Episode 1013 The Age of the Fallen Gods (1)
Magion and Bloodia, forward.
The remaining guests discreetly parted ways.
Magion stepped onto the center of the stage, exuding solemn dignity. Bloodia took a captivating step with her hands on her hips.
It was ridiculous to see you running away in the first game.
You win.
[Do not give up halfway this time. I was curious to know what your knowledge tastes like.]
The first Hierarchical Wizard and the Dragon faced each other.The Resistor and the Apostle of Destiny confronted each other.
Most of the attendees did not sense it, but a sense of pressure weighed down their shoulders. It was the weight of existence that they could not feel unless they were at a lofty level that was at least somewhat within their reach.
Tearel narrowed his eyebrows.
“……You’re strong. Do you happen to know who it is?”“I have identified Magion’s identity.”
Verden did not go out of his way to pretend not to know.There was no reason to hide it.Even if Tearel found out who Magion was, there was absolutely no harm in it. On the contrary, it was an advantage. At the very least, she would be able to avoid making Magion her opponent in a game.
“I share any new information regarding the Arcadium immediately. So that Thearel’s chances of winning in the game can be increased even slightly.”
This is the party’s responsibility.
“However, I cannot unilaterally hand over knowledge here. You can listen to it after the Arcadium ends, or if you are really curious, you can pay the equivalent knowledge.”“Hmm.”
Tearel stroked her hair, which was the color of the deep sea, and pondered for a moment before leaning her face close to Verden and whispering very softly.
“Before I became a Transcendent, I saw a ‘sunken civilization’ in an ocean trench. The water pressure was so intense that I couldn’t get any closer, but when I went back later after becoming a Transcendent, it had vanished without a trace.”“A civilization?”“Yeah. I probably wasn’t hallucinating.”
[Civilization migration?]
A civilization that had vanished into the deep sea couldn’t possibly have moved, yet it had disappeared without a trace. Come to think of it, it wasn’t a big deal, but it was an interesting story.Verden, Alpha, and Beta remembered the knowledge she had shared first.
Next, Verden spoke in a low voice.
“Magion is a hardcore mystic.”“Gasp.”
[omg.]
Since they could not reveal their real name, they provided clues that allowed their true identity to be inferred. The Lefragium Magic Tower is the only mysterious force shrouded in secrecy.
Is Magion the Provider?
Tearel, who understood the meaning of Verden’s words at once, held his breath in surprise.
Of course, Alpha and Beta were not particularly surprised, as they had guessed who Magion was to some extent from the beginning, just like Verden.They simply mimicked her reaction.Since the two are treated as the fourth guests, they are not subject to any sanctions regardless of what knowledge they unilaterally hear from Verden.
I will draw the second game.
The host raised his voice slightly.
{If you agree to the role of deciding the second game, the third host Magion and the first VIP Bloodia shall draw the balls.}
At the same time, I put my hand into the cube.
Their skin inevitably touched, yet neither of them cared. Indifferent hatred. Their hostility toward one another seemed to transcend external emotions.
It was the moment when the balls held in my grasp finally revealed themselves outside.
“……!”
[… … !]
Magion tightened his fingers as he checked the themes engraved on each of the two balls. Crunch, crunch, crunch. The sound of the balls twisting spread softly.
[This octopus head.]
Bloodyia also clearly showed a look of disbelief behind her mask.
[You pulled a stunt.]
You may want to believe it is a trick, but regrettably, it is your ‘luck.’ Luck is the ability to make things flow as expected while simultaneously creating an unexpected turn of events.
The host flicked his hand to launch the balls containing the theme of the second game. They floated up as if buoyed.
That is the primeval era.
As the balls aligned, the words came into everyone’s view.
Primevality and Adventure.
The second game is ‘Ancient Adventure’.
The banquet hall was shaken.
“What…!”“D-Did I just hear that correctly?”“Taego, Taego…?”
It was a greater impact than when Verden defeated the tenth distinguished guest.Most of the attendees, with the exception of guests who were invited to the Arcadium for the first time like Verden and his party, muttered in disbelief or gasped in shock.
“Host.”
The third distinguished guest raised their hand.
I will forfeit the second game.
{Have you forgotten the rules of the Arcadium? Third guest, Cornella. A declaration of withdrawal is valid only before hearing the theme of the next game.}
The host looked down at the dinner party from the top of the stairs.
No one is an exception.
* * *
Although Arcadium was engulfed in chaos, Verden and his party looked around, bewildered, and struggled to understand the situation.They tried to eavesdrop on conversations, but the only sounds they heard were sighs of terror. Occasionally, they could hear breaths filled with extreme excitement.
What on earth is this ancient adventure that makes them act like this?
I happened to find an intellectual who could give me an answer.
“Ancient times… no way.”
Ruzak Paltein, the sixteenth VIP, strokes his walrus-like trunk with trembling hands. His face was filled with anxiety.True to his status as a VIP, he appeared to have easily secured a series of victories in the first game.
“What game is that?”“Ah! Oh, fourth guest of honor.”
Only then did Luzak see Verden and his party, and he gulped down the champagne at the mansion. He nodded, his voice clearing from the heaviness.
“Since more than half of the intellectuals are aware of it, there should be no sanctions for sharing information about this game. The second game chosen by the host is a combination of two themes. It involves randomly combining themes to proceed with a new game.”
Luzak extended one index finger.
“First, adventure is a kind of role-playing game where you accomplish a given task. It is a game where you are assigned a random identity and situation to complete individual missions. Of course, missions may overlap.”“Does the game end once the task is completed?” “That is correct. It is a simple rule. However, the true value of this adventure theme lies elsewhere.”
[What is its true value?]
Luzak pulled his chin.
“An intellectual who has accomplished the task may take everything they obtained during their adventure outside. Any treasure, any knowledge! The source is the Host’s storehouse. In other words, we are adventuring on a stage where the Host himself has scattered treasures and knowledge.”“……!”
Can you obtain the host’s treasure and knowledge?
Not only Verden but also Tearel showed a very strong interest. After all, if it was something the host possessed, it certainly wouldn’t be ordinary.
Thearel asked.
“Even if there are risks involved, it seems like a game well worth the effort. Why is everyone reacting so negatively?”“Adventure is one of the most popular genres. If it were just adventure, everyone would have cheered. The problem is… the problem is the theme of ‘Primordial’ that modifies adventure.”
Luzak groaned deeply.
“Primeval times refer to the setting of an era. So, it means you must embark on an adventure in the primeval age. Above all, here in Arcadium, primeval times mean… ‘the era after the gods perished.’”
Verden knows two wars.
The Great Branch, which serves as the starting point for the downfall of the gods by uniting with ‘You,’ Oldarc, and the World Tree to eradicate those seeking to destroy the continent.The War of Destiny, where ‘You’ and Oldarc waged a struggle over fate.
“Then is the ancient era the host mentioned… … the era between the Great Divergence and the Battle of Destiny?”
Verden knew that there had been peace at that time, but Luzak’s expression as he continued his explanation was truly solemn beyond measure.
The last time a game featuring an ancient theme was held was over 73,000 years ago.
[73,000 years?]
“furthermore…….”
Luzak blinked his eyes with difficulty.
At that time, ninety-nine percent of the total participants fell into the specter of knowledge. Only 1 percent of the participants survived the game with the primeval theme.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
The host clapped three times to lighten the chaotic atmosphere.
{It has been a long time since the topic of the Ancients came up. And on top of that, an Ancient Adventure. Since this is the first time this has happened since the Arcadium was held, I am truly looking forward to it.}
“…….”
{As the first game has just concluded, I will allow for a brief intermission. Intellectuals who desire a meal should enjoy the full course, while those seeking rest should recover their mind and body in tranquility.}
The host, receiving the gazes of Verden, Magion, and Bloodia, placed his right hand on his chest and bowed slightly at the waist.
I’ll see you in a moment.
Fate.Resistance.Defying Heaven.
[O intellectuals walking different paths.]
* * *
Renard, Faye, and Haenel, who had been waiting in the Blue Mountains for Jose’s sculpting work to finish, lost consciousness after suffering from a sudden fever.They woke up not in Jose’s cabin, but in an unidentified secret room equipped with basic living quarters.
Where is Uncle Jose?Where is this place?
The young siblings, Renar and Fay, were anxious about the unfamiliar environment.Haenel, the only daughter of the Count Banah family, a powerful noble family in the Ternetia Federation, tried to calm the two down as an adult.
Their meal was already placed in the middle of the room.
Three times periodically.
Haenel determined breakfast, lunch, and dinner based on the intervals between meals. He also tasted the food himself before giving it to the children to ensure there were no adverse reactions.
Who on earth could it be that locked us up here… … What happened while we were unconscious?
Haenel forced himself to act nonchalant, but he was just as terrified. He couldn’t imagine at all who had done such a thing.
“… … I wonder if Mr. Jose is safe.”
Every day is nothing but worry.
Whether it was a few days or a few weeks… as time passed, I still adapted to this bizarre life of confinement. Faye no longer cried either.
Kiiing.
Then one day, the wall moved. A door they didn’t even know existed had opened. At the end of the wary gazes of the three people was a longed-for figure.
Jose appeared carrying a meal for four people.
“Uncle Jose!”“Uncle!”“Sorry I’m late.”
Renard and Faye rushed toward Jose with teary eyes.Seeing the affectionate Jose putting the dishes down on the table and patting the siblings, Haenel suppressed his trembling hands and felt a deep sense of relief.
“Mr. Jose, I see you are safe. It’s such a relief.”“I apologize for causing you worry, Miss. It seems we won’t be able to leave this place for the time being. Sharing a meal like this is the best we can do.”
Jose wore a determined look in his eyes.
“But as long as I am here, nothing will happen to you all. Never. So… can you trust me and wait for me?”“I trust you, Uncle!”“I trust you!”
Renard and Faye showed infinite trust in him, just as they would in a father.Of course, Haenel felt the same way as a sibling. Otherwise, he would not have climbed the Blue Mountains or dreamed of becoming a heretic.
Yes, I believe you.
Jose, Haenel, Faye, and Renard, reunited in one place, sat around the dining table in the secret room… … laboratory and ate together.
and.
Gluttony’s leadership was watching the scene from beyond the special glass windows that enveloped the entire laboratory in that area.
“You’re being too considerate, Kirue.”
Gluttony’s leader – Balion – narrowed his eyes.
“Even if it is fascinating, is it really worth going to such lengths for a mere test subject?”“I think it is.”
Gluttony’s Second Fang – Kire placed her hand on the windowpane.She watched only Jose.
“A new divine power, completely different from the divine power of light, will surely aid in the creation of a new humanity.”“In what sense?”“Look at this.”
Kirue took a statue out of her pocket and showed it. It was a clue about an unidentified god secured from the belongings of Jose and his party.
“How do you look?”“Just blurry.”
Neither Kirena nor Balion could strangely perceive the form of the small statue. They could not distinguish what it looked like at all, neither visually nor by touch.It was a sensation as if the statue itself were rejecting them.
“Right? This power… is somehow different. It is freer than the Luas religion’s… It feels as though its clear form has not yet been completed. I cannot know for sure, but the faith Jose believes in must not have been around for very long. It also appears that its doctrines have not yet been established.”
Kire stroked the statue.
“Perhaps this is an opportunity to define the concept of divine power. Jose is the key.”“Is that why you didn’t dissect him?”“Because if his foundation is faith, dissecting him would yield nothing but a corpse.”
He once dissected a cleric of the Luas religion to investigate divine power. Unlike those who have awakened their ki and wizards, believers in the Light did not possess the physical organ responsible for that power.Ultimately, Gluttony was unable to implant divine power despite numerous human experiments.
“Ki, Magic Power, Divine Power. A perfect human capable of wielding these three forces simultaneously. If you so desire, this will qualify you for the New Humanity.”“I admit that it fits the direction of the New Humanity in the sense that it embodies all human power. But to turn the New Humanity into believers for that? Entrusting their lives to some unknown god?”
Balion showed extreme resistance.
“Then how are you any different from the old humanity?”“I’m not some kind of believer.”
Kirie placed her hand on Balion’s chest.
“Creating God Himself.”“……!”“A perfect human being who worships only Himself. A new humanity that overwhelms all species and depends on no one. Our own Gluttony, endlessly evolving through consumption.”
She leaned against the window.
“To do that, the first step is to acquire divine power like Jose’s. Balion, you continue to build the ‘Embryo of a New Humanity.’ As I study a new religion through my conversations with Jose,…”
Kirie smiled.
“I’ll give it a try and become a believer.”“…….”“That would be the fastest way to grasp divine power. Of course, if it’s something I cannot obtain, like the divine power of light, I’ll have to find another way.”
Kirie does not hesitate to sacrifice herself for Gluttony. She was an irreplaceable companion to Valion.There was no concern that Kirie would fall into faith.If Valion wanted it, Kirie would willingly trample on her own god.
“Do as you please.”“Thank you.”“Still, religion must be boring. They just spout pretentious nonsense.”“It’s not entirely like that.”
Kir did not find the conversation with Jose, a heretic from the perspective of world religions, boring.
It’s quite interesting. I’ll tell you about it later.
* * *
After the meal and break for the first game ended, the intellectuals who had to participate in the second game gathered back at the banquet hall.
The atmosphere was heavy.
There were many intellectuals who felt the fear that they might lose all their knowledge and become ghosts, but among them were those who coveted new knowledge.The Host’s knowledge and treasures.Just as the game is difficult, the rewards upon overcoming it will be indescribably sweet.
“……An intellectual who survived the ancient game, hmm.”
Unlike before, Luzak waited for the host with a refined attitude. Rather than fear, he was filled with enthusiasm as he imagined the new knowledge he could gain from the game.
So this is how the difference between a VIP and a guest is revealed.
Verden waited for the game to start while occasionally observing Bloodia and Magion.
[Octopus head. Appears.]
{… … .}
The host soon appeared, gave Alpha a light glare, greeted him as the operator of Arcadium, and explained the game.
The basic rules of the ancient adventure are as follows.
1. The game ends individually once each person completes their assigned task. (However, tasks may overlap among intellectuals or be assigned individually.)
2. As intellectuals accomplish tasks, the game time continues to shorten. When the time limit expires, the participant is expelled from the game.
3. Only ‘one’ intellectual who has completed the task can take what was obtained from the adventure out. Even if there are multiple intellectuals who have received the same task, only one intellectual can receive the reward.
4. As individual combat prowess is a branch of knowledge, it partially reflects real-world strength, but it cannot exceed the upper limit permitted by the game. (There are no exceptions.)
5. If you eat another intellectual, you can obtain a random amount of knowledge.
6. If you die in an adventure, you can revive by sacrificing knowledge.
7. Once the adventure begins, you cannot leave until the task is completed or the adventure ends.
When the second game begins, each player is assigned their own identity and situation. As for the other detailed rules, you will naturally come to understand them the moment you enter the adventure.
The host spread his arms.
{The primeval era serving as the backdrop for this adventure is dangerous, but in return, treasures and knowledge befitting it exist… … Will you be able to obtain the ‘Products of the Primeval Era,’ or will you fail to complete your task and degenerate into specters of knowledge?}
A tidal wave rising from the floor engulfed the banquet hall.
I will start the second game.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
The deep sea water swallows up intellectuals.
“The stage itself is the same, so if things go well, we might be able to meet.”“That is, if we’re lucky.”
Verden and Tearel faced the approaching waves, wishing each other good luck. Alpha and Beta were snugly nestled inside Verden’s robe.
I wish you good luck.
A torrent engulfing the entire body.
Verden and his party were swept into the stage of the second game, which mimicked the ancient era.
* * *
The sense of floating was brief.A sense of reality had already taken hold.
It’s dark and heavy. And on top of that, there’s the smell of blood.
As Verden slowly raised his upper body, a corpse rolled away. Several torches scattered haphazardly on the floor illuminated the surroundings.
A damp cave.
Verden was in the middle of a pile of corpses that looked like mercenaries. Judging by the fact that he did not put up much resistance, it seemed he had been killed in a surprise attack.
flinch.
Verden’s chest twitched.
[Cave. And corpse.]
[His Majesty Asher Became a Mercenary.]
Instead of the gray [Einber], Alpha and Beta suddenly poked their heads out from inside the mercenary armor worn by Verden, their single eyes gleaming.Even here, as the fourth guest, they were undeniably three as one.
“Anyway, to think it could materialize the world itself… I’ll have to go outside to know for sure, but the Arcadium seems to be a more dangerous place than I thought.”
[agreement.]
“Anyway, let’s get out for now.”
It was just as Verden was clearing away the corpses covering the lower half of the bodies. A light flickered from a wall not far away, and three mercenaries appeared.
“You fucking have to go back and check the corpse again.”“I lost the coin toss, so if I’m going to throw a tantrum, I’m going to kick it, right?”“Isn’t it normal to ask those corpse bastards to do something rather than toss a coin? Why do you throw a coin like that?”“Calm down. Let’s get the job done neatly before that driver arrives….”
Standing tall.
The mercenaries and Verden met each other’s eyes. The torches placed nearby illuminated each other’s faces. Flames flickered inside the cave.
The silence was fleeting.
“Are there any survivors? I killed the last one.”“He must not have been able to close his eyes after being betrayed.”
A burly mercenary quickly drew the bowstring and shot an arrow.
“I caught it—”
Crunch!
The firework returned and pierced the mercenary’s head.
“What.”“The arrow, why.”
The two remaining mercenaries lowered their gazes with wide eyes. Verden caught the flying arrow and threw it away, then lightly released his arm and stepped on the corpse.
“My strength is quite restricted. My senses are blurry.”
[inconvenience?]
It is enough to move lightly.
Verden picked up a sword that had lost its master among the corpses. Resting the blade on his shoulder pad, he stepped up.
“……There wasn’t a guy like that earlier?”“He might be a wizard! I’ll catch him!”
A relatively young mercenary shouted and charged at Verden. After their swords crossed once, the mercenary’s head was caught by Verden.
“uh?”
Crackle!
The mercenary’s face, pulled down, was shattered by a knee kick. The instantly killed mercenary rolled down and became one with the pile of corpses.
“……Are souls real? It seems this isn’t just a simple game.”
Verden stared at the last mercenary.
“How many people are outside?”
In the ancient adventure, the situation and status assigned to Verden was that of a ‘betrayed mercenary’.
