"Adonis? So he did do his 'inventor dreamer' crap here." His heart raced as he imagined what Adonis could have possibly been doing in the five years he was gone from their world.
'Well, at least I know what he did in the beginning now.' He shakes his head. "How are you always so close but so far? I just...I just don't understand." He unwillingly cracks, water rapidly running out of his eyes.
"This is your fault, Adonis. Making me think about you still. I swear I will find you," he says through tears. He wipes his face so he can see the screen again, and looks at the tabs.
'Hmmm, [Quests] or [Inventory]?' He plays a game of eeny-meeny-miny-moe, and lands on [Inventory]. He sees a multitude of black boxes divided into three rows and three columns by neon blue intersections.
[Looks like you're having a bit of trouble storing things Adrian! Dont worry. (✿◠‿◠)]
"So...how do I use it?"
No response.
He grabs the bronze Vulo and pushes into at a box, but it goes straight through, spinning on the floor.
"Is it..." He sighed. "I guarantee it is. Store this." Adrian holds out a silver Vulo, and just like that it evaporates as a swirl of dark blue and cyan digitized particles, and the next second it's in a tiny box in the system. He repeats the process for the multiple gold Vulos he had stored, and finishes with the tiny bronze Vulo.
"So...it's just like ARLIFE's. Say 'store this' and it pockets the digital items you earned. This seems to work with everything. Hm. Did Adonis have a part in this?" He cracks an involuntary grin, and looks back at the inventory. All of the Vulos entered in one singular storage slot.
┌────────────┐
│Vulos (Bx1 Sx1 Gx1 ....
├────────────┼
He glances at the bottom of the screen.
[Every similar item gets packaged together! Pretty neat, eh?ヽ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ]
"Yeah...pretty neat indeed." He chortles, and rubs his chin. He glances at the new sword next to him, and notices a question mark floating above it. He stares at it for a couple of seconds, and then—
[Item: Duskscale
Class: Weapon
Type: Blade (Longsword)
Rarity: Uncommon
Rank: C
Weight Class: Medium
Previous Owner: Gath Sageward]
Passive Ability—>[Veil Sight]
[While unsheathed, any entity within a short visual range are assigned with a colored aura[1], corresponding to their threat level.]
[Once wielded by a young man who aspired for greatness, this blade tears the veil that shrouds strength.]
An ominous stat was displayed under the blurb.
[0/50]
Adrian's brows rose at the sight of the passive. Suddenly, the mildew didn't seem so intense!
"Interesting...this is getting more and more like a game." He palms his face as he ponders about the use of this ability. Immediately, he cracks a smug grin.
"This combined with that mysterious skill...I could win in seconds against foes that are basic enough!" An evil cackle escaped him, and he froze. 'Yikes. That sounded like some sort of villain's laugh.' He sighed as he clicked on the [Quests] tab.
[Side Quest: Repay The Old Man's Favor...Complete!✅]
[You awoke the Sanctuary, allowing for complete protection!]
[Reward: Skills Tab]
"Jeez, what is this? Some sort of clicking simulator?" Adrian taps the new glowing icon, and is treated to a scroll mechanic, plus one singular ability.
[Skill: Beginner's Instinct]
Type: Automatic
Duration: 5 Seconds
Cooldown: 1 Hour
Status: Ready
[In moments of disastrous peril, a latent energy surfaces—movements that are not your own, yet deeply familiar. For a brief window, survival overrides all else. You move with a borrowed clarity, striking as if you've done it a thousand times before.]
"So that's what happened earlier. It's all coming together, I think." He deposits the sword in the inventory as well.
He rubs his eyes, and thinks about the time. There is some distant murmurs, and a very distinct odor nearby.
Bread is being ate somewhere close.
His stomach doesn't even twitch with hunger, even after the heavily exhausting actions of today.
"Why am I not hungry?" He paces back in forth in front of the hay, and the system responds—as if it is some sort of assistant listening at all times.
[You don't have to eat! You're welcome. ¬‿¬]
[I suppose you could, but you don't have to, at all.]
He rubs his chin. 'Hm. Ok, I guess. There goes my plans of mukbanging. Goodbye, fame.' He shakes his head, stifling a chuckle at himself.
The laughter soon faded, and he settled into his cursed bed.
***
Adrian steps out of the doorway, a nice evening air breezing past him with ease. He treads the gravel, and makes his way to Gath's office. The door was a simple polished wood, and he knocks for the first time.
"Come in," rings a wise elderly voice from the other side.
The study smelled of rustic broken relics, and old vintage parchment. Paintings galore of what could only be the kingdom was hung around the room, Adrian now realizes.
"Welcome, my boy. What do you need on this fine evening?" He raps his finger on the desk idly.
"Gath, I'm looking for more info on Adonis—er—the Great Architect. Do you know anything?"
Gath's eyelids shrink back, and the door closes behind Adrian as he finds a seat.
"Why...I don't know much. But I can tell you one thing. If you truly wish to find more on the Great Architect, your best bet is the chapel in Haben, the pride of the kingdom. It's where everyone mingles for any sort of goods." Gath strokes his beard, and Adrian's brows furrow.
"In fact, it's actually our capital, and where the royal family lives!" He wags the finger on his hand. "You know, I heard their daughter has grown up to be exceptional! Hoho, I remember her as a little ol' baby..."
He continues to go on and on about his memories, and Adrian knows that he now has his new goal.
Trek to Haben, the haven of the continent, and find any traces of his brother.
[1] Persona ahh