Episode 1012 Fourth Guest of Honor (5)
The third guest of honor, Magion.
Even with his face completely covered by a mask, his discomfort could not be concealed.Just as he had refused a one-on-one magical comprehension contest at the start of the game, he found the head-on confrontation with Verden bothersome.
The first distinguished guest… Bloodia, who might be an Apostle, did not seem to be on friendly terms with Magion, and although I did not see them conversing, there was definitely a strange tension between the two.
In addition, just as Verden entered the banquet hall, talk about the third guest of honor was circulating among the distinguished guests and attendees.
Information about Magian.
It may have been a common clue known to all intellectuals, but it was enough knowledge for Verden to deduce what lay beyond Magion’s mask.
“I heard that this is the first time in the 14th century that a fourth guest of honor has been selected.”“…….”“Since we must use pseudonyms at the Arcadium, I will not mention the real name.”
Verden tapped my face with his fingertips.
“Why don’t you take off your mask now? The former owner of the Gring Arcanum.”“The intellectuals of Arcadium are chatty. For boasting about their knowledge is their only joy in the inescapable depths.”
As Magion lightly waved his hand, the space settled into a calm state. The faint presence of the butlers vanished without a trace.
“Did you set up a secret room?”“That is the exclusive prerogative of the third guest of honor. I have no obligation to satisfy their thirst for knowledge. In this state, I won’t face any sanctions even if I reveal my real name.”
Magion slowly lowered his mask.
“You have safely realized your divinity, Verden,”
About 14 centuries ago, a generational shift occurred between incantation magic and hierarchy magic, and Gring Arcanum was located in the deepest part of the First Magic Tower.The beginning of the Age of Hierarchy Magic and the First Magic Tower. Sincethere were almost no beings that met these two conditions, it was virtually clear who the guest of honor was.
“Deus.”
The third guest is Deus Widen, the current Master of the Lefragium Magic Tower and the first Hierarchical Mage, now referred to as the Provider.
* * *
If you lose in the game of Arcadium, the knowledge in your head is taken away. In the case of Verden, depending on the opponent, you gain the right to ask questions upon winning.
The Host declared that if I used the advanced question right, he would reveal the truth trapped in the taboo. Judging by his words, it must mean that in the Arcadium, one can avoid the price of the taboo if certain conditions are met.
The center of gravity is placed on the forefoot.
Defeat Deus for a higher-level question.
Verden’s entire body tensed. His eyes held Deus, who was right in front of him, like prey.He made contact.If magical understanding were the subject, Verden was confident he could overwhelm him. The moment he flinched, Deus extended his arm as if to stop him.
“I propose a deal.”“What deal?”“I’m sure we both have questions. As long as knowledge isn’t unilaterally handed over, smooth information exchange is possible in the Arcadium.”“Let’s just decide who asks and answers through a game. According to the rules of the Arcadium.”“I decline.”
Deus firmly drew a line.
“There is no reason to play a game with no chance of winning. Especially not in this host’s mansion.”
Deus concluded that he could not defeat Verden based on magical understanding alone.That is why he avoided a head-on confrontation.
‘… … There is no modern wizard who can rival Verden on this subject.’
Verden is the very one who destroyed the Wheel of Destiny with his own unique magic. The gap is so vast that it transcends the level of a wizard’s pride! His innate magical intelligence is on a completely different dimension from that of Deus.Unless one is on the level of the Host, the Primordial Wizard, or the World Tree, it would be impossible to stand against him.
“So you don’t want the Host to steal your knowledge? Then again, it must be only natural, considering you’ve been undefeated until now. Besides, he is also an Apostle of Fate.”
Verden’s upper body leaned a little further forward.
“What if you don’t want to?”“I have no choice but to respond to the extreme.”
Deus’s presence stirred.
“I will banish myself from the Arcadium before the game begins.”
If neither party agrees, physical contact is mandatory for the game to be valid.
Will Verden’s hand reach Deus first, or will Deus manifest his transcendent status and disappear from the Arcadium first?
It would be advantageous to take a step back.
Verden reviewed the various consequences of his actions and relaxed his body.
There is no hostile relationship with Deus, and even if you win the game, you only gain the right to ask advanced questions unless Deus accepts the Q&A proposal beforehand. Of course, conflicts could still arise.
Verden had something he wanted to ask Deus Wieden separately.
“In exchange for not playing games, we answer each other’s questions truthfully. Is this a deal? The level of the answer should belimited to whether it is affirmative or negative, and a brief explanation of one or two sentences.” “And the topic will be limited to ‘updates on our current situation.’”
Updates, huh?It means I intend to limit the scope of the information.
There must be more than one thing they are hiding.
I roughly expected that.
“In return, let’s negotiate the questioning fee. If you ask one question, I will ask three. One to three. Since you are the one who refused the game, don’t expect fairness. If you really don’t like it, we can start a chase.”“One to two. I will ask the first question.”“I accept.”
Opinions quickly came to a consensus.
“You are making reasonable concessions without fighting back even after hearing the threat. Hmm, does that mean there is a matter for which you need an answer from me?”
Verden crossed his arms.
Deus asked the question immediately, as if he had no intention of taking his time.
Did you meet the second apostle in the rift of the world?
* * *
The Second Apostle… … The First King of the Human World.
Arthur Tarenfold.
A being that overwhelmed Verden and Legion Commander Hadras in the rift between worlds even while unable to exert full power. Verden recalled the fierce battle with Arthur.
We met.
Verden answered immediately.
“He won’t be able to interfere in the present world for the time being.”“……!”
Despite being bound by the restrictions of the taboo, Arthur forced himself to draw out his power. As a result of the backlash, he became trapped in a rift between worlds, unable to return to reality.It was certain, as the lingering thoughts of the Gray Dragon that had inhabited [Einber] had assured him.
That’s good.
Deus wore a faint smile.
Verden was curious about the meaning of that laughter, but he prioritized a more important question. It was Verden’s turn to ask a series of questions.
The reason you attended the Arcadium must surely be related to Bloodia.
First question.
“What is your purpose for coming here?”
Figures from the side of fate and the side of resistance gathered in one place as if they were representatives. There is something in the Arcadium that compels them to come to the banquet of knowledge.
“Draven Lemarque.”“……Draven?”“The Host arbitrarily restored Draven’s soul and brought him directly into the Arcadium. That is the point. The knowledge Draven possesses is clearly disadvantageous to the Old King—the Sixth Apostle.”
There was no lie in Deus either.
“Therefore, Bloodia came to completely obliterate Draven’s soul, and I set foot here to obtain Draven’s soul.”
To the forces of fate, Draven was information itself, so it should not have fallen into the hands of the opponent. It should have been destroyed once it had been used to its fullest extent.However, the host secretly stole it and threw it at the banquet, and Deus, as a being resisting fate, did not stand idly by.
“That is how it turned out, but in fact, it was a situation that neither side… anticipated at all.”
Deus narrowed his eyes.
The third apostle, the host, is such a being.
Verden understood what was happening at the deep-sea mansion. Due to the Host, an unexpected dark struggle between fate and resistance was unfolding in the Arcadium.
* * *
The tower built over a lifetime has collapsed, but the foundation remains, and the debris is abundant. The foundation and the debris are the materials to build another tower.Even if the tower is less impressive than before, it will bring us closer to the sky of ideals than merely sitting before the ruins.
{Pursuing ideals even in the midst of this?}
The host shows deep interest.
{how?}
Draven set the fallen chair upright and sat facing the host with unwavering determination. His eyes were stained with hatred, rage, and madness, but at their center lay a very intense reason.
“Am I… nothing but prey here?”
{He is both the guest and the main feast. He who reaches the end of the Arcadium takes your soul.}
“I have fallen to the point where there is nowhere left to drop. Me… the leader of the Glory of the Dead… I wonder what Luneska would say if she saw this…”
Draven mocked himself greatly, but the Host did not laugh at all. For Draven’s emotions and intellect had already overwhelmed despair.
The mind is a mysterious thing. Hatred and love are like two sides of the same coin. Just as that once noble loyalty was truly overturned into a thirst for revenge.
“Host.”
He was no longer shaken by the host’s mockery.
“If you win the game of the Archadium, can you obtain any knowledge?”
Anything the opponent possesses.
“If I beat you?”
The host closed the book. Right now, rather than recording Draven’s condition, he wanted to see it with his own eyes. He absorbed the new knowledge into his memory in real time.
You will find out what you want to know.
“If I were to ask for a favor.”
If it’s a request you can come up with with your head, I suppose I can grant it.
“……That’s clear.”
Draven closed his eyes for a moment, let out a shallow breath, and stared at the host.
“Host, I propose a game to you. As a guest of the Arcadium.”
Hoho.
“Of course, if it were a game of knowledge and intellect, I wouldn’t have a chance.”
Through intellectual clashes, Draven vaguely realized his intellectual level.As a transcendent being of the magical realm, Draven was undeniably a genius, but he realized that he could never reach the world as seen by the host.
I must envision a game where intellect does not directly determine victory or defeat. For my final desperate struggle toward my ideals.
This was Draven’s answer.
“Who do you think will reach the end of this arcadium?”
{Simply put, there are three candidates. Of course, Verden is included among them. But candidates are just candidates… … In the end, there is only one winner.}
The host elegantly brought both hands together.
The second game is determined randomly, but the final third game is fixed. It is a game I prepared myself. External conditions are completely equal, but that is precisely why Verden is at an overwhelming ‘disadvantage’ in that game. In fact, unless there is a change, it is safe to say there is no chance of winning.
He didn’t know what kind of game it was that made Verden’s defeat so imminent, but Draven did not change the bet he had already decided in his heart.His mental strength was far too weak to even think of another game.
“We will compete to see who is the first intellectual to reach the end of the Arcadium. And the loser agrees to grant the winner’s request.”
{You’ve chosen a game where knowledge and winning or losing are as irrelevant as possible. Good. Otherwise, it would be one-sided. Well then, now that the game regarding the ‘request’ is decided… … .}
The host expressed anticipation.
What are we going to play the game about ‘knowledge’?
Draven, who had turned loyalty for an ideal into hatred for an ideal, wanted exactly two things from the Host right now:a request and knowledge.In response, Draven proposed another duel.
“coin.”
Coin toss.
A game in which a coin is tossed to randomly determine either heads or tails.
{Is it a game dependent on luck? Can you regard luck as a branch of knowledge?}
If knowledge encompasses everything, then luck could also be called knowledge.
{Haha, you have already adapted to the Arcadium. As a respectable intellectual.}
The host moved his fingers across as if playing the keys of a piano. An ancient coin emerged from the gap in his hand and glittered in the light of the woodless hearth.
{That which instantly plunges those on an ascent into the despair of a fall, and suddenly bestows hope upon those who know nothing but despair—that is luck. The concept of luck has not yet been perfectly explained as knowledge.}
The coin held between his long thumb and index finger was reflected in Draven’s pupil.
Some regard luck as a god, some believe it to be destiny determined by heaven, and others think of luck as their own power.
“…….”
{If you win, I will give you knowledge. But if I win, I will destroy your ego. You will become nothing but a lump of soul possessing only knowledge.}
The host asks.
{Draven LeMarque, to what fate will you entrust your end?}
I will choose the back side.
Through a series of conversations, Draven realized how to communicate with the host. He couldn’t do anything if he was swayed by the guy’s glibness.
So shut up and throw it.
* * *
To think that Draven’s soul was the goal.
In other words, the host took a negative action against fate. And judging by the fact that they even dragged the resistors into the game, it would not be strange to say that they were toying with them.
What kind of apostle is the host?
The doubts about him have grown a little larger, but Deus is unable to answer. After all, the Q&A is strictly limited to recent updates.
‘anyway.’
Verden brought up a different topic.
It was the second question.
“You used to say that between Fate and the Resistor, whichever moved first was at a disadvantage. But now that the Old King has been resurrected, the Resistor must have a justification to act as well, so why are they being left alone?”
Just as the Old King emerged from the Hiaremar Inland Sea after breaking the forbidden seal, the Lefragium Magic Tower did not appear at the site until the very end. Eventhough an emergency summit in Prohas had been decided, there was still no news.
“I did not neglect it. I made preparations in my own way.”“That explanation is insufficient.”“Fate can be considered a conventional concept in that it acts upon the world itself.”
Deus added a sentence.
“Therefore, fate can be utilized.”“…Like a chosen transcendent being?”“That is the extent of the answer.”
Deus grabbed the doorknob behind him as if he had finished his business.
“Do you have any other questions?”“With a one-to-two question-and-answer ratio, the more I ask and answer, the more disadvantageous it becomes for me, so it doesn’t add up.”
Deus also seemed to have questions left, but he didn’t appear willing to continue suffering losses. It must be a question that isn’t that important.
“Alright. Go.”
Verden could have lowered the questioning fee, but he did not compromise. This is because, regarding questions about recent updates, the value of the information obtained is likely to be low compared to the information Verden would provide.
“Ah, but do I also have the exclusive privileges of the fourth guest of honor? I didn’t hear anything specific.”“Knowledge is something to be earned, so you must figure it out for yourself. Just as I did.”“If you don’t want to tell me, then fine.”
Deus put on the mask again.
“……Three and one. That must be your authority. Information light enough that Arcadium won’t interfere.”
Verden, Alpha, Beta.
Ah, is that so?
The three are identified as the fourth guest of honor. Listening to Deus, there was some truth to it. After all, it is a highly distinguishing element from other intellectuals.
Squeak.
Deus left the room before Verden could even say thank you. As soon as he disappeared, the faint presence of Arcadium’s butlers was felt again.
Hmm.
Verden, who had unintentionally become a part of Deus and Arcadium’s game, also walked on, mulling over the phrase, “Fate can be utilized.”
Time passed like that, and
{With this, I conclude the first game—the problem of magical understanding.}
Finally, the first game ended.
* * *
As soon as the host’s voice echoed throughout the entire mansion, the space was turned upside down.
We’ve returned to the starting point.
Verden, having returned to the banquet hall, felt a weight on his shoulders. Alpha and Beta had moved to his side, as if they were one body with Verden.
How was the game?
{Alpha. The strongest.}
We won every single one. It was fun.
It seems the game was very satisfying. If they were children, they might have blushed.
The number has definitely dropped significantly.
Even the bustling banquet hall had quite a few empty seats after the first game. Soon, terrified gazes turned toward Verden and his party.
[Game with Alpha?]
“Hwaaaaaaah!”
The wedding guests ran out of the mansion.
It was a moment that showed just how active Alpha and Beta had been. As they looked around, Tearel approached them.
“Fortunately, I’m safe… or maybe not.”
Tearel’s face was drenched in sweat.
“Was it tough?”“……I almost lost.”
During the game, she faced off a total of three times: againsttwo guests and the eighteenth VIP.She won against two guests relatively easily, but if she had made even a small mistake, she would have undoubtedly lost to the lower-ranking VIP.
Tearel was very troubled, as he had to defeat the high-ranking VIP to obtain the right to ask intermediate questions.
It was then.
{Did you enjoy the first game? With as many as 70% of the total participants being eliminated or giving up on the second game, it must have been a fierce competition.}
The host appeared on the stairs.
{I will decide the theme for the second game before taking a break and enjoying the meal. Since the fourth guest of honor chose the first game… … I suppose it would be best to leave the next one to the third guest of honor and the first distinguished guest simultaneously.}
The squid butler brought the cube containing balls with various themes written on them again.
Magion and Bloodia, forward.
