5

"It's one of the easiest trials, but it is still hard since it includes your personal experience, and the situation of where you live can influence it such as Lunethora. Lunethora's environment has shaped your life and others you know drastically, and this card will use those conditions to influence your trial," the mysterious man explained after he saw the confusion on Jacob's face.

The mysterious man snapped his fingers, and the garden surrounding them started slowly disappearing, like a mirage. The surroundings changed into a small village with dead grass and cracked cobblestones below their feet. Children walked around with poorly maintained clothes and spots of dirt on their faces, some looking very malnourished. They looked too tired to move, but they had to if they wanted to find any leftover scraps that they could eat. The adults around them looked no better; there were barely any elderly people seen, probably because they died from starvation, and the ones that didn't probably aren't far behind. The adults that were alive were barely over 40 years old.

The mysterious man's face was oddly indifferent to these people's current states; his eyes showed that his indifference wasn't caused by a lack of emotion but like he has seen this enough to where he doesn't show a reaction to it. He then turned his head to Jacob. "Recognize this place?" He asked rhetorically; his question snapped Jacob out of his stupor. His eyes welled up; he realized where he was. "Home! I'm finally home!" Jacob yelled. He looked at the people and recognized most of them; his eyes lit up as he saw his friend Leo walking by. He started walking towards Leo and called out to him."Leo! You don't know how glad it is to see you right now… Leo?" The mysterious man not bothering to stop Jacob instead pulled out his book and started reading; the villagers didn't even seem to notice the mysterious man standing out in the open nor Jacob yelling out Leon's name.

Jacob frowned as he saw that Leo didn't stop to respond. Jacob stood in the center of the village; he observed the villagers around him; they just kept walking past him not even bothering to give him a glance. He turned around and saw Leo again He tried to get his attention once more by calling out his name and being in front of him this time. "Leo it's me Jacob, why were you ignoring me earlier?" Leo didn't respond but kept walking towards Jacob like he wasn't there. Jacob was starting to get annoyed at Leo ignoring him for the second time. "Leo, what is going on with—" before Jacob could finish his sentence, he saw his own body turning transparent as Leo suddenly went through him. "What is going on!?" Jacob asked as he saw his body turn back to normal after a few seconds of being intangible.

He looked at the villagers and noticed that they appeared to be moving in a barely noticeable pattern and it seemed to be in a loop as he saw Leo again where he was earlier doing the same pattern. The mysterious man put his attention away from the book and looked at Jacob with the same expression as earlier. "I don't know." He then put his attention back to the book leaving Jacob to their own devices, Jacob started getting frustrated from how he seems to be lead around his nose "first it was finding out i died, going through a mental breakdown after the fact, then being told i can come back to life instead I have been pulled into this illusion and this mysterious man who i still don't know the name of or what he is besides being a gardener for Deaths garden whatever that is supposed to mean since why the hells does Death have a garden! Isn't Death realm supposed to be a land of …death?" Jacob said before smoke started coming off of Jacob's body, the sound of fire crackling, he looked at the mysterious man who was still reading his book, he started walking towards him wanting actual answers, he arrived in front of him as the smoke started turning into flames, he pointed at the mysterious man who didn't bother to look at him "i am not in the mood for this mysterious or whatever it is involved with this trial, just bring me home! I want to go home!" He was about to grab the mysterious man's collar but then heard a voice that sent shivers down his spine "this place is so depressing, no wonder we made that deal with Zyl" it was his own voice talking behind him but it sounded more raspy but it was his voice nonetheless, he turned around and saw it was himself but one half was covered in burns with some pieces of bone sticking out, the other side looked normal which would be the only way he could tell it was himself besides the voice

"who are you?"