As though the violet glade was waiting for him, Kivas embarked his squishy claws to drag his body forward.
The adrenaline from being chased by the terrifying sprinting carnivorous plant had subsided. Clarity returned to the world. While Kivas was still wondering how a lump of jelly like him was capable of replicating the complex function of a human's brain chemical, the calming got slightly agitated, twirling and proliferating in the moonlight.
If only his torch could reach the stars and beyond, then maybe he could savor the majestic view of a shaping arc of a comet that had passed through flocks of shiny marbles on the night canvas.
'Strangely calming? Can I say that I'm alerted? I'm alerted. I hope that this ominous shift of breeze won't be the sign of calm before the storm.'
As soon as the feet of the ruins reached his torch's illumination, a purple orb immediately emerged from the violet flame that had just turned gold.
'A [Blight Expansion] and another new [???] with symbols of circles leaving an arc trail? I'm curious, but I'll be picking the [Blight Expansion] for the time being. And that is five meters of perception range for moi!'
He saw the worth of the ruination. If just finding a glimpse of it gave him a purple orb, then there might be something that was worth a century hiding on the centerpiece.
'This makes me feel like an adventurer.'
Imitating that of an archeologist, Kivas pinched his claw fingers debris of the ruin. He didn't gain anything from doing that but the novelty of becoming something that you don't is a little bit positive serotonin on the brain. If he had a physical brain, that is.
'I admit, I feel like I got significantly dumber than when I got the Cerberus' Valiant One upgrade back then. Maybe the fact that this body doesn't have any conceivable brain is reducing my critical thinking?'
Certainly, it seemed like there was correlation between the physical structure of his body along with the addition of the Boons of Constitution. Who knows, there might be a boon that gives him a brain of genius. Regardless, those weren't the minimum requirement if one's aim is to find stuff beyond the darkness.
'Hmm? It looks like some kind of a plaque.'
Attached to the sloping platform leaning to the barely standing wall of ruination, was a tablet made out of black jade with golden runes inscribed on it.
Kivas immediately acquired another upgrade orb after that. But instead of purple, the orb was gleaming golden as though it was sunlight beaming the surface of the sea, creating dancing rays of light beyond the ripples as they fell to the seabed. Instead, it was coming out of the center of the floating sphere and into all directions.
'After everything that I have gone through, I don't know whether I should be hyped or should be scared shitless…'
Most of the time, the discovery that Kivas made was mostly correlated to how he got killed after the revelation. Something as shady as a black jade plaque with golden inscription might result in whatever the incarnation of monsters or traps that he would be encountering.
Kivas was more than traumatized to acquire good things, only for the pitfall that was waiting for him to swallow his excitement and expectation.
'Yes, this is real life… not a novel or a comic book where there is good fortune without anything lunging from behind and mauling your body apart.'
Kivas had a cold shiver run through all of his body. Even though he was supposed to be a creature that feeds off moisture.
Without letting anything kill him before he got hold of his prize, he immediately grabbed the golden orb as it dissipated into thousands of shiny particles made out of red, black, and yellow gold.
And unlike the purple orb, the golden orb didn't really let him choose anything. Instead, the result was immediately showcased to him.
-Boon of Spellcard-
[Memento of Organism: Hidden Takamagahara]
-The dawn. Memories forgotten by living and curious things. The later generation refer to it as the Jindai period. Otherwise known as the Age of the Gods. They are mere pawns, doubting the hidden strings. Everyone is a mere marionette that stays foolish against all odds, ignoring the shiny and bigger things-
Just as when Kivas thought that it was over, the second burning gold panel appeared after the first disappeared.
-Art thou blind or art thou keen? Ne'er aim for the hind, enlightenment for all thy kin!-
It disappeared soon after, before the dusts converged into one uniquely-shaped spear and lunged at Kivas without any warning. Was it confusion or excitement that he felt? There was not a single sureness on what had happened.
The spear then dissipated as it left a gold mark on Kivas' soul for the time being. At the same time, a flickering fire had just inscribed a sword symbol on the stem of his torch.
The symbol was glowing brighter than everything inside the torch's illumination.
A new type of boon, something that he may never encounter again if he were to die.
Clarity began to fill in the silence, and as Kivas processed the event, he was rather thrilled by the new discovery. Just like a kid that had just been given a gift at the end of the year.
'All of that aside.' he began to think hard about the symbol on his torch. 'What does it even do?'
He would be gratified if he had the [Tautology] in this current moment. Unfortunately, it seemed like he needed to find out the boon's usage on his own. This also doesn't mention the fact that the [Tautology] only worked when he was choosing for boons, not when it was already acquired.
'Though, what were the words on the second panel again?' Kivas caressed the front part of his body as if it was his chin. 'Art thou blind or art thou keen? Ne'er aim for the hind, enlightenment for all thy kin?'
Immediately after he chanted the words, the fire of his torch glowed bright in the combination of red, black, and golden yellow flame. The raging flame expanded in height and volume up to 10 meters into the sky while dispersing a visible drifting golden runes of Japanese symbols. Along with the expansion of the flame, was the expansion of the torch's illumination range that covered 20 meters away from Kivas. That was a 15 meters instant increase for his perception range!
Seeing the magnificent display of the dancing fire of his torch, Kivas' front part of his body sparkled with enthusiasm.
'So this is what the Boon of Spellcard does!' He kept the flame straight upward with the grip of his third hand on his back. 'But how do I turn this off!??'