NOVEL NEXT Chapter 396: A memory of a lifetime
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[DING]
[Below the bright moon, a promise of ambition formed, and a new world was presented to the one without rights, the one without past, and the one who would hold the future]
[To strive for greatness and power, to quench his desire for adventure, he'll fight, ploy, deceive, and kill for the sake of his goals]
[So that one day he can be worthy of being the one that holds said rights]
As the first set of notifications ended with simple but deep words, a new set of messages was revealed for Dale, as if it had been waiting for that exact moment.
The notifications seemed a bit different from what he was used to, as while the ordinary ones were a light transparent blue and somewhat decorated, these were purple and decorated with strange runes on the sides.
It wasn't the same as the notification representing the will of the Gods, but it still held a certain weight that seemed to echo inside his mind as he listened and read the words contained within each paragraph.
Either way, they waited patiently for him to begin:
[A new future has been written, a new fate is being inscribed upon the stars]
[They shine, accepting the birth of a new tale, one of blood, wars, failure, and conquest]
[Its end would be of gold and glory, of prosperity and silver, it was what they declared, high up on the constalations]
"!"
Dale's vision suddenly began to spiral, giving him a great sense of nausea and lightness.
He was being sucked somewhere, like a piece of leaf being dragged down a drain.
[A new story is being sung, witness the birth…]
But before he could hear or read the rest of the System's words, his vision was engulfed by the ever-revolving mist that surged before his eyes.
/FLASH!/
/FLASH!/
"?!"
His mind was suddenly bombarded with moments and experiences of someone he did not know... Flashes of wars, adventurers, lovers, and aging... All moments he never felt…
But the sensation on his skin, the smells upon his nose, the sounds on his ears, the visions reflected in his eyes, the blood on his tongue... It was all real. All... Him.
He saw himself standing at the edge of a precipice, gazing down at ruins in the distance, a sense of discovery and accomplishment… He had finally found it.
He saw himself overlooking a battlefield, soldiers screaming in agony and frenzy as they marched for glory... Today, he would bring down a tyrant and free his people.
He saw himself sitting before a pile of documents, writing in words he couldn't recognize... It was heavy work, but the people needed the supplies.
He saw himself attending a funeral, where he delivered the head of a great beast as an offering to the man who brought him to his position... The man wasn't virtuous, but he wouldn't be here were it not for him.
He may have been a man of many sins, but he was a man who enforced the rules.
... He saw himself visiting a simple family of five, friends of a time already long gone…
He saw many things, some clearer than others, all culminating towards a single point… There was peace in these lands, it did not need his intervention, but not all thought like him, they needed to be stopped.
An elderly man now sat upon a throne, with no crown on his head, no fancy clothes on his body, only a long beard, clear eyes, and some worn-out muscles underneath his old robes.
He gazed down at a grand hall… And laughed. Pleased... It had been a long journey, but his story... No, your story, is just about to start...
Isn't it? Me?
...There was a book in his hand, a diary, yes, Dale recognized that diary…
With a deep and determined gaze, the man read it again before closing it.
Hi blinked, and then, his eyes became exceptionally clear. And as if finally understanding something, he closed his eyes again one last time.
His body did not move, it remained in its previous position albeit now, no air entered his lungs...
/Exhale.../
This was his end, his death, his final breath.
Today, he won his bet against death... It was unable to drag him down and was forced to witness his life instead.
Was it laughing? Or was it bored? Angry even... He would make sure to ask it when they meet.
Today, he prayed for the world in silence as he delved into eternity.
Death by nothing but his own will.
[DING]
[Your time has come to an end, the memory of Maltur the Conqueror has come to an end]
As Dale experienced the end of this strange man, the chime of a bell pulled him back from the eternal darkness, causing him to gasp deeply as his vision tried its best to focus again.
Meanwhile, the system began to narrate words by his ears, not giving him any time to rest, much less think.
They were like bees in a hive, whispers in the dark, the chattering of a crowd during a rave, he felt they held meaning, a certain order, but it was nigh impossible to understand them.
Yet he tried, or was compelled to, an invisible force pushed him forward, forcing his ears to open, his mind to split, his eyes to sharpen.
It hurts, give me a break. He thought for a moment before his thoughts were drowned by words beyond his mouth:
[DING]
[A man rose from nothing to everything, an adventure of a slave who became a ruler]
[He who understood the common man and the high Noble would build a castle from the scattered blocks lying on the ground]
[Wise and powerful, kind to his people, ruthless to his enemies, he shaped what would be the start of the Polsur Dynasty]
[By your hand, the tale of Maltur, the one who conquered the chaotic lands of Welmion has been born]
[The first of the Polsur emperors, Maltur Polsur 1 ruled over all of Welmion with fairness and discipline, his story may have started with a bloodstained blade but it ended with a white, golden-
Laced gowl]
[An era of greatness awaited the descendants of these golden times, this era would be known as ???]
Before the last words could be issued, Dale's mind snapped, and he suddenly saw himself back in his room, clutching onto his head as he breathed quickly, taking in breaths with great pain as his chest weaved in and out rapidly.
"Urg… My head hurts… My brain is splinting... Into two halves..."
He tried his best to listen for everything, but he was afraid his head had bigger priorities…
Overtime, the pain subsided, much for his sanity's health.
It went down enough for him to be able to form coherent thoughts:
'This headache… It's the same I felt after I "turned back" time.'
'Did I… Just experience the entire life of this guy?... Not everything, most of it was like a movie going 128x times…'
'Although I can't remember much… There's still a lot I can make sense of… It's certainly more than what I felt before... But this is the difference between a lifetime of memories and a few years of memories... I can't say which was more efficient.'
'Still, I didn't know this was even possible… I've altered this memory so much that… The future of this man twisted to an unbelievable degree… How did he even become an Emperor?...'
'Also, the way he acted… I feel as if I was looking at myself. And I find it ridiculous that this guy, someone born in a completely different time and land, had similar codes of conduct to me.'
'Part of my personality likely got engrained in him, or these memories used mine to build this "simulation".'
'I don't believe this is real, in the end, I've "photoshopped" these memories, but maybe out there, in a parallel universe, Maltur did exist, becoming the ruler of this faraway continent.'
'But how utterly ridiculous… Could every memory hold the potential to change this much?... No, likely not... Some conditions would be needed for this to be possible.'
'I'm certain of this... Not all three of the memories have the potential for these "changes"... But I'll keep an eye open, just in case.'
'It's definitely much to consider… For now, I'll see how things are faring, I've spent far too long in the memories and everyone is likely rather worried about me.'
'Once that's done, I'll continue… I'm essentially working towards my goals just by doing this.'
'I can tell that if I can absorb some of those memories, I would be able to grow considerably in the span of days… Though that's the same for the memories of my own future.'
'There's much to be done, two more memories to go, and then I can focus on the rest...'
[DING]
[The Stars above have recognized your story, pleased with its end, they bless the tale within the darkness above so it may never be forgotten as all Stars are eternal]
[You have Attained a new Tale! Scribe of the Stars]
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Notes
Hey, it's me.
So, we finished this, finally right?
Anyhow, there are two more memories to go, not counting that other one...
With that done, there's literally almost nothing on our way to start the next Arc that will lead to... Some pretty interesting things.
Anyhow, I don't plan to waste nearly as much time with these next memories as you think as I believe I've built a premise with this one that's good enough.
We'll develop everything that Dale experiences here further in the future, that's for sure, and it'll lead to greater discoveries down the line.
For now, I'll flesh out some of my notes and take a break to write something else, I'll be back tomorrow, as always.
A good day to you all, peace.