Elevated to a Nobel?

As we entered the temple, a female Merrow approached us. Although I had seen other female Merrows on the streets and in the encampment, this was my first opportunity to inspect one up close.

In a way, it was everything I had expected, she was basically a mermaid, a very beautiful one, but looking back on it… nearly every Merrow I saw was matching the levels of actors back in reality. If I had to describe the race itself, it was as if they were underwater elves, blessed with good looks for all.

"Blessings to you, is there anything I can assist you with?" The female Merrow asked as Bill bowed towards her, I copied his actions, being disrespectful towards a religion was probably the quickest way for me to pass away, best be safe than sorry.

"Priestess, my Captain tasked me to come here and ask for the temple's support in an attempt to heal my friend, Lucas, standing next to me." Bill began, as he straightened from his bow and gestured towards me as if to emphasize that I was Lucas.

Bill's words hung heavily in the underwater air, a statement that sparked more questions than it answered. "He seems to be missing his memory, not just recent memory but the memory of his entire life. We are worried it could be a new form of attack by an enemy nation." As he finished, he firmly guided me towards the priestess with a hand on my shoulder, a silent message of reassurance in the unease.

The priestess, an ethereal figure bathed in the soft luminescence of the temple, turned her attention to me. "I see… Lucas, was it? Please follow after me." Her voice was soft, soothing, echoing strangely in the watery environment. Her aquamarine eyes seemed to see right through me, assessing any visible damage, but my wounds were of a more intangible nature.

With a fluid grace, the priestess swam deeper into the heart of the temple, and I found myself following her silvery form. Bill remained behind, his encouraging nod a solitary beacon as I was led away into the unknown. My discomfort surged – as a soldier right now, I felt more calm and safe with Bill around, back in reality, it always seemed that the military would take care of their own, the priestess however, I had no previous relations with, I was unsure if she would be as understanding as Bill and the Captain were.

Traversing the labyrinthine temple, we passed by other figures who I presumed to be fellow priests and priestesses. Their scales shimmered in various hues, reflecting the light in an array of colors as they moved. Acknowledging our passage, some offered quiet nods, others clasped their hands in a silent prayer, and our priestess reciprocated their gestures with calm equanimity.

Soon, we arrived at a large circular room, its entrance guarded by thick, ornate doors which the priestess pushed open with little effort. At the center stood an imposing statue of a Merrow female, perhaps the goddess Brigid who they worshipped, or possibly a revered saint – I had no way to discern.

Beneath the statue lay an altar, and levitating above it was a radiant pearl that pulsed with an almost miraculous light. It was a sight that defied logic, a spectacle seemingly more rooted in faith than magic.

"Place your hand on the Celestial Pearl," the priestess instructed, her eyes intense yet understanding, "Don't resist when you feel it invading your senses."

With those words, she moved behind the pearl, her form framed by the pearl's incandescent glow. She was garbed in a flowing attire that mimicked the fluid dynamics of the water around her, its fabric swirling in a rhythm akin to a dance. As she began to pray, the fabric seemed to respond to her words, swirling with more vigor as if animated by her devotion. The prayer was a hymn, one that mirrored the verses I had noticed inscribed on the temple roof.

As the priestess's prayer reverberated throughout the expansive chamber, the water around us seemed to thrum with energy, setting off subtle ripples that danced across the surface. The echo of her words seemed to lessen my anxiety, replacing it with an almost tangible sense of anticipation that threaded through my being. I found myself drawn towards the enigmatic Celestial Pearl, ready to delve into the nebulous world of forgotten memories, or perhaps, memories that never truly existed. Yet, despite the uncertainty, there was an unexplainable comfort, a feeling that no matter the outcome, I would be alright.

I wondered if this was the power of faith at work, a testament to the tangibility of divine forces within this reality. Given that I was in the form of a merrow, it was not far-fetched to believe that Gale, the game's creator, had also introduced Gods into this digital cosmos. But did that place him above these Gods? It was a perplexing concept to wrap my head around.

Slowly, I moved my hand toward the pearl, the anticipation growing with each inch I covered. As my fingers made contact, a sensation akin to the gentle flow of a stream coursed through my body. It was soothing, like a sip of warm tea amidst a biting winter storm, slowly seeping into every nook and cranny of my body. A soft lethargy settled in, the world around me slipping into a blissful haze.

As I was basking in this serenity, words began to materialize above the pearl. I recognized the format even in my drowsy state. It was a version of my game menu.

Name: Lucas Young

Age: 19

Level: 16 [23.7%... 25.2%...]

My gaze fixed on the incrementing percentage beside my level, a testament to the pearl's inexplicable power. Was this the reason why healing in the temple was considered rare? Were the priests and priestesses sacrificing their own experience points to heal others? Could it be that Holy Power used these points as a conduit, and the lengthy recovery time was due to the necessary replenishment of these points?

Immersed in my newfound realization, I barely registered the priestess's sudden gasp of surprise as she read the information hovering above the pearl. Her melodic chant came to an abrupt halt, punctuating the room with a chilling silence. "I-Impossible… why do you have a surname…" She stammered, wide-eyed, her voice a hushed echo of disbelief that caused the pearl to cease its operation abruptly.

Caught unaware, I stuttered out a response, my words barely more than a whisper in the hushed expanse, "I-I don't know…? Am I not supposed to have a surname?" The sense of tranquil warmth that had seeped into my being began to wane, receding from me and draining back into the pearl through the tether of our touch. I was left in the cold emptiness of the room, the pleasant experience prematurely cut short and replaced by a lingering sense of disquiet.

The priestess remained silent. She placed her hand over the left side of her chest, a gesture eerily reminiscent of the salute Bill and I had offered the Captain earlier.

"I was unaware that you are a Noble… please forgive my oversight in not offering a proper greeting. Your companion should have mentioned your status." Her voice was tinged with contrition, further deepening the chasm of my confusion.

I was taken aback. Was I now a Noble? Did a surname signify nobility within the Merrow Empire? Yet, the surname I bore surely came from my human reality… Could it be possible that when I took over this merrow body, it had inadvertently gained a surname it didn't previously possess? The implications were far from comforting. This unexpected elevation to nobility was a startling revelation, and I wondered how I could justify this sudden rise in status if this body had led a life of commonality before my arrival.

My spiraling thoughts were abruptly disrupted by the priestess's voice, now noticeably more respectful, albeit by a slim margin. "Please follow me to the Noble's chamber. I will need to find someone of higher status to attend to you. Nobles, being more pure Merrows, demand a greater concentration of holy power. As a commoner, I risk depleting my reserves without accomplishing any healing."

She didn't give me a moment to interject, giving me no chance to plead that it was all a possible misunderstanding, Instead, she swiftly glided towards the room's entrance, leaving me no choice but to tail behind her.

Once we returned to Bill's post, the jovial wave and welcoming smile he initially offered faded swiftly as he locked eyes with the stony glare of the priestess.

"Why weren't you forthright about his Noble status?" she interrogated, as we closed in on Bill.

"Noble? Lucas? He's not. I've seen his military ID, he doesn't bear a surname," Bill fired back, his bewilderment unmistakable. His gaze darted in my direction, seeking some form of validation, but I could provide none. All I could offer was a helpless shrug and a muted "I don't know," which hardly fortified his case.

However, the priestess remained undeterred by Bill's denial. "I'm going to take him to the Nobility chamber in the temple until a higher-ranking temple official arrives," she stated. Her eyes clouded with suspicion as she weighed Bill's claim against her belief. Had I, perhaps, masked my noble lineage upon my military enrollment?

"Go back to the encampment and fetch the Captain for the temple," the priestess directed Bill, her tone authoritative and final. "He should be able to verify if Lucas truly is a noble. From there, we can begin to make sense of this perplexing conundrum."

Caught in the maelstrom of this escalating situation, my mind was in turmoil. If it transpired that this Merrow body I inhabited was not of noble origin, I would find myself in an extremely precarious, if not perilous, situation once the Captain arrived.

With that worrisome thought lodged firmly in my mind, I watched Bill take off towards the encampment, his strong, swift strokes cutting through the water with urgent precision. He did not offer a farewell, probably shaken by the revelation of my potential nobility, something he clearly was not aware of.

"Please follow me, Mister Young," the priestess said, her voice softer now, more respectful. We made our way towards an entrance set apart from the temple's main opening. Two guards, dressed in armor strikingly similar to my own, stood sentinel. They looked at us with confusion, but upon receiving a confirming nod from the priestess, they stepped aside, granting us entry.

I was guided into a room of lavish grandeur, filled with bubble structures akin to the ones I had seen in the medic's quarters back at the encampment. These, however, had been thoughtfully transformed into forms resembling plush massage chairs, save for a carved recess where a merrow's tail would naturally rest.

"Someone of a higher rank should be with you within the hour. Rest here for now. Should you need anything, speak your requirements, and the guards outside will arrange it for you," the priestess advised. She gave me one last look, full of curiosity and confusion, before excusing herself.

Alone in this regal space, I took in my surroundings. The walls were bedecked with ornate scripts singing the praises of the Goddess Brigid, lending an air of devout tranquility to the room. The hymns resonated with a power of their own, weaving a reverent ambiance that filled the room. It seemed as though I had been cast adrift in a sea of nobility, grappling with waves of uncertainty.

Suddenly, the realization of the intricate web of complications I had inadvertently stepped into sent a cold shiver down my spine. The realization that my surname may have unintentionally elevated me to nobility left me rattled. The implications were unnerving. In this alien society, I could only guess at the uproar a false claim to nobility could cause. It was like walking on a tightrope, one wrong step and I could fall into a chasm of unforeseen troubles.

In a desperate bid for some guidance, some solution to this tangle, I found my thoughts weaving into a silent prayer. But confusion soon clouded my prayer as I realized I was unsure who to address it to. Was it Gale, the intricate AI that had designed this expansive virtual world? Or should my pleas go to the Goddess Brigid, worshipped by the Merrow people?

The question furthered my disquiet, plunging me into a deeper sea of uncertainty. I found myself at a crossroads, torn between the conventions of this digital world and the complexities of its in-game mythology. Who held the power in this realm? Whose intervention could I seek?

The boundary between the real and the simulated had become disconcertingly blurry, creating a ripple of uncertainty and apprehension. The unnerving prospect of serious consequences stemming from a misunderstood claim of nobility was constantly on my mind. As I navigated this space where game and reality seemed indistinguishable, I found myself confronting a new kind of dilemma.

These worries weren't solely about the game anymore. I found myself grappling with an existential confusion - was this just an intricate, immersive game, or had it somehow evolved into my new reality? This questioning became a persistent echo in my thoughts, adding another layer to my already complex predicament.