The contents of the contracts were mostly for NDA. It can even be said that instead of contracts, these were NDAs instead.
It is stated there that Ashton would become their sponsor, he would provide them with materials and resources needed to make them stronger in exchange for their loyalty.
It's a mutually beneficial agreement, one that is well thought out and pretty detailed as well.
"...why this, all of a sudden?"
Blake's question encapsulated what Mary and Alice were thinking as well.
"Right, I thought that you invited us here to discuss something...you know...important." Alice added, "We weren't expecting you to come forward with these."
Mary chose to stay silent, but inwardly, she too was confused.
"I mean, I kind of already have a solution for the Black Fog problem," Ashton stated as he placed down his utensils. "Those are just a nice addition to the formula. Either way, I can't really say much unless you sign those. But again, that's up to you."
"Really? You have a way to deal with the Black Fog?" Alice asked in an interested manner. "Can you tell us more?"
"I'll handle it." Ashton waved his hand, almost dismissively. "Listen, I can't say much. And even if I could, you all won't probably believe me, so don't ask too many questions."
His dismissal caused them to feel disappointed. They couldn't help but wonder what was up with this much secrecy. What's the point of it when Humanity as a whole was under a massive threat?
Then again, they can't really force him to say anything. If Ashton doesn't want to explain, then he won't explain. This is something that all of them know about him.
That being said, how can they be convinced of this? Is he joking with them? He will handle literal hordes of demons all by himself? How can they possibly believe this?
Then again, those thoughts just basically confirmed what Ashton just said didn't they? He said that they probably won't believe him whether he explains or not and would you look at that...they were doubting him now.
They couldn't be blamed for that of course. After all, the notion of a single man defending an entire metropolis, hell, entire humanity as a whole at this point, was ridiculous to them.
"...you know what? Why the hell not?" Mary decided to sign in anyways. Blake and Alice looked at her strangely.
She grinned at them and explained: "I mean, this doesn't mean shit if the Last Bastion was to be wiped off from the face of the Earth next week. But if we survive, hell the benefits are generous so why the hell not right?"
Ashton smiled upon hearing that but didn't say anything.
"I mean...she's a got a point." Blake said to Alice.
"Yeah, but...we have other matters to— ah, screw it. Whatever, I guess." Alice gave in halfway through her sentence and signed it too anyways. Blake did as well.
Ashton nodded upon seeing them all sign, he inwardly sigh in relief as the contracts turned into motes of light.
Said lights formed a seal and the three of them were forced by an invisible force to have their tongues out. Once the tongues were out, the seal branded itself into their tongues, forming a tattoo that represented their participation in the NDA.
The process wasn't painful, at most their tongues just felt warm for a brief second before the feeling disappeared.
"That seal is the sign that you are forbidden from telling others about me and the contents of the contracts without my permission." Ashton stated just to reiterate the idea to them.
After he said that, several message windows full of alerts popped out from his vision.
[Congratulations for taking 3 Children of Destiny as your Beneficiary. You now have access to their Profiles and could determine their growth paths!]
[You are rewarded with the ff: ×3 Ancient Blueprint, Vorpal Steps, Millenium Cloud!]
Ashton quietly received these rewards to his Inventory, he's going to check them later but for now, he had other matters to attend to.
"Come with me." He told them after a brief pause.
Waving his hand, the trio felt space warping around them and they were unable to resist. The sudden transmission made them feel dizzy but overall it wasn't so bad.
When they opened their eyes, they discovered that they were at a different location altogether.
The trio was shaken of course. They all looked at Ashton incredulously with questioning gazes but he refused to say a word.
"Focus and feel your surroundings." He said to them.
His voice had a certain push to them which made them listen. They paused and focused on their surroundings.
This made them discover something rather bizarre. All three of them felt as if something or someone was calling out to them, telling them to come closer.
The pull was incredibly enticing. Hell, even Blake who had experienced multiple lives was having trouble resisting this call. It was then that Ashton's voice sounded in their ears again, saying:
"This will be my first gift to you as your sponsor. You can hear the call right? Don't be afraid, follow it. Answer to it. Trust me when I say that this is good for you. Go on...I'll wait for all of you here."
With Raven's encouragement, they couldn't possibly ignore the call anymore. They might not know this but deep down in their hearts, Ashton was someone they'd trusted with their lives. Possibly because he's a good and loyal friend but it may also be because of the contract.
Either way, they don't believe that he will intentionally harm them so they followed his suggestions. Actually, even without it, they'd be unable to resist the call of the Dragon Vein anyways.
'With the three of them here, I only need 7 more Children of Destiny to commune with the Dragon Vein before it can be upgraded.' Ashton mused to himself.
Ashton took them inside the Grotto Heaven of course since that's where the Dragon Vein currently resides. This communion process will take some time but it's fine, he doesn't have to wait that long anyway.
Meanwhile, he used this time to check the rewards he got from accepting those three as his Beneficiaries...
First, the three Ancient Blueprints he received are: 'Rejuvenation Hot Springs Blueprint', Trial By Fire Training Yard Blueprint', and the 'Room of Reflection Blueprint'.
The Rejuvenation Hot Springs was extremely useful since soaking in it will not only heal injuries but also recovers their stamina very quickly. Allowing those who use it to get back in action within a short time.
The Trial By Fire Training Yard is basically the materialization of the Grinding Slots. Inside this Training Yard, the proficiency of Skill or Spell Grinding was doubled. This boost can be increased up to five times with Spirit Stones.
And lastly, the Room of Reflection. This is a pretty interesting room for it tests the challenger's Spirit. It has the benefit of training one's willpower. The process, however, will prove rather difficult but so long as they can persist then the benefits they receive will be well worth it.
The next reward is Vorpal Steps...more specifically, it's the instant mastery of the Skill: Vorpal Steps.
Again, this reward is straight up 5-star Ascended Rank: Vorpal Steps.
Vorpal Steps is a technique that allows the user to practically play with the very fabrics of the Space itself. Using this, Ashton could practically teleport to absurd distances in just a single thought.
It had to be known that merely discovering something that could meddle with the Laws of Space is already rare. Let's not even consider mastering those which would take an absurd amount of time.
Yet Ashton, thanks to the System's assistance, managed to receive something this strong just like that. Handed over to him on a golden platter.
There's a lot to say here but you won't hear him complaining...
And if that isn't enough, then how about the last reward, which is just as, if not even more absurd, than the previous reward? The 'Millenium Cloud'.
The Millenium Cloud is a spell that allows him to produce a rainbow-colored fog to imprison his targets. Once they're inside, the power of time will be imposed on them.
The cloud will forcefully age them the longer they remained trapped within, it won't cease unless Ashton runs out of Mana or if he stops it willingly. The process will be instant too.
And if this couldn't get any more absurd, this Spell came to him as an instant mastery as well, meaning that it's already at Lv.100! Giving him full control over it!
'Holy hell!! What kind of luck is this!?' Ashton exclaimed inwardly as he swallowed hard. 'Is this what happens whenever I make Children of Destiny my Beneficiaries?'
It was really absurd. He couldn't believe that something like this was possible!
And it doesn't end there!
[Beneficiaries: Rosemary Summers, Blake Richards, and Alice Chrome had all made contact and communed with the Dragon Vein under your guidance.]
[The first batch of the Children of Destiny can now answer to their fate. Their Providence was greatly boosted!]
[None of this would've been possible without your hard work. Critical Hit, triggered! ×1000 Benefactor's Return, triggered! You received: Four Extremities Array Disk, Hymn of Enlightenment, Ex-Rank Specialization Soul Card, ×500 Spell Points, and Skill Points, 3 ARC Cores.]
