Noctis[3]

Noctis flicked on his smart watch, its surface gleaming under the dim light of his room.

[Initiating Identity Scan…]

[Scan Complete.]

[User: Noctis Nightryn Verified]

A translucent hologram shimmered above the device, its contents faintly blurred from the reverse side.

[Ping! Ping! Ping! Ping!-

He was bombarded with hundred's of notifications flooding the interface, hundreds of alerts clamoring for attention.

Noctis winced, swiftly swiping the screen shut. He paused, exhaling sharply, then reopened it with a cautious tap.

"Was this thing been ghosted longer than my DMs!" he muttered, resolving to tackle the notification flood later.

His fingers danced across the holographic display, summoning a browser.

He typed "Duke Nightryn" into the search bar, and results materialized instantly, accompanied by a striking image of his father, Adric Nightryn.

Adric's short, jet-black hair framed a face carved with sharp, regal features. His piercing purple eyes gleamed with a wild look, followed by a neatly trimmed beard that lent him an air of formidable authority.

"So this is Noctis's father," he murmured, intrigued.

"No mention of him in the game, though." Scrolling further, he stumbled upon another image, this time, it was an image of Adric standing beside a breathtaking woman.

"That's got to be my mother," Noctis deduced, swiftly pivoting his search to "Nightryn Duchess."

The same woman appeared, Grace Nightryn- Her long, golden blonde hair fell down like sunlight, and her ocean-blue eyes sparkled with a gentle warmth that radiated beauty and grace.

Noctis dove deeper, surfing through articles and archives about the Nightryn family's storied History,

He uncovered a grim detail- Adric Nightryn had perished at the edges of the Drewrath continent.

"Suspicious," Noctis whispered, his brow furrowing.

"Its mentioned, his father was an, S-rank and he died at the edge of the monster continent, where the risk isn't high at the outer area, he's likely killed by someone,'

'Now I have an unknown enemy targeting his family'

He threw that thought to the side as he continued surfing.

His exploration led him to an image that stopped him —a young girl, strikingly similar to Grace, cradling a young Noctis in her arms. Her blonde hair and blue eyes mirrored his mother's so closely that, were it not for her youthful appearance, she could've been mistaken for the duchess herself.

"Looking at her identical features she's my sister, no doubt," Noctis concluded, immediately searching for her.

The results were swift: her name was Lilian Nightryn, a prodigy who'd achieved B-rank status at just eighteen.

A third-year student at Ethereon University, she'd dominated her class both intellectually and strength wise.

Noctis's expression darkened. "If she's this famous, why isn't she in the game?" He checked the article's date. "She should've graduated by now."

Digging further, he scoured recent articles but found little to nothing about his sister.

"Since she studied at the ethereon university, Maybe the university's records will have something," he reasoned, navigating to Ethereon's official website.

He shuttled through the lists of honor students from the past five years, but Lilian's name was conspicuously absent.

Frustrated, he opened a new tab and searched for controversies tied to the university.

One article caught his eye: a report about the mysterious disappearance of a top student nearly a year ago. The student's identity was omitted, likely suppressed.

Noctis's face paled as he read on, a chilling realization creeping in. "Could it be her?" His hands trembled.

In the game, during the eighth act, there was an optional boss—a former Ethereon student corrupted by the fractured mana, who vanished from the world.

Her resonance elements, aether and Nethyrs, matched Lilian's perfectly.

Noctis clutched his head, steadying himself against the weight of the revelation. "That explains why she's an optional boss," he whispered.

The boss was unique, she slaughtered the player's party but spared the player- who happened to be noctis, and after the wiping out the player's party she'd take her own life. Her sole reward was a broken necklace, utterly useless which was sold away by many players.

With a heavy sigh, Noctis closed the browser and turned to the watch's internal files. 

He sifted through family photos, heartwarming snapshots of Noctis with his parents and sister, brimming with joy.

He unknowingly smiled at the snapshots, feeling the happiness from the photos.

But one image halted him, a group shot of five children playing together.

He recognized them all. One was Noctis, and the other four were the game's main characters.

"How do they know each other this early?" he muttered, bewildered.

More photos confirmed their childhood meeting. a stark contrast to the game's narrative, where the noctis started as a stranger to everyone at the beginning of the game.

 "This isn't the game anymore. Too much is different." He clenched his fist, shutting the screen off.

Taking a deep breath, Noctis leaned back. "Of course it's different. This is a real world, not some coded simulation." As the duke's son, it made sense he'd have met the others when he was young.

The happy memories suggested a charmed life—so why had Noctis tried to end himself? The blood on his chest, the shattered glass beside him… He hadn't forgotten the state he had awaken earlier.

He pondered for a long while, grasping at possible reasons but finding no clarity. Exhausted, he glanced at the time.

"Midnight already? I'll let tomorrow's me deal with this." Yawning, he turned of the watch and drifted into sleep.

————————————————————————————————

In another wing of the estate, Head Butler Brad was speaking softly into a communicator.

"I'll visit next week, Brad," came a gentle voice—Ericka, a close family ally.

"As you wish, Madam Ericka," Brad replied.

"How's Noctis holding up? Grace left so abruptly, without even telling her best friend," Ericka said, her tone tinged with frustration.

Brad sighed, wiping the non-existent sweat from his brow.

"The young master has been… unsteady these past weeks. I've urged him to undergo purification, but he's refused every time, locking himself away in room, refusing to talk to anyone. Only today has he seemed calmer, though I'm skeptical.",Brad shared all he knew, his gaze fixed on the floor, heart heavy with regret for failing to take care of his young master.

Ericka fell silent, then spoke with concern. "That's worrying. Brad, ensure he doesn't harm himself. Once I wrap things up here, I'll head to the estate."

"Keep an eye out for any clues regarding Grace or Lilian, and quietly continue the investigation. I've got a hunch about something, and don't act, just gather intel in the dark and report back to me."

"Yes, my lady." They discussed estate matters briefly before Brad ended the call. He stared at the documents on his desk, sighed and resumed his work.

————————————————————————————————

The next morning,

A young maid approached Noctis's room, balancing a tray of breakfast. She knocked gently, waiting.

The door swung open revealing Noctis, drenched in sweat as his was breathing heavily.

Lira's hazel eyes widened briefly before she composed herself.

Noctis recognized her as the maid who'd guided him to dinner the previous day. "Just been working out since dawn," he explained, letting her in.

She nodded, setting the tray on his desk. "Master Noctis," she said, bowing, "please allow me to clean your room. You haven't permitted anyone to do so in weeks."

"Go ahead," Noctis said, settling down to eat. "Also, inform the head Butler, I'm heading to the city tomorrow."

Lira's face lit up. "Yes, Master! I'll inform Head Butler Brad." She began tidying, her movements quick with newfound hope, Noctis's recovery seemed to be genuine.

As he ate, Noctis stared at her back wondering. 'So, the head butler's name is Brad. Now, I need to figure out what's her name?"

As if realizing something, he thought of it.

"Status," he whispered, focusing on Lira.

Instantly blue holographic window appeared, it looked the same expect the information in it.

[Status]

▪ Name: Lira

▪ Rank: B (Grand Master)

▪ Resonance Elements: Aether(C)

▪ Unique Skills: None

Noctis stared at the screen, 'now I feel stupid'

Noctis focused back on the screen and nearly choked on his food. 'A B-rank Grand Master working as a maid?' he thought, stunned.

'She must be a secret guardian, arranged by Mom or Dad.', noctis thought about it as he came to conclusion of her being raised here in the estate itself by his parents.

'Her name's Lira, and she has the Aether element, hmm….good, Perfect excuse to get her to lead me to the library.'

'So the system shows names, ranks, elements and unique skills and no skills are shown. That's disappointing, but got to do with it'," he noted, disappointed by the absence of skills.

Shrugging, he dismissed the window and finished his meal.

"Lira," he called, standing.

"Yes, Master?" she replied, pausing her cleaning.

"Accompany me to the family library. I need help with my resonance element spells," he said, flashing a warm smile.

Lira's heart soared. 'He's really recovering!' she thought, barely containing her excitement. "Yes, Master," she replied, beaming.

"Give me a moment to freshen up," Noctis said, grabbing clothes from his closet and heading to the washroom.

lira resumed her work while humming softly, her spirits lifted by her young master's recovery.