Chapter 253

Neo had finished every task that needed doing. The last of them sat complete in his mind like a closed door. He reached for Veya the way he always did now, through the telepathy skill, the words forming clean and quiet inside his head.

When will the barrier be finished?

Three days at most, she answered. Her voice came steady, no extra weight on it.

Neo nodded even though she could not see it.

Do not worry, Veya said. I will put a code in your watch so you can enter the barrier.

He nodded again. That was enough. The link faded.

A quest notification hit him. The sound was a sharp ding that cut through everything else. His eyes widened as he read the words.

Ding. There is an old lady who forgot herself was an eldritch being and she just grew attached to her cat. And her cat is currently missing. She is in Nyx Tribe. Find her cat and give her before she goes mad and destroy the dimension. Alert it is advised the host does not think of her true identity when talking with her. And not thinking of the system.

Failure: 3rd dimension getting erased. Goddess Lilith death.

Rewards: blessing from the unknown old lady and getting to know only one week from your future by her.

Time remaining: 3 hours.

Neo’s eyes stayed wide. On the surface the quest looked simple. Find a cat. Give it back. But the words eldritch being sat in the middle of it like a blade. This was not simple at all. His mind started racing. Where could the cat be? Why had a being like that lost her memories? Why was she living in the Nyx tribe of all places? Why this forest? What was so secret about the cat itself?

He shook his head hard. No time for those questions. Three hours left. That was all.

He teleported outside the Nyx tribe. The air changed at once. He opened the system map. The location of the old lady marked itself clear. He ran. He did not waste steps. He did not look left or right. He needed to reach her before the clock ran out.

He found her standing in a quiet stretch of the settlement. He stopped and looked.

She was an old gilf, as big as Lin. Her hair was total white, long and thick. Her face held a few wrinkles, not many. Her ass was fat and huge, bigger than even Sai’s. Her breasts were huge, heavy, pulling at the fabric. She wore a tight long black dress that followed every curve and left little to guess. She stood 2.5 meters tall. Neo realized he barely reached her massive breasts when he stood in front of her.

He rushed the last few steps.

Old lady, did you lose your cat?

The gilf looked down at him. Yes. My cat. She is here. Can you help me find it? I will make sure to reward you.

Neo nodded. He closed his eyes and let the sensing location skill spread out. It scanned the whole forest in one clean sweep. The cat sat under a carriage not far from them.

He opened his eyes and ran.

The carriage stood on a packed dirt path. He dropped to one knee and reached under it. A man jumped down from the driver’s seat and kicked him hard in the side.

You beggar, get away from my carriage. This is given to me by my mother who is a maid in the chief castle!

Neo rose to his feet. The man saw his face. Color left the man’s skin. He tore off every piece of clothing he wore and dropped to his knees naked in the dirt.

Please. I did not think it was you, esteemed chief.

Neo put his hand on the hilt of his blade. The man’s head fell. Neo did not accept anyone disrespecting him, even after an apology. He stored the head, wiped his clothes clean, and thought he would need to punish the maid later. He also needed to learn who this kid’s mother was so he could repay her properly.

His expression brightened. The cat had come out from under the carriage and now rubbed its body against his feet. He lifted it. The animal was warm and soft. He kissed the top of its head once.

He ran back and placed the cat in the gilf’s arms.

The moment she had it, the gilf laughed. She opened her eyes. Neo saw a full universe inside them. Stars moved. Galaxies turned. He looked and could not look away. She closed her eyes.

Sorry.

She spoke again. I will give you your reward now.

She reached out and set one finger on his forehead.

Do not worry. I will find your most hidden wish.

Neo nodded. He did his best not to think of the system. He did his best not to think of what she really was. The finger stayed there. Time stretched. She smiled after a while.

Now I know what is your true desire.

Really? What is it? Neo asked.

She smiled and pulled his wrist with one hand. With the other she twisted a finger in the air. A cage made of pure mana rose from nothing and locked around the cat. The cat kept purring. The gilf smiled at it.

Do not say those words, Malvida. You know he is a good guy.

She grabbed Neo and pulled his hand. The cage lifted and flew beside them. She turned it so it followed her through the sky. They moved fast. After a while she stopped. They had entered a dark alley. No windows looked down. No footsteps sounded nearby.

She smirked.

Since no eyes here, your first reward is this. You would die in 6 days from now on the hands of a demon called Black Hand. Try your best not to die.

Neo’s heart raced. This was the system reward. He knew it.

She smiled.

The second is...

She turned around and flipped her dress up.

Come on. I know you wanted to take my ass.