Level 0: Lapis Lazuli Forest

  The air in the Lapis Lazuli Forest was thick with calm.

  Bealuna lay resting on a wide, warm trunk, caressed by the light filtering through the leaves, illuminating her hair and the tiny particles drifting in the air.

  — I never get tired of watching the sunsets here — she said dreamily, stretching — even though the sun never really sets.

  After a blink, a glowing notification flashed in front of Dante’s eyes:

  [Level 0: Central Axis. Class 0 — Survival Difficulty: Safe]

  Threat-free zone. No entities, no environmental dangers, no traps.

  The environment is peaceful, and the exit is usually easy to find.

  Dante watched her in silence. Her breathing was calm, light, and her hands played idly with the leaves and bark, as if touching without touching.

  — You’re not much of a talker, are you? — she said with a faint smile.

  — I’m still digesting everything that happened in our battle against Respect… — Dante replied, his gaze fixed on a point lost between the forest’s light and shadow.

  A soft stillness stretched between them, broken only by the faint crackle of branches.

  — Have you been here long? — Dante asked, trying to change the subject.

  — A month, more or less. Though sometimes, it feels like much longer. This forest has saved me more times than I can count. Not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually too. — Bealuna settled herself beside him with a look that held both gratitude and melancholy. —

  Her tone changed as the sadness crept across her face.

  — I… had an ex. He used to stalk me. Beat me. I reported him, but no one believed me. I learned to stay quiet — to accept the pain as part of my everyday life.

  Dante listened without saying anything.

  — Until one night he came into my house while my father was away… and he hit me so hard that I don’t know if I died, or just stopped existing. I only remember the silence. That sweet feeling that nothing mattered anymore. The constant despair in my life. Feeling trapped. No way out, no help. I lived alone with my dad, but he was always working. He never had time for my problems. I felt invisible… hollow.

  They remained silent for a few seconds. The crackling of insects in the forest filled the gaps in the conversation.

  — And then… after that last beating… I woke up here.

  Dante nodded with quiet sorrow. He understood — not with words, but with feeling.

  Bealuna hadn’t arrived in Nullaria by chance: she had lost the will to live, and that inner fracture had been her direct passage into this world.

  — As for me… I still don’t remember much — Dante confessed softly, almost murmuring — just flashes. An accident, I think. Motorbikes… speed… a sense of not knowing what the hell to do with my life… and then… nothing.

  Bealuna looked at him quietly, without judgement — only understanding.

  — Well… at least I’m glad you’re alive — she said with a small smile — or… whatever “alive” means here.

  The air of the forest seemed to vibrate softly, as if responding to her words. Dante let out a dry laugh — a short exhale of disbelief.

  Changing the subject was almost automatic, a natural defence.

  — That golden bow? — Dante asked, pointing to the weapon slung across her back.

  Bealuna displayed it proudly.

  — The Bow of Diana. Legendary class. Light, precise, and with a story.

  — Class…? — he murmured, pretending not to know.

  — Yes. Weapons here are ranked by rarity and power — Bealuna explained as she toyed with the bowstring — from lowest to highest: Simple, High Quality, Magical, Legendary, and Divine.

  She took from her pocket a small reddish pearl that glowed in the sunlight.

  — You can also embed elemental pearls in them. They’re used for defence or attack: red for fire, blue for ice, green for poison, and yellow for lightning. There are also little skulls that grant physical or magical defence.

  — And you get them from…? — Dante asked, raising an eyebrow.

  — Usually from monsters, Blessed or Cursed Relics… and sometimes, pure luck — Bealuna smiled — like that pearl you got after defeating Respect. It was blue, wasn’t it? Not everyone gets that lucky facing a superior entity and walking away with something so rare.

  Dante lowered his gaze.

  He knew it hadn’t been luck alone — and that the object wasn’t exactly an elemental blue pearl.

  But it wasn’t time yet to tell her about the Divine Stones.

  — Still… — continued Bealuna, standing up and glancing at the rusty sword resting beside him — you need a proper weapon. That thing looks like an old fork.

  Dante let out a faint laugh.

  — Hey! It has its charm.

  — Yes, like a piece of scrap metal — she replied playfully. Her eyes gleamed with unexpected complicity. — In Level 101, the Neighbourhood of Echoes, there’s a Legendary-class sword embedded in a rock. No one’s been able to pull it out so far… but I’ve got a feeling you might be the one who can.

  She winked.

  — With my rune of Good Fortune nearby and a strong enough wish to claim it, it might just work.

  Dante looked at her with a mix of feigned scepticism and amusement.

  She turned on her heels as she started walking away, her long braid swaying with each step.

  — Let’s eat something first. If you don’t recharge your energy, you’ll faint before swinging anything.

  When she vanished among the trees, silence wrapped around him once more.

  Dante reached into his pocket and pulled out the Violet Divine Stone, holding it in his right hand as he studied its glow for a moment. At his touch, his fingers trembled. Finally, an inscription appeared on his retina:

  [Violet Divine Stone: Fragment of Respect, Seventh Terror of Nullaria]

  Grants the bearer 50% resistance to Curses.

  Grants access to the Sword of Light, capable of cutting through both sky and earth.

  Warning: Find the Sword of Light on Level 101.

  You must imprint the Divine Stone into your soul before accessing this level.

  Hold the Divine Stone for ten seconds to infuse it into your soul.

  Dante wasn’t surprised by the message. He already knew it.

  His countless regressions had brought him to this same moment so many times.

  He gripped the stone tightly. A violet flash coursed through his hand, wrapping it entirely. The fragment disintegrated, and the violet dust spiralled up his arm, etching itself into his skin — burning without pain — fusing with his soul.

  He could feel its power within him.

  Respect.

  The Seventh Terror of Nullaria.

  He remembered that in other regressions, he had managed to obtain up to three Divine Stones. He had never found the rest of the Terrors, nor been summoned by them.

  But this time, he had to.

  No matter the cost.

  He didn’t know what would happen once the seven stones were united, but he did know one thing:

  he needed power.

  He needed to be stronger.

  Hours passed.

  The defeat of one of the Seven Terrors had been reason enough to celebrate at Eden Camp.

  From his corner, surrounded by voices he barely heard and by people trying to praise him, Dante watched as everyone gathered around Bealuna. Her charisma was magnetic; her very presence ignited the camp’s spirit. He saw her raise her bow, now shining with a reddish hue instead of its original golden tone.

  — Thank you, Tanya, for using your Smithing rune — said Bealuna with a bright smile — the fire pearl will come in handy now that it’s embedded in my bow.

  Tanya smiled warmly, taking a sip from her cup.

  — It was nothing — she replied modestly.

  Unexpectedly, Bealuna’s eyes met Dante’s — and she quickly looked away, smiling in embarrassment. Tanya and two other girls who had been admiring the newly improved bow noticed at once, exchanging knowing glances followed by a loud, teasing “mmmmmm” in unison.

  Bealuna silenced them at once, blushing, and tried to hide her face by taking a long drink.

  Sair, the leader of Eden Camp, slowly drifted away from the group as he spoke with Dante. He mentioned that Bealuna had requested permission for him to accompany her to Level 101.

  He also added that the area was home to the Red Wolf faction, led by Matilde, a powerful ally.

  Dante nodded, saying he had heard much about her.

  Sair smiled, clearly exhilarated, as if standing before someone of high rank.

  — You’re free to go wherever you wish — he said respectfully — but I’d appreciate it if you could share your memories of the battle against the Seventh Terror with the survivors. It would be a great help.

  And thank you for the report on what happened with Jhan and Carlos in Level -6.

  Bealuna approached them, her voice full of energy.

  — I hope I’m not interrupting…

  — Not at all — replied Sair with a mischievous grin — I was just about to return him to you — exaggerating the last word.

  Bealuna narrowed her eyes at him, half amused, half exasperated, before letting out a sigh.

  — Are you ready to go? — she asked.

  Dante nodded, though first he needed to stop by the Heart of Nullaria.

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  Moments later, he stood before the ancient artefact: a stone formation shaped like a colossal hand emerging from the earth’s depths, its palm open towards the sky.

  The monolith barely reached a person’s waist — thick, cracked by age, devoid of runes or ornaments. Yet it radiated a subtle, almost imperceptible energy.

  Soon, information appeared before his eyes:

  [Heart of Nullaria — Blessed Relic]

  This artefact functions as a collective intelligence interface capable of sharing information among all living souls — whether in the Lower, Middle, or Upper parts of the Nullaria Realm.

  Place your right hand upon the monolith and select the memories you wish to share.

  The information will be automatically organised, filtered, and catalogued to describe objects, levels, and relevant discoveries for others.

  Dante knew this artefact was no mere relic.

  It was something else.

  A voiceless consciousness — an eternal server that linked minds through a living network, transmitting memories, thoughts, and emotions directly into the survivors’ retinas, no matter which level they occupied.

  He closed his eyes and summoned every image, every sensation he had lived alongside Bealuna during their confrontation with Respect.

  He was selective, of course. He revealed nothing about the Divine Stone.

  The reason was simple: to speak of its existence would only attract greedy eyes… or dangerous enemies.

  Dante made it clear that killing the Terror hadn’t been necessary. The exit had revealed itself only after overcoming an inner trial imposed by the entity itself.

  He assumed that both the level and the Terror still existed, ready to test others — as if each of the Seven Terrors were some sort of soul judge.

  Surviving those judgments, he suspected, was the fastest way to expand one’s spiritual perception.

  He also used the link to issue another warning: the Whisperers.

  He described the fleeting attack that had nearly killed them, their ability to stalk from the shadows and manipulate minds. He didn’t know what they truly were, but he had sensed in them a hunger unlike that of ordinary monsters — as if they sought something beyond flesh.

  When he withdrew his hand, he looked at Bealuna.

  — Have you done it already? — he asked, feigning confusion.

  She nodded.

  — I shared what I witnessed: the fall of one of the Seven Terrors — something unprecedented — and, above all, how it happened. No violence. No blood. Only resolve, will… and a rare blue elemental pearl received as a reward.

  She paused briefly before continuing:

  — not long ago, I was summoned by this very same Terror while on a mission. Thanks to my rune of Good Fortune, I managed to escape that level. At that time, I reported everything I saw about Respect and the characteristics of Level “???”. That’s why I was more confident this time. I knew what we were dealing with.

  — So it was you who first fed the interface with information about Level “???” — said Dante thoughtfully.

  Bealuna nodded.

  — We don’t know if this artefact relies solely on what we share or if it possesses knowledge of its own. No one knows who created it. It was already here when the camp was founded. The easiest Blessed Relic to find.

  Dante fell silent, deep in thought.

  The artefact’s description mentioned that it shared information with all souls within the Lower, Middle, and Upper regions of Nullaria.

  He knew they were in the Lower part… and that the Surface must be the Middle.

  But the Upper part?

  That was a mystery he had never solved.

  Then, the message from Dante and Bealuna spread like a ripple across the network.

  The tangible existence of the Seven Terrors — the revelation that they could be confronted, perhaps even overcome — and the fact that Dante Montenegro, a newcomer, had been the first to defeat one of them…

  It changed everything.

  In seconds, thousands of survivors were left stunned.

  For the first time, Nullaria no longer seemed like an unavoidable sentence — but rather, a board that, however cruel, could be understood.

  And maybe… won.

  The information spread like wildfire, igniting hope, fear… and countless new theories.

  Before leaving Level 0, Dante decided to gather a few Lunar Fruits. He knew they would come in handy if trouble arose.

  Bealuna watched him with a mix of pride and respect. The boy was different.

  Few people she had met were so meticulous, so aware of everything even amid chaos. There was no need for words.

  Something inside her was beginning to change.

  Hours later, the Lapis Lazuli Forest faded behind them.

  They walked for a long while along a path that wound through hills of bluish-grey earth, as though the ground had absorbed part of the sky.

  As they ascended, the air grew drier; sparse vegetation gave way to an almost desert-like plateau bathed in a white, sunless light.

  Then, Dante spotted a road.

  Wide, empty, without markings or cars.

  Its cracked asphalt looked as though it hadn’t been used for centuries.

  To his right, it snaked between the hills, stretching far into the horizon.

  To his left, the land sloped downward — more arid, almost desert — where the remains of rusted structures stood, eroded endlessly by the wind.

  — And that way? — asked Dante, pointing towards the left side of the road.

  Bealuna squinted.

  — I don’t know. I’ve never joined a mission that took me there. We’ll head to the right.

  They walked for nearly two hours along the silent highway, using the time to share mundane stories.

  There was a strange sweetness in every memory — a side effect of eating Lunar Fruits.

  Bealuna mentioned that what she missed most about Earth was a good pizza.

  Dante smiled, pointing out that Nullaria was full of strange objects, yet some reminded him of things from the old world.

  — Like this — he said, showing his half-eaten Lunar Fruit.

  Bealuna laughed, remarking how strange those fruits were.

  — It’s like eating an orange… or a tangerine — she said, staring at its glowing pulp.

  — I hate tangerines with all my soul — Dante replied with mock seriousness.

  Bealuna gave him an amused look.

  — And you tell me that while eating something that tastes exactly like a tangerine?

  — My mind still refuses to categorise it — he said solemnly. — I’d rather live in that ignorance, so we’re not talking about it again.

  Bealuna’s laughter echoed down the empty road.

  Dante added that the tangerine taste only appeared after eating too many Lunar Fruits.

  Bealuna chuckled softly.

  — It’s just funny to me that someone could hate tangerines.

  Dante shrugged, slightly embarrassed.

  Bealuna smiled — but her expression changed when she looked ahead.

  — Looks like we’ve finally arrived — she said quietly.

  Before them yawned the dark mouth of a tunnel.

  Enormous — as though a mountain had been devoured from the inside.

  To one side, rusted and caked with grey dust, hung a crooked metal sign.

  Faded red paint still spelled out the words:

  “ENTRY FORBIDDEN OUTSIDE OF NOON. NO EXCEPTIONS.”

  Dante read it aloud.

  — What does that mean? — he asked, turning to Bealuna.

  She took a breath and began to speak, as if she knew she was about to tell a long story.

  — When I arrived in Nullaria, I fell into Level -1. A labyrinth of endless staircases. Everything was stairs, twisting in impossible directions. It’s easy to lose yourself there… but I had an advantage.

  The rune of Good Fortune was a blessing. It guided me. I could see a sort of golden aura over the right staircase, as if telling me where to go.

  — How long were you trapped there? —asked Dante.

  — A few minutes. Maybe less. I found a red door, and when I opened it… I appeared in Level 101. And that’s where I met the Red Wolf.

  Dante remarked that Bealuna having started in Level -1 said a lot about her actions in life.

  Bealuna nodded thoughtfully.

  — I suppose so… — she said with a bitter grimace. — I often had suicidal thoughts… or thought about poisoning my ex. I guess that’s why I fell there instead of Level 1. My soul’s evaluation wasn’t as noble as I hoped, after all.

  — Red Wolf is the camp set up in this level, right? — asked Dante, trying to change the subject.

  —Yes, — replied Bealuna, returning to her thread, — although there are factions in many levels, some friendlier than others. Red Wolf welcomed me kindly. They’d built a settlement in an area called the Neighbourhood of Echoes. A very peculiar place. Beautiful houses, perfectly preserved, lined along a road. Everything… too perfect.

  She paused.

  — And yet, the houses weren’t empty.

  Dante raised an eyebrow.

  — But… wait, what does all that have to do with this sign?

  Bealuna smiled, a little embarrassed.

  — Sorry, I went off on a tangent. It’s all connected to this sign.

  She chuckled softly.

  — This tunnel lies right at the entrance of the neighbourhood. For a long time, no one who went in ever came back. They said it was a dimensional trap, that the tunnel swallowed you. When I arrived, I saw a greenish energy barrier. It didn’t stop me from entering, but… it suggested I shouldn’t. As if my rune was warning me.

  — And you crossed anyway? — asked Dante.

  — No. But one day… exactly at noon, the barrier vanished. I felt it… like permission. I crossed. Walked for an hour without seeing anything strange: a road tunnel, lit by dusty lamps every few metres. No creatures, no distortions. Nothing.

  And at the end, I reached this point — the outskirts of the Lapis Lazuli Forest. That’s how I found Eden Camp.

  Dante nodded slowly.

  — Do you think the tunnel changes levels depending on the time of day?

  — It’s possible — answered Bealuna —. I think outside of noon… it belongs to something else. Maybe to a negative level. Maybe to something worse. But exactly at noon… it seems to act as a safe nexus between Level 0 and Level 101.

  — And that’s why you decided to put up this sign.

  — Exactly. I couldn’t just stand by. I had to warn others.

  She paused, lowering her voice.

  — All this made me wonder about the true purpose of the runes… Are they meant for one of us to escape alone from Nullaria, or to unite them together and succeed as one?

  Silence hung between them for a few seconds.

  Bealuna said it as a simple reflection, but it sent a shiver through Dante.

  That thought had never appeared in any of his past regressions. This was a new variable. A small one.

  — What if that’s the true function of the runes…? — he murmured, almost to himself.

  — The strange thing — she continued — is that I placed this sign only a few days ago… yet it looks like it’s been here for centuries.

  She glanced at the rusted metal.

  — It’s as if time flows differently between the levels.

  The comment brought Dante back to himself.

  — Is it noon yet? — he asked, looking towards the tunnel entrance.

  To his eyes, there was only darkness. A normal, calm tunnel.

  Bealuna, however, could still see the greenish barrier she had mentioned. She shook her head.

  — Not yet. Just a bit longer.

  Dante sat on the asphalt and nodded towards her.

  — You mentioned the houses in the Neighbourhood of Echoes weren’t empty… who lives in them? — he asked, feigning curiosity.

  Bealuna folded her arms, gazing at the horizon.

  — Entities. They’re called Echoes. Reflections of humanity. Friendly, attentive… they offer you food, shelter. Some give you gifts, others just talk to you psychically.

  They’re always willing to converse — as long as you don’t ask them anything about the other levels or how to leave Nullaria. If you do, they shut down. Or ignore you.

  And if you attack them… they change. They distort. They become violent. As if an illusion had shattered.

  — That’s why Level 101 is classified as Survival Difficulty Class 1 — she added —: Tolerable. Hostility depends on you. If you’re cautious, you can live there without major problems.

  There are clear exit routes, like this tunnel… though some houses also hide portals or doors leading to other levels.

  Dante frowned, pretending surprise.

  In truth, he already knew all of this.

  Just as Bealuna was about to sit beside him, she noticed something in the air. Her expression shifted — first surprise, then calm.

  — It’s time… — she whispered —. The barrier’s gone.

  Dante stood, staring into the tunnel.

  Before them, the dark mouth awaited — silent, as if it had been waiting for that exact moment.

  The wind died. No sound. No birds. No echo of life.

  Without another word, they crossed the threshold.

  And the darkness swallowed them without a sound.

  They advanced in silence, the echo of their footsteps bouncing beneath the concrete vault.

  Every few metres, a dusty lamp flickered, bathing the walls in a sickly yellow light.

  No distortions. No entities. Only the sound of their breathing… and the growing sense that the tunnel stretched farther than it should.

  Halfway through, Dante stopped.

  Something blocked the path.

  A gelatinous, transparent mass, breathing slowly. Its edges clung to the ground, pulsing faintly, as if alive.

  Inside it, floating motionless, was a modern phone with a cracked screen.

  — What the hell is that gelatinous mass? — asked Dante, frowning.

  — Gelatinous mass? — Bealuna echoed, her face twisting in disgust —. I see a dark larva, covered in some yellowish slime… and it’s bleeding. It even has tiny eyes.

  Dante looked at her, puzzled.

  — Bleeding? I see something transparent… like jelly, with something floating inside its belly.

  Bealuna took a step back, visibly repulsed.

  — Maybe it’s perception — she muttered —. What we see depends on that. We might be looking at the same object… but through different frequencies.

  Dante let out a dry, humourless chuckle.

  — Frequencies, vibrations — whatever — he said, shrugging.

  He drew his rusted sword and plunged the blade into the gelatinous mass. The sound was thick, wet, almost organic. The phone inside fell to the ground with a damp plop, covered in viscous residue. Dante wiped it against his trousers, unbothered.

  A brief projection flickered in his retina, displaying the object’s description:

  [Mobile Phone — Simple Category]

  Grants the user the ability to communicate, as if via radio, with any level of Nullaria.

  Can record up to 30 seconds of video.

  Only two communication channels available: 1 and 2.

  Must be recharged at the end of the day.

  Dante raised an eyebrow.

  — A mobile phone —he murmured in mild surprise.

  Then he extended his hand, and at his command, his Dimensional Storage expanded before him — a floating holographic grid composed of hundreds of glowing squares. Some were empty; others held Lunar Fruits he had gathered from the Lapis Lazuli Forest.

  He kept them as reserves, in case he needed to recover energy or heal from wounds.

  He placed the phone among them and closed the inventory, which vanished with a faint shimmer.

  Bealuna stood frozen, watching him in horror.

  — Are you all right? — Dante asked, smiling awkwardly. — Did my ability shock you?

  Bealuna blinked several times before answering, her voice trembling.

  — I saw… blood. Guts. As if you’d gutted a living being without hesitation. And you — you just stood there.

  Dante shrugged.

  — Well, for me, it was just a jelly blob — he said, letting out a short laugh.

  Bealuna tried to compose herself as they walked on.

  — That phone… it’s from someone in the Red Wolf Camp — she finally said, lowering her voice —. We use those to communicate. We found them in the houses around the neighbourhood along with other useful objects. But they need recharging at the end of the day — or the cycle, I suppose. We never really know if twenty-four hours actually pass when we jump between levels. Time keeps changing across Nullaria’s dimensions.

  She paused.

  — The good thing is, they still work just like the ones from the real world. But this one… seems dead. Out of power. We’ll take it to Matilde, the camp’s leader. She might be able to get something out of it… or find out what happened here. If anyone entered outside noon, ignoring my warnings, they’re probably not alive anymore.

  Dante nodded silently. He vaguely remembered rumours about this tunnel — whispers that one of the Seven Terrors of Nullaria dwelled within it outside the hours of noon. He had never known if that was true… but the thought unsettled him more than he wanted to admit.

  Gradually, a dim light began to filter from the distance. The darkness of the tunnel receded.

  Soon after, they stepped outside.

  Before them stretched a perfectly symmetrical suburban neighbourhood: two-storey grey cottages, aligned like flawless copies. The gardens were pristine, the windows spotless, the mailboxes gleaming. In the distance stood an empty plaza, with a flagless pole and benches veiled in a thin mist.

  Both the sky and the scenery seemed drained of all vitality.

  — That’s the camp’s heart — said Bealuna, pointing towards the plaza —. Let’s head there.

  Dante nodded and gave one last glance at the tunnel before following her. His retina flickered with a line of text that appeared like an invisible mark in the air:

  [Level 101: Axis +X. Class 1 — Survival Difficulty: Tolerable]

  Occasional presence of non-aggressive entities.

  Dangers are minimal or easily avoidable.

  Hostility generally depends on human behaviour.

  Survival is possible with caution.

  Multiple identifiable exit routes exist.

  End of Chapter Six.

  Nullaria continue to unfold — the existence of its Lower, Middle, and Upper regions, and the strange technology that binds them through the Heart.

  Level 101 blurs the boundaries of space and time, showing that in Nullaria, even a simple road can be something else.

  tangerine. What seems trivial now will one day matter deeply; memory has its own way of marking what the soul must remember.

  — Alberto Baez