Noa lifted his brows.
Still, there was no hesitation on his face as he walked into the room.
The wooden floor was old and creaky, his steps echoing. 'I feel like I am going into a horror house,' he lamented, noticing the lanterns dimly illuminating the interior.
They also revealed stuck shelves with a bunch of junk.
None of them looked like magical items, touched by the unseen.
Yet the system panel flickered suddenly. It showed a pulsing light-blue outline around one object, clearly proving its uniqueness.
[Relic Detected: Unknown–Scannable]
Seeing this, Noa blinked. 'So that's how the codex works, huh?' he lamented and focused on the object.
Galio remained silent, silently observing his every step.
The moment Noa touched the item, the system responded almost instantly.
[Scanning…]
[Relic identified: Starlight Mirror]
[Rarity: Common]
[Function: Absorbs light from the stars and causes the surrounding environment to flicker for a few seconds when activated.]
Noa couldn't actually imagine what this item could really do.
It had almost no use to him—especially since he had no enemies to deal with.
Galio's sudden voice cut through the silence. "This one still works. Then again, I would be surprised if you actually need it."
Noa didn't react to his words.
He picked up the dusty mirror and blew air onto it.
Now that he was holding it, it made him think a real star was trapped inside.
"How do I use it?" he asked, eager to experience the first magical item and also prove to his chat that he was indeed in a magical realm.
"It's tricky," Galio answered sincerely. "Even the common ones require control. You need to fail a couple of times before even considering keeping it under your leash."
Noa smirked. "Great tutorial, old man."
The chat laughed at his words; they, too, wanted to see what this seemingly ordinary old mirror could do.
TomatoSlayer: Do it! Control the relic. Close your eyes and concentrate on it.
gothlover: He is going to fumble. Mark my words.
Viewer_42: Get ready. We might need to spam "L" in the chat.
Noa took a deep breath.
Then he lifted the mirror, thinking about how to control something that had no will, no mind, and no consciousness. At the end of the day, it was just an object.
Still, he looked at his reflection with a smile.
His instincts urged him to do something. So he did it, pushing aside his worries and old belief that magic didn't exist.
Slowly, his mind cleared.
His will to make the mirror shine hardened, his thoughts sharper than usual.
Just then—
The mirror shone brighter, its glow illuminating the whole room.
Noa was blinded by its lights, his eyes closing instantly.
Still, the room started to change.
At first, the ground blinked, almost losing color. Then the walls began to flash, even flickering like a pixelated texture for a few seconds.
It looked unreal.
It felt like reality was crumbling, or the world acted like a buggy game.
The dimension it covered was small, but its effects were nothing short of breathtaking.
Then, out of nowhere, the pixels snapped into place.
The walls and ground healed themselves, going back to their original form.
"Well, that was… easy," Noa said, grinning.
Galio, meanwhile, stood frozen.
He was in a daze, too surprised, too confused, and caught off guard.
"Wh-What did you do?" he questioned as if his entire life had been a lie. Even his voice was loud, rising instinctively.
The chat, on the other hand, exploded.
Viewer_1: What was that?
gothlover: The game crashed?
Need2Pee: Who said it wasn't the game? Where are you dumb fucks now?
Because the graphics were top-notch, and they saw everything like they were actually standing there, there was almost no room for questions.
No editing software, CGI, and high production movie could achieve something like that.
It was magic, after all.
But the viewers didn't know that.
For all they knew, it was a game with never-before-seen graphics, and Noa was livestreaming it.
It wasn't a prerecorded video or anything.
That's why the people who doubted him before now swallowed their words.
And the chat members who were on Noa's side from the very beginning acted smugly.
Galio, however, didn't look amused.
His expression went back to normal, no longer frowning in disbelief.
"You bent it on your first attempt, when it should have taken you days. Weeks, maybe months even," he said, this time calmly.
"What can I say?" Noa shrugged, chuckling. "I am gifted."
Truth be told, he was thrilled about his unexpected talent. Though it wouldn't allow him the strength to seal the heavens, it would be enough for his and chat's entertainment.
Hecar: bro is built different.
Viewer_38: W
Viewer_5: Pog!
"Chat, look at this old fart. He is about to shit himself because of my greatness."
Yes, Noa sounded cocky.
But people actually enjoyed the honesty, appreciating the freshness of his attitude.
[Relic Registered: Starlight Mirror]
The system announced abruptly.
Galio wasn't done yet. "Don't forget, one mistake, and you may end up consumed by the unseen."
Noa, already tired of his rumblings, shook his head.
Then, just to spite the priest, he proceeded to use every relic in the room.
Every time he did so, the man's eyes narrowed even lower.
The first and the second time might be blamed on luck, but when Noa did it a third, fourth, and fifth time, Galio had to accept the truth.
The chat, in its usual manner, either glazed or made fun of Noa.
"This is it," he said after going through them all. Then the interest in checking out his pouch won over his patience.
Every single item he had used was useless, only working for fascinating Galio and the viewers.
The pouch, though, should be useful at least.
So he accepted the system and willed the item to materialize in his hand.
A quick flash covered his finger, and in an instant, a small object appeared from thin air.
It was made of leather.
Noa touched it with his other hand, feeling endless space beneath it.
It had only three slots, but it was more than enough for someone who barely owned anything.
With that, he shoved the mirror inside, glancing at the ever-increasing viewer count.
[Current Viewers: 99]