Man of Hollows

Hill stared at the runes before him in wonder. He truly hadn't expected them to appear when he claimed the Midnight Promise.

It's almost like a game, he wondered.

Obviously, it wasn't completely like the two-dimensional interfaces from the games he'd play at internet cafes, but the way his runes seemed to speak to him was oddly familiar.

Another thing worth mentioning was the strange immersion he had felt the instant he claimed the relic. It was as if he had briefly dipped his head into water—except it wasn't water but a memory of some kind.

If he had to describe it, it was like suddenly entering somebody else's perspective. In his case, the waiting mother. He saw her clutching the rustic shirt she had just made, waiting patiently on a rickety wooden chair with her eyes focused on the patchwork that she called a door.

I see. Relics are constructs of the soul. It would make sense for them to be heavily influenced by strong emotions and memories, he realized, raising the shirt over his head and putting it on. The material was smooth and cozy, though much heavier than he had anticipated.

"You like it?"

Hill glanced at Hero, who was now standing beside him. "I suppose so. It's just a shirt, though."

Hero scoffed. "Goodness, you are difficult to impress. Have a look at the relic—look at it completely this time."

Hill nodded and summoned the runes related to the relic.

Relic: [Midnight Promise.]

Relic Tier: [IV.]

Relic Rank: [Awakened.]

Relic Category: [Clothing.]

Relic Description: [On a cold winter night, a woman worked tirelessly, sewing together a present for her first-born son. She waited expectantly for his arrival, clutching her creation within her trembling palms. But he never came home.]

Hill immediately noticed the new lines of runes specifying the tier and rank of the Midnight Promise. However, he didn't really understand what they meant.

A tier? How interesting. I wonder if a higher tier means the relic is stronger?

And the category... it's just a shirt, though. How can this thing protect me?

But it's awakened! Surely that's a good thing, right? After all, I'm not awakened.

He turned to Hero, raising an eyebrow. "So... I did what you asked."

Hero nodded, brushing his mustache with his fingers. "Yes, yes you did."

"Can you explain it to me?"

"No."

"...Why?"

"I don't believe it's my role to babysit you throughout this process. Use your intuition."

"How am I supposed to do that? This is a totally foreign concept to me! Just look at it—a tier? I suppose I know what that means... it probably indicates the relic's relative strength or something. The relic type is clothing, so does that mean I'll find other types of relics? And most importantly, what does 'awakened' even mean? How does a relic awaken?"

Hero simply stared at him, smiling deviously. He crossed his arms and leaned back, as if settling in to watch a show. "You're asking a lot of questions. That's a good start. Now, go ahead and answer them."

Hill's jaw dropped. "Are you serious? You're just going to stand there and watch me struggle?"

"Struggle is the best teacher," Hero said, waving his hand dismissively. "And besides," he added, his voice shaking with barely contained laughter, "Mime and I find it entertaining."

From the corner of his eye, Hill saw Mime nod enthusiastically before pumping her hands up and down like a cheerleader.

Hill let out an exasperated sigh, turning his attention back to the runes floating before him. Fine. If the old man wouldn't help him, he'd figure it out himself.

Okay, let's break it down, he thought, focusing his thoughts as hard as he could on the Midnight Promise. Hero said to use my intuition. When I first claimed it, I felt a strange sensation—like I was dipping into a foreign memory... the mother's memory. Perhaps I should try to feel that dipping sensation again.

He closed his eyes and tried to recall that feeling. Soon enough, the memory flashed before his inner eyes, displaying the mother on her rickety chair. However, he was able to feel a bit more now and see more as well.

What he was feeling wasn't just regular sensations, but the emotions of the mother too. This, combined with the loud footsteps and ragged growling from outside the door, changed Hill's perspective of the relic immediately.

She was deathly afraid. But why? And why was she praying that the... monster... wouldn't harm her son?

According to the relic description, there wasn't any mention of a monster. It simply said that the mother made her son a present, but he never returned to claim it. At least, that was what he had assumed.

But no, this memory was much different, and it told a completely different story. The mother knew her son would never return, he wouldn't be able to save her. Yet she waited expectantly in vain—a false hope she had created to distract from the reality at hand.

A frightful creature was coming to claim her life. She knew there was no escape.

Despite this, she desperately hoped to remain unseen.

His eyes snapped open. He summoned the runes again, but this time he wasn't just reading them. He was searching, forcing his senses past the surface-level information and trying to feel the relic's deeper purpose. He didn't know if this method of inspection would yield any results, and he didn't really care if it didn't.

Then he saw it. A new line of runes, appearing fainter than the others as it sparkled to life.

Passive Ability: [Empty Presence]

Ability Description: [When standing still, you will be overlooked by all.]

He didn't need Hero to explain what it meant. The knowledge came together within his mind as he solved the puzzle. As long as he was perfectly still while wearing the Midnight Promise, he would be overlooked. Not invisible, but unnoticeable.

He looked up at Hero, a slow smile spreading across his face. "Empty Presence," he said, smiling proudly. "I figured out what this relic can do."

Hero's smirk widened into a genuine grin. He gave a single clap. "See? Not so hard, was it? You've just taken your first real step, boy. You didn't just read the words; you understood the story."

Hill brushed his hands against the soft fabric of his new relic. "So, if I receive any more relics in the future, I would have to understand the relic entirely by searching its memories and revealing what truly occurred... right? That way, I can see its true ability."

Hero didn't respond.

Instead, he pointed a finger gun towards Mime, who rushed forward to give Hill a hearty high-five.