When I opened my eyes, I was instantly assaulted by a brilliant burst of white light.
It felt like the divine radiance of a graceful halo that could only be emitted from a celestial being.
I had to squint in mild discomfort until my eyes adjusted to its brilliance.
Before me was a towering throne, crafted out of a pristine white material untouched by the impurities of the mundane world.
Well, it was obvious since I wasn’t present in the mundane world anymore.
All around me were colossal racks that shelved thick books with leather covers of different colors.
Everything, from the shelves to the ground I stood upon, looked as if it was made from the same immaculate white material as the grand throne.
Right in front of me was a pool, its tranquil waters mirroring the beautiful scenery above.
The ceiling above was open, allowing me to look at the serene view of cotton-white clouds drifting through the vast, boundless expanse of the clear blue sky.
I craned my neck upward and fixed my gaze upon the figure – or rather, the God – seated atop the high-rise throne. He wore regal white robes that matched perfectly with the color of the clouds in his backdrop.
Once more, all my senses were suppressed the moment I laid my eyes on that celestial being.
Once again, I was reminded that I was indeed in the presence of a heavenly being – a true God.
Once again, his presence defied all my beliefs in explanation, logic, and science.
The God’s graceful silhouette was surrounded by divine radiance and unholy darkness. It was an aura that seemed to be a mixture of both the pure and the profane.
His skin shimmered like the orange-brown halo of the twilight sun.
His black eyes, deep and enigmatic, held all kinds of cosmic secrets that a mortal like me would never comprehend.
His long, snowy-white hair cascaded as if it possessed a life of its own.
I gulped, instinctively taking a step back. In my heart, I felt both reverence and fear for the being before me. I wanted to speak, but my heart was stuck in my throat.
But these feelings… I knew these feelings weren’t mine! They did not belong to me!
Last time, I couldn’t see it… couldn’t grasp it, but it was Joeveirian’s heavenly aura that ignited these feelings of worship and fear within me.
The aura of a God.
This time, I could discern it only thanks to the Enigma Sightstone. But it still did not matter. I was still powerless to do anything against his godly aura.
Even if I closed my eyes, these feelings would remain. So just as I had done before, I steeled my resolve.
Taking control of my scattered emotions, I gathered the courage and spoke, “Joe.”
Joeveirian’s eyes came into focus as if he had only just noticed my insignificant presence.
He looked at me with a cold indifference that sent shivers down my spine, despite my best efforts to remain calm and composed.
I resisted the urge to lower my eyes and drop my head as Joeveirian finally spoke again.
Once again, his voice was a like paradox. It sounded both soothing and unsettling…
Pleasing and revolting…
Correct and wrong…
Beautiful and terrifying…
Pure and impure…
Divine and unholy…
“Lucas Morningstar…” Joe clicked his tongue after uttering my name. “So, you’ve finally found out about the Heavenly Sight.”
“You lied to me!” I raised my voice. “You didn’t bring me here last time! I came on my own on accident!”
Joe’s lips curled into a smirk. “Yes, I lied. The Heavenly Sight only states that I must answer five of your questions. It does not say that I have to answer them truthfully, does it?”
Right… The King of Gods was indeed obligated to answer five of the user’s questions.
But wait a minute…
I almost brought my hand up to stroke my chin as my mind began to race. I recalled the previous conversation I had with Joe here in this very throne room.
Surprisingly, after a very long time, I didn’t have to strain my head to recall an event.
I easily dug into my memories and replayed our conversation down to every last vivid detail.
It felt like I was rewatching a scene from a movie, but only within my mind. Ahh! Yes! Finally, my near-perfect memory was working as it should.
It was a familiar sensation to remember everything so easily. I didn’t know if it was due to the antidote, but I wholeheartedly welcomed this pleasant change.
After I was done recalling my conversation with the so-called true God of knowledge, wisdom, and fate, a smirk tugged at my lips.
I shifted my gaze back to Joeveirian and stated, “You are right. But you did answer far more than just five questions. My guess is that you have to answer at least five of my questions truthfully.”
Joeveirian let out a condescending scoff, “I don’t have to do anything, you foolish little thing! I am a God! I could just simply kill you again and send you back, perhaps to your real world this time. Tell me, Noah, how would you like to wake up to your plain, monotonous life again?”
As Joeveirian mentioned this possibility… or rather, issued a threat, my eyes widened. It was indeed a threat.
In the early days of my transmigration, I often thought that I would wake in the real world if I slept, in my reality. I feared that thought. Joeveirian, of course, knew about this fear.
After a brief pause, the King of Gods tilted his head, rested one arm on the throne’s armrest, and supported his chin.
times. In the end, it will be up to you to decide which of my answers you’d want to trust.” 𝐧𝑶𝗏𝔢𝗅𝗇𝓮xt.𝚌𝗈𝑀
“The only reason I won’t do that is because I made a promise to the creator of that mirror. I gave her my word that I would answer the questions of any mortal who’d seek me out. And I do like to honor my promises.”
My lips twitched into a smirk once more, albeit looking a bit feeble this time. “What a coincidence! I don’t go back on my words either. So, I think you’re ready to answer my questions.”
I did my absolute best to avoid ending any of my sentences in questions. Out of all the people in the world, I knew better than most how words in a promise could be twisted.
Joeveirian clearly noticed what I was doing, and the smirk on his face widened even more.
He regarded me with an amused gaze and said, “I will answer ten questions. But you can only ask true or false questions. I will lie five times. In the end, it will be up to you to decide which of my answers you’d want to trust.”
A frown formed on my face as I narrowed my eyes at him. The damned bastard was toying with me! Of course, he was! This was his form of entertainment!
Unfortunately, however, before I could decide to decline his offer, Joeveirian’s voice echoed within this heavenly library.
“Before you reject my proposal, know this: I can keep you here for all eternity. Slowly but surely, you will start to lose your mind and choose to accept my terms in favor of your own sanity. It would be wiser to make that choice right now rather than later.”
I remained silent as the frown on my face deepened into a resented scowl after hearing yet another threat from him.
Grinding my teeth, I grunted out my reply, “Fine! Let’s play your foolish game.”
A pleasant grin graced Joe’s face, and I took a deep breath to calm my nerves.
After a few more calming breaths, I turned my gaze back to him and asked my first question.