"A Blessing...?"
Aster's mind ca to a halt, trying to wrap around the fact that Vanessa just said. As he did, mories ca flooding in, reminding him of his life before, from an early age, until becoming a teenager.
"A Blessing?!" He growled in anger. "If this is a blessing, then everyone in the world must be gods!"
The disease that his parents dedicated most of their lives to, but still failed to find a cure for, was getting labeled as a "blessing"! He would be considered a saint if he didn't get angry, for his parents' sake!
{... Sorry, I guess my words are a little lacking.}
Seeing how affected Aster was by her casual words, Vanessa felt sorry for him. Her sleepiness faded as she assud a serious expression, commanding respect from anyone looking at her.
{Your "Naless Disease" is, in essence, closer to a curse. However, after analyzing the magical properties of it, I'm 99.9% sure that it's a blessing in disguise.}
"..."
Aster's frown deepened. He was not willing to listen to her words at all. It was just his curiosity that was stopping him from dropping the call and blocking Vanessa forever.
{How do I explain this... Right, let's go on a tangent. You know Hercules, don't you?}
"... Yes, I do."
Hercules was a famous demigod who was known for his unparalleled strength.
{Then, you must know how he had to undergo the twelve labors to atone for his sin of murdering his wife and children.}
'Wasn't the twelve labors sothing he did to beco a true hero?' Aster wanted to interject but decided to hold his tongue.
{After he completed the twelve labors, he was then absolved of his sins by God Apollo and successfully achieved immortality. Your blessing—or curse—is of a similar essence to Hercules' twelve labors.}
"You an... a punishnt—a challenge—bestowed to to achieve immortality?"
{No, I'm not sure if you can achieve immortality after overcoming this. However, I'm sure that you'll receive a long life, much longer than even the elves.}
"..."
Aster fell quiet once more.
He had been suffering from this "Naless Disease" since birth, and in fact, it had eaten up a great portion of his lifespan. Now, he barely had five years left to live, even if he tried to live as safely as possible.
But now, Vanessa was saying that as soon as he overcos this "challenging curse," he'll be able to receive a blessing of long life!
"Let's say that this is all true," Aster tried to counter, making his mind and heart as calm as possible. "It'd all be worthless if I died before overcoming this alleged blessing, is it? And, do you know how to overco it now?"
Vanessa, upon seeing that Aster was now calr than before, finally sat down and crossed her legs. On her lap was a pile of papers she had seemingly written.
{For the first question, yes. Death would an you failed to overco your challenge, so you wouldn't be able to lay claim to your blessing. As for the latter...}
She flipped the pages several tis, before finding the one she was looking for.
{The analysis result tells that this blessing was caused by the mixing of two specific bloodlines. As for who or what that is, I'm not too sure either. However, this also tells that you simply need to complete your bloodline to overco this challenge.}
"Complete my... bloodline?" Aster got even more confused. "And how should I go about doing that?"
{Ah, that?} Vanessa chuckled lightly. {I don't know. How would I know that from just analyzing your blood? You should figure it out yourself.}
"Ugh..."
{But of course, it's not like there's no clue at all.}
She, thankfully, didn't leave Aster hanging just like that.
{I suggest you go check the laboratory where you woke up. I'm pretty sure your parents left sothing like a clue for you.}
"They did?" Aster raised a brow, a little doubtful.
{Yes. The fact that they allowed you to last 2,500 years in cryogenesis was more than enough proof that they realized the truth behind your blessing.}
Normally, the amount of nuclear fuel that powered his Cryogenic Capsule was enough for only a couple dozen years. However, he did wake up after 2,500 years instead. This ant that "sothing" changed the plans of his parents, making them choose the difficult answer of extending his life until several thousand years into the future.
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Aster listened to her words and felt a little conflicted. He did want to visit the laboratory and check up on the nuclear reactor, worried that it might explode after a long ti of having no maintenance. However, he didn't expect to revisit the place less than a month after leaving it!
"... Alright. I'll go and check tomorrow." Still, he couldn't hold his curiosity and agreed.
{Good. Although I want to accompany you, I don't know if I'll be available tomorrow. Ah, try contacting Magnus first; he might send soone else to protect you while out there.}
Aster smiled, nodding his head. "Got it. Thanks for the help."
{It's fine; I'm just doing what I wanted to do, anyway.}
Just as he was about to end the call, he suddenly had an epiphany. He recalled the image of the magic circle that she showed earlier, and the familiar-looking runes drawn all over it.
"Ah, wait!" He exclaid. "Do you perhaps know how to decode this script? We encountered a mysterious locked door on the fifth floor, and we think it leads into the newly discovered crypt there."
{Hmm? Let see... Oh, it's the Old Fragish Runes. Yes, I can decode this, but... with this amount, it'll take a day at most. Call the day after tomorrow; it should be done by then.}
"Sohow, I feel sorry for this." Aster smiled wryly. "If you ever have sothing else you need from again, just ask, so that I can return the favor."
{Really?} Vanessa's eyes turned sharp. {Then, can I gather a sample of your seed? I'm wondering what's the difference between a 100% human seed and those of the current generation.}
"Ah, that..." Aster scratched his head, feeling a little awkward. "I have a promise with Magnus to only do the deed once a month. So, I guess, you can ask him about it."
{Ah, I don't need to have sex with you if you don't want to. Just extracting a sample of your seed is fine. Can I?}
"..."
Although her request was slightly different from his promise to Magnus, he still couldn't decide whether he could agree to it or not. He let out a sigh, not wanting to be an ingrateful prick, and nodded his head.
"Alright. But only if I find a clue about what you talked about earlier." He pulled a condition as if a last-ditch struggle. "If I didn't find anything, then sorry, but just ask Magnus to schedule you."
{Got it. That's fine with .}
For so reason, Aster felt like he just made a contract with the devil. Chills crawled down his back as he stared at her predatory eyes, watching him.
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