Blessing

Twilight Manor, Central Tower's Top Floor.

This was Loki's divine room. In simpler terms, it was Loki's room, filled with all sorts of odds and ends.

There were expensive-looking quill pens on the table, along with mysterious crystals sporting a faint rainbow hue.

On the walls hang ancient-looking shoes and hats.

The bed was almost buried under heaps of thick books and ornate short swords.

Even the corners of the room were stacked with small storage units, containing bottles of various shapes and colors.

Guided by Loki, Riezel arrived in this room.

"Come in." Loki casually pushed open the door and strode into the room. "Excuse the mess."

Riezel, feeling oddly polite, first stood at the doorway, bowed slightly, then entered the divine room.

"Come, sit here."

Loki was quite enthusiastic, resembling a child who just got a new toy. In high spirits, she brought a chair for Riezel, sweeping aside the various clutter, and invited him to take a seat.

Observing the carefree and unrestrained Goddess, Riezel couldn't help but find it peculiar even though he was aware of her personality.

After all, even in his previous life, entities associated with the term 'God' were highly revered, and not to be treated with any disrespect.

Silently contemplating this, he sat down in response to her invitation, while glancing around the room.

On the other hand, Loki kept a close eye on him from beginning to end, wearing the always mischievous smile.

"Sorry, most of the kids from the Familia are out on a dungeon expedition, couldn't throw you a lively welcome party." Loki said with a cheerful grin.

"No problem." Riezel withdrew his gaze from the surroundings and shook his head. "I'm not much of a fan of lively gatherings, so this is fine."

"Uh-huh, I can tell. You're that kind of person." Loki nodded approvingly, then added, "But, whether you like it or not, now that you've joined my Familia, you're part of the family. Being too isolated won't do, y'know?"

"I know." Riezel smiled calmly at Loki. "If it's someone worth interacting with, I won't isolate myself."

"Someone worth interacting with, huh...?" Loki's expression turned subtle, but she shrugged it off. "Okay then, for now, let's leave it at that. I don't want to preach to a newcomer. We can save that for later."

With that, she propped her chin with one hand, lifted one foot to rest on the other thigh, and gazed at him with her narrowed eyes and the ever-present smile on her face.

"So, you're still free, and haven't received any blessings at all, yeah?"

At Loki's question, Riezel deliberately ignored her probing gaze and nodded naturally.

"I haven't received any blessings since I just arrived in Orario today. Before this, I haven't met any Gods or been a part of any Familia."

Riezel knew that lying was futile in the presence of this world's Gods. So, he wouldn't engage in any meaningless deception; every word and action appeared remarkably honest.

"I guess so..." Loki smirked. "If you had anything special, you wouldn't be standing there at the gate and waiting for me."

What is Loki Familia?

One of the strongest Familias in Orario, a faction second to none in this world and dubbed as one of the strongest Familias of Orario, alongside Freya Familia, known far and wide.

For such a powerful Familia, there was no shortage of people wanting to join.

But, joining Loki Familia wasn't as easy as it seemed.

Not to mention Loki Familia, even a weaker Familia would have some requirements for new members to join. They wouldn't just accept anyone randomly.

Generally speaking, if you want to join a famous Familia, you must have some exceptional qualities.

If you've been part of a Familia before and received blessings, then it's about your strength.

If you've never been part of a Familia or never received blessings, then it's about your potential.

The former was another matter, but the latter usually depended on race and innate skills.

After all, in this world, there were beings known as 'Demi-Humans'.

Beastmen had naturally keen senses and various innate skills depending on the classification.

Dwarves were widely recognized for their strength and stamina, surpassing other races in both.

Amazonesses, despite being only female, were known for their combat prowess and indomitable vitality.

Elves were magical races, able to perform miracles and mysteries to some extent even without receiving Falna.

Compared to Demi-Humans, Humans didn't have many special traits.

In such a situation, if Riezel, as a mere human, approached Loki Familia, one of the strongest, expressing a desire to join, he would likely be rejected at the door by the gatekeeper without even having the chance to meet the God of the Familia.

Fortunately, he was well aware of this, so he never considered a direct visit.

He knew what kind of situation he would face, which was why he chose to wait at the gate for Loki.

Rather than dealing with mortals who assessed people's worth in a very practical way, it was better to face Gods who acted on whims and were often unpredictable. That way, he could achieve his goal more effectively.

Riezel made this decision based on that point.

For this reason, he even prepared himself mentally for a long resistance, ready to wait for days. He couldn't believe that Loki, known as a free-spirited Goddess, would stay confined within the base forever.

As it turned out, his idea was correct.

"Let's get those clothes off first." Loki said while dragging a chair and sitting behind Riezel. "Just the top will do."

He nodded and unbuttoned his shirt, exposing his back to her.

"Tch, tch, nice skin. Better than those little girls' back in our Familia." Loki remarked, marveling at Riezel's bare back.

Meanwhile, she casually picked up a box.

In the box was a needle.

As she took the needle in hand, she began to speak while still gazing at his bare back.

"What do you know about 'Falna'?"

Loki's question made Riezel pause for a moment, lost in thought. After a while, he spoke cautiously, relying on his memory.

"As far as I know, it's a power that uses the 'sacred text', the language of the Gods, engraving it onto the mortal body through God's blood as a medium which will enhance their abilities. This power acts as a catalyst, turning the experiences gained through various actions into powerful abilities, accelerating and amplifying them to facilitate rapid growth."

"Yep." Loki agreed with his explanation. "The Excelia, invisible to the naked eye of the mortals, is essentially your own history. We Gods use 'Falna' to extract this history, turning it into nourishment for your growth. It allows you to grow at an unimaginable speed and get stronger. That's the only role we Gods play in the lower world."

With that, Loki pricked her own finger with the needle, and a drop of blood oozed out. Using the blood, she drew a pattern on Riezel's back.

He could feel her fingertip sliding on his back. However, his attention was soon diverted by her voice.

"With sacred text as the guide and the blood of the Gods as the medium, we depict your abilities in a concrete numerical way. So, 'Falna' is also known as 'Status'. Anyone who can read the sacred text can visually confirm the abilities of those blessed by us."

Loki's voice seemed to distance itself, becoming mysterious.

"Status is basically divided into four parts—'Basic Abilities', 'Development Abilities', 'Magic', and 'Skill', with 'Level' being the most crucial."

"Development abilities aside, that's an extra thing you may get when leveling up. You won't have it right after receiving the blessing."

"Basic abilities are 'Strength (STR)', 'Endurance (END)', 'Dexterity (DEX)', 'Agility (AGI)', and 'Magic (MAG)', a total of five. Each has ranks from 'S' to 'I', indicating the strength of the ability. The closer to S, the stronger the ability." {T/N: I'll use abbreviations for basic abilities to differentiate them more easily from other terms.}

"Level, as the name suggests, is the most direct standard for distinguishing strength. The higher the level, the stronger. The improvement in basic abilities compared to level is incomparable. Basic abilities only improve one aspect, while level improvement is a complete body and mind evolution. You can think of leveling up as mortals approaching our level."

"As for magic and skill, the former is a power that can trigger supernatural phenomena. Originally, only a few magic races could use it. But after receiving the blessing, people of any race have a chance to possess it, from one to three. The latter brings special effects under certain conditions, not as visually powerful as magic races but without quantity limits."

Loki's voice took on an inexplicable inducement as it echoed in Riezel's ears.

"Speaking of which, both magic and skill, when inspired through Falna, are intimately related to yourselves. They are directly linked to your interests and approval of something, almost like materializing the power of imagination and longing in your heart. You can try asking yourself, recalling your life; maybe something will be triggered."

With Loki's explanation, Riezel involuntarily began to recall his previous life, a life that was not worth looking back on.