The world swirled around them before it solidified. They found themselves in what felt like a sea of red, but it was more of a trick of the eyes than anything else.
The ground and the dozens-meter tall ceiling were both covered in reflective crimson marble with speckles of black dotted across them. Pillars of ruby embroidered with gold lined the sides, and together they made one feel as though they were encased in a fathomless glow of red.
Zarek and Priya weren't the only ones present, but they were certainly the only ones not rushing around or fidgeting nervously. Priya was already looking to Zarek to see what to do next, and as expected, he didn't disappoint.
With confident strides, he walked to one of the pillars.
"Put a hand here," Zarek directed.
Priya followed suit and froze the moment she did. It was a full half minute before she snapped back, feeling a great deal of shock.
"Show me," Zarek said.
"Show you?" Priya blinked in confusion.
"Mm. Just think about it and it will work."
Still a bit confused, Priya did as she was told. But then she felt an odd feeling in her mind, as though she had suddenly been stripped naked.
Priya pulled back, blushing profusely. Her blue eyes darted around as though she was scared someone had seen.
She had been naked in front of Zarek more than once. Though she might still feel a bit shy about it, it wasn't to the point of recoiling like that. The reason she had this time was because she didn't want anyone else to see.
But when she looked down at herself, she realized she was still fully clothed.
What was that?
Zarek chuckled. "You'll get used to it. It just feels like you've exposed yourself, but it's not exactly like that. Though, it's better if you treat it like that regardless. Don't show people you don't trust absolutely."
The feeling of being naked was just a trick of the mind; she obviously wasn't. Rather, that was just her self-preservation kicking in. She understood subconsciously just how important what she had just shown Zarek was.
"Okay…" Priya said softly. Then, she tried again.
—
Name: [Priya Synghe]
Role: [N/A]
Core Stats:
>[Strength: F-] <B>
>[Dexterity: F-] <A->
>[Intelligence: F+] <SS+>
>[Endurance: F+] <S->
>[Charisma: F+] <S>
Talents:
>[Melaloon: F+] <SSS->
[Abilities: Absorption]
[Energy comes naturally to you]
>[Unawakened]
>[Unawakened]
Notes:
[She's far better than you. Do you feel good grooming such an innocent girl? Where is your shame?]
—
Zarek refrained from rolling his eyes. This system had always been out to get him. He couldn't wait to find the bastard behind this and shove his foot up their ass.
He and Priya had been dating in his first life as well. It wasn't as though he had used his lifetime of experience to woo her. He was just naturally charming.
The note changed again.
—
[Your Charisma Grade says different]
—
Zarek's lip twitched, but he ignored the bastard.
If there was one thing this damned system was right about, it was that Priya really was excellent.
The '<>' bracketed stats represented Growth Potential. This decided how fast stats progressed and what their ceiling would be.
Stats were based on an F- to SSS+ grading system. Even with just her normal stats alone, Priya would have been excellent. But her Talent was what really took it over the edge.
In fact, given enough time, it would only be up from here.
In the "normal" world, her genetic disease had caused her nothing but problems. But in this world, it was her greatest strength.
Melaloon seemed to be a vaguely described ability, but he happened to know exactly how it would progress. And once her other Talents awakened, the synergy would be off the charts.
In fact, having three F+ stats right off the bat was ridiculous, but that was also a product of Zarek's preparation.
The Godsfall could turn you if you weren't careful, but it could also speed up evolution. He knew exactly what Priya's limits were right now, so he had allowed her to be hit by three droplets on purpose. As such, she currently had her personal best starting potential.
He was only checking to make sure that everything was going according to plan. He probably knew Priya's own stat page better than she herself.
"Everything looks good," Zarek reassured her, then walked to the next pillar and pressed his own hand down.
—
Name: [Zarek Ashford]
Role: [N/A]
Core Stats:
>[Strength: F] <A->
>[Dexterity: F] <B>
>[Intelligence: F-] <C->
>[Endurance: F+] <B+>
>[Charisma: F-] <C>
Talents:
>[Empty]
>[Empty]
>[Empty]
Notes:
[That's it. You've used up your last rebirth, nice going bud. Now you have no Talents and worthless growth stats. How the hell is A- Strength going to help you against the other Godsfall Spawns? You might as well just smash your head against the pillar now. Go ahead, I promise I won't hold you back]
—
Zarek shook his head, but the system was right.
In his first life, his Talent screen had said 'Rebirth: SSS+' three times over. Every time he was reborn, one of them vanished, and now he had absolutely nothing.
Splendid.
The worst part was that every time he was reborn, his growth potential took a small hit. His stats hadn't been the best before, but in his first life his Strength had at least had S+ Growth Potential. Now it was practically in the gutter, comparatively speaking.
As for who the "Godsfall Spawns" were? Well, they were people with stat screens just like his, people with three chances at being reborn.
He didn't even know how many of them there were, but he had personally met three before. And each one was as broken as one might expect.
Zarek had a feeling that the number of Godsfall Spawns wasn't low; there might even be dozens or hundreds. However, it was just that most of them had poor stats and couldn't do much of anything even with several chances.
What good was three chances to smash an egg against a rock?
However… he was determined to not be that egg.