I did it! I managed to merge two magic cycles. I used fusion magic to combine two magic cycles, and somehow it works.

When making fire flowers, I usually stack a bunch of magic cycles, but now I only need one. With my copy magic skill, I can cast faster than most mages.

My mana pool increases very fast compared to the average person. Am I doing something that increases my mana pool without realizing it?

"Ruby, you've received an invitation. Do you want to attend?" My mother entered my room with an envelope.

"Let me read it first."

After reading it, I burned the letter with my mana.

"I'm not going."

"Okay!"

A day later, another invitation arrived with the same content.

"I'm still not going."

"Okay, I'll tell your father."

The letters kept coming for 10 days straight.

"Fine, I'll come," I sighed and called for my maid.

In short, I arrived at a big house and immediately followed a maid who welcomed me. After entering the party room, I went straight to the food section, grabbed some food, and walked to the garden.

They had a maze in the garden. I walked into it and found a good corner. I then used a magic shield as a chair and started eating the food I had grabbed. As I was enjoying my meal, I heard footsteps. I stopped munching and listened carefully—I could hear two sets of footsteps.

"We just need to put this here?" one of them asked.

"Yeah, I hope we won't get involved in this mess again," said the other with a scared voice.

"Let's escape after this is all over."

They then ran away. I followed their footsteps and found the thing they talked about—a box with seals all over it.

"Is this a talisman? Do East Asians exist here?" I immediately thought about rice.

I then heard more footsteps. I quickly hid, using my wind magic to lift myself so I wouldn't leave any tracks.

"Finally, the goods have arrived! After all this tormenting life, I will be freed forever. No more reincarnation for me!" a person with a joyful voice.

I heard the talismans being shredded one by one. Scared of what might happen, I jumped over the bush wall and tackled the person down. I saw a teen boy on the ground.

"Who the fuck!" he exclaimed as he tried to get up.

"What the hell are you trying to summon?" I screamed at him.

"That's none of your business!" he screamed back.

"The talisman warns not to open it at all! Are you trying to cause a long-term curse in this land?" I asked him, my voice rising.

"Can't a saint just cleanse the curse?" he said dismissively.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

I stood in front of the box. I didn't know what was inside, but I was sure whatever it contained would kill many people.

"Just go away, kid," he snarled.

"How many times have you reincarnated?" I asked, recalling his earlier mention of reincarnation.

"This is the sixty-fifth time. Starting everything from the beginning, leaving everything we have, losing everything we love. What's the purpose of my reincarnation? Inside that box is only a Jikininki, a human-eating ghost. Please move over."

"I…"

I was at a loss for words. His face looked like that of a dead person—no motivation, no life, expressionless. I walked away from his path. He then approached the box and started ripping off the talismans one by one. After the box was clear of talismans, it began shaking and opened. I could see two white hands emerging from the box. A giant head then popped up; its eyes were hollow, and its mouth was big enough to fit a person inside.

"Uwooo, uuughhh…" A low-pitched, growing noise started echoing.

It started crawling out. I stepped back because it looked disgusting—tiny hands, a tiny body, but a big head with no eyes.

"Aaaarreeee Yooouuuu theee oneeeee?"

I was pretty surprised the ghost asked first.

"Yes, I am. Please eat my soul!" he begged.

"Yoooou haaaveeee nhooooo shooooul. Yhooou aaareeee aaa puuuppeeeet," the ghost replied in a drawn-out, eerie voice.

"What? What do you mean? I'm human. I've reincarnated over and over," he said, sounding shocked.

"Yhoooour chaaaandleee oooohf liiifeee haaaas looong goooneee. Yhoooou aaareee aaa mhishtaaakee oooff theee ghodsss," the ghost intoned.

The ghost turned back and melted into the box. The box then closed, and the talismans started sealing it again.

"Hah! HAHAHAHAHA... WAHAHAHAHA!!! AAAAAAAAA!!"

He lost it. I couldn't imagine what he was feeling right now. After a while, some guards came and dragged him away. He was still laughing maniacally.

"Hello, young miss. May I ask you some questions?" a guard inquired.

"Yeah."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm eating food. I don't like the party. You can find my plate if you walk to the left for two minutes."

"Do you know who brought the box here?"

"Two people who sounded male, but I don't know what they look like. I only heard their footsteps and voices."

"What happened here?"

I then explained what occurred. The guard's face twitched a bit.

"Thanks for the information and cooperation."

"Mister, please treat him kindly."

"Sure."

I forgot about the party and went to the nearest temple, then prayed, hoping to meet Chronos.

"Oh, hello, what brings you here again? It's only been 3 weeks, right?" Chronos asked with a playful tone.

"Chronos, can gods make mistakes?" I asked as I sat on his couch.

"Yes, of course. What happened?" he inquired.

I retold my story to him.

"What a poor soul. Sadly, I can't interfere with the underworld," he said as he raised his shoulders.

"You're useless..." I was clearly disappointed.

"Hey, my role is to keep time flowing, not manage souls. What can I do? If you have a solution, tell me," he said while pointing his finger at my face.

"Can't you tell the other gods?" I asked back.

"I don't want my friend to lose a job, you know," he said in a small voice.

"God is a profession?" I was surprised.

"Oh no, I spilled the beans! Oh, I'm such a clumsy god," he said with a playful tone.

"Stop acting like that!" I screamed.

"Are you coming here just to try to help him? What a kind heart you have," he said with a serious tone. I then became serious too.

"I have one more question," I asked, staring into his eyes.

"Tell me," he said, sitting down and folding his hands.

"Has Alex really lost his bloodline?"

"Yes, he is no longer a Nortis."

"How did that happen?"

"What do you think?"

"Is it really because of me?"

He smiled and grinned.

"In the future, be careful with what you say about people's lives, okay?" he said, pointing at his mouth.

"What am I?"

"That's your first piece of the puzzle. Congratulations," he said, clapping his hands.

"Fine then, is this the cheat you gave me?"

"Hey, I'm the god of time, not the god of fate," he reminded me again.

"Whatever, I'm going back," I said, tired of his vague answers.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" He asked, moving his hand like he was punching.

"I'm not in the mood for that."