The obje Ravenna’s hands resembled a Rubik’s cube, but unlike any she’d ever seen. Crafted from metal and gss, it gleamed faintly uhe moonlight, revealing delicate flower petals preserved ihe gss partments of each cube se. It looked a, with patches of rust oal framing and faint scratches on the gss, suggesting it had been crafted turies ago.
“This must’ve once been a magical device,” Ravenna murmured thoughtfully, her firag its edges. "There’s no other reason for it to tain flower petals.” In The Light’s quest, magic was ily tied to flowers, with various types required for different spells. Mages cultivated unique species—some grown only in specific regions—to perform specific effects, and spells were cast by burning, cutting, or crushing the blooms to unleash their powers. Cross-breeding flowers to create specific magical properties or binials for multi-faceted spells is a sophisticated practice. Even the lights in the pace relied on flowers fic, using them as catalysts to illumihe rooms after su. It made sehen, to assume that this peculiar cube was a magic artifact.
At first, Ravenna was hesitant to tamper with it, fearing a hidden danger. But sidering that it might be ected to the hidden vault, her curiosity won out. Carefully, she rotated one of the cube’s ses as if solving a puzzle. For a few moments, nothing happened, and she almost sighed in disappoi, assuming the meism had broken after all these years. But then, without warning, the flower petals vanished, and the cube began to dissolve in her hands, the substance liquefying and seeping into her skin before she could react.
“No! Stop! Get off!” Ravenna gasped, frantically trying to rub the substance off her palms, but it was too te—the cube had pletely absorbed into her skin. Panic cwed at her as she sidered what she might have unleashed. “Was it a on? Some sort of poison?” The thought drove her to the edge, and she turned, ready to dash toward the Imperial Mage Tower to seek help.
Suddenly, a strange sensation pulsed in her chest. She pced her hands over her heart, feeling warmth radiate through her body. The sensation climbed to her throat, then surged up to her head. Ravenna stumbled, her vision shifting as something materialized before her—a translut s, floating in midair. Blinking, she reized the outline, which resembled a modern interface from her past life. As it focused, words formed on the s in Minlin, the empire’s nguage, though they soon morphed into English.
[Subscious being sed… Designing a familiar prototype for user…]
“What… in the world?” Ravenna reached out, attempting to touch the s, but her hand passed straight through it.
[Error: Uo s subscious…]
[Duel Subscious Awareness Detected…]
[Uo design a familiar enviro or objectives for user…]
“Wait—does that mean…” Ravenna trailed off, her eyes widening. It sounded like the device was trying to read both her own mind and whatever remnants of Ravenna’s inal memories lingered in this body.
The s flickered, glitg as it shifted from a book-like form to a ft panel again, as though struggling to decide on a familiar shape.
[bining designs for ease of access…]
[Determining tasks…]
Realizing this would take some time, Ravenna sank onto the floor, watg as the spell tinued loading like a game s from her previous life. She had no idea what tasks this strange device would assign, but with any luck, they would reveal something about the hidden vault.
The s glitched again, then resumed its text.
[ot s memories fully… Attempting to retry…]
[Retry…]
[Retry…]
After a few tense moments, it seemed to plete its s, and a new line of text appeared.
[bining both subscious patterns to establish tasks.]
[Tasks based on Subscious A; Rewards based on Subscious B.]
“Wait—are you using the real Ravenna’s memories to assign tasks?” she muttered, trying to decipher the meaning.
[Reputation System Activated]
“Reputation… system?” she questioned aloud, frowning at the panel as it tio flicker in and out.
Just then, a knock at her door interrupted her thoughts. She turo see a knight bowing respectfully.
“Yhness! The carriages are ready, and everyone awaits your and.”
At the Imperial Pace’s entrance, carriages were lined up, ready for her departure. The air buzzed with quiet urgency, and Ravenna he absence of any formal farewells from her siblings or even the emperor. It was clear to everyohis was not a journey of honor, but an exile disguised as a royal reward. The nobles, especially her siblings, were all too pleased to see her go, relieved of the petition for the throne.
Stepping into her luxurious carriage, she observed the opulenside—a stark trast to her current circumstahankfully, the magical suspensions in the carriage softehe ride’s movement, sparing her from the unfortable rog of an ordinary carriage. With a sigh, Ravenled into her seat as the head knight gave the order to move.
“I suppose I should review my notes,” Ravenna muttered, reag into one of her bags for a small, leather-bound book. She had been doting every memory she retained from the novel in this journal. Memory is fleeting, she reminded herself, and as time went on, her recolle of the story might fade, leaving her vulnerable. This book would be her guide, a lifelio navigate the treacherous world ahead.
In the he Light’s quest, Ravenna was a minor viliness, a member of a fa that opposed Prince William. He, a tral figure in the protagonist, Eugene’s life, would ter bee a staunch ally to the hero. Ravenna’s involvement didn’t st long; her role in the political struggle would e to an end after she was outmaneuvered by a rumour that she killed her own Mother, resulting in her exile. Iory, her ruthlessness was legendary, her enemies whispering tales of her cruelty and sharp wit. She was said to operate with cold precision, inspiring fear and respe equal measure.
“Ag like her has been my best move so far,” she murmured. Upon realizing her new identity, Ravenna had resolved to embody the character’s infamous attitude. Sudden ges in behavior would easily arouse suspi, and for now, pying the role of the “viliness” would allow her to keep trol of her situation.
Ravenna shifted her focus to the mysterious pahat had appeared earlier. “Let’s see what this thing does,” she muttered, willing the dispy to activate again. The floating s reappeared, glowing faintly.
[Reputation System Activated]
“What’s a reputation system?” she thought aloud, watg as the panel morphed in response.
[The Reputation System has beeed to attuhe user to the Universal in.]
“Universal in?” she echoed, her eyes widening. The Universal in was said to be the ultimate magic, wielded only by the legendary hero Luminous. In a lore, Luminous had described it as a magic that could adapt to its user’s needs, granting near-omnipotent power.
“Why was something like this just lying around in the imperial pace?” she muttered, her mind rag. If this “reputation system” was really lio su a and powerful force, then she may have just stumbled upon the greatest tool at her disposal.
The panel flickered, showing additional details:
[The Reputation System has been tailored to assist in attuning to Universal in.]
“So, this is a stepping stoo using that power?” Ravenna mused aloud, feeling a surge of excitement. She hesitated before murmuring, “Main menu?” Instantly, the s shifted, dispying a list of her current stats.
[Reputation System v0.1User: Ravenna Sorius / Joy Cha KimReputation Level: 60 (4300/8200)Curreation Points: 12,000Reputation Rate: 34% decrease in st 24 hoursTitles: Raven of Sun Pace, Unruly Princess{Reputation Points Log} {Speation Points}]
“This really is like a game,” she muttered, noting the yout of the interface. Her “level” at 60 seemed high, but given Ravenna’s notoriety as an imperial princess, it made sense. Infamy, it seemed, was just as valuable as fame.
“Guess any publicity is good publicity,” she joked, noting her points aation rate. Her standing had dropped since her exile, as expected. “With me out of the capital, Ravenna’s influence is waning fast.”
Curious, she clicked on “Titles,” and descriptions for each title appeared:
[Raven of Sun Pace:Bestowed by the nobility of Ana Empire after Ravenna dismahree major houses for offending her, without a drop of blood spilled.Effects: Increases fear and respect from nobility by 7-12%. (ot be unequipped)]
[Unruly Princess:Given by pace workers and citizens for Ravenna’s extravagant spending and her habit of dismissing workers and guards for minor offenses.Effects: Increases prices on purchases by 4-9%. (ot be unequipped)]
“What? A penalty on prices?” Ravenna groaned, realizing the downside of her infamy. As if her finances weren’t strained enough, this title would make every transaore costly. Frustrated but uerred, she refocused aed the "Speation Points" option, curious to see what it might offer.
As she opehe menu, a list of options appeared before her, each promising powers and resources that seemed almost surreal:
[ Speation Points ]
Access to the I: 100 Points per HourAccess to Magic Spell Library: 100 Points per Hraphical Ss: 5 Points per 1 KilometerNullify Minor Poison Damage on Self: 250 PointsNullify minor Poison Damage on Others: 350 Points per EntityMinor Heal: 1,000 Points per EntityMajor Heal: (Locked)Lie Detector: (Locked)Ravenna’s eyes widened as she skimmed through the list. "Access to the I? A Magic Spell Library?" The possibilities thrilled her; the idea of tapping into knowledge and magic with ease was incredibly appealing. If she could unlock more abilities, she might have a real ce to rise above her situation and chart her own path.
Her gaze lingered on some of the pricier abilities, w just how useful they could be. Then, a question arose in her mind, "Wait... how exactly do I earation Points?"
Almost as if the system were listening, a new panel appeared in respoo her query:
[ Reputation Points System ]
Daily Points: Gain 100 Reputation Points per day for every 10 reputation levels.Ravenna’s eyes lit up as she did the math. "So, with my level at 60, I’d get 600 points every day?" She scrolled further, and sure enough, the log dispyed a breakdown of points she had earned and her daily accumution rate.
[ Reputation Points Log ]
Daily Points: 600 PointsEarned 2 Points: For making an unfettable impression on the nobility.Earned 1 Point: For causing an unfettable annoyao the Imperial Prince.Spent 1200 Points: Emergenullify Major Poison Damage on Self "So, I earra points from events, even if they're minor? It’s something, at least." She couldn’t help but smirk at the idea that her notorious acts could actually help her gain an advantage. Even if individual events didn’t earn many points, every bit ted.
Ravenna leaned back, abs this information. This system, though uable, might just be the key she needed. If she could master it and strategically earn points, she could access knowledge, magid even healing abilities that would turn her exile into an opportunity.
While thinking this, she suddenly noticed the test log, “What I oisoned?!”
