"So... it just failed like that?" Screwllum asked, watching as Herta gave the key a gentle twist in the door, only for it to snap off in the lock.
Screwllum had not accepted Chen Li's invitation to travel to the Herta Space Station in his real body, because Chen Li had only offered to bring him from Screwllum's World to the space station, but not to send him back. The Friends Circle was like that; you had to return to where you came from first. If you made continuous jumps, the Friends Circle would handle the arrivals but not the returns—because the return point had been refreshed.
At this moment, Screwllum was present as a holographic projection. He had been very interested in Herta's claim of having a chance to see the Aeon of Erudition, but it was clear that Herta had failed once again.
"It's over. If it had been successful, the key wouldn't have snapped in the lock," Herta said, holding the remaining half of the antique bronze key in her hand.
This was a feature of the Key of Fateful Invitation. The other party has rejected your invitation and snapped your key. Only when the antique bronze key repaired itself from its broken state back to a complete one could it be used again.
Although the Key of Fateful Invitation, like the [Then I Ask You] Miracle Card, cooled down over time, the Miracle Card used a 24-hour timer, whereas the Key of Fateful Invitation refreshed at midnight.
"It seems Nous doesn't want to see you. And probably doesn't want to see me either," Chen Li said with a smile.
"How can you still be smiling?"
"Why wouldn't I be? No Aeon wants to see you, but there's an Aeon who wants to see me," Chen Li said, tossing the key's projection—which he had summoned before Herta used hers—in his hand.
"Tch, it's just one Aeon of Elation. He only agreed to your invitation last time because he wanted to see me made a fool of. This time, I won't agree to any of your conditions. If you've got the guts, try opening it again. If you can successfully make an invitation this time, then..."
"Then you'll come to my house and do 30,000 spins?"
"No. If I agree to a bet with you, that 'God of Fun' Aha would definitely show up, so I reject your bet," Herta refused Chen Li's proposal point-blank.
"If that's the case, Aha really might not agree to the invitation..." Chen Li said, looking rather troubled.
The Aeon of Elation was like a fish. Having bait didn't guarantee you'd catch him, but having no bait guaranteed you wouldn't. Unless you were a beginner with a 'beginner's luck' period. But Chen Li's beginner's luck period was long over.
"So, are you going to try or not?" Herta asked, crossing her arms.
"The thing I, Chen Li, love most is saying NO to people who think they can definitely provoke me!" Chen Li wagged his finger.
"Fine. Let's just try to guess how many times we'll have to fail before we trigger the pity system and successfully invite the Aeon of Erudition over," Herta said.
It wasn't that Herta didn't have other ways to seek an audience with Nous; she just felt that if an invitation failed, an audience would likely fail as well. When using the Key of Fateful Invitation on an Aeon, as long as the other party didn't strongly object, they could be invited. Repeated failures could only mean that Nous really did not want to come.
"Logic: Nous is possibly observing us at this very moment, and due to his wariness of the [Then I Ask You] Miracle Card, he is unwilling to respond. Speculation: As an Emanator of Erudition, Herta's 'fate' with the Aeon of Erudition is sufficiently high, perhaps as high as 70%. Conclusion: At the Key of Fateful Invitation's refresh rate, the pity system can likely be triggered within a month, successfully inviting the Aeon of Erudition," Screwllum stated.
Not every member of the Genius Society was an Emanator of Erudition. The fact that Herta could become one was proof enough that she was outstanding even among geniuses.
"Chen Li, can't you strengthen this Key of Fateful Invitation a little?" Herta complained. As far as she knew, increasing the brightness of an Entry within a Curio could effectively increase the Curio's power. If it was powerful enough, even an Aeon couldn't refuse the invitation.
"For a 50-Crystal reward, you want me to risk my life? No way," Chen Li shook his head.
Chen Li had successfully obtained 50 Crystals after forging the Key for Herta. While it wasn't the maximum of 60, he was satisfied. The big payoff was yet to come. According to the logic of Crystal acquisition, Chen Li would receive the first wave of Crystals upon delivering the Curio to the client. If, with his participation, the Curio user created an even greater miracle, the additional Miracle Crystals obtained would be distributed along with a Miracle Card.
"Then can you use your Fiction Value to rewind the Key a few times?"
"Herta, take my advice: a melon picked by force isn't sweet. The old trope of 'We had no fate, it all depended on my money' is outdated," Chen Li tactfully refused.
"Whether the melon is sweet or not, I have to take a bite first to know. So tell me the truth."
"The higher the quality of a fictionalized item, the more Fiction Value it consumes, and the quality of a Curio is very high... Simply put, I'm broke," Chen Li said. Or rather, the cost-performance ratio was low.
"Then what do we do?" Herta sighed.
"I have a plan!" Chen Li held up a single finger.
"What is it?"
"To be precise, two plans."
"Go on."
"Plan A: we find the person who is likely to be invited into the Genius Society next by the Aeon of Erudition. When Nous is observing them, we seize the opportunity to ask him our questions."
"..."
"It seems you don't approve of that plan. Then let's move on to Plan B. Although Nous doesn't want to see us, another Aeon does. We can go see the Aeon of Elation and have him deliver us to Nous," Chen Li proposed his second plan.
"Chen Li, you're a genius..."
"I feel like you don't really mean that," Chen Li said, scrutinizing Herta, who had delivered the last line in a monotone.
"I just feel that you, as a Curio Forger, aren't being miraculous enough."
"So it's my fault that Nous doesn't want to see you? To be fair, with the Key I forged, in this world, the only characters who could be classified as 'too powerful' are that handful of Aeons. If you chose anyone other than an Aeon, even an Emanator who was extremely resistant to your invitation, they wouldn't be able to refuse." Chen Li said.
It was like someone telling you that if you learned his sword technique, you could defeat everyone in the martial arts world except for three people. But after learning it, you specifically went after those three... It couldn't be said that you lost unfairly.
Moreover, the Key had the effect of inviting fictional characters and characters from other worlds, plus a pity system that meant you could invite anyone as long as you were willing to spend the time... For a beginner-level Curio forged with only 20 Crystals, its power was already outrageously off the charts.
"But I'm not interested in anyone besides the Aeons."
"But as a Curio Forger, I have to consider the cost-performance ratio."
"I'll add more money."
"More money is useless; your money isn't worth as much as Crystals. And Herta, don't tell me your only ambition after getting the Key of Fateful Invitation is just to meet some Aeons?"
"What... do you mean?"
"Don't you want to... meet the Herta of the future who has become an Aeon?"
"Huh?"
"After all, this Curio can meet with fictional characters. Conceptual items are never weak, especially not one that comes with a hard pity system."
"For real?!" Herta was instantly intrigued.
"Of course not. What kind of bicycle do you expect for twenty bucks? For now, the Key can only let you meet your waifu. In the future, when it becomes a 1-Star Curio, it might be able to do what I said. But there's no need to be disappointed. To make a Curio stronger, having me use Miracle Fire to increase its Entry brightness isn't the only option. Creating more miracles with the Curio is also a way to increase its power," Chen Li dangled a big carrot for Herta. He wasn't lying; that was how Curios grew stronger.
"Is that so... Then, Chen Li, do you think it's possible for me to use this key to successfully invite the consciousness of the Imaginary Tree?" Herta suddenly asked. Since Chen Li had painted such a grand picture, she naturally wouldn't be left behind.
"Theoretically, yes. Assuming it actually has a consciousness."
"Then what are you waiting for? Hurry up and invite the Aeon of Elation! Let's see if he's willing to help us get a meeting with Nous," Herta urged. If she could save a use of the key for inviting Nous, she could use it for many more experiments.
"Alright." Chen Li glanced at the Entry being extracted above his head and didn't refuse the suggestion.
[I Have a Date with an Aeon] Entry Extraction in progress... Progress: 1/5 (Successfully inviting different Aeons can increase progress. Repeatedly inviting the same Aeon can increase the Entry's brightness.)
Although the Entry sounded weird, it had both an 'Aeon' Entry and a 'Date' Entry. It would definitely be useful in the future, so Chen Li really wanted to extract it.
"Click!"
Chen Li inserted the key in his hand into the lock and gave it a gentle twist, once again opening the invitation space.
"What does this prove? That I'm fated to be with the Aeon of Elation?" Chen Li turned and asked his companions behind him.
"Never mind all that," Herta piloted her puppet body and pushed the door open directly. "Aeon of Elation, can you help us pass a message to the Aeon of Erudition? If He doesn't accept our invitation, we'll keep inviting Him until we succeed. And you can assure Him, we won't ask any harsh questions," Herta shouted at the shadow hidden behind a multitude of masks as soon as she pushed the door open.
The invitation space didn't actually prohibit mutual harm, so if you were inviting a dangerous individual, the best way to converse was from outside the door, because they couldn't hit you through it. Of course, this way, you also couldn't enjoy the time-freezing effect of the space.
"This sounds a bit weird. I feel like we're a gang of relentless delinquent blondes harassing a noble lady. A whole group of them, at that. And wasn't our request to have Aha throw us in front of Nous?" Chen Li scratched his head.
"When negotiating a deal, you have to take it slow," Herta said casually.
"Anything is possible, my friends. Whether it's passing a message or express delivering you to that pile of scrap metal. But in exchange... you should also agree to one thing for me," Aha spoke slowly, his voice surrounded by faint, ethereal laughter.
"What is it?"
"Take care of this mask." Aha tossed a mask out from within the door, but just as it was about to pass through the doorway, it seemed to hit some kind of barrier and floated in place.
Chen Li unconcernedly reached his hand through the door and grabbed the mask. He wasn't worried Aha would attack him, because the bond between him and his friends was invincible!
"This mask... Aha, you really only think about yourself, don't you? Can't you go fleece some other Masked Fool?" Chen Li couldn't help but say to Aha after glancing at the mask and then at the Entry above his head.
Simultaneously, Chen Li began a silent 10-second countdown in his mind.
But before he could even count to five, Sparkle's message arrived as expected.
[Sparkle]: Damn those Masked Fools! They stole my mask again!
---o---