By simply manipulating the memory of the previous shop owner and making him believe that he had already seen Ash’s status window, Ash purchased the shop without any resistance, the process was smooth because the requirement of identity was fulfilled inside the owner’s perception.
And now here they were, after months had passed, they had finally blended in with the people of the realm, living among them without drawing unnecessary attention.
**
[Present]
Ash’s gaze remained fixed on the ceiling as he finished recalling everything that had happened in these months.
Unconsciously, the face of Elysia surfaced in his mind.
Where are you, Elysia...?
He had tried to find her, but failed, and in fact, he could not find anyone from the world of Akumia. Still, he knew that this was expected, because the realm was simply too vast for individuals to locate each other without a clear connection.
Even though he had decided to prioritize strength above love, he still wanted to confirm at least once that she was safe, because the last time he saw her...
Sigh....not again....
He stopped the thought there and pushed it aside, knowing that continuing it would only affect his judgment.
Shaking off these thoughts, he shifted his focus to what mattered now, yet even then, he found himself conflicted.
Should I use my knowledge to gain the Legendary stones?
But their value was not important for him. He already possessed what could be considered infinite potential, and as for evolution, he had already transformed into something beyond normal limits. He did not believe that such stones could push him further.
There were other Legendary stones that could be useful, but they were not worth pursuing.
Then should I clear the dungeons??
That option also lacked meaning. He was not connected to the Universal System, so even if he killed endlessly, he would gain nothing. As for the rewards from dungeons, he did not consider them valuable enough to matter.
What if I use the story of the game to my advantage??
He could.
But he did not want to.
Everything just feels like a trap to me now. First, I got transmigrated through a wish after clearing the game, then I appeared in the novel with knowledge of future events and runes. After that, because of my actions, the story changed so much that now I am standing in an environment that resembles the game itself...
That sequence did not feel natural.
Ash felt as if he was moving under observation, as if every decision he made was already expected.
If he moved forward, it was accounted for.
If he stepped back, that too might already be included.
Now he had the knowledge of the game again, and if he wanted, he could interfere.
But then what?
Would that not mean he was acting exactly as expected?
But what if by not interfering, I am doing exactly what that mysterious entity wants...?
That thought made the situation worse.
Ash remained there, unable to reach a clear answer.
Should he act, or should he not act?
These questions were plaguing his mind for months now, returning again and again no matter how much he tried to set them aside, never truly leaving him even when he forced himself to focus on something else.
While Ash was lost deep in his thoughts, suddenly he felt a distinct shudder within his Soul Space, a clear ripple that spread through it and instantly broke his chain of thinking.
Instantly an excited gleam of light passed through his eyes.
Snow is waking up....
Without wasting any time, Ash’s consciousness descended back into his Soul Vault, his focus sharpening in an instant as everything else became irrelevant.
At the same time, Eva’s projection also appeared in front of the sleeping body of Snow, her presence forming quietly as her eyes settled on the massive figure.
{She is about to wake up anytime.}
Eva muttered to Ash, her voice carrying a faint sense of anticipation as she observed the subtle changes happening around Snow.
"Didn’t you said you won’t talk to me?"
Ash teased Eva as if he was teasing a little girl, his tone filled with mockery despite the situation.
Hearing his words, Eva’s face became red with embarrassment as she immediately turned her face away from him, refusing to look at him or respond, clearly annoyed at being reminded.
Ash snickered softly from the side but did not say anything further, letting the moment pass as his attention naturally returned to Snow. Eric was still busy talking with Saskia outside, so no body disturbed him.
Ash watched quietly at Snow, his gaze penetrated the layers of her body, observing the flow of energy inside her with precision. He could clearly see that the enormous amount of energy she had stored within her was almost completely absorbed now, with only a faint trace remaining that was slowly merging into her.
And as the last bit of energy fully merged with her, Ash caught a hint of something different, a faint trace of pure white energy that stood apart from the rest, subtly mixed within the energy Snow had been absorbing.
Wait, is that..?
But he did not have the time to complete that thought, as an unmistakable white glow suddenly appeared around Snow, the light rising rapidly as her entire form began to blend into it.
Ash took a step back instinctively, and Eva did the same, both of them watching carefully as the change unfolded.
Don’t tell me that the First light of creation somehow affected Snow as well even through that enormous distance? And all this time she was undergoing an Evolution???
Although this line of reasoning made sense to him when he followed everything step by step, he was still confused about where that enormous amount of energy inside Snow’s body had come from in the first place, because it was not something she could have gathered on her own.
But that raised another question, does that mean everything connected with his Soul received some form of enhancement?
Eric and Eva could not be included, since they were connected much later, which only left Snow and Eclipse.
Even so, Eclipse had not shown any clear change, or maybe it had changed in a way that was not immediately visible to him.
As he was lost in thought, the white glow around Snow reached its peak, the light becoming so intense that her form was no longer visible within it, only a mass of pure white radiance remaining in her place.
Seeing it, Ash unconsciously thought of a certain anime back on the earth, where one had to catch powerful beasts with certain special balls, and the glow Snow was under right now felt exactly the same as when those beasts evolved, that same overwhelming light that signaled a complete Evolution.
Slowly, Ash witnessed the form of Snow changing in front of his eyes, the transformation happening in a steady and continuous manner rather than all at once, allowing him to clearly observe each shift.
Her body moved from one form to another as her bones and muscles reformed, the structure of her entire being adjusting itself with a precision that felt almost unnatural, as if guided by something far beyond simple instinct.
After a few minutes, the white glow that had covered her began to recede, the intense light fading gradually until it no longer obscured her form, and Ash was finally able to see the true form of Snow.
There, Ash saw a form he had never seen before, something that was both familiar and completely different at the same time, making it difficult to even compare it with what she was before.
The size of Snow was almost the same as before, only slightly smaller, but that change was insignificant when compared to the scale she had already reached earlier, making it barely noticeable unless one paid close attention.
Her body was now covered in pure white scales, smooth and refined, with some of them carrying a faint golden glow that shimmered subtly when the light touched them, while her underbelly had a slightly different shade of white that made the contrast more defined.
On her head, there were two large horns above her eyes, curved toward the back in an uneven manner, their form not perfectly symmetrical, which gave them a more natural and unrefined appearance rather than something artificially shaped.
Her eyes were now a deep bloody crimson, a clear change from her previous color, and that alone gave her presence a completely different feeling, one that carried a sense of intensity that was not there before.
Other than that, the most important change was in her body.
From behind her, six wings extended outward in an orderly fashion, each one placed with a clear structure. The topmost pair was the largest, wide and dominant, the second pair slightly smaller than the first, and the third pair smaller than the second, forming a descending pattern that looked balanced.
There was then a slight gap along her body, after which the remaining three wings appeared, noticeably smaller in size, yet still perfectly aligned with the rest, as if each had its own purpose in the overall structure.
And at the end of her tail, there was a small heart shaped wing, subtle in size compared to the rest, yet distinct enough to stand out as a unique feature of her new form.
{Papa...?}
***