My Skills Can Evolve Infinitely in a Game-Like World

Chapter 15: Triggering a Chain Mission

"Who are you? Why were you fighting that man?" Aurelius’ voice echoed throughout the dark room, landing accurately in Selene’s ears.

She didn’t speak.

Although she had guessed that the person before her was not the cultist but someone unrelated, she found it difficult to believe that his motives were pure.

Based on his shadowy appearance that practically screamed "I’m a bad person" and the chains bound around her limbs, the man looked more like a kidnapper than an actual savior.

Aurelius naturally noticed her thoughts but did not show any surprise.

He hadn’t expected getting an answer to be so easy.

Still, he had to seek out the truth.

This matter concerned his own survival.

Having killed the Barbarian, an enmity had been forged with the people or the organization behind him.

If he were to remain oblivious to his background, it would only be a matter of time before he suffered greatly.

Thankfully, Aurelius had already prepared himself.

Reaching into his clothes, he pretended to take something out of his pocket while secretly focusing on the Storage Space.

Moments later, when his hand reappeared, he was holding two objects.

A crimson gem and a necklace in the shape of a crescent moon.

Both objects glowed faintly amidst the otherwise dark room, evidence of their extraordinary nature.

Aurelius briefly played with them.

"I found these two items on you," he stated calmly.

"This one," he pointed at the gem, "Was found on your opponent. As for the necklace..."

"...It was found on your body."

Aurelius watched as Selene’s expression shifted, the changes visible to the naked eye.

Her gaze scanned over his palm before eventually settling on the necklace.

A trace of astonishment crossed her face.

Her hands moved, seemingly wanting to reach for her neck, but her attempts proved futile.

In the end, her struggle only resulted in faint bruises and scratches around her wrists and ankles.

"You...You!" she gritted her teeth, her eyes looking ready to swallow him alive.

But just as Aurelius was about to put the necklace away, she forced herself to calm down.

"Okay! Okay! I’ll speak!"

"Since you’ve already killed that man, I can be certain that you don’t belong to his organization."

"Don’t you wish to know about his identity? I’ll satisfy you. Hehe..."

She chuckled.

"But once you learn the truth, you’ll have to pay a certain price."

After saying this, she gave Aurelius no time to speak. She quickly followed up on her words.

"That... Barbarian is a member of the Sunless Sect. As for me... I belong to the Blood Temple."

Soon, her voice was the only thing echoing inside the room.

Though she was chained and powerless, she appeared to have become its focal point.

Aurelius didn’t mind.

He attentively listened to her explanation, gradually gaining a rough understanding of the situation.

Sunless Sect. Blood Temple.

These were the two organizations involved in the previous battle.

Aurelius recognized both based on his memories.

The Blood Temple was engaged in assassination and espionage.

Despite what its thunderous title would suggest, this organization coexisted peacefully with most of the righteous forces.

On the other hand, the Sunless Sect...

"You should have heard of them before. All the members of this cult are lunatics."

"They believe that only by bringing the end of the world can they help the Lost Sun emerge again," Selene said.

Seeing Aurelius nod behind the mask, she continued:

"So, you should understand what their appearance in Blood Sun City means. The temple suspects that the Sunless Sect has a great conspiracy."

"I was tasked with collecting information about that. Unfortunately..."

Selene did not finish her words, but the rattling of her chains as she tried to gesture made her meaning abundantly clear:

Her battle with the Barbarian was the result of her failed operation.

Selene spoke no further, giving him time to process everything.

Aurelius was indeed working to digest the information.

The more he did, the more speechless he became.

He had just gone out to hunt some weak Red Hare Rabbits!

How could he have unknowingly been involved in the feud between two massive organizations?

Yes! Although this was Selene’s one-sided account of what happened, Aurelius tended to believe her.

For no other reason than that a prompt flickered before him.

"Ding!"

"Chain Mission has been issued!"

"Mission—Sunless Sect (1): Investigate the Sunless Sect and locate their stronghold in Blood Sun City."

"Rewards: 1000 EXP. Skill: Light Strike. 5 Skill Points."

"Reminder: You might need the assistance of a certain person to complete this set of missions."

Looking at the rich rewards, far better than what he obtained by killing one hundred Red Hare Rabbits, Aurelius was faintly excited.

However, he quickly regained his composure.

He knew the law of equivalent exchange very well.

’The better the rewards, the more difficult this mission will be to complete.’

Moreover, its title made it apparent that it was not a standalone mission.

Once it was completed, another mission regarding this "plot" would pop up.

Aurelius felt a headache coming on.

Looking at Selene and seeing that she was unwilling to speak any further, he knew he would not be able to get anything more out of her.

Glancing out of the gap in the door and noticing that it was nearly midnight, he chose against staying here any longer.

After feeding Selene the food he had brought, he exited the underground chamber and locked the door behind him.

Secretly, he couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of irony.

This room, which had once been used by him to have fun with his numerous girlfriends, had now turned into a prison for a powerful Awakener.

No one would have ever guessed such a thing.

Despite his mind being filled with thoughts, Aurelius’ journey back to his room did not last for long.

Shortly afterward, he was lying down on his own bed.

Several items lay around him.

A necklace, a crimson gem, two sets of weapons, and a leather-bound book.

These were the things he had managed to collect from the fallen Barbarian and Selene.

He didn’t know if that was all there was or if the rest of the man’s belongings had been destroyed.

He started going through them.

The first thing he picked up was the moon-shaped necklace he had previously presented to Selene.

Though he had already examined it before, he chose to examine it one more time.

Its information emerged as he focused on it.

[Moonlight Necklace: ...]