Atticus's Odyssey: Reincarnated Into A Playground-Chapter 1663: Harmonization

The blinding light dimmed, and Atticus found himself standing in an identical room, much like the one he had just left.

The difference, however, was the massive fog rising in the middle of the room, and instead of ten, only two orbs rested on the table.

Again, no instructions.

Atticus swept his gaze across the room for a moment, then shook his head and moved toward the fog.

It stretched across the entire length and breadth of the room, swallowing everything beyond it.

’Some kind of barrier.’

He studied it in silence, his eyes narrowing slightly. A strange urge to reach out and touch it crept into his mind.

He stopped himself and stepped back instead.

Though he could still call upon Solvath’s power, it gave him no real enhancement. Right now, he was effectively powerless. Even the slightest mistake could prove fatal.

After a few more seconds of observation, Atticus exhaled quietly and turned away, shifting his attention to the orbs on the table.

The first was white, radiating a soft but steady brilliance, while the second was pitch black, its surface wrapped in a faint, oppressive gloom.

’Light and darkness.’

They hovered close to one another, yet refused to merge. Atticus could sense a subtle vibration between them, a constant tension that pushed them apart.

’They’re different.’

Unlike the ten orbs from before, these energies were fundamentally opposed.

Atticus steadied his thoughts.

’Why?’ 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

As the question formed, the image of the previous orbs surfaced in his mind. Despite their differences in behavior, one detail stood out.

At their core, they had all shared the same nature.

Each orb was a different shade of red, each carrying distinct fiery properties.

’Then...’

Atticus’ gaze settled on the two orbs before him. Light and darkness. Two forces that stood in direct opposition.

’The nature of the energy determines how well they combine.’

As the thought settled, Atticus grew certain of what this test was about.

’Fusion.’

He closed his eyes briefly and exhaled. When they opened again, his world shifted into a deep purple hue.

Atticus narrowed his eyes at the orbs, more precisely, at the space between them. There, the two forces collided violently, scattering sparks into the air.

He extended his arm over one of the orbs and focused. It quivered for a brief moment before snapping firmly into his grasp. He repeated the same for the other.

Then, drawing in a slow breath, he began guiding both energies toward each other.

The closer they moved, the more violently the sparks flared, and the stronger the resistance became.

By the time they were an inch apart, a crushing pressure had already begun to bear down on his mind.

It felt as though the world itself was trying to tear the two energies away from his control. Atticus’ fingers tightened as he forced them forward.

The orbs trembled under the strain, inching closer.

’Almost...’

They met a moment later, and Atticus had just begun to release his breath when both orbs shuddered violently.

His eyes sharpened.

’What—’

Boom!

A violent explosion erupted, blasting him backward and hurling him straight into the fog with brutal force.

Thud.

Atticus slammed into the ground, pain surging through his body in a relentless wave.

"Shit..."

He coughed, a mouthful of blood spilling out. His gaze dropped to his arms, and his expression hardened. They were charred, blackened from the blast.

He had barely managed to raise his guard before the explosion hit him.

The damage was still severe, but it would have been far worse if it had met his head.

A flash of light pulled his attention back to the table. The two orbs had reappeared, hovering as if nothing had happened.

Drawing in deep, uneven breaths, Atticus forced himself up and dragged his body toward the wall, resting against it.

Most of the damage had been taken by his arms, and aside from the searing pain, he couldn’t sense any fractures.

"Heal me."

Nothing.

He focused, guiding Solvath’s energy through his body, willing it to mend the damage.

Only a faint warmth answered him. The wounds remained. The pain remained.

Atticus exhaled slowly, then lifted his gaze back to the orbs, replaying everything in his mind.

’What happened?’

He was meant to combine both energies, yet they had detonated the instant they made contact.

’Or... was I wrong?’

His eyes narrowed slightly as he studied them. A moment later, he shook his head slightly. No. There was no doubt. This was the task.

He raised his arm, and with a thought, Solvath’s energy flowed through him, condensing into two orbs hovering just above his palm.

’Harmony...’

He set them into motion, letting them revolve around each other as his thoughts deepened. The two orbs brushed against one another, then merged into a single, larger sphere.

Atticus’ eyes sharpened.

’I see.’

He had made a critical error. His purpose here was to harmonize, not simply fuse.

He had been focused on forcing the two energies together, completely overlooking that he was the one meant to make them coexist. Harmonize.

Turning the thought over once more, Atticus pushed himself back toward the table.

He grasped both orbs again, and steeled his mind. Then, without hesitation, he began drawing them together.

The pressure returned almost instantly, crashing down on his mind as the energies resisted. Atticus endured it, forcing them closer, inch by inch, until they hovered just short of contact.

His eyes sharpened.

’Now.’

He narrowed his focus on both energies, their structure, their nature. Every detail unfolded clearly within his mind.

They touched.

A violent surge flared from both orbs, but Atticus’ will pressed down on them, forcing the instability to settle.

Though an intense pain pounded through his head, he smiled. The energies had made contact, and neither had detonated.

Even so, they still flared up at intervals. Each time, Atticus tightened his control, forcing them back to balance.

Eventually, a colorless vortex formed before him as both energies finished fusing. The air around him surged toward it, sucked into its depths.

Atticus studied it for a moment, his teeth gritted.

’I can’t relax.’

Even after fusing both energies, he still had to exert effort to keep them from going unstable and detonating.

Atticus turned toward the fog and, with great effort, hurled the vortex at it. He watched as it vanished into the fog. A moment later, the fog began to thin. Slowly, it receded, unraveling as the vortex devoured it, until nothing remained.

The far end of the room came into view.

Atticus’ eyes immediately locked onto the door-sized blanket of light embedded in the wall.

His way out.

’I just have to deal with this first.’

Though the fog had been cleared, Atticus’ attention never left the vortex. One slip, and it would detonate.

He steadied his focus and began easing the pressure holding them together gradually, carefully suppressing every surge of instability from each energy.

Eventually, the two energies split apart violently, shooting off in opposite directions and slamming into the walls with force.

"Whew."

Atticus let out a long breath, exhausted. The strain on his mind had been overwhelming, and now that it was gone, he could still feel the aftermath. His thoughts felt sluggish, as though a dense weight pressed against them.

’I should rest.’

He made his way to the wall and lowered himself down.

He had no idea how many trials remained or what dangers lay ahead, and it was already clear the katana world wouldn’t offer him any form of recovery.

’Solvath...’

As he rested, his mind churned over everything he had learned so far.

...

After some time, once he had recovered enough to move, Atticus pushed himself back to his feet.

He still felt excruciating pain with every movement, but the pressure on his mind had lessened significantly.

A moment later, he approached the door and entered.

A flash of light, and then he appeared in another room. Unlike the last two, there were no tables or orbs of light. Instead, a blanket of whirling energies stretched across the center, dividing the space in two.

’They’re different.’

He could feel that there were multiple energies within it. They trembled and surged as if about to explode, yet remained perfectly fused.

Atticus could sense a faint danger lingering in the air around it.

Keeping his guard up, he moved closer to the barrier and observed it in silence.

First trial was about controlling multiple energies. Second was about harmonization. Then the last was...

Atticus’ eyes flickered faintly.

’Deharmonization.’

His gaze settled on the barrier, watching the countless energies twist and churn against one another. After a moment, he exhaled.

He would have to separate them all.