Rebirth: 100 Days Before Doomsday - Chapter 84

Chapter 84: Truth or Lies

Rune didn’t answer immediately. He actually appeared thoughtful for a moment before speaking, “There’s no particular reason. It’s just… since my master talked about the jades right before his death, he was probably asking me to locate the bracelet. That’s the only reason I started looking for it in the first place.”

Grace studied him closely, trying to see just how much truth he was speaking. What really surpised her was how he had no filter on his face, he was an open book for her to read.

“What now then?” She found herself asking as she kept her gaze focused on his face. “Since you have found the bracelet, what are you going to do next?”

She noticed how his expression shifted at her question. He looked lost as he moved his gaze from her face to her hand that he still was holding.

After what seemed like several long minutes of silence, but was merely a couple of moments, he shook his head and looked up, once again fixing his gaze on her face.

“I don’t know. When I came to this Realm looking for the bracelet, I was expecting to meet my master’s lover. I would have told her about my master and would have let these two jade pieces meet again. But then I found that she was long gone and you carried the jade. Now, I have told you all about my story and these two pieces of jade have already met. I don’t know what to do next.”

She didn’t have to study him too deeply to know that he was actually lost. He wasn’t just acting like he was clueless about his future, he actually was clueless. Seeing someone as strong-minded as him this lost, she too felt at a loss for right words to speak.

“Aren’t you… going to return to your world?” She finally asked and noticed how he arched his eyebrows high in response. “I mean… from the way you spoke, it did feel like you came from a different world, maybe the same world from where my grandma and this jade bracelet came.”

In response, Rune nodded his head, confirming her guess. Though she had already thought about it, she still felt shocked at the confirmation of the existence of another world.

“There’s indeed another world, not just one but several others. As for my world, it’s actually a magical realm and not exactly a planet like yours. It exists right between your world, that is the Earth, and the Red Planet, the world of monsters. The people in Magic Realm are all trained warriors and other elites. Our job is to keep the monsters of Red Planet from breaking into your world.”

[Can you check if he’s telling the truth?]

Grace could no longer help herself and immediately asked 2025 for help through their shared mindlink. She was trying her best to believe Rune’s stories, but with every new detail he was adding, she was having a hard time believing them.

[You don’t trust him?] 2025 asked in return.

[His eyes and expression keeps telling me that he isn’t lying. But can you really blame me for not believing his magical stories about different worlds, elite warriors, and monsters?] She returned in her defense.

2025 was silent for a few seconds before it finally spoke – [Let me see if there’s a way to verify his stories.]

“Are you alright? You look slightly lost.”

Rune’s voice pulled her attention back to him and Grace realized that she had diverted her attention from him during her talk with 2025. She quickly shook her head and replied, “I’m just trying to grasp everything you are saying. It’s… a lot to take in.”

In response, he nodded his head in understanding. “I know. If it has been someone else, they might have considered me a psycho. Maybe the only reason you are even listening to me is because of the jade bracelet. Even though what I’m saying may sound way too much, a part of you know that all of it could be true.”

Grace couldn’t disagree. Despite her concerns about his stories, there’s a part of her – a huge part – which knew he’s not lying. She had been through a lot. She had seen the end of the world, had seen humans turning into zombies, had seen weird monsters suddenly attacking the Earth out of nowhere, had returned to the past due to some miracle after dying, and even possessed a magical bracelet.

Even if after all these she wouldn’t trust him even in the slightest, then she was the stupid one in this situation. Yet, her past taught her not to trust or believe anyone blindly. Even if she believed that Rune’s stories could be true, she wasn’t going to blindly trust him.

“So… are you going to return to your world?” She asked, returning their conversation back to the question she asked him moments ago.

With a small sigh, Rune shook his head in a negative response, surpising her in the process. “That was the original plan when I entered your world. But as these sudden natural disasters hit your world out of nowhere, the portal to my world disappeared. It’s been nearly a month since I have been trying to locate it, but there’s no sign of it. Without it, I can’t return to my world.”

[Tell him to give you his ring. We can try to trace the secrets of his rings with the help of the system. That might allow us to find out if he’s indeed speaking the truth.] 2025 suddenly spoke through the mindlink.

Grace inhaled deeply before she asked in a serious voice, “In case you can’t return to your world, do you want to become a part of my team?”

“I will love to.” Rune replied instantly as if he was waiting for her offer.

He didn’t hesitate, but she did, though only for a mere second before she spoke, “I might need your ring for a moment.”

She barely finished her sentence and he was already taking off his ring. He put it down on the coffee table sitting in front of their couch.

[Do we need to bring it inside the space?] Grace asked 2025. [Concering how it keeps trying to create a connection with the bracelet, having it inside the Infinite Realm doesn’t sound like a great idea to me.]

[Don’t worry. We can scan it from the outside.] 2025 replied before issuing another order. [Tell this hottie to draw the images of the monsters he used to fight against.]

Grace didn’t bother asking what the little creature was trying to do and just asked Rune if he could draw the images of those monsters. The man was clearly surprised by her request, but he complied and went to grab a notebook and pen.

He returned merely a minute later and settled down on the couch beside her, focusing his full attention on the notebook in his hand.

In the meantime, a weird looking gadget appeared in Grace’s hand. It was circular and small, with unknown characters carved all over it. If she had to guess, it was made of plastic but she couldn’t tell for sure just by the exterior.

[Place it above the ring.] 2025 guided and Grace did exactly as she was told.

Barely few seconds would have passed before the characters on the gadget started glowing bright blue. It did catch Rune’s attention but he resumed drawing after a mere glance at the gadget.

“Aren’t you going to ask what I’m doing?” She was unable to stop herself from asking that question.

“There’s nothing to ask. I know that you are trying to find out if I’m worth trusting. And truth be told, I don’t blame you for being careful in a situation like this. You are doing exactly what should be done. This is exactly what I expected from someone as smart and clear-headed as you.” He answered as he kept his gaze focused on the notebook.

Hearing him praising her, she could only shake her head. Everytime she thought that she had finally cracked him, he ended up leaving her surpised by his actions or words. He was indeed unpredictable, and that trait of his only intrigued her more.

It took two minutes before the glowing characters of the gadget calmed down and returned to normal. Merely a moment later, she heard 2025 speaking through the mindlink.

[He’s telling the truth. The powers, the weapons, and the energy present inside this jade ring is exactly the same as what the original Infinte Realm had. The jade material of both these pieces also matches 99.99%. There’s also data about some planets, including a Red Planet, and hundreds of monsters. Most importantly, look at his drawings…]

Grace’s attention immediately shifted to the notebook sitting on Rune’s lap and she noticed that he had drawn a few figures on it. She inched closer to get a better look and the moment she saw those sketches clearly, a loud gasp escaped her.