Chapter 456: Fledgling Phoenix

A few seconds after he had chosen the unique item as his reward, he felt a slight glow in his newly evolved soul. It was so minor that he almost ignored it. Then, suddenly, something appeared right in front of him out of thin air. He caught the item before it could hit the floor. He doubted his new soul-bound item would break from something like that, but one couldn’t be too careful.

He turned the item over with his hands, and as much as he tried not to, he frowned at it. He didn’t know what he had been expecting, but he had been hoping for something like a staff or even something like the training tool that Freya had gotten.

Nonetheless, it would appear the Words of the World must have decided that he needed a lunch box.

Yep, a metal lunch box that one might have found from his old world. The same one, with a clinking handle jutting from its side and a loose metal latch. What was even more depressing was that the lunchbox didn’t even look new.

In fact, it looked like it had been through both World Wars and dragged through the beaches of Normandy. He didn’t even sense any mana coming off the lunch box. He was half convinced that it was really just a regular old piece of metal and that the Words of the World were playing a mean little trick on him for enjoying his food so much.

Not even the paint was new; it was so faded that he couldn’t completely discern the artwork on the item. But from what he could make out, it almost looked like a… rusty ass chicken. This only made his shoulders drop even lower than they already were.

To be fair, while the reward said the item would be unique, it didn’t say anything about being useful. Freya had mentioned something similar before he chose that particular reward.

Julius sighed and grumbled to himself. At least he still got his extra skill slot. That was all he was really hoping for from his soul evolution. The fact that he was able to choose two rewards was a pleasant surprise. However, it would have been nicer if the reward were an actual usable tool.

“Well, you can’t win them all,” he said aloud and swung the lunch box by its handle like he did when he was a young child.

Freya walked up next to him. “What is it? You don’t look like you are happy about what you got,” she said to him.

He merely held it up for her to see for herself. “I think I have been pranked,” he said sadly.

She placed her hand on the bottom of her chin as she examined it. However, unlike what he had been expecting, she actually looked somewhat impressed and took it from his hands to inspect it more closely.

“You don’t like it? I’m surprised, it looks like it is the perfect item for you,” she said with a light laugh as she handed it back to him.

“Haha,” he said dryly. “I don’t think I will need a lunch box when I have a storage ring,” he said as he lifted up his new storage ring in the air.

“Well, you are more than welcome to use it that way, but I think the other functions are much more impressive. I don’t think I have seen anything quite like it, but that is what you would expect from a unique soul-bound item created by the Words of the World,” she said with a shrug.

He paused. It didn’t sound like she was teasing him; she looked like she was actually impressed by what she saw from the lunch box. That was why he began to doubt his initial assumption about the item.

“What do you mean? What else does it do?” He eventually asked her.

She looked at him like he had a screw loose. “What? Shouldn’t you already know? I’m pretty sure you get a brief description upon acquiring your new, uniquely created item, especially if it’s from the Words of the World,” she said to him, as if it were the most obvious thing.

He frowned and held the lunch box in the air as he examined it once again. He didn’t receive a notification. But this time, he focused a little more deeply and tried to see if there was anything he might have missed. Upon closer inspection, he realized that the lunch box felt a little warmer than he had expected. But nothing else really. Still, he kept on looking, and he wasn’t expecting much, but he froze when he suddenly received a notification.

Congratulations, you have received a specially made item that was created by scanning your soul. This item is also Soul Bound. This means no matter where you are or how far away, this item will always find its way back to you. It is connected to you on an intrinsic level and, as such, has the potential to grow alongside you.

—

Unique Soul Bound Item: Fledgling Phoenix’s Lunch Box (Growth Type)

This enchanted lunch box emanates the gentle warmth of a rising sun. Crafted from embersteel and inlaid with phoenix feather essence, it is said to have been a nurturing gift given to young phoenixes to support their first flights into the world. The interior magically generates meals based on how much mana is fed into it—always balanced, always rejuvenating, and tailored to the eater’s needs.

Each meal consumed from the lunch box feeds not only the body but the soul and mind. As the user continues to eat from it, the lunch box “grows,” unlocking its true potential.

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This item is the culmination of Julius Von Hyperius’s soul and has been bound to it.

Before he did anything else, he dropped to his knees and bowed deeply as he apologized profusely to the Words of the World. He was wrong and pleaded with them not to take away his new amazing item.

***

It wasn’t a surprise that the first thing he did was gather Freya and Cain around to show off his remarkable lunch box. Freya might have already seen it, but Cain had yet to.

Julius proudly held out the item with both hands as he displayed it to Cain. “Behold, my mighty Unique Item!” He said with a gleeful grin.

Cain frowned as he stared at Julius and back at the lunch box. “Huh? This pile of junk? Are you sure this is a unique soul-bound item? For god’s sake, it’s dented already.”

Julius recoiled as if he had been burnt. “Rude. If that’s how you feel, then you can have the misfortune of not experiencing this ‘pile of junk, ’” Julius said with a scoff, but had also noticed that the lunch box had somehow come pre-dented, but he had been enlightened and came to realize that it was a functional dent.