Noctis turned and slowly walked toward his throne before sitting on it. He leaned back as his heart raced and his body burned, but his smile remained as he stared at J.
"Why are you not leaving? Is something on your mind?" he asked, coughing.
J didn't respond immediately, still processing everything. Then he spoke, his voice filled with conviction.
"Noctis, I— I'm ready. I gave it some thought while I talked with the former heroes, and now… I think I'll accept your offer."
Noctis smiled genuinely as he rose from his throne. He took J's right hand—the one with the moon mark—and placed it against his own left hand. Instantly, a matching moon mark began to glow on his skin.
"I'm glad you accepted my offer so quickly. Repeat after me while concentrating on your right hand."
J nodded and closed his eyes. Mana slowly flowed through his veins, gathering at his right arm. As the moon marking on his hand glowed, he was once again transported to his mana core.
A tranquil sky loomed overhead, and the ground was replaced with water as he hovered above it.
A familiar voice echoed, "Fourth successor J, are you sure you want to make a pact with the third?"
J nodded. "Yes, I do. Is there any problem?"
"If you fail to uphold your pact, you may be punished with incredible pain and a complete memory erasure—from birth to present—or worse, death. So I will ask again: do you truly want to make a pact with the third?"
J gulped, sweat trickling down his face, his body shaking. "Can I think about it?"
"You have five minutes. Once that time runs out, you cannot make a pact with the third again. However, if you refuse now, you can still do it later," the voice replied softly.
J sat on the water's surface, deep in thought. His mind raced with possibilities. One minute passed, then two… three…
"If I were to kill or betray him in the future, will I face the punishment?" J asked, his heart pounding.
"No, you will not. According to the contract, punishment will only be issued if you fail to protect his people or abandon them to return to your world," the voice explained.
"But he said as long as I can make a peaceful world for his people, I can return."
"Yes, that is true. If you succeed in creating such a world, you may return. But it is near impossible. The third tried many different methods, none of which worked—so he decided to conquer all nations to accomplish that goal."
The voice paused. "J, you only have forty seconds left. Decide quickly."
"I— I accept this contract!" J shouted, just as the timer reached one second.
As those words left his mouth, a vision flashed before his eyes—Noctis, bound to a cross, bruised and beaten. Rotten tomatoes and eggs were hurled at him, and people slapped him with their shoes, their faces twisted in rage. Noctis gave only a bitter smile.
J shook his head, and when he looked again, he was back in the throne room with Noctis still holding his hand, smiling.
"Thank you, J. Well, our contract is complete now—we are bound by our souls," Noctis said as he released J's hand.
J stepped back, retracting his hand. His voice stuttered, "W-what was that?"
Noctis tilted his head. "What do you mean? Are you asking why you didn't need to repeat after me during the contract?"
"Yeah, but I wasn't talking about that. I saw a vision of you… getting beaten while tied to a cross. What was that?"
Noctis's heart dropped, his body flinched. "H-how do you know about that?"
J remained silent, tilting his head.
"Tell me how you accessed that memory—NOW!" Noctis growled, then sighed and took a deep breath. "Regardless, don't mention it to anyone. Keep it a secret."
J nodded.
"J, listen carefully. Once you become the ruler of this kingdom, no matter what you do, do not reduce the punishment for severe crimes like murder, rape, terrorism, etc. from death. Otherwise, you'll face consequences you can't even imagine," Noctis said softly, settling into his throne.
J lowered his gaze. "Noctis, can I ask you something?"
Noctis tilted his head. "What is it?"
"There's something I remembered that I never got an answer for… I think you have it," J said, fidgeting with his hands.
Noctis sighed. "Let's hear it."
"When my powers were revealed, I passed out and saw a vision. A boy with black hair and red eyes kneeling before a man and woman's dead bodies… but he wasn't crying—he was laughing."
Noctis sat upright, his eyes blank, hair turning white. A burst of mana exploded from his body, the air so dense it forced J to his knees.
A few minutes passed. Noctis covered his face, his eyes glowing. "Damn this magic system. Didn't I tell you not to show anyone my past?"
His breath grew ragged as he pulled his mana back in. His hair returned to normal. "Sorry. I lost my composure. What is it you want to know?"
J stood, his body trembling. "I want to know the truth."
Noctis leaned forward and sighed, his voice defeated. "There's no point in hiding it, is there?"
He leaned back, voice somber. "Those people you saw were my parents. It's a precious memory for me, yet it was revealed to you."
He clenched his messy black hair. "One evening, a massive army attacked our slums. I managed to escape… but my parents didn't. They were enslaved. What they endured was nothing short of cruel."
His grip tightened. "My father and many men were tortured. The women, including my mother… were used to satisfy the lustful desires of enemy soldiers."
"I— I'm sorry to hear that," J said.
But Noctis shot him a sharp gaze.
He continued, breathing heavily. "By the time Aurora Vale's army fought them off, my parents had already died. From that day, I lived in the refugee camps, training in secret with stolen books."
He chuckled. "One day, I sensed someone watching me from the shadows. I chased and pinned her down. You know what the first thing she said was? 'Please don't enslave me. Let me go.' I was taken aback."
J listened closely.
"She was empathetic. From that day, she supported me—helped me with my spells and even taught me some Elven magic. Over time, we fell in love… but her parents didn't accept us. They labeled her an unwanted child."
"So I did what anyone would—I hid her in my house. But even then, it wasn't easy. Elves weren't accepted in Aurora Vale. Eventually, we found a way. We hid her ears and got married."
"Later, I joined the knight's brigade, hoping to help the poor and helpless. I wanted to become their… light." He gave a bitter smile. "But that's all I'll say for now. Leave. And don't pry into my past again. If you see any vision—forget it. If you hear anything—shut your ears. If you find anything—throw it away."
J sighed. "I'm assuming that girl was June."
Noctis nodded, a bitter smile on his face. "The most foolish woman I've ever known."
He shook his head and said, "J, meet me in the training grounds behind the castle tomorrow. I'd love to start your training."
J furrowed his brows. "Wh—what kind of training? Because if it's torture training—I'm OUT!"
"It is not a torture training. I'll be training you in true combat," Noctis replied calmly.
He smirked. "And even if it was torture training… do you really think you could refuse?"
J gulped, his eyes falling on the ring on his hand. He looked up at Noctis and asked,
"Noctis, do you know why this isn't working? I can't contact Nita, and I'm not even sure if she's okay."
Noctis narrowed his eyes, his tone calm.
"Do you not believe me?"
J scratched his head, closing his eyes.
"N–" he paused, then opened his eyes. "Yes, I do. But I'm worried about her. I don't know if she recovered from the coma or not... and I didn't get the chance to ask you."
Noctis tilted his head, his smile unchanged.
"I see. But don't worry—she's fine, I can assure you."
His gaze shifted toward J's ring.
"As for the ring, it may have malfunctioned."
He extended his hand.
"Can you give it to me? I can repair it for you… but it may take a few years."
"A few years?!" J exclaimed. "How long exactly?"
"That depends on its model," Noctis said calmly.
J stared at the ring, then at Noctis, slowly starting to take it off.
Suddenly, Ruby's voice echoed in his head.
"J, don't!"
"Ruby?!" J thought.
"Yes, it's us. And don't you dare give Noctis that ring. It might be our only connection to the outside world—and our only chance of bringing him down!" Ruby warned.
"She's right," Ryan's voice added. "If you hand it over, we might lose our only lifeline."
"But it's not working anymore," J replied. "And Noctis is the only one who can fix it, isn't he?"
"Well… J has a point," Ken said. "But we still can't trust him unless he promises to return it."
"Promise? What good would that do? He could break it." J argued.
"No, he won't," Luna said softly. "We've known Noctis for a long time. He doesn't break promises—that's one of his biggest weaknesses. But… he's clever. He can twist promises through wordplay."
Before J could respond, Noctis's calm voice cut through the thoughts, causing the heroes' voices to fade.
"J? What's the matter? Hand over the ring already."
J hesitated, then nodded.
"I will—but you have to promise you'll fix it and return it within a year."
Noctis grinned in amusement.
"Very well. I promise to repair and return your ring within a year."
J sighed and handed him the ring. Suddenly, footsteps echoed behind them as—