.

"You cannot say it…"

Eleanor nodded, still hesitant.

"Okay, we'll go a different route, then," said the child, letting out a sigh. He reached into his back pocket, retrieving an ancient-looking flute with various scriptures imprinted on it. Eleanor observed the flute, curious.

'That looks cool,' thought Eleanor, gazing at the flute with amusement. Her eyes were filled with positive feelings towards the flute.

"Should I play a melody for you?" The child inquired, pointing the butt of the flute towards Eleanor while smiling brightly. Somehow charmed by his innocence and excitement, Eleanor nodded.

The child–named Umbral–brought the flute to his lips.

However, before the flute could make a single sound, Eleanor burst from her location, unsheathing her greatsword while infusing it with mana. Flames swirled around the blade of the sword, slithering across the metal like slippery snakes.

Her eyes burnt with much intensity, and a single movement burnt all the trees nearby to a crisp, causing mass deforestation.

Umbral's eyes widened slightly, but he remained motionless. The greatsword approached his neck, but before it could collide, a loud clang resounded, stopping the sword and Eleanor in their tracks.

It was as if an invisible barrier was restricting Eleanor's greatsword from reaching Umbral's neck.

But that was the least of her worries.

'What the fuck… Why did I attack him?'

Eleanor's body seemed to have moved by itself as if an unknown force was manipulating it like a puppet. Terrified by the sudden movement of her body for an unknown reason, Eleanor couldn't help but feel as if something was haunting her.

Umbral seemed just as confused as to why Eleanor had attacked him.

"Why, princess?" Umbral inquired, tears welling up in his eyes. Eleanor felt a mix of emotions brewing in her mind.

A part of her wanted to sympathize with the child.

Another part scoffed at him for only being able to muster such a pitiful facade.

The latter part felt more like her personality, but for the first time, so did the former.

'What the fuck is going on?' Eleanor repeated to herself, screaming inwardly. It was as if she was being manipulated, but the manipulator was unknown. It was as if her own mind was tricking itself.

Suddenly, in the depths of the abyss, she witnessed the terrifying smile of Umbral.