“What about you, then?”
“The other Tarnished.”
“Are you willing to accept my accord?”
“Take me to the foot of the Erdtree. In return, I shall become your strength.”
Now these were the lines from the game.
The formal beginning of the deal.
Loran did not hesitate any longer.
Varré’s route had already been cut off. If he wanted to survive in this world and find a clue that might lead them home, increasing his strength was the only path forward.
He nodded.
The instant he did, he felt a connection form.
It was not physical contact.
Rather, it was a deep binding born from a contract of the soul.
In his vision, Melina’s status changed accordingly.
[Affection: 0 → +10]
[Status: Accord Reached / Evaluating / Slightly Curious]
“Very well.”
The corner of Melina’s mouth seemed to lift ever so slightly.
But the curve vanished almost immediately.
So quickly it might have been an illusion.
“Then please touch the Grace.”
Loran stepped forward as instructed.
Kiro reluctantly moved aside, muttering under her breath, “So even the idiot gets to level up now,” before retreating to one side and watching with her arms crossed.
When Loran’s fingers touched the Grace, the experience was no different from what Kiro had gone through moments earlier.
The familiar status panel unfolded inside his mind.
But this time, the panel was no longer something only he could see.
He could feel another gaze examining his data at the same time.
It was Melina’s gaze.
And yet—
The expected conversion of power did not immediately occur.
That gaze, calmly inspecting the data of his soul, passed over [Vigor: 10], [Mind: 10], [Endurance: 10]...
One ordinary starting stat after another.
Then it reached Intelligence.
And stopped dead.
[Intelligence: 99]
Once again—
The air froze.
If Varré’s earlier crash had been a sudden software failure, then Melina’s current reaction was more like an overload at the hardware level.
Loran could clearly feel it.
That calm, objective gaze had turned into a searchlight, scanning his 99 Intelligence over and over again, trying to verify whether this number was real.
In his vision, Melina’s panel began flickering wildly.
[Affection: +10 → +5]
[Affection: +5 → 0]
[Affection: 0 → -10]
[Status: Accord Conflict / Data Anomaly / Highly Guarded / Questioning]
The faint trust established by the accord vanished in an instant.
“...What is this?”
Melina’s voice lost its earlier steadiness.
“Your Intelligence... why?”
“What happened?”
Kiro, standing nearby, also noticed the strange atmosphere. She leaned in, looking from Loran to the grave-faced Melina.
“What’s wrong? Are his runes counterfeit or something?”
Loran ignored Kiro’s interruption.
He looked at Melina.
He knew he had to give her a reasonable explanation.
But how was he supposed to explain this?
Tell her that his Intelligence had actually overflowed by another thirty-seven points?
Tell her he came from another world?
Either answer would only make things worse.
Under Melina’s wary gaze, Loran slowly opened his mouth.
“I don’t know.”
“It was like this when I woke up.”
Melina stared at him silently, as if weighing the truth of his words.
The answer clearly did not dispel her doubts completely.
And yet, for some reason, the [-10] Affection above her head stopped falling after Loran said it.
[Status: Highly Guarded / Processing Information / Temporarily Shelved]
It seemed she had decided to set this anomaly aside for now and prioritize the terms of the accord.
“...Into what form of strength do you wish to convert your runes?”
Melina’s voice regained a little of its calm.
But the sense of distance in it was now even stronger than when they had first met.
“Intelligence,” Loran said firmly.
Melina became even more confused.
“Intelligence...?”
She murmured the word, as though confirming it.
Or questioning it.
“You are certain you wish to convert your runes into Intelligence?”
Loran did not waver.
His tone was decisive.
“Yes. Intelligence.”
He wanted to see what would happen when the value crossed the threshold again.
That pink Galgame UI lodged inside his mind—
Just how many unknown possibilities was it hiding?
In the void, golden text appeared once more.
[Severe Intelligence Overflow Detected.]
[The system offers the following correction methods:]
[Option 1: Redistribution.]
[Redistribute the 1 excess point beyond the maximum limit of 99 evenly among other base attributes.]
[Option 2: Conversion.]
[Convert the 1 excess Intelligence point into an unknown special ability.]
[Note: This process is irreversible. Ability generation is highly random and may include, but is not limited to, beneficial effects, harmful curses, or unpredictable structural changes affecting the user and surrounding environment.]
[Risk Level: Unknown.]
The corner of Loran’s mouth lifted slightly.
As expected.
Without the slightest hesitation, the finger in his mind pressed down on—
[Option 2: Conversion]
The pink Galgame interface inside Loran’s mind changed subtly.
In the lower-right corner of the interface, a brand-new icon lit up.
It was a gift box tied with a pink ribbon.
A delicate bow sat atop it.
Beneath the icon, written in the same elegant script, were two words:
[Gift Giving]
At the same time, a line of system text slowly slid across the top of the interface.
[New Feature Unlocked: Gift Giving System]
[Description: You may give “items” in your possession to targets within the coverage of the Affection System through the act of “gift giving.”]
[Rule 1: Different targets will react differently to different gifts. Giving a target a gift they like will greatly increase Affection. Giving a target a gift they dislike will greatly decrease Affection. Giving a target a gift they cannot understand or have no interest in may result in no change.]
[Rule 2: Certain special items, when given to specific targets, may trigger hidden events, unlock special abilities, or alter the worldline.]
[Rule 3: The act of “gift giving” itself is considered a friendly gesture. Whether or not the target accepts the gift, they will judge the action accordingly. Please choose the timing and recipient of your gifts carefully.]
He tapped the gift box icon.
A new interface popped open, split into two sections.
On the left was his inventory.
On the right was a list of available gift recipients.
At the moment, there was only one item in his inventory.
An item he did not even remember obtaining.
[Item Name: Faded Lilac]
[Type: Consumable]
[Description: A dried flower picked from some unknown place, long since deprived of all moisture and fragrance.]
[It seems to carry a forgotten memory, but now only its fragile shape remains.]
[Perhaps, to certain sentimental people, it may still hold some insignificant value.]