Eren steeled his heart and kept on walking. Renita's words were suddenly remembered by his disturbed psyche and calmed him down:
'Don't fear the reaper.'
The corridor opened up to a large hall that made Eren feel like his existence was only akin to that of dust. There were huge pillars that stood at equal distance. The runs on those plain-yet-intimidating pillars looked as if giant pythons had wrapped their bodies around them.
The hall's ambience was just enough for him to see a few meters ahead of him. The pillars were visible only because of the dim lights the runs inscribed over them were illuminating.
So Eren decided to spread his mana sense.
And regretted immediately.
A chill ran down Eren's spine. Then it doubled back and entered his brain– making his thoughts freeze in their tracks.
'Wh… what the fuck is that?'
Eren retracted his mana sense to avoid losing control over his body and thoughts. He had never felt anything close to something like this even in his past life when he was a D-Rank adventurer. And he had seen a lot. Felt a lot.
But apparently, it was not enough.
No event in his previous life could prepare him for this.
Because the first thing Eren felt with his mana sense was the erect skeleton of a 100-meter giant standing tall at one side of the hall.
'This… this sensation… it's beyond B-Rank. No. Fuck no. A? No.
I am a fucking fish in the pond. S-Rank? Yes. That must be it.
That giant skeleton belongs to the S-Rank entity.
It's dead and yet so intimidating. I… why did I come here?'
Eren froze in his tracks after he saw with his own eyes the giant's skeleton that stood without any support. It didn't have any clothes over it. Like it had been stripped of all its dignity. The skeleton's head was positioned towards the ground. As if it had been summoned at a parley after its defeat.
'This… this is not normal. I had heard about the myth of giants once. But to see the actual remains of a giant… that too that of an S-Rank entity. This is not normal by any standards.'
Eren concluded and pondered a bit as he stepped away. He had tried to maintain a sufficient distance. The mental pressure of being near an S-Rank entity's remains would kill him or more likely, make him a lunatic if he stays near it any longer than he did.
Eren felt fear beyond fear. And that feeling numbed his sense of danger. He felt so much fear in such a short time that his mind stopped processing the same emotion. That feeling of numbness became a boon as he hardened his resolve to continue exploring further.
'Maybe using mana sense in this place is a terrible idea.'
Eren thought and decided not to use mana sense at all. He kept on walking and found the skeletal remains of another giant.
Then another.
Then another.
'Six. Six giant skeletons. Is this a nightmare?'
Eren's skin turned red as he pinched himself hard. But what he thought to be a nightmare didn't end. He even tried testing the laws of the real world by touching his feet and kicking the ground. This was in an attempt to see if he was dragged into an illusion. But the tests confirmed that what was unfolding in front of his eyes was a reality.
'Even illusion spells can't pull off something like this. This… this stranger than reality place… exists in reality.'
Eren's body was covered in goosebumps as he concluded. He kept on replaying the visuals of the giants that he had seen with his eyes and was comparing them.
One giant had a missing femur. Others had a broken ribcage. One's skull had been badly fractured. But they all shared a few things. First, their bones had turned snowy white. This whiteness of bones wasn't natural. It was as if the skeletons had been subjected to acid baths. Second, their heads were positioned downwards.
'S-Rank entities like them not wearing any clothes post mortem? This… this is blatant desecration. It's as if…'
"Somebody's mocking them? Yes, boy. You are right. I'm mocking them. I killed them after all."
Eren felt like his soul had left his body and he was having an out of body experience. His senses got overwhelmed and his body erupted into spasms. But his psyche made him feel like he was still standing. In front of an endless starry sky.
Eren's body started vomiting all that he had left without him being aware of it. His muscles atrophied. And his heart rate increased to abnormal levels. His mana circuits had already gone haywire. And his mana core would burst in a few moments if things didn't change.
"Hmm? Oh! Forgive me, boy. I'm not used to having visitors."
The voice spoke. But Eren couldn't hear it because of all the white noise his brain was processing. But something happened to his body soon after the voice spoke. It was wrapped in something mana-like, which stopped the spasms.
Eren's brain was still a bit slow to return to normal. But his heart started lowering its beats at a steady pace. What was beating like war drums were slowly quieting down as if to indicate the end of the army procession.
It took a while for Eren's body to return to normal along with his psyche. He didn't think he would ever forget this feeling ever again. This was the feeling of absolute worthlessness in front of someone who had everything. This was the feeling of having nothing and standing in front of someone who had everything.
Every feat he had achieved so far. Each of his exceptional performances. His every accomplishment since he was brought back in time. They all seemed worthless and laughable in front of this presence. He felt like killing himself for even daring to compare himself with this presence.
Eren knew he wasn't like this. He would rather die than feel inferior in front of somebody like this. He already had his share of pain in the past. Normally, he wouldn't be willing to throw his self-esteem away like this.
And yet. This feeling felt natural. Like that of an instinct. Eren fighting this feeling in his head and making his existence larger than what he felt at the time was what his psyche considered as unnatural at the time.
"Are you okay now?"
The voice asked plainly. Eren would have said no. But alas! Only if he could hear, understand, and speak at this moment.
