One massive crimson orb passed overhead slowly, large enough to resemble a moon, and the galaxy spinning inside it wasn’t stable at all. Entire star systems inside it continuously exploded and reformed over and over again while black cracks spread through its spiral.
Lyrate looked up at it nervously. "Please tell me nobody actually picked that thing."
The old man smiled pleasantly. "Someone did."
"That is deeply concerning."
Another orb floated nearby afterward, this one smaller and silver in color, and unlike the others, the galaxy inside it moved in reverse, stars rotating backward while time itself seemed distorted around its surface.
I stared at it quietly before asking, "What happens if someone chooses one?"
The old man folded his hands behind his back calmly as we walked.
"That depends entirely on what rests within."
"Which is?"
"A law. A weapon. An inheritance. A civilization. A dead god. A living one. A prison. Knowledge." He glanced toward me briefly. "Sometimes even a mistake."
I immediately stopped walking. "Excuse me?"
The old man ignored me completely and continued forward. The deeper we moved into the treasury, the stranger the orbs became.
Some whispered faintly as they drifted past. Some distorted space around themselves.
One orb was completely dark except for a single crimson star burning at its center, yet the pressure leaking from it was so immense that even my restored soul instinctively reacted to it.
And through all of it, we still couldn’t see what was actually inside any of them.
Only fragments.
Hints.
Possibilities hidden behind spinning galaxies and layers of restriction.
The treasury itself felt alive in a strange way, almost aware of us walking through it while countless glowing orbs slowly drifted around the endless cosmic void.
Then finally the old man stopped.
Ahead of us floated three pathways splitting apart from the crystal road beneath our feet, each leading deeper into different sections of the treasury where even larger orbs waited in the darkness.
The old man turned toward us with the same calm smile as before.
"Now then," he said pleasantly, "shall we see what the treasury wishes to offer you?"
I looked at him for a moment before asking, "What do you mean wishes to offer us?"
The old man folded his hands behind his back calmly.
"Can we not simply ask for what we want?" I continued.
A small smile appeared beneath his beard. "No."
Knight looked disappointed immediately. "That sounds unfair."
"The Crimson Treasury does not operate like a marketplace," the old man replied. "You do not enter here and make demands." His dark green eyes shifted toward the drifting orbs around us. "The treasury decides what you need."
"What I need is what I’ll ask for," I replied calmly.
The old man chuckled softly at that. "Most who arrive here think similarly." He gestured lightly toward the infinite void around us. "Do not worry. The treasury knows your deepest desires... and even the desires you do not fully understand yourself."
"That sounds invasive," I muttered.
"It is efficient," the old man corrected.
Lyrate crossed her arms while looking toward the three pathways ahead of us. "So what exactly happens now?"
"All three of you may choose a path," the old man replied. "The treasury will guide each of you toward possibilities aligned with your existence."
Knight stared at the pathways quietly for a moment before stepping forward slightly.
"I don’t wish for anything."
I immediately looked toward him. "That is the biggest lie you’ve said so far."
He ignored me and continued looking at the old man. "Is it possible to give my selection to someone else?"
The old man raised an eyebrow slightly. "It is."
"Then give mine to Billion."
The old man studied him carefully before nodding once. "Very well."
Then his gaze shifted past me toward Lyrate.
"What about you?"
"Me too. I do not need anything, give it to Billion."
The old man nodded and snapped his finger. The three paths ahead of us moved and merged to form one wider path. His eyes met mine again.
"You may proceed inside," he said calmly. "These two will remain with me for now."
I looked at both of them and nodded.
There was no need for thanks between us. I understood why they did what they did.
I looked at the old man again before asking, "Do you have any advice?"
"No advice," he replied. "But I can provide clarification."
I waited.
"Based on your accomplishments, the divinity you gathered, and the level of the key you provided," he said while glancing briefly toward the crimson key still glowing faintly in his hand, "you possess several possibilities within the treasury."
The drifting orbs around us continued moving silently through the void while he spoke.
"You may choose one truly great treasure," he continued, "or multiple smaller treasures. In some cases, a balance between medium-ranked selections becomes possible as well."
I frowned slightly. "And how exactly am I supposed to know what counts as big, medium, or small?"
The old man smiled faintly.
"That is determined by many things."
"Such as?"
"The strength of the treasure itself. Its long-term potential. Whether it is a single-use object or something capable of evolving alongside you." His expression became slightly more serious afterward. "And perhaps most importantly... how dangerous it may allow you to become for the rest of existence."
Knight let out a low whistle beside me. "Go for that one."
The old man ignored him completely.
"There are treasures within this place," he continued calmly, "that should never belong to someone incapable of carrying them properly."
I looked directly at him. "And how do you determine whether someone is worthy?"
"Based on everything you have done throughout your life."
The drifting galaxies around us seemed slower suddenly.
"And based on everything you may still do in the future."
I narrowed my eyes slightly at that. "So you can see the future."
"I cannot," the old man replied.
Then he looked toward the endless treasury around us.
"But the treasury can."
I had several more questions immediately rise in my mind, but before I could ask any of them, the old man simply raised a hand calmly.
"Enough questions."
The pathway ahead of us began glowing faintly.
"You should proceed now."