Episode 1016 The Age of the Fallen Gods (4)
The level was suppressed.
The second game of the Arcadium aimed for a limit where the individual participants’ military power could not even control the political situation of a nation, let alone the world.
As stated in the rule, there are no exceptions.
Since Deus, Bloodia, Tearel, and even Verden himself have entered this stage, they cannot unleash their original powers.
It seems even the game’s constraints cannot suppress my magical power; although my power is infinite… my magic circuits have turned ‘ordinary.’ If I bear the fatal burden, I am in a state where I can temporarily unleash Rank 5 magic.
Verden’s current magical level can be considered similar to when he left the Principality of Liviant and headed to the Kingdom of Estiria.In other words, using the past as a reference point, he is equivalent to a fourth-rank Verden. Verden assessed his own magical prowess in this way.
Instead, his physical abilities are not bad, comparable to those of a warrior who has awakened their ki.
Verden bent his fingers.He could feel the power.Muscle strength beyond the reach of an ordinary wizard was concentrated in his fingertips.
Does the upper limit of physical power permitted by the ancient adventure apply to magic and the body separately, or is it reflected in the total sum including both?
I can say with certainty that it is the latter.
Otherwise, it would be overwhelmingly advantageous to a participant like Verden, who is superior overall. The host would not want such a one-sided game.He was certain, without even needing to get a definitive answer through a knowledge exchange with Ruzak.
Swoosh.
Verden looked at Luzak, who had asked him to kill Margrave Brohnath. The Knight of Rebellion. It is unknown whether the role Luzak himself revealed is true.
This is because there is a detailed rule of the game prohibiting the reading of other participants’ records. Furthermore, the Transcendent’s unique insight has been sealed.There is virtually no means to clearly distinguish between Ruzak’s truth and falsehood.
In any case, a link has been established with Luzak. This means we must not rule out the possibility that other intellectuals are also involved. Perhaps they are already operating in the shadows of this city.
Intellectual
Even though Verden may have overwhelmed them in the first game, the intellectuals of Arcadium have sought knowledge in the deep sea for eons.These are monsters whose minds are unknowable.Since they cannot all be subdued by pure force, a battle of wits must be waged against them. One wrong move and they could be devoured, having their knowledge stolen.
That sounds like it will be fun.
Verden made a decision.
I accept the deal.
In this long yet short life, there have always been times when one faced a life-threatening crisis.It is a good opportunity to capture other intellectuals.Verden has not yet met a single-digit number of distinguished guests, so he has not obtained the right to ask intermediate questions. He cannot give up the right to ask advanced questions either.To subdue a monster, one must enter its lair.
“Of course, information is of the highest order.”“You do not trust me, do you? That I will flee if Margrave Brochnath dies—”“Don’t worry.”
Even though Verden’s presence was suppressed by game limitations, it made others feel an indescribable extraordinary quality.
“Even without the constraints of Arcadium, I keep my promises.”
[Guaranteed by Alpha.]
[The beta is also guaranteed.]
Hahaha.
Luzak’s eyes narrowed. The contradiction of demanding trust while denying it. Luzak liked his attitude as an intellectual.It must have been an expression of his thirst for knowledge, wanting to observe Verden up close.
Deal closed.
With this, Luzak can share information about the remnants of the Morning Star. In return, Verden must execute Margrave Brohnath.
“The Knights of the Dawn are heading toward this country, the capital of the Kingdom of Hersaon. Margrave Brohnath plans to blockade the borders of his territory and pursue them like a herd before the Morning Stars reach the capital.”
God of the Sun.God of the Moon.God of the Morning Star.God of Dawn.God of Twilight.
Here, the religion of the Morning Star was overthrown by four other religions.
The Kingdom of Hersaon is the largest of the nations that have adopted the Moon God as their state religion. It is an enemy of the Morning Star religion. However, the remnants of the Morning Star are heading toward the kingdom’s capital.
“Those words…”“The morning star is obscured by moonlight, yet at the new moon, the morning star shines even brighter. Does the moon envy the morning star, or does the morning star jealousy the moon? At the dawn when the morning star has fallen, the moonlight of the new moon shall not be seen.”
An old poem of unknown age.
“Judging by the circumstances, the Knight of Dawn must be determined to bring down the Religion of the Moon. It must be resignation that he can no longer escape, and revenge intended to leave something behind. Of the Morning Star, refusing to lose its light until the very end…”
Luzak stopped explaining.
“Luzak?”“Give me the information.”
Rules of the Arcadium.Information cannot be handed over unilaterally.
“I have remembered the rules of adventure that I had forgotten. So please give me the information for the transaction.”
Verden looked back and forth between Alpha and Beta and spoke in a low voice. It was a certain attraction, and also information that Luzak did not possess.
A new faith was born.
Luzak’s pupils dilated.
The adventure of Arcadium is not centered on the participants or their tasks. The heart of the adventure is ‘history’. We are in the midst of history. Right at the very center of events that took place in the past.
He looked up at the ceiling.
“Few intellectuals have realized this rule. This is because information regarding adventure and history has never once circulated. People simply enjoyed adventure stories. I do not know why the hidden rule of adventure has come to mind now, but…”
Luzak soon took two long breaths and stood up from his seat.
“The dinner hosted by Margrave Brohnath is tomorrow morning. Other intellectuals might join in, so it would be best to start preparing now. Or you could strike right before then.”
[Luzak.]
Alpha pointed at him.
[teardrop.]
“teardrop?”
Luzak traced his face belatedly. An inexplicable sadness was flowing aimlessly down the corners of the rather handsome knight’s eyes.
“Why are tears coming from me…….”
Luzak could not hide his confusion, as it was something beyond his knowledge. Watching him, Verden and his party reaffirmed their conviction once again.
The ancient adventure is not just a game.
* * *
The carriages of Baron Rach’s family sped down the road at a moderate speed. There were two carriages, one carrying Baron Rach and the other his daughter, Terrin.
The escort consisted of one knight and thirteen soldiers.
Originally, Terrine was supposed to ride in the same carriage as Baron Rach, but because she strongly refused, she ended up using two carriages.
“They say it’s set in the distant past, but this is pathetic. Is this really a noble family?”
Tearel turned his face slightly away from the window sill.
“Even a band of mountain valley bandits would have more than this. Don’t you agree, mystic Magion?”“It is a difference in civilization. In this era, the number of soldiers a powerless baron can personally employ is nothing more than a handful compared to the modern age.”
In the second carriage, only Tearel and Deus were sitting diagonally opposite each other.
Teacher and young lady.
A member of the Baron’s family should have been with them, but since she strongly refused, only the two of them could be together.
“What if we get attacked? This level of escort won’t be able to protect us.”“Use magic.”“My role is to protect you, young lady.”“…….”“If push comes to shove, will you protect me, Master? It is a teacher’s duty to protect a student.”
Tearel teased Deus Widen with half-closed eyes. As a wizard, he couldn’t help but be curious, given that the Lord of the Lefragium Magic Tower, who had so much to hide, was his teacher.
Deus did not reply and stared out the window opposite Tearel.
You’re still so taciturn.
Tearel stretched briefly, leaned his back against the corner, and crossed his arms.
“Enough with the jokes. Why don’t you tell me more about this ancient adventure? After all, you are the third guest of honor at Arcadium, so you must know a lot.”“Why should I?”“Because you are the teacher my fake father hired. Ah, then should I ask you like this?”
Tearel parted his lips with an expressionless face.
“Can’t you tell me, Teacher?”“…….”
The role and situation assigned to Deus is that of a magic teacher for Baron Rah’s household. Specifically, a teacher to instruct Thearel, who possesses magical talent, in magic and refinement.
A teacher must impart instruction to their student.
In other words, there is no need to follow the knowledge exchange rules of the Arcadium. Deus can unilaterally provide information to Thearel without any cost.
Tearel was cunningly aware of that fact from the very beginning.She was not selected by the host as the nineteenth VIP guest and invited to Arcadium simply because of Verden’s connections.
Deus narrowed his eyes.
I could refuse, but…
It is annoying when Thearel tenaciously holds you back while your strength is limited.
Having a natural connection with the nobility from the start of the adventure is an advantage too valuable to give up, and Margrave Brohnath, to whom Baron Rah’s family is loyal, is currently chasing the Knight of the Dawn.
Considering the circumstances, it is not good to strain my relationship with Thearel. It can’t be helped. I have no choice but to give them just enough to satisfy their interest.
Deus judged it that way.
“……An adventure play is a reenactment of history.”“History?”“The adventure game proceeds using actual past events as its central theme. It is a rule that is imperceptible to everyone except the First Guest and myself. The superficial reason is that if the history remembered by the majority of intellectuals were to appear, the game would become boring.”“Why are you guys an exception?” “There are things that even the Host’s power cannot control. Just as it is impossible to directly intervene in the memories I have seen and heard.”“Why is it impossible to intervene in your memories?”“The story doesn’t end like that, Terrin.”“I’m joking. Go on.”
He continued speaking calmly.
“In adventure games, the knowledge tasks assigned to each character have a ‘scale.’ The larger the scale, the more significant the event that changed history. Also, the more massive the task, the more tasks become intertwined.”“So you mean that a large number of intellectuals get involved in massive tasks.”
Tearel’s eyes shone softly.
“Seeing you silently act as my teacher, it seems a rather massive task lies ahead. The faith of the Morning Star. Is that such an important event?”“Quite a few intellectuals will get involved.”
Deus rested his arm on the window sill.
“The intellectuals of the deep may appear unimpressive on the surface, but they are dangerous beings. Skilled in political maneuvering or unafraid to cast forbidden magic. They are individuals capable of committing acts beyond imagination for the sake of new knowledge.”“…….”“Turning the pages stems from action, and action is the sustenance of knowledge. It is one of the maxims Arcadium boasts of. Forget the ugly monsters you saw in the mansion.”
The darkness that comes as the sun sets.
“Now that the realm of transcendence is limited, every single intellectual is a master of the past who has the potential to threaten the lives of us transcendents.”“Do we only need to be careful of the intellectuals?”“What we must be wary of even more is this era in which the gods have fallen.”
Deus’s gaze shifted.
With the disappearance of the oppressor known as God, the suppressed monsters would occasionally raise their heads. It could be said that this era was the time when the most inexplicable events occurred to the humanity of that time.
The air settled.
“Just like now.”“……!”
The moment Tearel sensed a spine-chilling presence, Deus crossed his index and middle fingers. A shield of magical energy enveloped their carriage.
Whoosh!
A whip of black smoke struck Baron Rah’s carriage under the cover of darkness. The sound of a knight fighting back was heard, but it quickly fell silent.
Tearel and Deus got off the carriage.
The carriage Baron Rah was riding in was split in two along with the horses and landed. Through the gaps, thedismembered bodies of Baron Rah and his retainers were visible. The severed body parts of knights and soldiers were scattered around.
[O───Ooh───]
[───Oh──────]
Humanoid mists with gaping holes in their eyes and mouths and long limbs sway and approach the broken carriage.
It was a variant that even Tearel, the current Obsidian-ranked adventurer, did not know at all.
“Is that the monster?”“To put it simply, they are the ‘Ancient Abnormal Species.’”
Deus took out the small staff he had hidden in his sleeve. Tearel immediately nodded at the completely unexpected battle situation.
“So this is why everyone hated the ancient adventure.”“Guard the carriage if you don’t want to walk.”
Tearel activated the magic circuit.
“Alright, sir.”
* * *
Margrave Brochenat’s castle.
Quite a few people entered the city from dawn to attend the dinner party scheduled for early morning. Their faces clearly showed signs of fatigue.
A dinner gathering in the morning instead of the evening? That shows absolutely no consideration for the guests.
[admit.]
“Anyway, quite a crowd has gathered, so let’s head inside.”
Verden took Alpha and Beta and used the infiltration route that Luzak had secured in advance.He ruled out a disguised infiltration.His face would be too conspicuous, and there was no place to cover it. Besides, sneaking in was much more convenient.
fault.
In the silence of dawn, Verden stepped into the castle through the back door.
* * *
“Hahaha, goodness.”
The seventh distinguished guest, who spotted Verden and his party invading the castle from the top floor, smiled with eyes full of joy.
The fourth guest of honor has appeared here. It seems our tasks have overlapped. Oh, dear, dear. To think such a golden opportunity would come our way.
The fourth distinguished guest smiled with their eyes.
“Hohohoho, indeed. There really isn’t a more delightful coincidence than this.”“Although there are many competitors at this dinner gathering, it shouldn’t be a problem if we join forces. Let’s split the knowledge of the fourth guest of honor exactly in half. What do you think?”“That is a good proposal.”
The fourth distinguished guest nodded.
“But I have a better offer. Would you like to hear it?”“Ah! Of course.”
The seventh distinguished guest pricked up their ears.
“The valuable opinion of the supreme fourth distinguished guest…….”
Phew.
A dagger flew in unannounced and pierced the seventh distinguished guest’s neck from behind. As he coughed up blood, he asked the fourth distinguished guest standing before him.
“Why? Taking on the fourth guest of honor… alone… would be… impossible…”“That’s it.”
The assassin hired by the fourth VIP on the game stage severed the seventh VIP’s cervical vertebrae. That is how the seventh VIP’s life was lost.
“The fourth guest of honor isn’t my enemy, after all. Hmm, you could say he’s a colleague.”
The fourth distinguished guest covered the corner of their mouth with the back of their hand.
“Isn’t that so, Mr. Asher? Hohohoho.”
