Rael clenched his fists and glanced at Alcetas, who picked up the dice and threw them.
And to Rael’s surprise, the total was the highest possible.
A faint smile appeared on Alcetas’s face.
"I suppose I am a bit lucky sometimes. Now I’ll ask you a question, and you have to answer truthfully," Alcetas said. "Also, this game of ours ends whenever someone refuses to answer a question. Then we may resume the fighting."
Rael nodded. "Ask your question."
Alcetas leaned back in his chair, then spoke. "For how long were you able to access that Dimensional Shop?"
"Around two months," Rael replied, puzzled.
Hearing that, Alcetas seemed satisfied, so he pushed the dice over to Rael, who rolled them without wasting a beat.
Then came Alcetas’s turn, and yet again...
He leaned back further.
"What is your earliest memory? Of this world, I mean."
Rael’s brows furrowed.
Does he know that I’m not from around here? Or is he just trying to put something together...?
"10 years," Rael replied. "My earliest memory of this world was 15 years ago."
Technically, this wasn’t a lie.
He had known about Sketa Online for quite some time, just not through this current world, but the virtual reality world instead.
"Hmm..." Alcetas narrowed his eyes, then tossed the dice over again.
After a quick roll, Rael managed to come out on top.
11 in total, whereas Alcetas got 10.
Since his earlier question had gone unanswered, Rael decided not to ask about it again.
Instead, he went for the more straightforward matters.
"How long has the Shadow Creation machine been on the Dralgur Continent?"
"Two millennia," Alcetas said with a smile. "It has just never been powered before, until today."
2,000 years, huh? Rael mused. I guess the grasp they have over this world is not surprising. Even the memories I saw through Jashin were only 20 years ago, so I can only imagine what the world was like that far back.
Nevertheless, they got to rolling, and like before, Rael came out on top, so he asked yet another question.
"Was activating the Shadow Creation machine always your goal?"
Rael’s brows furrowed at that dry response, but even so, he went ahead and rolled the dice. To his surprise, he won again.
"What was your initial goal then?"
"We were supposed to find the man who had escaped the unknown realm. After that, we were going to find the unknown realm itself and destroy it..." Alcetas trailed off with a sigh. "We soon realized that the man we were looking for was not on this continent, or this world for that matter. But just as we were about to leave, you showed up."
"You invaded Jashin’s dreams and saw something you shouldn’t have. That little bold stunt of yours was enough to impress Solenne and alter her original goal."
"A little bonus answer, eh?" Rael chuckled. "Alright, I see. Roll."
Another roll happened, and Rael didn’t win this time, so Alcetas asked the question.
"To what extent can you invade the minds of others? Can you influence thoughts, decisions, maybe even bring back a memory or two?"
Rael fell into thought for a moment before nodding.
"I haven’t tried bringing back memories, but I can do most of that, yes."
"Then could you use your powers on me?" Alcetas asked out of nowhere. "I want you to help me remember a memory."
Rael tilted his head. "What about the dice?"
"This isn’t a question. It’s a request," Alcetas replied. "If you help me remember a certain event in the past, then I will provide you with something you can’t refuse."
This is a bit random... I knew this guy didn’t call me here for no reason.
"...What are you looking for?" Rael asked with a serious look.
After a moment of silence, Alcetas smiled, then replied. "The others do not know their origins. They think Solenne had given birth to us, or rather, she created us from her mana. But I believe differently."
He rose from his seat and began pacing back and forth.
"You know, I’ve always had this distant memory of living in a frugal house many years ago. But whenever I try to reach further into that memory, it vanishes from my mind for a good couple of years until coming back once more."
"The details are always the same. Red brick house, large chimney, a vegetable garden in the back," Alcetas added, a distant smile appearing on his face. "You see, I had the idea of searching for it myself, that is why I learned to control the minds of others through nightmares. Dreams to a certain extent too, but not nearly as uniquely as you could."
Rael listened attentively while also making sure he wasn’t being fooled.
Each word Alcetas had said thus far was the truth, and the emotions behind each of his words were sincere.
He was curious, but also cautious, afraid of Solenne, but too interested in his own past, which might not even exist.
"Are you sure it’s not just your imagination?" Rael asked skeptically. "I used to dream of big houses sometimes because I wanted to live inside them. Once I built a big house, those dreams disappeared."
"So what I’m trying to say is, why don’t you just go rebuild that house of yours and—"
Before Rael could even finish, the room expanded as several structures manifested in an instant.
Beams of sunlight shone through the mind realm’s sky onto the beautiful vegetable garden. In the center of it all was a two-story brick house with a chimney running up its right side.
Alcetas took a deep breath and gestured for Rael to follow, so he did.
The two approached the red brick house and stopped right in front of the door.
Alcetas seemed hesitant to open it, so Rael stepped up and pushed the door open instead.