Chapter 75: Star Child
After the inheritance entered his body, Boni, surprisingly felt nothing. "Eh? Did it work?"
Tala smiled, "Give it some time. It should manifest when you sleep tonight."
Luna nodded, "She's right. The same thing happened to me."
"Now for my end of the bargain," Tala said. It would be a lie to say she wasn't hopeful. Boni explained everything about the Angels to her on their way here, and the fact that she could gain the capability of possibly surpassing the other Gods, albeit, the chances are low since she could still die along the way, she was no stranger to standing up to the odds.
Luna gave her a meaningful look as he warned her, "I cannot guarantee that this will work."
"It doesn't matter. I'm going to fade away regardless if I wait or if it fails." Tala had resolved herself. After being so bored for so long, only waiting for death, the fact that she had a chance was more than enough for her to take the risk.
"Alright, step into the water, at least until it's up to your neck," Luna instructed.
Tala followed without question. She knew that there was no reason for Luna to betray her, and even if he did decide to, her current state would not be able to do anything.
She waded through the water until the water was just at her neck, just as Luna instructed.
She waited...
and waited...
"What's wrong? Is it not possible?" She murmured. The light in her eyes seemed to have dimmed a bit.
"Don't give up just yet. I can feel that they are attempting to do something, just be patient for now."
"Mn." Tala nodded. What else could she do after all? So she continued to wait.
While they waited, Luna told Boni to rest up.
Based on his previous experience, Boni would need to be in a state of deep sleep. This state of rest would allow the body to have the most optimal chance of having the inheritance manifest.
He ended up not being able to sleep until the next six hours, due to his excitement.
Meanwhile, the Life Tree still hadn't taken action. Still, thanks to Luna's encouragement, Tala remained patient. The Life Tree's waters were nourishing to her. Although it wasn't to the point where it would extend her lifespan, the subtle effects were there.
"No matter how you look at it, this thing is beyond even the world of Gods. It makes you think what else is out there." She spoke as she gazed at her reflection on the water.
Luna felt that it would be boring to just stand there and say nothing, so he obliged her with a conversation.
"Indeed. I too am curious. Sometimes I have to stop myself from wondering about it, because I know I have to focus on the current threat we're facing now. If we manage to survive, what then? Stronger enemies? That's why I strive to get stronger non-stop."
"Yet you gave away such a precious resource." Tala gazed at the man in front of her. "When I was trying my best to be deemed worthy of entering Kaluwalhatian, I scrounged for every bit of resource I could get. Took every single opportunity I could take. Yet you, why would you be so foolish as to give away that inheritance, hmm?"
"I'm confident in my methods in being able to stay ahead of the rest. I'm not trying to survive just for the sake of survival. What's the point in all of it if I'm the only one left alive?"
"And what if you lose them some if not all of the ones you love. dear Luna? What if you're not strong enough to protect them all in the end?"
"That's why I'll make sure they can protect themselves."
"I see. If I may ask, what made you decide to lead a Nation?"
"I didn't. I only wanted to create a safe haven for the rest, so they can stay safe while I continued to thrive in this new world. Being a leader just defaulted to me since I was the one who had the least chances of dying, so-to-speak."
"Are you sure it's not because of your natural leadership skills?"
"In the real world, due to my family constantly trying to take what's mine, I learned to survive. Being a leader in a real-world setting was never something I considered for myself. The only place I lead was in MMORPGs. Adopting that mindset is what made what you see here today possible."
"I see. You mentioned that you thrived in this world. What did you mean by that?" Tala asked. That word definitely triggered her curiosity.
"Can I be honest with you, Goddess?"
"Of course."
"I've never felt more alive than when the new world began. I've never felt more purpose than before the new world began." Luna clenched his fists. This was a side that he would only show to Sura who could take what she understood from his soul and used it to put his words into perspective. He was being honest towards Tala because he felt that as someone who was considered a God at one point, she might offer some insight.
Tala smiled and said, "Thank you for your candor, young Luna. Do you feel that it's weird that you're experiencing such emotions?"
"Just a little bit."
"Fufufu, what you're feeling isn't weird at all, at least not in my eyes, and surely not in the eyes of higher beings as well."
"What do you mean?"
"The Gods didn't start out as strong as they are right now. Although they didn't have something as miraculous as the effects of the Agimat of Attribute, ranking up their mastery of their Anito gave a similar effect. It also gave them purpose. The same way you humans in the previous world would better yourselves and grow as a person. Then, once the threat of a foreign race loomed over our world, that sense of purpose grew even more. Sound familiar?"
"I get it. The initial push to get stronger, survive, and protect those who I care about. Then finding out that threats are all over the place and even bigger threats looming over us. But to me, it's about the capability to evolve further. Is it wrong that I use the same tactics I used in MMORPGs?"
"Why would it be wrong? It works, doesn't it? What's important is that you don't toy with other people's lives as if it's a game. Your perspective doesn't matter as long as you can grow strong and protect the ones you wish to protect."
"I see. Thank you." That was what Luna needed to hear. There were many times where he questioned himself. Every time he would shrug it off because asking such questions didn't help the current situation. But now, with perspective from someone like Tala who had gone through a similar journey, he could finally resolve that question.
The two continued to talk for a long while. Eventually, Tala got out of the water and sat on the shore. Luna tried to obtain as much knowledge and wisdom as he could. After all, it wasn't every day that one could sit down with a Goddess and learn from them.
Boni eventually woke up. With their conversation stopped, Tala felt worried again. The Life Tree still hadn't done anything.
"Boni, how is it?" Luna asked.
"Bro, it's amazing!" He then turned towards Tala and bowed deeply, "Thank you, Goddess! I will never forget this favor!"
"You're welcome, Star Child." She replied with a slight smile. She had mixed feelings about seeing all her hard work being passed on while she was still alive. But to her, if she could become Tabula Rasa and receive the benefits of the Agimat of Attribute, it would be more than worth it.
Boni's strengthening was actually more rapid. It didn't surpass Luna's when he was at his level. It was because he was already much higher leveled and so he got all the progress all at once, whereas Luna's growth was more steady since he started much earlier.
"You should rest up some more, Boni. That rapid increase in strength is going to make you feel like you got hit by a truck." Luna advised.
"What do you mean? I feel fine! Look!" Boni said as he threw out a full force punch onto the air.
*BOOM*
His punch had such speed and strength to it, that it actually made a booming sound. What followed next was as if he was a normal human being that just got hit by lightning.
"AUUUGHHHH!!!!!!" Pain wracked his entire body. Not only was the increase in strength something that his body needed a while to get used to, but he also wasn't used to his newfound strength. It was like someone who threw out a punch and pulled a muscle. Except in his case, he pulled every muscle.
"Sigh." Luna ignored him for now. After all, there wasn't much he could do for him, even if there was, he would much prefer that Boni learn his lesson. He turned to Tala and said, "Get back in the water."
Tala, noticing his meaning, followed his instructions and went back until the water reached her neck.
The inheritance had been passed on completely! The Life Tree recognized that the shackles that bound Tala to her current body were now gone, the roots of all five trees shot forward, impaling both her palms, feet, abdomen, chest and finally her forehead.
"So that's how it was." Luna murmured to himself. He picked up Boni and brought him to a nearby bamboo cabin built nearby. The same one he was resting in earlier and threw him in as he howled in pain.
Evidently Luna had no sympathy for something that was his own doing and trying to show off in front of Tala. It was a good opportunity to teach this jokester a lesson so he'll take training his newfound strength more seriously. It was tough love indeed.
He then returned to the shore and stood in front of Tala who was now in mid-air, being lifted by the roots.
"Now, allow me to see the rebirth of a God." He said, as the roots wrapped around Tala like a cocoon.
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