[Host, it should be time already. Prepare yourself. We are about to be sent to the world.]
Aster nodded and waited until magical runes began forming beneath his feet.
Energy enveloped his body, and in a trail of light, he disappeared from that place.
When he arrived at his destination, his feet touched the grass slowly and gently.
Then, as if it had been waiting for this exact moment, a screen appeared before him.
[REQUIREMENTS MET!]
[BEGINNING INTEGRATION WITH THE LORD AUXILIARY SYSTEM]
[WARNING!]
[AN INDEPENDENT SUPERIOR SYSTEM HAS BEEN DETECTED WITHIN INDIVIDUAL ASTER]
[WOULD YOU LIKE TO INTEGRATE THE LORDS’ SYSTEM WITH SYSTEM ######### ######?]
Aster looked at the system messages and tilted his head.
"Guide... what is this about?"
"Is it talking about you?"
[No, Host!]
[I am not classified as a system. I am more like an administrator within you.]
"Then what is this superior system that the system is talking about?"
’When did I get something like this?’
’I don’t remember receiving anything like it... where did this come from?’
I wondered to myself.
[This is the gift I mentioned before we arrived.]
[The tool that would be of great help on your journey.]
"Is that it? But who gave this to me? It certainly wasn’t you... correct?"
[The one who gave this to you is the one who brought you life and gave you your purpose...]
[That is all I can tell you. Now accept it. It will be something good for you.]
[You will like it.]
"Alright... I guess."
Seeing no reason to refuse, Aster accepted the request.
[CONFIRMED!]
[YOUR SYSTEMS WILL BE INTEGRATED AND EVOLVED TO BECOME MORE CONVENIENT.]
[WARNING!]
[A THIRD ELEMENT IS ATTEMPTING TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SYSTEM INTEGRATION.]
[CONFIRMING AUTHORITY TO PROCEED WITH THE INTEGRATION.]
[AUTHORITY CONFIRMED.]
[INITIATING SYNTHESIS OF SYSTEMS + UNIDENTIFIED ELEMENT.]
"Guide, what is this thing trying to participate in the integration?"
[I’m not a "thing." I am the one integrating myself so that everything can become one... don’t worry.]
The Guide replied, somewhat offended at being called a thing.
"Sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. Haha."
Aster replied awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.
[PROGRESS IN PROCESS...]
[10 MINUTES UNTIL SYNTHESIS IS COMPLETE.]
[MEANWHILE, YOUR SYSTEMS WILL REMAIN INACTIVE. PLEASE WAIT.]
The message appeared before me, displaying the remaining time.
"Well... what am I supposed to do while I wait?"
I began looking around.
I had just arrived and had been so focused on the system that I hadn’t paid attention to my surroundings...
A small mistake.
"I have room for improvement."
I muttered.
Arriving in an unknown location and failing to analyze my surroundings was a mistake I shouldn’t make again.
I couldn’t see anything beyond them.
I turned my attention behind me.
There was a small altar, quite similar to the one in the greenhouse where I had been earlier.
But there was one clear difference.
A silver-colored crystal stood upon the pedestal.
It was much larger than the previous one, standing at least one meter tall.
"What could this be?"
"Is it the same as the other one?"
I asked myself as I walked toward it.
It was quite close, so I only needed a few steps to reach it.
I walked around it, carefully analyzing it.
Besides its size and color, I could also sense something different about this crystal.
"This one contains mana..."
I could feel faint, constant pulses.
"I couldn’t feel anything from the other one. Maybe I didn’t inspect it properly after my body began containing mana... perhaps that’s why."
I stared at the crystal for several minutes while thinking.
’Should I touch it?’
But I quickly abandoned the idea, afraid that something might go wrong.
"Better to wait until my system is ready."
I activated the screen again.
[7 M 30 SECONDS...]
"There’s still time."
I looked around again.
Now, I could feel the mana in the air.
I took a deep breath and felt the energy enter my body and spread throughout it.
It didn’t seem harmful.
In fact, it was constantly settling into my body and making me feel good.
Seeing that everything was fine, I returned my attention to my surroundings and then looked upward.
That’s when I saw something that made my eyes narrow.
In every direction across the sky, something was glowing faintly with a translucent blue light.
That light covered the entire sky above my head.
It was beautiful, even though I had no idea what it was.
I knew I wouldn’t get an answer for now, so I simply shrugged.
"Whatever. Let’s just wait until the time is up."
I returned to the edge of the altar and sat down while thinking.
’I’m anxious...’
’So many new things are happening to me, and there’s still so much more to come. It makes me excited.’
’My life before wasn’t bad, despite the circumstances... but it was too normal.’
’It was work and home every single day.’
’My only happiness was coming home and finding her...’
"Jasmine..."
I murmured her name with a bitter taste in my mouth.
I wasn’t going to lie.
I missed her.
Her warmth, her presence, and the affection she gave me.
"Ahhh... I wish she were here with me right now."
I rubbed my face, feeling somewhat melancholic.
After some more time passed, only ten seconds remained until the process was complete.
"I wonder what I’ll get."
Pushing that gloomy moment aside, I stood up and waited for the end.
[4 SECONDS]
[3 SECONDS]
[2 SECONDS]
[1 SECOND]
[SYNTHESIS COMPLETE!]
[YOUR INTEGRATION IS COMPLETE. YOU MAY NOW ACTIVATE AND INTERACT WITH THE "DIVINE SUMMONING SANCTUARY" SYSTEM.]
"Divine Summoning Sanctuary?"
I asked with my heart racing.
The word "Divine" alone told me that this wasn’t something ordinary.
It was something important.
[Would you like me to open the description for you?]
The Guide asked, sensing Aster’s excitement.
"Yes! Do it!"
His voice came out excitedly.
[? DIVINE SUMMONING SANCTUARY ?]
? With a fragment of the authority of #########, from the Lord auxiliary system designated by the Will of the Cosmos, and with the participation of the third individual, a truly divine miracle was born.
In addition to retaining all the functions of the previous system, the system has gained a new function: "Divine Summoning."
As your achievements are recorded by the system, Causality Points will become available. Their primary purpose is to be exchanged for innovations, raw materials, weapons, techniques, abilities, bloodlines, artifacts, structures, soldiers, workers, and, most importantly of all: deities who await their promised return by #########.
All innovations from the categories listed above will be catalogued according to the following ranks: E - D - C - B - A - S - SS - SSS - Mythical - Divine.
You must exchange your Causality Points for tickets:
Silver Tickets, which may contain ranks from E to C.
Gold Tickets, which may contain ranks from B to S.
Platinum Tickets, which may contain ranks from SS to Divine.
Each of these tickets has its own probability of obtaining each rank. The higher the available rank of a ticket, the lower the chance of obtaining it. ?
Aster spent some time reading everything.
With every line, his expression changed.
First, excitement.
Then disbelief.
And as he reached the final lines, something settled into his mind.
"Ahhh... this is fucking Gacha system."
He ran a hand over his face, unsure whether he should be happy about receiving something so unbelievable or sad after realizing a difficult truth.
"My luck is terrible..."
"Man, I’m ridiculously unlucky."
"Throughout my entire life, luck stayed far away from me, and now..."
"I’m going to need it more than ever."
A Gacha system.
With the luck he had, Aster had his reservations.
Maybe luck itself hated him for never coming anywhere near him.
’There’s nothing I can do about it.’
But then, as if to cheer him up, another message appeared, bringing joy back to him along with a considerable amount of excitement.
[You possess a starter assistance package, guaranteed by ######### itself as its final gift.]
? With this package, you will have one Divine Summoning + 1 Gold Troop Ticket + 10 Silver Troop Tickets + 5 Silver Worker Tickets + 10 Silver Raw Material Tickets.
In addition, you may use the filtering service for the Divine Summoning, allowing you to choose the characteristics you seek in the summon. ?
"Fuck... hahahahah, now we’re talking!"
"Looks like Miss Luck heard my prayers."
Aster shouted so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the forest.
"Miss Luck... I promise..."
Aster paused, looking toward the sky with shining eyes.
"I’ll never complain about you again... my friend."