Quest: Recruit the Lady of Inscriptions

Planet Eirasia – Outskirts of the Giant Daisura Forest.

The Daisura Forest loomed before me, a vast sea of shadow and green stretching for hundreds of kilometers, its ancient trees stabbing into the sky like blackened spears left behind from an age of war.

The tangled trunks rose so high I could barely glimpse the canopy, and the leaves hung heavy, forming a perpetual curtain of dusk, letting the sun through in little more than narrow, reluctant cracks.

Every tree I passed seemed to breathe, faint green veins of life-energy shimmering along the bark like the forest itself had a pulse.

The smell of damp earth and moss filled my nose, and somewhere above, strange birds with glowing eyes flitted between the branches, their calls echoing like distant whispers of a dream I didn't want to remember. Vines coiled over the ground like sleeping serpents waiting for an excuse to strike.

It was beautiful. Beautiful and dangerous.

And yet here we were — the Breath of the Seal Sect's headquarters, perched right at the edge of it like a broken tooth.

I stood at the warped wooden entrance to what used to be our hall, my black cloak tugged by the cold wind, my dull sword slung lazily across my back. I looked around at the ruin that remained. The cracked pillars, the faded sigils, the faint taste of old curses still hanging in the air.

I sighed.

And just as I raised my foot to leave for the city, I heard it — a faint sound, soft but sharp, like water dripping on stone.

I froze.

My hand went to my sword hilt as I turned, ready to meet a beast or a spy.

Instead, I saw her.

She stood at the crumbling wall's edge, still and quiet, her presence so thin she might have been mistaken for a shadow.

A girl, seventeen, maybe eighteen. Gray, simple clothes. Not a speck of dirt on them despite the ruin around her. Her long black hair was tied at the neck with a weathered strip of leather, and her amber eyes stared at me flatly — not curious, not hostile.

Just… watching.

Her voice drifted over like a cold wind through the wreckage.

"Is this the Breath of the Seal Sect?"

It wasn't a question meant to be answered. Just confirmed.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Perhaps it was. Who are you, asking questions before giving your name?"

No answer.

But then the system's window opened in front of me:

[Warning: Human entity approaching.]

[Intent Analysis: No threat.]

[Initial Assessment: High compatibility with sect characteristics.]

[New Quest: Recruit the Lady of Inscriptions, "Sila," into the Breath of the Seal Sect.]

[Rarity: Uncommon]

[Reward: 100 Mission Points]

I blinked at the name glowing on the panel.

"…Sila?"

The girl raised a slight eyebrow, then said, as if correcting a piece of information that didn't matter to her, "Yes. My name is Sila."

She didn't smile, nor did she show any surprise that I knew her name. It was as if she had expected it, or simply didn't care.

She continued in a calm, disinterested tone, "I heard about you from my mother."

Something knotted in my chest, starting to get a bad feeling..

My voice hardened.

"And who's your mother?"

I could see where this was going.

Her reply was ice.

"I am the daughter of a woman from the nearby village… whom your master raped years ago."

I tightened my grip on my sword, but not out of outrage. Not even shame.

Just… realization.

I remembered.

The former Patriarch had been a womanizer of the highest order. He was never known to have an official relationship, not a single legitimate marriage. And yet, he had left behind… a legacy of shame.

How many unknown children did that man plant across the villages? I had no answer, but I knew for certain that Sila… was not lying.

Her eyes stayed on me as she spoke again, "Since I am illegitimate, I cannot claim my father's inheritance. That is why I came. I want to join. I will earn the sect through my own efforts."

I let out a bitter laugh and turned my back. "Plenty of people think they're strong enough to rise above the filth. Fine. We're desperate enough for disciples that I'll humor you. But you'd better hope you've inherited more than his name before you start making demands here."

I took a step forward — and stopped cold when her voice cut through behind me.

"Of course. If I weren't different… this place wouldn't have trembled when I arrived."

I froze.

Because she was right.

I could feel it now — the faint shudder running through the walls, the way the dust rose in little spirals, the way an old torch sputtered back to life.

The headquarters was… responding.

And then came another system prompt:

[Spiritual Compatibility between Headquarters and "Sila": 92%]

[The Headquarters is reacting to her presence – Allow evaluation?]

I stared at the screen… then pressed [Yes].

Rokla's voice came from the side, low and measured. "Patriarch, the Alliance Bracelet could confirm her lineage at once. It never lies."

I didn't look at him. I just kept watching her, her still amber gaze boring back at me.

"Yes," I murmured finally. "But isn't it strange? A miracle, even? That a talented girl appears out of nowhere… and asks to join a dead sect?"

My voice hardened as I continued, more to myself than to anyone else. "No reputation. No resources. No functioning gates. This sect is already buried, and yet she comes now? That kind of timing smells like someone else's game."

It felt like another move on someone's board.

Maybe Gorlam's.

But whatever this was, it didn't matter yet. Not when she posed no threat.

Not with Rokla standing behind me.

I smirked faintly at the thought.

"Sila isn't a threat yet," I murmured. "Not at her level."

She kept her silence. Her eyes never left me.

I raised my arm, fingers tapping against the ghost of the Alliance Bracelet that no longer existed. The system responded anyway:

[Open Sect Tools – Lineage Check]

[Compatible Bracelet: Available – Activate?]

[Processing…]

[Lineage Confirmed!]

[Name: Sila Armstrong]

[Race: Human]

[Innate Traits: Hand of Silk – Eye of Gold]

[Titles: None]

[Ascension Talent: C+]

[Main Class: Sorceress]

[Sub-Class (1): Lady of Inscriptions]

[Awakening State: Body Tempering – Stage 2]

[Level: 19]

I smirked again, my eyes narrowing as I read.

"Congratulations," I said evenly. "You really are his daughter."

Then, more seriously.

"And now for the test."

She cut me off before I could elaborate, her tone as dead as her expression.

"I'm ready."

It wasn't confidence. It wasn't arrogance.

It was indifference.

[Sub-Quest Activated: "The Spirit Test – Sila"]

[Location: Sect Training Ground]

[Objective: Pass the compatibility test with the ancient spirit of the sect.]

I led her to the back square.

The cracked stone ground hummed faintly as she stepped into the circle, old pillars glowing with weak light. Ancient sigils flared to life beneath her feet.

The air trembled.

The ruins began to… breathe.

I muttered under my breath, eyes fixed on the glowing ground:

"…Alright. You passed. Congratulations."

But she didn't move. Didn't flinch. Didn't even blink.

Just stood there as if she had expected it all along — or didn't care.

I approached her slowly.

"This much reaction… hasn't happened in years," I murmured. "Not even for me."

Her gaze met mine, colder than before.

"As expected," she said simply.

I stopped in my tracks.

And for just a moment… I felt it.

That strange, hollow chill crawling up my spine.

That gnawing question in the back of my mind.

Why does she feel more like Lloyd than me?

"Oh~ This is bad!"