"Which one should I choose?" Max muttered to himself, his eyes scanning the breathtaking panorama of floating islands stretching endlessly across the electric sky.
There were too manyâeach one radiating with different auras, some calm and serene, others roaring with storms and violent arcs of lightning. It was overwhelming, even for someone like him who had stood at the edge of death more times than he could count.
He took a deep breath and narrowed his eyes, finally deciding to go with the one directly in front of himâthe closest island among the thousands.
Without wasting a second, he bent his knees and leapt from the floating platform, his body landing gently on the surface of a transparent, membrane-like bubble that enveloped the island.
Every island had one of theseâan entry barrier that kept the inheritance sealed until a qualified seeker stepped in.
His body phased through the bubble smoothly, like passing through a layer of warm water, and in the next moment, Max stood on firm ground again, surrounded by a grassy plain stretching out under a shockingly calm, deep blue sky. It was tranquil and quietâalmost too quietâuntil a soft, childlike voice echoed nearby.
"Welcome, master, to the Island of Storm King." Max spun around, startled, and found a boyâno, not a boyâa humanoid puppet, approaching him with a slow, almost polite gait.
The puppet looked no older than ten years in appearance, but his every movement was eerily fluid and lifelike.
Maxâs sharp eyes immediately picked out the intricate rune patterns carved faintly into the puppetâs skin, woven so seamlessly into its features that an average person wouldâve mistaken it for a real human child.
The craftsmanship was exquisiteâfar beyond anything he had seen before, even in the citadel.
Max frowned slightly, his brows furrowing with confusion and unease. There was something deeply unsettling about what he was seeing.
He had long accepted that his class, Dimensional Keeper, was mysterious, unique, and far beyond the comprehension of most. But to find a puppetâan actual living presenceâwithin the very depths of his class? That was something even he wasnât prepared for.
A class was supposed to be a framework, a potential, a power sourceâit wasnât supposed to contain sentient things inside it. And yet, standing before him was a boy-shaped puppet, crafted so flawlessly that it breathed with illusionary life.
"Who are you?" Max asked warily, keeping his senses sharp as he observed the puppet carefully. The figure stopped a few steps away and bowed with perfect grace, its tone calm and unnervingly respectful.
"Master, I am Tian," it said in a voice that carried warmth, yet no breath. "I have been asleep all this time and only awakened now, when you unlocked the Floor of Inheritance within the Dimension of Lightning."
The puppet then raised its head, its expression devoid of emotion yet eerily intelligent. "In short, I am a servant of the Dimensional Keeper."
"Servant?" Max repeated, his frown deepening. The words unsettled him. A servant of the Dimensional Keeper? That wasnât a title he gave himselfâthat was the name of his class.
But the way the puppet said it... it was like referring to a person, not a system or a role. Like the Dimensional Keeper was an identity, a being, something ancient. And Tian, this puppetâthis constructâwas part of it.
That was the part that truly sent a chill down Maxâs spine. How could a class host a servant inside itself? He thought back to his Dimension of Spirit, the one capable of nurturing spiritsâliving entities. So yes, his class could sustain life.
But heâd always believed it was his will shaping those dimensions, not something that already existed within them. Now, that belief was being torn apart.
Tianâs very presence implied that this classâthis powerâwas more than just a class system had given to him. It had roots. It had a past. And maybe... it had plans for him.
Max stood in silence, his thoughts racing.
"You are a servant of Dimensional Keeper... as in, youâre a servant of me, right?" Max asked, just to be absolutely sure, his voice laced with suspicion and curiosity.
The puppet boyâTianânodded calmly. "Yes, master. I am now a servant of yours to command."
Max narrowed his eyes slightly, still wrapping his mind around this strange development. "Then tell me... how did you come into existence? How did you come into my class?" he asked, genuinely curious now. This wasnât something the system had ever hinted at, and it was starting to feel like he was walking deeper into a maze without knowing where it led.
But Tian merely shook his head with mechanical politeness. "With all due respect, master, I cannot answer that question," he replied, his expression unreadable.
Maxâs frown deepened. This wasnât the kind of answer he liked. But Tianâs next few words made him straighten up.
"When you say youâre a servant of the Dimensional Keeper," Max asked carefully, "does that mean you have access to every dimension Iâve unlocked so far?"
"Yes, master," Tian said, his voice unwavering. "As of now, I have access to all the dimensions that you have unlocked."
Max sighed, running a hand through his hair. He didnât know whether to feel impressed or concerned. A part of him felt like he had just stepped into something ancient and vastâfar bigger than just a class or a system.
"Alright then," he said, shifting the topic. "Tell me about this Floor of Inheritance... How am I supposed to unlock the inheritances here?"
Tian nodded solemnly. "The Floor of Inheritance is part of your power as the Dimensional Keeper, master. All the inheritances hereâno matter how ancient, how powerful, or how mysteriousâthey belong to you. However, in order to claim any one of them, you must prove yourself worthy."
Max raised an eyebrow. "Worthy how?"
"To unlock an inheritance," Tian continued, "you must step onto an island and challenge the soul imprint left behind by the original owner of the inheritance. For instance, the island you are currently on belongs to the Storm King. To gain his inheritance, you must defeat his soul imprint in combat. Only then will the inheritance recognize you as its master and fuse with your lightning dimension."
Max looked around the calm blue skies and the grassy plains of the islandâso deceptively peaceful. Somewhere within this island, a remnant of the legendary Storm King was waiting for him.
"I see," Max muttered, nodding as everything started to make more sense.
At this moment, he felt slightly relieved that he had chosen the island closest to him. It wasnât exactly a well-thought-out planâit had been more of an impulsive decision made out of sheer curiosityâbut now, looking back, he was glad.
He didnât know how powerful the soul imprints of the other inheritances were, especially those resting on islands further away. In fact, judging by how distant and high-floating some of those islands were, Max suspected they might belong to terrifyingly powerful beings.
The closest one, he hoped, would be the least dangerousâor at the very least, manageable.
"Where is the soul imprint?" Max asked, glancing around the quiet, wind-swept grasslands of the island.
Tian pointed calmly into the distance. "Somewhere within this island, master. It does not stay in one place, but you will find it."