Chapter 127: Horizon
The message on my HUD is the first mention of the Codex since I entered this world. After giving me my class, it went dark. Silent for months.
Not anymore.
[The Aion Codex (Hope) has accepted the offered item.]
[Chaos Theory — Marked by the Tide Activated — Blessing Triggered]
Below those, a line of glitched text, flickering, screaming red across my vision:
[Firewall Activated]
Firewall? What the hell is that?
No explanation. No tooltip. Just two words and static.
But the Chaos Theory flagging a blessing means something good came out of this.
It better have. I almost died.
I look at the armor on the table. My heart is beating faster than it should be for a man standing still.
I reach for it. Hesitate.
"Go on, kid. It’s all yours." Elisser’s voice, steady again.
I activate [LINK] and touch the mesh.
[Name: Horizon]
[Rank: C — Modular / Growth]
[Type: Armor Set (Dark Leather Blood Alloy)]
[Durability: User’s OXI]
[Absorbs 15% of impact, slashing, and piercing damage.]
[LORE]:
"The horizon is not a promise of arrival; it is a threat. It is the infinite line that divides what you were willing to sacrifice from what you have already lost. They mixed blood and iron hoping for tomorrow. You wear this to survive today." [Passive: Blood-Scale Resonance]The dark leather of this armor was treated with a blood alloy that remains alive and reactive to the wearer’s soul. It was not made merely to absorb damage, but to assimilate power. By directly infusing Scales into the material, the armor rewrites its own density and the anatomy of the wearer. If the attribute has evolved, the armor will update the amount.
[Components & Physical Evolution]:Each piece of the Horizon set responds individually to Scale infusion, forcing a direct physical enhancement on the wearer through symbiosis with Class and Blood Alloy.
Horizon Chestguard — The core of the blood alloy. Feeding this piece thickens the leather density over vital organs, fusing armor resistance directly to the user’s body.
Enhancement: increases Vitality (VIT).
[0 / 25,000] — Attribute Rank D → C.
—-----
Horizon Treads — The weight of survival sits in the legs. Infusing Scales into the synthetic joints contracts the leather, acting as artificial muscles that reduce air resistance and optimize traction.
Enhancement: increases Agility (AGI).
[0 / 25,000] — Attribute Rank D → C.
—-----
Horizon Gauntlets — Where the dark leather meets the bloodied metal of the joints. The alloy compresses around the user’s actual tendons, acting as hydraulic pistons during impact.
Enhancement: increases Strength (STR).
[0 / 25,000] — Attribute Rank D → C.
—-----
Horizon Cowl — Protects the cranial nerves and the neck. The metallic blood of the alloy passively stimulates the user’s cortex when fed, filtering useless noise from the battlefield.
Enhancement: increases Spirit (SPR).
[0 / 25,000] — Attribute Rank D → C.
[Hidden Passive]Evolving all pieces automatically raises the armor’s overall Rank.
[Hidden Passive] — ERROR — Insufficient Rank.
A chill runs down my spine just from reading it.
A modular growth armor fueled by Scales. Tons of Scales. Upgrading one piece raises the corresponding stat. Upgrade all four, and the whole set levels up. And Scales are the one thing Lost Ark has mountains of. Boris said so himself—stockpiled, useless to them, gathering dust.
Not useless anymore.
This is insane.
And the hidden passive at the bottom—ERROR, Insufficient Rank—means there’s another layer I can’t even see yet. Something locked behind whatever rank threshold the system decided I’m too low to access.
"May I?" I ask Elisser.
"Go ahead."
I start undressing right there. I don’t care who’s watching—I want this armor on me now.
I strip my top layer off and catch Rhayne’s face going red in my peripheral. She claps a hand over Lola’s eyes, but her own stay wide open.
Boris clears his throat with a deliberate cough and steps into the girls’ line of sight, spreading his cape wide like a curtain.
I don’t slow down.
Chestguard first—the leather settles against my ribs and I feel the blood alloy warm on contact, adjusting to my body heat.
Then treads. The synthetic joints click into place around my knees and ankles.
Gauntlets next—the metal compresses around my fingers and wrists, snug, alive.
Cowl last. It drapes over my neck and the back of my skull, and the moment it touches my skin, a low hum I can feel in my teeth starts and then stops.
Confirmation.
When it’s done, I check my profile.
Name:
Dryden Sands Rank: E (Shallow) — ★★☆☆☆☆
Class: Drifter — Order [SSS]
Class Type: Unique
[OXI: 975 / 1,600]
[ATTRIBUTES]
Strength: D (1★) [Horizon Set]
Agility: D (1★) [Horizon Set]
Vitality: D (1★) [Horizon Set]
Spirit: D (1★) [Horizon Set]
Wisdom: B (3★) [Retained from Memory]
The armor feels like my own skin. No weight. No drag. I roll my shoulders. Squat twice. Twist at the waist. Full range of motion in every joint.
Perfect.
"Well?" Elisser asks. She’s trying to keep her voice steady and failing.
"It’s phenomenal. It’s a growth-investment armor. If I have enough Scales, I can upgrade every stat on my body through the set alone."
I say it honestly. I give her exactly the reaction she’s been waiting for.
Elisser’s eyes fill. She wipes them fast with the back of her bandaged hand, once, hard, and then straightens up.
"Thank you," she says. "For the opportunity."
I look down at myself. The black alloy scales catch the firelight from the funeral pyre and throw back a wet crimson sheen. Dark armor lit by a fire built for the dead. There’s something poetic in that, and something about that feels right. Everything I wear in this life was paid for by the dead.
Lola wriggles free of Rhayne’s hand, looks me up and down, and says: "Wow."
Then she smiles.
Best compliment I could have gotten.
I turn to Boris.
"When’s Phase Two of the Red Tide?"
Boris shakes his head. "There won’t be one. The tower didn’t recall the monsters. No signal, no pull-back. They just... scattered."
"Why no Turtarex carcass?"
"The Turtarex ran. Took off on its own after it was wounded. Headed back toward the tower."
I look at Lola. At Rhayne. At Oliver.
All three nod.
"If there’s no Phase Two, then we’re heading to the tower tomorrow morning."
I look at Rhayne again, at her shoulder.
I can’t wait anymore.