That one lore chapter

- We arrived, dear customers! - Deramos Fagusio exclaims, docking his ship.

- Are you sure? This island looks deserted - Pietra questions.

The small land before them is composed of nothing but sand and some bushes, accompanied by a solitary coconut tree.

- For a purpose, of course. The corrupter living here prefers discretion.

- Is it too late to change this nickname? We are going to get killed by it, eventually.

- The answer I received before was that "it is quite catchy and cool" and was mostly accepted among your kind.

- Are they all stupid?

- Quit the chitchat and let’s move on - Lirika hurries the group, preparing to leave the ship.

- Oh, I wouldn’t do that, m’lady. This place only welcomes corrupters. I highly recommend that you and the girl, who is surprisingly proficient at fishing, stay on board - he warns.

- Fish! - Asai shouts excitedly with her arms wide open, looking at the big pile of fish she managed to catch along the way.

- What do you mean, merchant?

- A security system that banishes you to the most nightmarish places known to men protects the island from anyone uninvited.

- We don’t have invites - Nicholas states, worried.

- All corrupters are invited! I think… - Fagusio says the last part under his breath.

- I guess it can’t be helped. You guys go while I wait here with Asai - Lirika makes herself comfortable sitting on a chair.

- Did you hear what he just said?

- Don’t take too long - she motions for them to go.

- Kai, can you put some sense into your pirate girlfriend? - Pietra says, angry.

Unusually quiet until now, Kai stares in a direction with nothing particularly interesting, unaware of the chat involving the others.

- Hey - Pietra gently taps his arm.

- Huh? - his eyes meet her in surprise. He didn’t even notice her walking towards him.

- You are doing this way too often. Are you sure you are okay?

- Yeah… Sorry. I was thinking about what to say to this Suzuki.

- Kai…

- I’m fine. I mean it. Let’s go.

With the clear intention of not wanting to talk about it, he promptly leaves the ship and walks towards the center of the island.

- Wait, it’s dangerous!

- Don’t worry. We’ll be fine - he claims with confidence.

Ignoring his friend's warnings, he takes no more than a few steps before being bluntly warped right in front of them.

Silence.

- Is he okay?!

- Probably? - Fagusio tries to hide his lack of confidence about Kai’s fate.

- Hang in there, buddy! - Nicholas immediately jumps off the ship, going after him.

- Dammit! - so does Pietra.

Both of them ended up being similarly warped as well.

Following the confirmation that she is still in one piece, Pietra punches Kai.

- Stop being careless!

- I told you we would be fine. I feel like I left a kidney or something behind, though…

- Guys… - Nicholas calls them, out of words.

The trio is introduced to a surreal view: countless environments mixed together, forming paths that lead to archways of various shapes and forms. These archways are not only found on the ground but also scattered across floating lands and even planted upside down in the sky. Each one serves as a passage, a portal to somewhere else. Beautiful flowers bloom near freezing mountains, their colorful petals blown away by a strong wind. The sand of a desert harmoniously coexists with destructive lava, both defying gravity as they fall upwards inside a castle made of glass. Sea creatures explore the clouds, while a swamp invades empty houses. It creates an endless and unique scenario, a stunning painting of a perfect fantasy.

- It seems I have uninvited guests - they are greeted by an angelic voice.

A figure descends from the heavens, glowing in a bright light that feels warm and divine. Each step she takes, a random object desperately goes under her feet, sustaining her walk.

- Sorry, ma’am. No one told us we needed an invitation to come here - Nicholas apologizes.

- There is no need to worry. Fellow corrupters are always welcome here. May I ask who guided you to me?

- Roberto Ignacio.

- Leave - her voice becomes harsh and intimidating, the grounds trembling as she speaks.

- Wait, please! We need help! - Nicholas tries to reason with her.

- I will have no business with anyone related to that pervert!

As she shouts to them, Pietra notices a new bond being created. A yellow-toned thread now connects her party to someone nearby. Ignoring the entity, she follows it.

- W-Where do you think you are going?! - the creature’s voice crackles.

Poorly hidden behind some leaves and fake spider webs, Pietra finds what seems to be a regular apartment door. It even has a peephole and the number 72 on it.

- Noooooo! Don’t go over there! - the once-imposing figure begs as she desperately tries to stop her, without success.

As Pietra casually opens the door, she discovers a sacred paradise that has never been violated. The walls are adorned with posters of idols, while shelves overflow with manga, light novels, and anime figures. A high-end gaming setup, complete with a graphics tablet, sits proudly in the room, showcasing what this place truly is: the nest of a hikikomori. In the middle of the room, a petite girl hides behind a kotatsu.

- M-My sanctuary! - she screams, embarrassed.

- Suzuki?

- Y-yes…

Her brown eyes, slightly covered by her long, dark hair, stare at Pietra wide-open. A single fang peeks out of her trembling lips, and the only clothing hiding her underwear from plain sight is an oversized white shirt.

- We are going to have a chat. Now.

- Eek!

With the whole group joining Suzuki in her kotatsu without her consent, they explain their situation.

- Ah, so you’re no pals of that evil boss. Good, very good - her voice is the same as the entity from before, but way less polite and angelical.

- Let me get this straight. Right after being blessed by a goddess and teleported here, instead of exploring this magical world and enjoying your brand new life, you choose to make an exact copy of your room and lock yourself inside? - Kai confronts her.

- Yeah.

- I can’t judge you.

- What’s with that deity persona? You could just show yourself to us? - Pietra inquiries.

- It’s a tribute to my goddess. With her power, I was able to create portals that connect almost every mapped location by other corrupters.

- Wait, you did all that outside?

- Yeah.

- Oh…

- Can you help us, Suzuki? - Nicholas gently asks.

- Of course I can. It’s a total pain, but helping other corrupters is the duty Foheste gave me.

- You can start by spreading a new nickname, then - Pietra suggests.

- First of all, do you guys have your phones? - she ignores it.

The party exchanges glances and looks down, embarrassed.

- We were in so much trouble until now that we forgot to check if they work here…

- They don’t. Not without my help at least. Show me the beauties.

After receiving their phones, Suzuki aligns them on the kotatsu and wears a pair of gloves.

- Foheste, guide my hand, so I can, once again, help some morons by your command!

- Come again?

At the end of her casting, the devices began to dismantle themselves, piece by piece. Using her stylus, she meticulously sketches the improvements she envisioned, altering the components with her imagination. When she finished her work, the pieces magically reassembled themselves.

- Done. With my upgrades, your phones don’t need batteries to work anymore, and you can communicate with other corrupters. I've also granted access to a database where you can share or check any information about this world. Works kinda like a discussion board for corrupters. Don’t ask me, this design wasn’t my idea.

- Wow! You are amazing! Thanks! - Nicholas gets genuinely impressed.

- Ehehe - Suzuki gets all silly with his compliment.

- You said something about having a duty. Can you please tell us what you know about the goddesses? Ours didn’t care to explain much.

- Uh, well… Based on all the corrupters I’ve met so far, five goddesses in total summon people in this world. Each with their own objective. Check the topic in the database about them.

- Armpits… Feet… Urgh. There are too many weird comments about them - Pietra states in disdain.

- Feels like home - Kai comments.

- Let’s see… The first one is Aferi. Described as gentle and kind, her main objective is to spread love and passion. Her blessings are related to emotions.

- The goddess of freaks, if you ask me. Everyone she chooses is crazy. If someone claims to be blessed by her, I would run if I were you.

- We could tell…

Pietra continues to read.

- The second is Isoris. Usually portrayed as enthusiastic, she desires to give meaning to this world. Her gifts are related to life.

- The ones summoned by her are the easiest to deal with. The closest friend I have is one of them.

- You have friends?

- The third one is Foheste. Short-tempered and aggressive, she bullies her subjects into helping other corrupters. Her powers are associated with creativity.

- I can hear her hammering inside my head all the time… Go to the next one, please.

- The fourth is Rasnati. Both intimidating and carefree, this deity claims to want to make history. She gives abilities related to time.

- We were robbed. Where are my time travel powers?!

- Shut it, Kai. The last is Lazare. Described as solemn but mischievous, all she wants is to grant a peaceful ending by giving blessings related to death.

- Lazare has a taste for edgy people. I know it sounds evil, but they are harmless.

- So that’s it? No duty of saving everyone from a demon king or something? - Kai is disappointed.

- Make history sound epic, no? - Nicholas comforts him.

- If we were supposed to have powers related to time, where do the abilities we can use come from? The swords? - Pietra wonders.

- Useless! Suzuki can create her reality, and Roberto can manipulate people’s hearts! What we can do sounds more like curses than gifts! - Kai rages.

- Can you let me take a look? I’m curious about these weapons. I’ve never heard about anything capable of nerfing those blessed.

As Suzuki tries to make the same spell she used on the phones, her powers are instantly repelled.

- Impossible…

- Should we throw the swords away? - Nicholas suggests, a bit worried.

- We can’t. I tried to get rid of mine by throwing it into the sea during our trip here. The moment I turned around, it was back at the ship - Kai reveals.

- I did feel like mine was unusually around even when I didn’t bother to bring it along…

- Why didn’t you tell us, Kai?

- Sorry, I was hoping she could do something about it. I didn’t want to alarm you.

- Well, there is something else I can do. It won’t help you directly, but it will give you a new quest.

- What is it?

- There is a spell famous blacksmiths use to engrave their names in their works. Works like a mark of authenticity to prevent scammers from selling knock-offs of their weapons and armors. I can use the same spell to identify the maker of those swords.

Expecting no results, Kai hands his sword to Suzuki.

- I don’t think the person who forged it was stupid enough to sign their name on it. It would be like the culprit of a crime-

- Oh, there is one!

- You've gotta be kidding me…

- Strange. Sounds like a corrupter, but there is no one with that name in the database.

- Probably a fake identity. What a waste of time.

- Don't be so pessimistic, man. Please, Suzuki. Tell us.

- The one responsible for making these swords was someone called… Giovanni.