Chapter 3: Shrine of the Forgotten Code
1. Eggs and Existential Dread
There are two kinds of mornings in Nestwood: the peaceful ones where birds chirp and children giggle—and the ones where a man gets woken up by an exploding divine notification and a chicken on fire.
This was, unfortunately, the latter.
DING!
[ALERT: A Forgotten Shrine has manifested in the Northern Mistwood. Probability of corruption: 73%. Probability of Kai screwing this up: 99%. Proceed anyway?]
Captain Cluckles squawked in panic, his feathers steaming slightly as he landed on my chest. His eyes glowed with an unnatural light.
"System glitch or divine prank?" I muttered, brushing smoldering straw from my face.
"Neither," Lyria said from within the system UI, her voice uncharacteristically serious. "This one's real. A shrine touched by forbidden code. We need to investigate immediately."
Yui, still half-asleep in the corner of the room, rolled over. "Tell your chicken to stop screaming. It's too early for divine nonsense."
"Get used to it," I replied. "We're heading into a corrupted shrine before breakfast."
She blinked, sat up, and drew a dagger. "You owe me pancakes after this."
"And you owe me a favor for letting you live this long," Lyria added cheerfully.
"...This feels like divine extortion."
"It is. Welcome to the harem path."
2. Journey to Mistwood
The Mistwood Forest lived up to its name.
Gray tendrils of fog slithered between moss-covered trees. Branches creaked with unnatural whispers. Even Cluckles stopped clucking—he perched silently on my shoulder, eyes sharp.
Yui crouched ahead, scanning the trail.
"Tracks. Not goblins. Too heavy. Something... wrong."
The fog thickened. I activated [Egg Vision Lv. 2], revealing faint magical trails—thin lines of corrupted code pulsing through the trees.
"Lyria, what kind of shrine is this?"
"A Temple of the Forgotten Goddess. Once sacred, now rejected by the Divine Network. Her name has been deleted from all records."
"Why?"
"She tried to create love… in a system built for war."
Yui looked at me. "That's poetic. And creepy."
"Welcome to dating in a divine database."
3. The Shrine Awakens
We found it nestled in a hollow clearing: the shrine.
Broken stone pillars. A cracked marble altar. And a floating orb above it—glitching between colors like a corrupted star.
[Shrine Interface Detected: Error 404 – Deity Not Found]
Yui stepped closer. "This place feels… familiar."
"You've been here before?"
She hesitated. "No. But it's like something inside me remembers it."
"Careful," Lyria warned. "Emotions are data here. It can read your heart."
Too late.
The orb pulsed.
[NEW SUBQUEST: The Goddess Who Loved Too Much]
A voice echoed from nowhere and everywhere:
"My name is lost. My temple, broken. But my love… remains. Prove your heart is stronger than code. Enter the Mirror of Memory."
The altar split open.
And beneath it: a swirling silver portal.
Yui looked at me. "If we die, I'm haunting you."
"Fair."
4. Mirror of Memory
We fell into light.
And landed in a world not our own.
Everything shimmered. Trees were made of crystal. The sky flickered like a dying screen. Sounds echoed before they were made.
In front of us: two glowing mirrors.
[TRIAL: Confront your truest self]
The first mirror shimmered—and showed me… as a child. Alone. Crying in front of a broken monitor.
"No one came for me," I whispered.
Yui's mirror flickered next.
It showed her… kneeling over a body. A sister? A mentor? Blood soaked her hands.
"I couldn't save her," she murmured.
"This is a trap," Lyria hissed. "An emotional trial. You must forgive yourselves."
Easier said than done.
The reflections stepped out of the mirrors.
And attacked.
5. Battle with the Broken Selves
My child-self lashed out, glowing with chaotic data.
I countered with an Egg Shield—barely holding back a memory of abandonment given form.
Yui danced with her twin, blades clashing in a storm of regret.
"Use [Heart of Yolk]," Lyria shouted. "Empathic blast!"
I activated it.
Golden light exploded.
The child staggered. "You left me."
"I survived," I whispered. "And I'll protect them now."
Light burst from my core.
The false memory shattered.
Yui knelt, breathless, as her reflection dissolved in tears.
"I… let go."
[Trial Complete: Bond +1 – Kai & Yui]
The shrine pulsed.
And a goddess appeared.
6. The Forgotten One
She floated above the altar.
Silver hair. Eyes like fractured stars. A dress woven from memory and moonlight.
"I am Elari. Once love, now error."
"She's… beautiful," Lyria said, almost mournful.
Elari looked at me. "You carry chaos. You were not chosen. You broke your code. And yet…"
She reached toward me.
"You felt love in battle. You saved her. You let your egg-shaped heart beat."
Yui stepped beside me, cheeks pink.
Elari smiled.
"I grant you my shard. Use it to rewrite one rule. But beware… each wish corrupts the next."
A crystal formed in my hand.
[Item Acquired: Elari's Shard – Rule Rewrite Token]
Before I could ask what that meant, Elari vanished.
So did the shrine.
We stood alone in the forest again.
7. Aftermath
The sun had barely moved.
Yui sat beside me on a fallen log, inspecting her dagger.
"She wasn't a monster."
"No. Just forgotten."
"Like us?"
I looked at her.
"Not anymore."
She smiled faintly.
"Bond Level Up: Yui now trusts you with her back… and maybe her heart," Lyria teased.
"Oh shut up," Yui muttered.
Captain Cluckles clucked softly, nuzzling my leg.
I stared at the shard in my hand.
And wondered what rule I would change… and at what cost.
8. Elsewhere…
Far above, in a realm of divine code, a figure stirred.
A goddess with burning eyes. Hair of fire. Wings of crimson light.
She stared at a flickering screen showing my face.
"So… the Glitched One has found Elari."
She smirked.
"I'll enjoy deleting you myself."
And behind her… a dozen goddesses watched.
Some angry. Some curious.
And some already falling in love.
[End of Chapter 3 – Shrine of the Forgotten Code]