Just as the man finished, everyone saw their system flash a sudden notification.
505 was also performing its duty well.
("Welcome, participant, to the abode of the sleeping fallen spirit who has noticed you.
Congratulations! You are the second to discover this unique hidden mission:
The spirit has been bound to this place and cannot leave. It requires Dark Water Crystal Herbs to remain in slumber. Your mission is to help the spirit gather ten of these herbs.
Reward: 10,000 system points
Mission status: Complete
Last reward recipient: Max Hales
Refresh time: 10 years")
The notification caused everyone’s jaws to drop, each for different reasons. Zack and Skyler stared at the familiar name glowing in the system notification, while the others gaped at the massive 10,000-point reward!
So many points—enough that even if they killed countless beasts of equal strength, they still wouldn’t reach that amount!
With that, they were all ejected from the structure as the white-haired man flicked his robe, sending them flying. No one was injured, but they all lamented the huge loss of 10,000 points. Skyler lay on the ground, staring at the dark sky, and let out a laugh.
"He didn’t vanish...! Ah, he’s in the Battle Royal! Haha, how did I not think of this?"
Zack cursed under his breath. He didn’t waste a moment and jumped to his feet before rushing toward another location where Max had found a treasure. He paid no mind to Skyler laughing like a maniac and muttering things he shouldn’t know.
He was far too preoccupied, gritting his teeth at the Keeper of Time and praying that his gut feeling this time was wrong!
"What about the other missions? Max got here before me! Why didn’t you notify me? We can’t let him get stronger! Damn it—just when I decided to destroy the story, he had to go and start following the original plot!"
A message flashed before him.
#Keeper of Time: Stop blaming me. I am a higher being, but even I am not omnipotent. I didn’t notice. After all, I cannot do much in the Battle Royal. I have already lost most of my power getting you here and helping you. What more do you want? I was keeping an eye on Skyler, so I failed to track Max.
Zack cursed under his breath again, his silver eyes glaring at the message screen.
Just as he reached the place he had been heading, he noticed Skyler already standing before the hidden, dry tree where Max had found Light Evol fruits—but it was barren.
Skyler chuckled and looked back at him.
"Nothing here either. He took it."
Zack paused as he met his gaze.
"But how? Even if he entered the Battle Royal, it should have taken him a long time to find these treasures! Why does it look like he already knows their locations...?"
His own words made him shudder, and even the Keeper of Time grew anxious.
Impossible!
Even the Keeper of Time didn’t know the exact locations of the things recorded in the story—the Battle Royal was too vast!
All they could rely on was the layout of the area, the designs of hidden structures, and deductions to assess their likely positions!
Skyler smiled sheepishly at him. It seemed that Zack had forgotten he really shouldn’t say something so obvious in front of him.
"Have you decided to stop hiding the fact that you know far more than necessary?"
Zack simply let out a wry chuckle.
"And what about you? I’ve had this feeling for a while now—that you also know much more than you should. And just now, seeing you here to check this tall tree even before I arrived only proves it. I’m not an idiot, and neither are you. So, how did you know?"
Skyler’s eyes sparkled as he mused.
"Too many eyes are watching. How about we feign ignorance? Exposing each other’s secrets wouldn’t benefit either of us."
Zack was stunned. What did he mean by ’too many eyes are watching’...? Then, he remembered the Keeper of Time, who had gone utterly silent, and finally understood.
Skyler stepped toward him and patted his shoulder. He was about to leave, but at that instant, a faint dark hue crept into his eyes, and he subconsciously whispered softly.
"Just don’t betray me. I despise that."
Zack felt goosebumps prickle across his skin, but as he looked at Skyler, the latter had already regained his carefree look. So, he wondered if he had made a mistake.
Skyler’s sudden curse snapped him out of his daze as the man cracked his knuckles.
"That crazy Yuris! He had the guts to attack the fallen spirit?! If he wants to die, then he should die alone—why drag others along?"
With that, Skyler started running back.
"Come on, we need to teach him a lesson. Then head to the other nearby places with treasures and missions! I believe you also want to confirm the suspicions I have."
Zack nodded dazedly and followed, not noticing the solemnity in Skyler’s gaze as he traced the gem embedded in the chain encircling his wrist, deep in thought.
’Did Max find the novel too?’
His gaze grew more solemn. Everything happening now pointed toward that. The Keeper of Time was truly useless if even Max had discovered and read the original novel... But there was another possibility—that Max had remembered his past life!
This conclusion was even more absurd!
’Damn, I hope not. His damn protagonist halo is working overtime just to ensure I don’t steal his protagonist spot! Tsk, tsk!’
Still, if he truly has remembered... it might not be entirely bad—there are several clear advantages. First, just like him, Max knows a calamity will soon descend upon Eldoria.
As the kind-hearted protagonist, he would never allow his planet to suffer; he would strive to grow stronger and lend his aid.
Second, he might recognize the flaws he made in the story and take the chance to rewrite its course for the better. But what made Skyler anxious was that Max hadn’t taken any of his teammates with him.
Something was definitely wrong with the protagonist, and he had a hunch it wasn’t for the better. Jenny, Monica, Austin, and Elena should have been by his side. Even if the female leads were a little antagonistic, they were still part of the story to ensure Max wouldn’t die early on—but now it was as if the story itself had abandoned them.
Was it because Skyler interfered?
Well, if so, he wasn’t guilty—
not in the least bit.
After all, it was about time—this story, The Fate of Eldoria, stopped repeating itself.
Skyler’s lips curved into a faint smile. He knew this was neither his second life nor his third; he had realized it the moment his crazy master in the ancient tomb told him that the life he was living wasn’t his first. He simply didn’t dare to think about it.
Doesn’t that mean Max’s story had been repeating all along while he wasn’t here? Just how long had it been replaying like a broken tape in his absence? Ultimately, he could only let out a quiet sigh, wondering why he had been born so damn intelligent.
In his subconscious, the two figures in the mirrors stirred at his reasoning, and a deep sense of unease lingered. He was getting dangerously close to recalling everything they had painstakingly tried to erase. The one with white eyes let out a broken smile.
’And how can you be sure you were never part of the broken record you speak of? But this is truly the last time... for the Wheel of Time has exhausted. It’s just that no one knows yet, due to the rules of this place.’
The two figures began to fade. They didn’t have much time left, so it was expected. The one with white eyes closed his eyes.
’So, don’t you dare fail. We have lost and given up everything for just one victory.’