As soon as Amelia touched Adrian's hand, the place around the was filled with light. Everyone was blinded by that bright glow but they did not know what was happening.

Even Amelia was started and she quickly pulled her hand back. 

As soon as she did that, the light surrounding the clearing faded away and it was calm once more.

"Hmm, that is interesting. Is this what happens when two of the 'chosen ones' interact with each other? This reaction was not recorded in the archives of the temple."

If not for his memory of his past life, Keith would have wondered what Adrian was saying. But he did remember the character setting for Adrian a little bit.

Adrian was a part of 'fate's temple'. It was a place that recorded what would happen in this world.

Adrian had not been allowed to read those records but he had snuck in one day and taken a look at those records anyway. As a result, he had been thrown out into the world before he could absorb what he had read.

And that was where Adrian's story started - being abandoned and then meeting Veera. 

It had never been explained how much or how little Adrian knew about the future of this world. But it was certain that he was the most well-informed of the protagonists.

[This girl. She is just like you Adrian. What is going on here?]

Even the goddess of fate, Veera was confused about what was going on in this world.

During this game, none of the protagonists had ever interacted. They all existed at the same time and they all had their own story to tell.

But only one destiny could unfold at one time.

Reality was different from fantasy. Here, there was no 'one' route. All the protagonists existed at the same time. And as such, they all needed to figure out who would become Veera's paladin.

"Oh, I figured that out when we touched. Our souls echoed with each other and caused resonance. Usually, it is not supposed to happen. There must be an external force disrupting this world's fate."

Keith flinched internally when he heard Adrian's words. He was sure that the 'external force' Adrian was talking about was him.

His mere presence in this place changed its nature and caused a problem for the world. 

"Hey, what are you talking about? And why do you have a woman floating behind you?"

Amelia asked with a frown. Her head was still spinning because she had touched Adrian carelessly. She did not know what these flashes of light in her head were. But Amelia did not like them.

"Well, since things had come down to this, I will explain to you all what is going on. This world usually has a few people born with the 'creator's blessing'. It grants them great power and the ability to form a bond with a god."

"Both you and I are such existences and our souls exist on a similar wavelength. That is why even Veera was confused when she saw us. For a goddess like her, both your and my soul shine brightly."

Adrian's explanation explained too much and too little at the same time. 

Keith and the pre-knowledge of the game so he was able to figure out what Adria was saying. But for a normal person like Shinzou or Amelia, it was very difficult to figure out what he meant.

"You have spoken enough nonsense. It is time for me to put your mouth to rest."

Shinzou was getting irritated now. Not only was this man wasting his time, but he was also holding Shinzou up. 

Shinzou did not like this so he brought out his divine sword.

"Hey, wait, chill. I am not a bad person, I swear. Hey, man, you help me out here."

Adrian turned his attention toward Keith last. His eyes said that he recognized Keith from the last time and he was even willing to keep his secret.

But Keith was not even sure if he wanted Adrian to keep his secret or not. He had a feeling that neither Amelia nor Shinzou would believe his words. Clair already knew the truth so she was out as well.

Letting Adrian die here would be the best solution for Keith overall.

"Keith, save him for now. We might need Veera's help to solve our current situation."

In the end, the one who helped Adrian was Sara. She did not look happy about what she was doing either, but there were some things that you have to do.

"Shinzou, back down. I have decided to listen to this child out."

Olivier flinched when he heard his voice. His words cut through the tense silence of the town and Shinzou instantly backed down.

"Phew man, you saved me. I thought I was a goner back there for a second. Hey, I think we are even now."

Adrian did not seem to value his life much. He either did not know who Keith was, or he did not care about his title and social standing.

Somehow, Keith had a feeling that it was the former in this case. 

"Shinzou, hold your anger."

Shinzou had already brought his sword out in anger by this time. Keith's words stop him from killing Adrian.

"Hurry up and tell us what is wrong with this town. I am not in a patient mood to listen to your useless chatter."

Keith tried to channel as much negative energy as he could. But it did not seem to deter Adrian from flashing a friendly smile his way.

"Of course, of course. This town is under a curse by a goddess. From what Veera said before, it is the goddess of prosperity. There is no indication to tell us why this goddess felt the need to curse this town, but it cannot be anything good."

"Of course, it is that sore loser. If it's the goddess of prosperity, then I can guess why she decided to curse this town. It must be because of the lack of yearly tribute we send her."

Clair seemed to know exactly what was going on once she heard the name of the goddess. 

Since Clair was a goddess as well, the chances of her knowing the other goddess were high. 

But still, something about his situation seemed familiar to Keith. He was sure he had heard about tributes and punishment before as well. But he could not remember where he had heard those words before.

'Ah, now I remember. That zombie curse I faced was similar to his one, right? I cannot believe it took me so long to remember about it.'

It seemed like gods were too free these days. They had enough time to harass humans and come after them.

"Is that it? This much suffering and controlling people just because the goddess wanted more tribute? How is that fair? Who decided to give a goddess that much power?"

Amelia seemed to be having a hard time digesting everything she just heard. 

But then again, it was a given that she was feeling frustrated with this situation since she had the most experience being under oppression.

"Well, gods are not the most rational creatures you will meet. They are often too irrational because the amount of power they have inside their bodies is too much. I am not defending them, but just saying that there is a reason behind the god's cranky temper."

Adrian was digging his own grave at this point. But since there seemed to be no trouble for the time being, Olivier let him do what he wanted to.

The people around him were giving their group that hungry look. Olivier was beginning to feel uncomfortable around this place.

Enough about the gods and their problems. What can we do to resolve this problem? If you know this much, then you should also know of a solution, right?"

Amelia asked with a determined expression. No matter if her opponent was a god or not, Amelia was not going to give up. She was going to do her best to free these people.

"Well, I do know a way to resolve this situation, but I am not sure if you would like it or not. After all, you don't seem like a person who would compromise or bow your head."

The more Adrian spoke without answering Amelia's questions, the more he pissed her off.

"You are getting on my nerves now. Give me a clear answer or I will not let you leave this town alive."

Adrian let out a nervous laugh when he heard Amelia speak. He did not want to become her enemy.

"Ahhh, wait, I am telling you. To lift the curse on this town, you need to win the goddess's favor. See, I told you that you would not like the solution I tell you about."

It was true that Amelia did not like this solution. But she was also not willing to bend. There has to be something else she could do to help these people out.