The dazzling winter sun shines through the window and hits my face directly.
"Hiss——"
Awakened by the light, which was not warm at all, I sat up from the bed. The cold air made me shiver.
Although winter is cold, it gives me enough reasons to sleep in, so I don’t hate winter at all. It would be better if it was winter all year round.
Outside the window, two guardsmen were enchanting a pile of snow-clearing brooms to work automatically. There were only a handful of four or five pedestrians on the street, which made me realize that it was still early.
After staying in bed for nearly twenty minutes, I finally left the warm quilt, rubbed the hair that fell on my head, yawned, stood up on tiptoes, and carefully walked down the narrow stairs.
Downstairs, Raya, who was wiping the table, glanced at me dissatisfied:
"Old man, you got up so late again? The guests are coming soon."
Alas, I really don’t want to be pushed to work as soon as I wake up. In order to maintain a good mood throughout the day, let’s just pretend that she is saying “good morning”.
"There shouldn't be many guests at this time... Also, when you call me 'Gulao', at least add 'sir'. After all, I am the same age as your grandfather."
"I don't want it."
"Eh~~"
I was too lazy to say anything else, so I picked up the coat I had placed on the chair last night. After confirming that the thermal seal on the coat was still on, I walked towards the door.
"Hey, where are you going?"
"Of course I'm going to see my goddess."
There was no response behind me, and even without looking back, I knew that Raya was rolling her eyes at me. It was obvious that she regarded my words as a ridiculous excuse.
Walking out the door, I put on my coat, put my hands in my pockets, lowered my head and stepped onto the street, walking slowly towards the forest on the edge of the town.
——One Hundred and One Years.
This is the time I have lived in this world so far.
It would not be an exaggeration to describe it as "a fleeting moment". After all, it was so fast that I don't even remember what I experienced... No, it should be that I didn't experience anything at all.
Everything starts a hundred years ago.
......
The wizarding world is not what I originally imagined.
First, magic is not that omnipotent.
In my current opinion, most magic is just a means of life and a substitute for technology. They are collectively called [grassroots magic].
For example: the fire-making spell can only ignite coal and wood...or it can be used to play pranks on children.
And high-level attack magic specifically used for combat, such as [First-level Magic], [Second-level Magic], [Spiritual Magic], [Superior Magic], [Divine Magic] and [Demon Magic]. In the place where I am.
There is no use for remote towns... these are things for another day.
Second, magic does not completely "replace" technology, but "dominates" it.
There is a certain amount of technology here, but it must be infused with magic power before it can be used.
Third...I can't use magic at all.
Beautiful.
Sigh... I thought that with my 100 million plug-ins, after a year, I would be a master no matter what.
However, a year has passed and nothing has happened.
I was teleported to the "Real Realm" by the goddess Elinor while wandering around.
I was very desperate at that time:
"What kind of attribute increase? I can't even use the basic magic necessary for daily life."
"Well..."
Goddess Elinor stuck out her tongue:
"I also said at the beginning that due to your body's inadaptability, all your attributes are the lowest in the magical world."
"What's the lowest value?"
"It's zero."
Beautiful.
I finally understand the ulterior motive of Eleanor's words "Can you promise that you won't regret it in the future?"
All attributes are zero, so no matter how much they are doubled, they are still zero - my ninety-nine nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine top-level plug-ins have lost their use.
Only the Divine Eye is still available...
"Don't... don't look at me with such scary eyes. It's not good to scare the goddess..."
Damn it... This goddess always tries to use a pitiful tone to make me forgive her at times like this. How could I be fooled!
Elinor clasped her hands on her chest and opened her eyes - one red and one blue pupils.
"Please don't be angry."
"Okay."
I replied in seconds.
So, after using 99,999,999 plug-ins in exchange for the reward of seeing the goddess's eyes, I reluctantly accepted the tragic reality.
Right now, the plug-ins I can use...
"The divine eye..."
"Please don't be too depressed, this is at least one of the seven extremely rare divine gifts!"
I heard a strong sense of comfort from it and sighed:
"So, is there anything else? If nothing happens, please send me back. I still have work in the tailor shop waiting for me."
"There must be something else going on."
Suddenly, a word flashed through my mind: Misfortunes never come singly.
I quickly shook my head.
"What?"
"Actually..."
Seeing the goddess hesitate to speak, I felt familiar.
"Definitely bad news, right?"
"Well...this time it's because your soul is extremely mismatched with the magical world, so your lifespan will be lost at twice the rate..."
Is there a soul after the body?! What if even the lifespan is lost this time!
I began to regret coming to the magical world.
Ah... Hurry up and end this hasty life and go to heaven.
"But but...please don't be so decadent! I can fix it!"
"How to remedy it?"
"To break the balance...please make another choice - do you want eternal life, or go directly to heaven after spending seven days of bliss?"
"...What's the problem?"
"Please answer."
"Don't even explain it..."
What inexplicable options? You know which one to choose without even thinking about it.
Anyway, I don’t want to die anymore.
"Eternal life."
"Okay."
The goddess agreed.
"On this day every year, please come to me and I will bring back the wasted life."
"Uh, I came to find you?"
"Just go to a place where no one is paying attention and wait patiently."
"Oh, then... there are no side effects?"
"Not yet."
"Temporarily?"
I didn't get an answer, so I was sent back.
......
Therefore, my age remains at eighteen forever. This is why I have lived for more than a hundred years and still look like a young man.
Well, that's right...
It has changed so much all of a sudden, I think it is really weird.
But I have already thought about it: since it will not affect my normal life, it will be useless to worry about it~~
"Hey, isn't this Mr. Gu? Good morning."
"Good morning."
I responded to the fruit stand owner who greeted me with the same tone I used to respond to her father decades ago.
I have never left this place called Weig.
Almost everyone in the town knows me.
Nowadays, no one makes a fuss about me being immortal anymore. They probably regard me as an "eternal" member of the town.
In everyone's eyes, I look like...to quote one of my favorite metaphors - "a moving statue."
The eternal city wall, the eternal daily routine, the eternal quiet morning, the eternal me...
Including me, no one wants this "eternity" to be destroyed - the eternal town allows everyone to exist peacefully and stubbornly.
Ah... Of course, there is another reason - the town of Vigo is a remote seaside place at the southernmost tip of the [Saint Vance Empire]. Its development is very backward. For things that cannot be explained like eternal life, there is often no way to explain it.
I care too much, after all, it has nothing to do with me... In addition, I have confessed to the people in the town long ago that I cannot use magic, so it is impossible for them to have feelings such as jealousy.
"The above is the background of my story..."
"Good morning, Mr. Gulao...what's the 'story background'?"
"Ah, nothing...good morning..."
I yawned.
I don't remember when I got the name "Gu Lao", but when I realized it, I was already "Mr. Gu Lao".
After passing a corner, you can vaguely see the forest ahead.
There is a traveling businessman standing on the corner - these guys are like migratory birds, you see them from time to time.
The person standing there at this moment was not a new face. He had a rosy complexion. As soon as he spotted me, he came over, put one hand on my shoulder, and held a bottle of water in the other:
"This guest, would you like to buy a bottle of water? This is shipped from the Imperial Capital, and a bottle only costs ten wickets!"
[Weiben] - one of the currencies of the Saint Vance Empire. In addition to Weiben, there is also a more valuable [Spiritual Book]. It takes 5,000 Weiben to exchange for one spiritual book.
I shook my head, but he didn’t seem to give up. He moved his face closer and said mysteriously:
"This bottle of water is good for both men and women!"
I stopped.
"What are the specific benefits?"
"Well..."
The traveling businessman shook the water in his hand.
I took out the ten-dimensional book and handed it to him.
"Can you tell me now?"
The traveling businessman once again leaned into my ear and whispered:
"The advantage is that it quenches -thirst-"
"..."
Beautiful.
Looking at the sly smile of the traveling businessman, I realized that I was being forcefully sold. In order to save face, I took out the ten-dimensional book again:
"Please give me another bottle."
"...Eh?! OK, OK..."
Carrying two bottles of water, I ignored the traveling merchant's gaze that looked like he was looking at a fool and continued moving forward, thinking about how I could use the same method to sell it to other traveling merchants for twenty kip a bottle when I went back.<
/p>
Entering the depths of the forest, I sat under a tree and quietly waited for Elinor's call.
After almost a minute, my eyes flashed and I was immediately transported to the "Real Realm".
"Oh, Goddess, you are still as beautiful as a bottle of water this year, which is good for both men and women!"
"Thank you. Mr. Gu's complimentary skills are still as weird as ever."
That's right, every year on this day, I will find a hidden place and let the goddess take me to her, so as to gain the life span consumed in the past year.
At the same time, you can also enjoy the beautiful goddess in winter, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone.
"Speaking of which, Lady Goddess, can an immortal like me really stay in the magical world forever?"
"I think there is no problem. The current lonely old man is just a dispensable existence in the eyes of people."
That's right...after all, I'm just a lonely old man who hasn't left the town for a hundred years.
"However, to me, Mr. Gu Lao is a very special existence! Dispensability and non-existence are two different things. All lives are valuable."
"Oh...this sentence is enough to be included in the "Heartwarming Quotes of the Goddess"!"
I do feel a touch of warmth.
Heart-warming quotes from the goddess - compiled from the heart-warming words I heard when I was chatting with Eleanor.
"I agree too~~"
......
After chatting with the goddess Elinor for more than an hour, Elinor sent me back - of course without anyone noticing.
I walked to the tailor shop.
Halfway through, I suddenly realized that the two bottles of water were lost.
Oops, why did he suddenly disappear...
I spent twenty yuan in vain, and I will be lectured by Raya again later...
Raya's serious and disappointed eyes appeared in my mind, so I decisively gave up the idea of going back to the tailor shop and stayed out until the afternoon.