"Could you elaborate more what you just said? It's still a little unbelievable what you just said." Roland said.
"I came from a different world far away from here. There no magical or strange powers exist, and life there is even more horrible than here when you don't have money. But I was able of escaping from my horrible life there thanks to a Superior Fertility God that for some reason randomly choose me to be sent here and gave me a special power, a 'system', which appears to only me as black windows at my front." Carmen patiently said.
Roland was still unconvinced. If she told him she was a hidden princess of a giant dynasty or the forgotten daughter of the person more powerful of the world, he would be more compelled to believe her than in this story completely outside of his common sense.
"I can prove you to you. My 'system' makes me do missions for it that I have to complete if not I will die, I already tested when it gave an optional mission and I purposely failed to know that its threats were true." Carmen tapped her fingers on the air. "But the missions give me 'Points' that I can spend to buy anything or improve myself. Think of a mortal thing I would never have in hands and I will buy it from my system to prove its power."
She pointed to her fingers and waist. "As you can see, I don't have any Bag of Holding or rings capable of storing things."
"'Buy a lot of shit, also known as feces," Roland said to the surprise of everyone. If Carmen is able to summon shit at will, he will from now on believe in anything that she says.
"...Are you serious?" She faltered.
"...Actually, no. Let's go to a guest's bathroom first, if you really can do it, it will be a big mess."
After some time they found the bathroom of a guest and Roland was ready to press the button the toilet to take the shit away while Carmen was with a hand covering her nose and the other tapping on the air.
She nodded to Roland and when she made the last tap on the air, amorphous globs of shit in a deep brown color appeared and dropped on the toilet.
Roland pressed the button and backed away together with Carmen that was retching in disgust.
"Okay, I believe now in anything that you say. I doubt that there's a technique that can summon shit. Let's go back to the kitchen." Roland said, holding Carmen's hand to take her away.
Carmen was silent while they went back. "It's better if I don't say to him that in the system there is indeed a technique that can summon shit. I pray that fucking God doesn't make someone that can use it appear on my way." She thought.
"So now that I believe you, what else your power can do?" Roland asked.
"It permits improve my talent and it was how I even reached the eight layer of Essence Reformation. It can also let me perfectly sense Essence fluctuations and the flow of the World's Fate. This was why I got paralyzed yesterday, the flow of the World's Fate in Oliver was so strong I couldn't even think straight."
World's Fate was how Roland and everyone else called what they recognized as the Supreme God that control their lives. It made the initial path, Fate, they will live on, in other words, their parents, environment, and talent. But it set them free after making the first path to them live however they want, making their own next path and destiny.
"What interesting and powerful power you have, doesn't it mean you can infinitely get more talented and buy whatever you want?" Roland said.
"Yes, it is powerful. But it came with a cost that if I don't complete my missions I will immediately die." Carmen said crestfallen.
"Could be you came to this Society because of a mission?"
"Yes, it was because of it." Carmen looked deep into the bright blue eyes of Roland. "And I came here for you Roland. The mission was the reason I talked to you earlier but now it isn't it more about the mission. I really consider you important and my friend. Are you still my friend after discovering I only made a relationship with you to not die?"
"How could I not? I already said it before and I won't repeat myself, stop having so many doubts on me. And how could I judge you if you only wanted to survive?" Roland sighed. "What was the mission then? Did you finish it?"
"My mission is to find what the 'system' consider 'Protagonists' of the World's Fate that have a lot of 'Fate' around them and do two things with them that I can't talk to you. Until now I only found Shin Ta before meeting you, and I was in despair, thinking that this time I will die since I refused to do it with Shin Ta. So when I compared Shin Ta and you, I decided to bet my life on you because I didn't think I would meet another 'Protagonist' before the time ends."
"Since you can't talk about it, just do what you need to do. I will stay still while you do it." Roland didn't want to Carmen to die.
"Sorry but this doesn't work in this way, one of them I can do right now, however, it will make the other harder to do." Carmen with a real blush shook her head. "This mission is to me be established on this world as a real existence, I will become what is called a 'Heroine' to not die so easily anymore. It is forcing me to do so because I refused the first optional mission when interacting with Shin Ta."
August perked up hearing the name 'Heroine' and went close to Carmen. "Girl, can you explain more to me about your mission? Can't you talk to Roland about it because your power forbids the information to reach your targets or because nobody in the world can discover it?"
"If the targets don't know I can talk to anyone about it but if the targets discover about it, I immediately die," Carmen said.
"Can you tell me what is? I promise good fortune for you if you do so. I'm Roland's master, I have good things for you and I wouldn't hurt a friend of my disciple."
Carmen pondered for a second and decided to talk in whispers that her mission was to 'fall in love with a 'Protagonist' and 'use any action to prove the love, like for example, a kiss on the cheeks'.
August's reaction to hearing that was only one. "Fuck you, girl! And here I was thinking it would be something really depraved and it became something so small like this. Go feign right now your feelings and ki-"
"It isn't that simple! I will be graded in how well I do these actions." She shouted before coming back to whispers. "Did you really think I hadn't thought in such easy solution? It needs to be real and something I do in the spurt of the moment to work. I need to delude myself that I love Roland, do you know how hard is to do it when knowing I will die in three months if I don't do it?"
"In other words, you need to become the most perfect actress, the ones that deceive herself and even the World's Fate?!" August eyes shone and he said aloud. "It's decided, you will become my second disciple! And I will help you think in ways to make you do those actions."
Carmen looked not much impressed or with the willingness to become a turtle's disciple, principally of the one that looked at her with scorn in the first time they met. "Sorry, but-"
"No fucking buts! With your power you can maybe even 'buy' techniques with those 'points' you talked about, right?"
She nodded.
"But can you with your current 'points' 'buy' a technique so advanced and powerful as the one I will present to you? Don't forget that I'm the master of the man that almost defeated someone three layers above him and survived an ultimate Spell from a Magus Rank 1. And don't worry, you won't train in the dangerous technique Roland trains, you will train in a more adequate to you."
Carmen mind reeled, understanding August's point, if she becomes his disciple it is certain she will at least have some degree of power despite her low talent. "Roland, do you care if I become your junior?"
"Go on, to become his disciple is only something you and him can decide," Roland said.
"August, I will be counting on you to teach me." Carmen bowed to August.
"Don't worry, I have the perfect technique to you but we have a problem here. It will be a pain in the ass to me go to your place to train you whenever I need. How about you stay here? The mansion is big and I'm sure that with Roland being a Prince he can let someone live with him like a Follower." August said and whispered to Carmen. "In this way will be easier to you finish your mission."
Carmen lively looked at Roland asking for permission and the black-haired man nodded. "August, how about you train us two until its time for the high elder introduce us to the Society?" Roland said with hopes to make someone share his woes, they are junior and senior, the junior must understand the pain the senior had to suffer to reach where he is now despite the junior having the advantage of not having to train Timeless Emperor Refinement.
Carmen didn't know why but she felt a chill on her spine looking at the amiable smile of Roland and at the fox just sighing at the sides with her eyes full of pity.
***
"I hate you both of you," Carmen said with her famous tone of voice full of grudge, this is another hatred she will take to her grave.
August and Roland only laughed at this while Lucy saw that her presence won't be needed for a long time and went rest on Roland's first scarf that isn't still made using Equipment Formation.
As time passes Lucy talk less and less as if tired of doing something exhausting.
Roland was refreshed with the 'light' training they did, if Carmen knew his training was to walk between life and death with Magic Foundation beasts while being only at the fourth layer of Essence Reformation maybe she would complain less. But he and August had a good amount of fun seeing her grumbling and screaming in fear.
August taught Carmen two elemental techniques that weren't compatible with Roland, they were one for her to run, Wind, and the other for when she has to fight until death or practice Medicine Alchemy, an elemental plant technique that is also capable of manipulating Life.
Until now she wasn't able to understand absolutely anything since they trained for only some hours.
Carmen and Roland were now outside of the mansion waiting for the high elder come to fetch them to show the Society.
At a distance, Roland saw what was supposed to be Elizabeth's castle by what his masters said to him.
It was as always red and black, the people from the Master Blacksmith Society seemed fixed on those two colors, and it was smaller than Major Castle with only two towers.
Roland wanted to go there right now to see Elizabeth's teleportation portal and study it this time but he knew that being introduced to the Society was right now more important.
Carmen and Roland got awkward without anything to talk with, therefore, Roland began to talk about his mansion and some small talks to pass the time.
Thankfully, the high elder arrived to save them. "It's an honor meeting you Tenth Prince, I'm Triam. I will be the one to guide all the new disciples through the Society and I have come to fetch you and the Peasant that is with you."
Triam was an old man totally different from George, he was tall, full of white hair and scars in his face. His Essence didn't seem that powerful but the power in each of his steps made someone wonder that he is only feigning to be weak.
He really deserved the place of 'Elder', a position only below the patriarch and responsible for the security and safety of the Society.
"Nice to meet you, Elder Triam. Before we go, can I ask you something? Is it possible to me take this girl, Carmen, as my Follower just like Elizabeth did to me and make her live on my mansion? The mansion is too big for me alone, it will be solitary living there and considering how she is my friend, I don't her to live alone since her caste is too low and someone can bully her." Roland said.
"This can be certainly be arranged, as a Prince you the right to have two followers but I must let you know that she will only receive the partial bonus of being a Follower of a Prince, she won't be like you that is a Follower of a Queen, is that fine to you? It's a problem we faced on the past that people made a pyramid of benefits by using Followers." Triam pondered before saying.
"No problem, thank you, Elder Triam."
"Then let's go." Triam suddenly began to float using Essence, a mark he is Magus Rank 3, and used his powers to also float Carmen and Roland with him. "Try to not vomit, it will be faster in this way."
Carmen's screams tore through the sky as she, Roland and Triam flew in the air to the meet the others disciples.