"So you have chosen your first treasure," he said. "Interesting. To think that your first pick would be the Cosmic Shadow System… how unfortunate."
Modret was exasperated at Noctis' words.
"Uh, is that supposed to be a bad thing?" he asked curiously.
Noctis hesitated for a moment, then shrugged.
"This treasure previously belonged to the Shadow God. He was one of the strongest gods, causing him to be one of the first targeted. I found this in the ruins where he was buried. My guess is that it's possibly just a useless treasure."
Modret's eyes widened slightly.
"You never tried testing it out?" he asked curiously. Perhaps Noctis didn't know the true value of this treasure.
Noctis replied, "Of course not. As a god I can't use the abilities of another god." Replying calmly, he waved off the topic.
Hearing this, a faint smile tugged at Modret's lips. It seemed he wasn't so unlucky.
'As expected of the treasure belonging to a god. Even one he considered to be 'trash' is priceless in my eyes,' Modret let out a breath.
No longer dwelling on the topic of the Cosmic Shadow System, he moved his thoughts toward the stars.
His gaze and hand hovered around the stars, hesitating.
In his eyes, all the lights were the same, there was no difference. They all emitted the same radiance, a brilliance that shone brightly, reflected in his eyes.
'How difficult,' Modret muttered with a frown, then moved his gaze toward the direction of a star not too far away.
'I select this one next.'
Noctis turned his gaze in the direction of the treasure Modret pointed at, a small smile forming on his lips.
"It seems your luck is off the charts. This is a unique bloodline," the god said with a chuckle.
Modret's eyes lit up. He thought he had gotten unlucky again.
"How unique a bloodline is it?" he asked curiously.
The god was silent for a moment before speaking.
"It's more terrifying than you expect. You will naturally explore its properties after reincarnating."
Modret rolled his eyes once more. Another mystery given.
It seemed, in the end, he wouldn't know anything about any of the treasures he would obtain. However, they would undoubtedly be useful to him—he could tell that much.
Modret didn't dwell on it and chose the next star after hesitating and contemplating for a few minutes.
He deliberated on his decision, knowing that he could only select seven treasures, and for every treasure he selected, there was one less slot.
Noctis glanced at the direction of the third star Modret chose, and a peculiar expression appeared on his face.
"Do I call you lucky or unlucky?" he smiled as he spoke.
"Uh… why's that?" Modret felt an uneasy feeling in his heart.
Just as he had guessed, he had wasted a slot…
"This treasure, if it can be considered such, is something I found in the celestial battlefield. The place had already become a void with everything destroyed in the battle, but only this singular rock remained floating in space."
"Perhaps it's useful, perhaps… it isn't… you can only leave it all to fate."
Modret felt a pang of regret in his heart. How frustrating. One slot had been wasted on a mere unique rock?
How could his luck be so bad?
There were countless stars gathered around, and out of them all, he could only select this?
He frowned slightly, then turned his attention back to the remaining treasures.
…
"Good, the seventh treasure you chose should be extremely useful. Now I'm relieved, as even if you end up not being able to save us with the seventh treasure, there is still a big silver lining in the sky."
Modret turned to look at the god in a daze.
"What just happened?" he gasped, stunned.
Noctis chuckled lightly, then waved his hand.
"Oh, that? I sealed the memories of the remaining four treasures. Your luck seems to have exploded, and every one of them is terrifying in its own right. In order for you not to be a target, I specifically sealed your memories. But with time, they will naturally awaken."
Modret squinted his eyes. Could that be so?
His voice was slightly low as he asked, "Could it be that I didn't choose anything at all?"
Modret found it hard to believe his luck could suddenly become good. It seemed the god was hiding some sort of secret.
Did they have a certain conversation pertaining to certain secrets of the world, causing the god to seal his memories?
Perhaps, using one of the treasures, he was able to realize a terrifying secret?
Modret felt he had touched upon the truth, but there was nothing he could do. The memories were sealed.
'Sigh, it's truly pitiful being a chess piece in the hands of others.'
Modret hated the feeling of invisible shackles surrounding him.
"Well, now it's time for your reincarnation," Noctis said plainly. The moment had finally arrived for Modret to head to the world he would be reborn in. A sense of anticipation welled within him.
"Uh, about that. Will I reincarnate with my memories intact?" he asked, raising his eyes slightly.
Noctis nodded. "Yes. In order for you to become stronger much faster, you will have your memories from the moment you are born."
"Born?" Modret was slightly surprised.
"Of course. What else does reincarnation mean?" Noctis chuckled. Changing the topic, he asked curiously, "Now decide what level of world you want to reincarnate into. You have ten seconds."
"What level of world?" Modret frowned slightly. "Are the levels similar to that in Celestial Descent?"
"Yes," Noctis replied.
Modret's frown deepened. Should he select a world that was average? Or of a weaker strength where he could dominate easily?
The decision weighed down on him, pressing against his chest.
He didn't even dare think of Hell's Sage, because to clear that level everyone had to die excluding the main character. It was truly hopeless to dream of surviving in such a world.
"Time's up. The decision has been chosen randomly for you." Suddenly, Noctis' voice cut through his thoughts.
Modret was in disbelief. He was sure that not enough time had passed. He was certain of it.
"You will reincarnate into Abyssal Sage level difficulty!" Noctis' voice seemed to carry a faint hum of amusement.
"What?" Modret widened his eyes, raising his gaze to meet Noctis'. How was this possible?
What sort of level was Abyssal Sage?
That had never existed in the game. At just Hell Sage level difficulty, he struggled, ultimately surviving with just himself, but now, Abyssal Sage? That was definitely a death sentence, right? Right???
Just then, Modret's vision blurred once more.
Noctis' eyes, which contained a playful hint of amusement, slowly blurred in his line of sight.
He could hear a few incomprehensible words being uttered from Noctis' lips.
Was it "try not to die"?
Was he telling him to entertain him well?
Modret felt as though he had fallen into some sort of scheme. But why him of all people?
Was there something special about him?
His thoughts were all submerged as his vision quietly darkened, and he felt a watery darkness press down on him on all sides.
It was suffocating, but he could see a light far off in the distance.
The light at the end of the tunnel!
It was reaching out to him, hoping, praying for him to grasp tightly onto it…
… and he did.
.
.
To be continued…
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