Luca just stood there for a while as if contemplating something grand, then suddenly came to his senses and walked to the front chair waiting to be interviewed.
The man only glanced at him, but in that moment, his whole body felt like it was being swept by an invisible electric current. Every muscle in his body spasmed violently, trembling so much that his joints felt like they were about to pop out of place. Before his eyes, the sky suddenly darkened, as thick as ink, and in the midst of that darkness, two giant eyes appeared, deep and cold, staring at him as if they wanted to swallow his soul.
The fear was shapeless but heavy as a rock, crushing his will. It was not just fear; it was the feeling of being pulled into an endless abyss. And though he had experienced the pains of death before, this time it felt… like he was standing on the edge of another death, and this one was more dangerous, more unfamiliar, more terrible.
The man looked at his watch again for about 10 seconds and then smiled at Luca.
"You're interesting, name?"
The man looked into Luca's eyes, and Luca saw that everything had become strangely normal, but Luca didn't dare ask more.
"Luca, that's my name."
The voice was slightly trembling as if he hadn't adjusted his breathing yet, and his body had just started shaking nonstop.
The man didn't see him introduce his full name, although he was curious, but it wasn't significant. The man just smiled and tilted his head innocently.
"What did I do to you that you're shaking like that?"
Luca just smiled and cursed like crazy in his heart.
You crazy old man, you did it on purpose, didn't you?! You're on the blacklist!
Amelie now looked at Luca with admiration as if she saw an idol. Luca could only avoid that look as if he didn't know or it didn't exist, maybe that would make him breathe easier.
The man just smiled and reached out to him.
"Call me Orion, but you can also call me Mr. Blackwell; it's up to you."
Luca just nodded. Before he could answer or say anything, a knife was held to his neck.
"Why did you come to our guild?"
Luca was scared, he was scared, but he kept it to himself, not knowing why in a space with more than 2 people, he felt scared, but he knew that he was currently no different from an ant that could be stepped on at any time, so he suppressed it inside and left it on the outside, which was a rare awakening for the extremely beautiful young man in their eyes, especially his pupils.
The cold voice did not match the small figure of the boy behind him; his face was pressed right next to his wrist, holding a dagger close to his neck; his eyes should not be on such a young person. He had short, slightly messy, and shaggy black hair. His face was small with bright red eyes. He wore a dark blue long-sleeved shirt with a white lace collar. Below was a pair of simple white pants. His feet wore a pair of dark gray knee-high boots.
Wait, why do I have the time to sit and watch this boy planning to kill me!??
Luca woke up from his own nonsense thoughts while Orion just calmly looked at Luca.
"No need to hide…"
Luca looked at Orion, still calm, but also had no intention of stopping this boy, making Luca quite confused. He knew he had no chance with this group, so he just had to be honest.
"I just came here to ask for a job to earn some money, bro? Do I look like someone who can beat you guys or influence you guys?"
Luca said in a tone of honesty mixed with confusion that the boy who held the knife to his neck could only giggle and then change to a serious and slightly angry mask. Now, the knife was getting closer to the point that a slight movement could make Luca bleed.
"Why do players like you like to lie?! IF YOU INTEND TO ROB, JUST SAY IT!"
"Stop it!"
The murderous aura from Orion really made the other boy silent. Luca also looked and asked, "Is it worth betting on anyway, right?
"I still don't understand what you mean by 'what kind of player?"
Amelie, standing right next to him, was also a bit surprised and just pursed her lips and looked at him with the pitiful look of a young girl.
"Luca shouldn't deceive others like that, right? Your pupils and symbols say it all!"
Luca looked at him in surprise.
WHAT!?
Looking at him like that made Orion laugh.
"So you're the type of newbie who doesn't know what he's gotten himself into."
Luca looked at Orion as if waiting for an explanation. Orion sighed and slowly explained like a teacher or father preaching to a foolish child who didn't know he had just been caught up in a chain of dramas that could turn his life upside down.
"Listen carefully, young man, have you somehow got a formula to summon a god?"
Luca immediately nodded to get over the fact that he was very curious, so he spoke quickly. Orion was helpless and continued speaking while the other two remained in the same posture, alert to everything.
"Those summoning rituals can indeed draw power from a god, but not everyone is chosen. Only ⅓ enter because they successfully summon a god, while the rest are pulled in when they're on the edge of death, dragged away by those who are already inside the game in the real world, or because their desires and greed for power burn too intensely, catching the attention of something beyond."
"No matter the reason, once chosen, they will be devoured and drawn into the game known as 'Infinite Void'.Those chosen bear a special mark on their body, symbolizing their own belief."
"Each person only has a few marks, and the clearer the mark, the stronger the person. It's best to avoid those whose marks are still forming. And if possible, hide yours within your pupil. Don't ask how. If you survive and return, I'll tell you more. Consider it a gift of curiosity, my last piece of advice… trust no one. When the time comes, a countdown number will appear before your eyes. No one else will see it but you."
Luca sat there, remembering the special information, especially not trusting anyone, and of course, he couldn't trust this man either, but now he had to... while Amelie poked Luca's cheek and then smiled.
"You are our man anyway, let me take you to the break room!"
The boy also put down the knife and walked away as if he was nothing, but Amelie kept laughing and pulled Luca out of there.
When they returned to the area that had been the century exhibition, Amelie smiled like a child and talked to Luca, who was unsure if he could still live.
"This place is our base! This place is invisible to outsiders. This exhibition area will disappear from the eyes of normal people, do you know why!? It's because all of these things are cursed! They're dangerous, so don't touch them unnecessarily! Oh, that's right, our group is Lux Ordinis Veritatis Temporis! That's right, that's the abbreviation of the museum, isn't it cool!? I made it up!!"
What kind of name is that… so long and so old-fashioned…
Luca could only smile and say, honestly, if it wasn't for his good brain, he wouldn't have been able to remember such a long name, but the others probably didn't want to argue with this girl, so they let her name it this way.
"Can I just call it Lux? Or is there a shorter one?"
Luca looked at Amelie with puppy eyes, looking at him.
"You don't like the name I made?"
Luca wanted to scream at that moment.
Oh, how can this girl be so stupid?
At this moment, the boy from back then passed by and looked at them with disdain, as if these two adults were like children and he was the real adult.
" L.O.V.T "
Luca looked at the source of the sound and saw a person in front of him. The guy with a tailored charcoal-grey tailcoat and slim trousers spoke of Victorian elegance, a perfect frame for the dramatic, billowing white silk jabot and shirt that gave him a touch of the mad, theatrical clown. Perched at a rakish angle was a slightly worn black silk top hat. His hair was a mass of dark brown, loosely curled waves that fell across a pale, handsome face, and his intense eyes were always drawn to the floating tarot-like cards that swirled around his hands, covered by soft dove-grey gloves.
He was an unsettling mix of controlled gentleman and unpredictable showman.
He approached him, turning the ACE card in his hand into a rose and giving it to him. Luca took it and looked at it silently, only for the guy to smile a little and then tilt his head.
"Let me introduce myself. I am the magician Leonce Aurelius. Young man, can you tell me your name? This rose can charm anyone, but your eyes are what make my heart bloom."
Luca could only smile a little. This guy really knows how to flirt. Amelie looked at the guy, then slightly frowned and crossed her arms.
"Leon, stop it, you're making him shy!"
Leonce looked at Amelie, then lowered his nose and bowed his body, only to give a charming smile that could melt the souls of girls.
"You look pretty when you're angry, but don't let me get addicted to this kind of beauty, okay?"
Amelie had forgotten, so she looked away while Luca also politely bowed his body a little.
"My name is Luca."
Leonce just smiled and nodded, just as he was about to continue flirting, Amelie pulled Luca away from there.
"The name is very suitable for a cute boy like you."
That was the last thing he could hear from the magician as Amelie mercilessly dragged him away. After walking a distance, Amelie looked at Luca and gave a slight warning.
"You should be careful with Leon! He looks like that, but he is the second strongest, and he is also a pervert!!"
Luca nodded when she saw that. She was satisfied and led him along normally, with her face gradually turning red again, while Luca thought a bit about the current time as well as mentally preparing. If he guessed correctly, he was about to enter.
The two stopped at a large door with the sign 'Amusement Park'. Amelie naturally pushed the door open.
This 'luxurious' room, Luca could only helplessly look at it; it was even more than his house. The soft yellow light poured down on the large dark-colored sofa in the middle of the room, in front of it was a low tea table covered with a few half-opened magazines.
In the far corner, a small table with two chairs seemed to be arranged for tea parties; on the table top, there were a few dark coffee stains.
Along one wall, a high bookshelf that reached the ceiling was filled with thick volumes of all genres: science, philosophy, and novels. The sofa was filled with personal belongings: a small teddy bear, a coffee cup with a foam stain, a stethoscope, an open bag of climbing gear, and a few carabiners scattered on the floor. All of it created a luxurious yet messy feeling, as if each member of L.O.V.T had left a part of their story in this room.
Luca found a clean spot on the sofa and sat down while Amelie smiled and tried to clean up the mess in front of the other person sitting there, looking at him with a slightly judgmental look.
"Please make yourself at home!"
Amelie treated him as an honored guest, so she also ran back and forth to clean up the things and bring cakes, tea, and coffee. Luca also thanked her and sat there, knowing that if Orion said so, he was about to enter a game, so he had to calm down. He was the king of games except for horror games, after all, his body, it was unlikely that his previous self would be afraid of these things. Not sure if he was still scared, but his heart suddenly shook. But maybe some of his memories were erased, so he wasn't scared enough to scream like before. Luca speculated, or maybe the two of them were two different people... two separate individuals? who knows.
Amelie smiled at Luca and then found a place for herself to sit down.
"Luca, I wonder why you want to summon a god?!"
Luca sat there drinking a sip of coffee. She asked at the right time, right when he only vaguely remembered that he didn't know why the previous him did that, causing the current him to not know how to solve the problem.
"I don't know."
Luca answered honestly, but for Amelie, Luca was hiding himself; she was sure this was a classic situation of male protagonists when someone asked about their strength or reason for fighting!
So cool!!
Luca could guess just by looking at it, so he let the girl who was addicted to novels, perhaps some kind of brainless classic novel, and let Amelie fall into a dream while she greedily ate all the free food. Anyway, it was not certain that he would come back and eat these things. Luca nodded to himself, thinking and anxiously waiting for the game that could change Luca's fate.
During the waiting time, Amelie did not care whether Luca listened or not, she kept telling stories as if no one wanted to listen to her and Luca was the first person willing to sit there and listen to her tell nonsense stories and love for the world of stories and this was the end, she wanted to die in a mystery and that was the reason why Amelie chose this path.
Luca thought this girl was not normal after hearing her talk about being the chosen one. It was true that no one was normal... anyway, he was not a normal person. Maybe everyone would go crazy and become a demon.
After a while… Luca sat with Amelie, who was talking, while in front of him was a series of numbers counting down from 10 seconds. Luca looked at Amelie and caught her talking and said.
"Good Luck!"
Luca just smiled and looked at the series of numbers counting down to 0. A black hole under Luca's feet sucked him down in front of Amelie, who was calmly drinking tea and pulling out her reading book.