Chapter 384: The Practice Trial Ends...
?
Rio nced at the small golem and replied in a calm voice.
"Your father has transformed into a higher state of life... We living beings first grow up from newborns, then be adults, and finally turn into ''energy'' as our mortal coils start to wither away..."
The small golem couldn''tprehend theplex words that Rio threw at it out of nowhere.
Rio has never experienced what it''s like to have parents, which leaves himcking in many emotional aspects.
He doesn''t know how to properly console someone and help them in times of sadness and stuff, as he never had anyone to console and care for his feelings either.
But he did see on the inte that you shouldn''t be too straightforward in these kinds of matters.
When telling a child about their parent''s death, it''s better to hide the truth behind a wall ofplex words that they will slowlyprehend themselves as they grow up.
Although he never had others teach him how to take other people''s feelings into consideration, he learned all that from the inte.
After all, if you don''t have the real ''emotions'' you can at least ''Act'' like you do have them. Rio learned how to do that just in case all his future ns fail and he ends up bing a total war machine with no emotions.
In case he really did end up as a killing machine, at least he will remember how to ''Act'' like a normal human with emotions; that way he will have a solid moralpass and he won''t need emotions.
{When a person loses their emotions and their humanity, they have two ''paths'' ahead to choose from.
Either the person chooses to keep their morals intact and remains their true self, just like they were before.
Or the person bes an emotionless killing machine that will not care about life and deaths anymore.
Maybe, these two are the fundamental differences between a Kind Hero and An Evil Viin.}
But of course, this is just the backup n; after all, Rio is trying his best to ensure that this worst-case scenario doesn''t happen.
In any case, Rio is quite sure that he won''t end up as a ''viin'' at the very least.
...
The small golem tilted its head in confusion and asked,N?v(el)B\\jnn
"So, how do I meet Father now?"
Rio bent down and gently patted the little guy''s head before speaking in a rare and gentle tone.
"Energy has no solid form; your father has be so great that he has be one with the world itself; he''s now everywhere; he''s in your heart, and he''s in the air thatforts you..."
"He''s in the warm sunshine that consoles you, and he''s in the refreshing water that washes away all your sins..."
Hearing such amazing praise from Rio''s mouth, the little golem started to jump around in happiness like a little rabbit.
Rio stood up and spoke calmly.
"If you want to be as great as your father, you should also work hard; you mustn''t cry and you mustn''t feel lonely... Your father left you on your own because he deemed that you are strong..."
"You are strong enough to live on your own..."
The small golem clenched his small fists tightly and nodded his head. There''s a microphone fitted inside its mouth, and it used that to speak.
"Yes! I am strong!"
Rio nodded his head at those words.
"Good, that''s the spirit..." (I have a feeling... I think Rio maybe will be a very reliable and good father for his children... right?)
''If... if possible... I would have liked to tell all these words to my own younger self... maybe... maybe that would have changed my life a lot...''
Although there was no one to pat Rio''s head and tell him these words when he needed to hear them the most, he can now tell these words to someone else who''s in a simr situation as him.
A rare smile appeared on Rio''s face while looking at that little golem.
''Well, maybe I also grew up after all...''
The guy who used to be socially awkward andpletely oblivious to the world has figured out what it means to ''live'', for himself and for others.
Creating paths in circumstances where there are no possibilities and adapting to the changes in the strings of destiny-maybe that''s what it means to be an ''Anomaly''.
...
"Oh, I suddenly remembered that I heard a voice in my head tell me that once I meet someone worthy, I must guide them towards the hidden treasure!!"
The small golem jumped up in excitement and hurriedly pushed away a small cupboard
nearby.
Once the cupboard was pushed to the side, a hidden lever appeared in Rio''s view.
The vague calling in his head became even stronger once heid his eyes on that lever.
Without waiting for Rio to ask, the small golem immediately operated the lever, and the floor beneath Rio''s feet started to move.
Rio jumped to the side and waited to see what would happen.
''Eh, another hidden staircase? Just how many hidden stairs are in this ce?''
Rio shook his head and nced at the small golem.
As if sensing his gaze, the small golem jumped twice to show its excitement and said,
"Come! Follow me! Let''s go and find the treasure!! Hehe!"
With that said, the small golem jumped and started to descend downstairs; seeing that there
was no other choice, Rio also decided to follow behind.
He''s still wearing his shadow robe along with Miasma just in case some other trap gets
triggered.
But his worries werepletely pointless; there were no more traps along the way, and there was no other golem in sight either.
When the two finally descended, they found themselves standing in a brightly lit hidden room with variousplex magic circles and diagrams engraved on the walls.
Just by taking a single nce, Rio figured out that those were likely the research-rted
notes of the SS-ranker who created this sentient golem.
If Rio can copy all this down and master it, he can also create a sentient golem one day.
But those were not the things that stood out the most.
The thing that stood out the most in the hidden room was a strange, torn-up piece of paper kind of thing that was floating in the center of the room.
That strange-looking paper seemed ''Aura-less'', ''Mana-less'', and ''existence-less'' at one nce, and at another it seemed to be radiating with immense power.
As if all the ''Laws'' of the world have manifested their powers in that small ''shard'' like thing, even the void around seemed to be bending and trembling uncontrobly.
''This is!?''
Before Rio had the time to even react, the shard-like thing instantly turned into a ray of light
and entered his body without any resistance.
[Ding! You have received an ''Unknown Fragment''!]
[Ding! Warning! This item can''t be discarded, traded, or consumed. It can only be transferred to others
either willingly or via death.]
[Ding! The ''Imperfect Sword Heart'' received a considerable boost!]
[Ding! ''Sword Intent'' mastery has been increased considerably!]
[Ding! The ''A??m???'' has partially manifested; the manifestation speed has been increased
considerably!]
For a second, Rio''s head cked out, and he seemed to have seen a vast amount of gxies
and sr systems in that instant.
He felt as if he had traveled all over the cosmos in that mere millisecond without even moving from his original spot, even a single inch.
It was bizarre; it was an indescribable feeling; he felt as if he had be detached from the world and the ''Laws'' and was floating in the cosmos like a free entity.
It felt as if nothing was binding him and he could do whatever he wanted.
At that moment, Rio snapped out of that weird state and came back to his senses.
''W-what the!? What just happened!?''
Before Rio could collect himself and calm down, a massive announcement rang out in the
whole factory.
[Side quest of the sentientpleted!]
[Main quest of conquering all floorspleted!]
[Defeating an SS-rank enemypleted!]
[All conditions Full-filled!]
[Congrattions! The Practice trail has beenpleted!]
[Starting ejecting all participants now...]
Rio felt the gravity around him disappear, and along with the small golem, he found himself
falling inside a portal that appeared out of nowhere!
Before he even had the time to react, Rio was thrown out by the portal, and he directlynded
in a familiar soft embrace.
Indeed, Lia caught him mid-air before he could fall down on the ground! As his head was a bit
of a mess at the moment, it was difficult for him to find bnce.
Lia came at the right moment to support him, or he would have had to kiss the ground like
Fade does all the time!
Rio''s shadowrobe had already deactivated the moment he lost his consciousness for a second,
so Lia could see the surprise on his face. A mischievous smile appeared on her face at that
moment.
"Yo! Handsome! How about this youngdy helps you out if you have had a few too many
drinks today..."
Rio gave a wry smile at those words.
"Stop acting like an evil old uncle who''s trying to woo a helpless drunk girl and put me
down..."
It was embarrassing to be carried princess style, even for Rio, who has an expressionless face.
Lia nodded her head and put him down, but Rio''s feet staggered again, and he nearly fell
down, so Lia had to grab his arm to keep him standing.
"Er... I am not feeling quite good right now... everything''s spinning..."
Hearing Rio''s words, Lia nodded her head and replied,
"No worries! You can rely on me!"
It seems Lia finally got to exact a tiny bit of revenge out of him from all those times he teased her; after all, his defense was very low at the moment.
...
Author''s Notes.
Yo! It''s your beloved author here!
Every new Fragment adds and Auxiliary chapter, don''t forget to read the new one in the
auxiliary volume.
Question of the day.
What are your thoughts on this very peculiar turn of events?
(Tell me in thements)
By the way, don''t forget to use those power stones!!