Chapter: 207
Combat is a battle of time.
It’s about using my time efficiently to waste the enemy’s time, gaining advantages that snowball into victory. When fighting against a fabled enemy, it requires even more precision.
Though we have sublime-level power on our side, the opponent possesses the fabled abilities lent from a goddess. Currently, with the effects of Gear: Freeze being unknown, I have several options.
To keep things simple, I can categorize them as attack and defense.
I could sever the enemy’s neck before they can do anything dumb.
Or, I could absorb the opponent’s abilities, analyze their effects, and then counterattack.
Is that goddess’s fable offensive or defensive? Could it possibly be a debuff type? Or perhaps a fierce counterattack ability.
Drip, drip. Crystals resembling blue ice are stretching out according to the space’s texture. From that visual alone, I felt a biting chill. Time is still ticking.
I stand at that crossroads…
“Hey, what ability is that?”
“Why do you think I would know?”
“You’ve been pretending to know since earlier.”
I chose to ask Evil God-chan, who seemed to be aware.
She opened her mouth, seeming inclined to respond. I expected her to hesitate a couple of times, but she was surprisingly straightforward.
“I don’t know for sure. My memory isn’t complete.”
“Oh sigh.”
“…Fine, let’s say I return 93%! Anyway, the goddess desires to maintain the status quo. ‘May it be eternally tranquil.’ That much is certain. So, I remember her abilities generally being boring and unexciting.”
“Eternally tranquil, huh…”
I’ve seen her fables twice now. Previously, in a session where Tara used Gear: Homeostasis, and right now with Gear: Freeze activated before my eyes.
Homeostasis provided unlimited healing and protection over a wide area.
I accepted that as a game-like area buff and healing, but focusing on the aspect of maintaining the status quo… it might have had the effect of reverting a person’s state back to how it was at the time of casting.
Literally recovery, a force that returns to a previous state.
If so, then the Gear: Freeze being cast by the High Priest is likely to be more about immobilizing something by solidifying it rather than hitting people with chunks of ice.
It seems highly defensive.
Then, I need to hit now. Before they can fully solidify their defenses. I decided to unleash my firepower.
“Go, Evil God-chan! Go and hit them!”
“…I was going to do that anyway, so don’t give orders!”
Evil God-chan kicked off the ground and dashed forward.
Thud, thud.
While rushing, Evil God-chan roughly unsheathed her claw-like arms. Red blood flowed, and she was endowed with hard and easy-to-use weaponry. And then…
Swish!!!
With her rapid throwing technique, she sent scales flying. It was a dazzling display, effectively utilizing the information I had fed her during our session where I played Hee Yeong-hyun.
“Ugh!”
“Graaack!”
The priests, previously blocking the way with their scriptures or maces, shrieked as scales lodged into their bodies. The human defense line was shaken.
Several scales were aimed at the High Priest’s vital areas, but…
“Three Dogs Protecting the Goddess.”
A large golden shield appeared to block the scales. That was holy magic used by Tara during a session. I surely remember it costing a considerable amount, yet there it is, still intact.
I began my incantation, spreading out my magic like a spider’s web. However, around the High Priest, my magic could barely advance. It hardened like frozen water.
A wide-area magic freeze… is that the effect of Gear: Freeze?
It’s a power aimed explicitly at killing wizards. Defensively, it surpasses Roderus’s magic materialization. But it does have weaknesses. Two, in fact.
One, the freeze range is gradually expanding. It is still extending blue branches, but the speed isn’t that fast.
Two, I can cast my magic from outside the freeze range as much as I want.
The High Priest’s strategy is simple: endure with divine magic until the freeze range engulfs the entire space. So, I just need to break through to win.
It’s simple if I utilize the Tower Master’s power.
“…Should I erase it?”
“Just give me a moment. I want to extract information.”
If I hit with Yuna’s beam, I might lose all the loot information, so I decided not to use my strength just yet to try my cooking.
Switching targets, I focused on the ordinary priests bowing their heads at the altar.
“Wavering Heart, Mental Domination, Marionette.”
Cunning magic burrowed through the priests’ mental barriers. Inside, I tightly seized their pulsing minds, hooking them.
Snap. A firm feeling of being tightly secured. I could feel a taut sensation running through, like a fishing line.
The connection was established.
This was different from when I hunted goblins. Thanks to Yuna, my brain’s available capacity has increased, and through the rescue operation of Yuli, I’ve taken a step forward.
After injecting malicious information…
“Move, while shouting your faith. Kill your false prophet and show your repentance and belief!”
Crack. With the command, I clenched my fist and yanked tightly.
Grrrrng-!!
“Ugh, aaaaaah-!!”
“The head… my head hurts… I’m a heretic, am I…?!”
Priests, clutching their heads, staggered, losing their sanity one by one. Those hit by Evil God-chan’s scales were all included.
They were shown a vision where the goddess scolded them harshly. Asking why they served a fake goddess, they mourned, claiming their souls would fall into Hell without salvation.
They were given the illusion that should they repent now and do what must be done, they would be spared.
In search of salvation, they dove to kill the High Priest.
“I will repent, oh Goddess! I was only deceived by that fake!”
“I’m not a heretic, I’m not a heretic!!”
The humans, swept up in blind murder, appeared more animalistic than human. They surged forward like zombies, using their entire bodies to land even a single scratch.
They battered the High Priest’s protective barrier, and if they had no weapons, they clawed until their nails broke. With such solid reinforcements, Evil God-chan lost her temper.
“Geez, Mima! These guys are such a nuisance!”
“Brainwashing… illusion wizard? If your faith was as solid and unwavering as this land, you wouldn’t be swayed so easily by an illusionary spell. I’m disappointed, everyone.”
A chill passed over the High Priest’s gaze.
Both Evil God-chan and I read the omens of an impending attack from the High Priest.
“Spear of the Goddess!”
Golden dust gathered, manifesting three golden spears. Then, two shot toward me, while one was launched at Evil God-chan.
Zzzhaaaaang—!
“Texture Restructure, Hologram: Duplicate!”
I tossed chaff into the air. Blurring morphs of sight and sound, I scattered illusions resembling me.
As I dodged the attack while searching for the real one, Evil God-chan was using the brainwashed priests as shields to block the incoming attacks.
“It’s dangerous not wearing a helmet! Look, you can effectively use the brainwashed friends as shields!”
“…Shut up!”
Since my magic wouldn’t pass through, I had to resort to physical attacks. However, physical damage was blocked by his holy shield. If I were from the Evil or Gold Towers, I would have accumulated damage with a rock gatling gun, but…
I only have illusion magic, so I had no choice but to find indirect routes.
===============================================================
A clue appeared moments ago. When Evil God-chan threw her scales, the priests summoned shields to block them. The scales were outside the range of Freeze.
Considering that Evil God-chan is more akin to a life born from information, I see an opening.
I materialize the malignant information pressed into illusions. Easy to crumble black daggers, but if they hit, the illusion magic would directly pierce through.
In other words, dagger-shaped scrolls. Several of them.
I scattered information-daggers all around. Then, I ordered the brainwashed priests to grasp the daggers and charge ahead. While doing so, I shouted.
“Hee Yeong-hyun! Mancheonghwau!”
“…You’ve really found yet another trick, haven’t you-?!”
Evil God-chan jumped in excitement. The High Priest’s expression turned extremely flustered.
“Weren’t you an illusion wizard…? No, you studied both the Evil and Gold Towers? With such an octopus-like learning strategy, you couldn’t possibly reach any mastery…?!”
He’s mistaken. He has misinterpreted the information-daggers as formation magic from the Gold Tower. It’s understandable. He probably never heard of illusions that possess physical properties.
It seems all the time in his own academy has paid off. My name and abilities aren’t known to the world yet, so most likely, I can poke at their weaknesses like this.
Ten dominated priests charged in to stab. Though the High Priest shook them off with all kinds of holy magic, it’s not easy to deal with humans risking their lives.
Especially with their weak offensive holy magic.
In that meantime, Evil God-chan took a deep breath and began to dance. She kicked a fallen information-dagger with her foot, launching it into the air, then caught it with her hand. Adding some spin, she threw it.
Jumping to catch a shattered dagger that bounced off the shield, she repaired it in real-time and threw it again. Her body moved in graceful circles, and the daggers soared in all directions.
How can one not call that a dance? While it lacks some elegance for a Mancheonghwau, it’s still quite an impressive display of throwing skill.
And then…
Gyuuh!—?! Ugh…
The dagger flew from an angle, grazing the High Priest’s cheek. That was enough for the malicious information to seep in. The High Priest’s eyes rolled back as he stifled a gag.
He was hit.
It must have felt like being on a roller coaster ten times in a row. Like being tossed into a large jar and shaken violently.
With his concentration shattered and shaken, it became all the easier for him to block the daggers. Momentum shifted in our direction. We melted slowly and caught the attack.
“Still, the effect seems weaker than expected…?”
“You, I’m…! Working hard! Throwing! You should be doing more…!”
“If you’re the only one putting in effort, we’ll win! I’ll stop any possible reinforcements from behind, so let’s focus on hunting. Go team!”
“Hey—!!”
The High Priest’s face twisted.
Did he think he would win? Surely. After all, he wielded the goddess’s fable. Meanwhile, we hadn’t even begun to use our fables.
He must think the difference in levels would guarantee his victory, but look. I’m strong even without a fable.
That flashy finishing move? That’s not necessary!
“…How can it be, without even using a fable. Damn it, the goddess… is truly useless! My belief hasn’t been mistaken. If the power of the broken goddess is insufficient, then I shall use her power—!!”
The High Priest grabbed a golden cup. The liquid—a remnant of the queen—splashed around in the chalice. Upon seeing that, Evil God-chan panicked.
“Don’t drink it—!!”
Glug, glug.
He gulped it down.
Although it dealt a critical blow to Evil God-chan’s sense of shame, that was a meaningless desperate act. There’s no way consuming the queen’s residue would grant him any sublimation or new powers.
If anything, he might end up as a vegetable from the clash with his original self. I leisurely waited. Once the High Priest was out of his mind, I’d carefully probe for information…
“Damn it, I told you to stop me, Mima!!”
“What…? No, what would happen if he drank that?”
“The goddess would have sensed my residue! I’ll probably be registered on a blacklist—she’d try to erase me!”
Squeak.
Squeak, squeak.
Chills ran down my spine. It felt like having icy refrigeration pumped directly into my spine. Where is it? Where’s this happening?
It’s the sky.
Just before we could take any action, the sky appeared. Despite being in an underground facility, suddenly, we see blue heavens above.
“…Divine Punishment!”
And then, a beam of light descended from the sky, right above the High Priest’s head.
Boom—!!
As the ceiling began to melt and the floor became engulfed by the heat of the aftershock, I was blown away by the strong winds, while the lighter Tower Master and Evil God-chan were swept into the air.
“Wha, whaaat?!”
“I told you to prevent this, didn’t I?!”
“Damn it, you should’ve said it sooner, man—!! Tower Master, catch me!”
First, I tightly hugged the Tower Master beside me and jumped to catch Evil God-chan’s ankle that was floating away in the vortex. The radiant glow lit up the entire underground.
While I thought divine power had weak attack abilities, that’s indeed a fact.
However, just like sunlight can melt steel if accumulated enough, overwhelming density and mass of divine power obliterated everything. The High Priest melted away without a trace in the light.
But even after the High Priest had vanished, the beam of light continued. It seemed to be aiming to not leave even a speck of that entity in this world.
Fortunately, it seems Evil God-chan is not targeted. Even from this close, it doesn’t appear to be aimed at us.
I thought we were dangerously near, yet I wasn’t recognized.
Even with that ‘thing’ in my brain, it seemed I wasn’t aware of it.
Could it be that I must directly reveal ‘that thing’ within the range of inheritance fables to see it? It seems the goddess has set a very narrow limit. If so, then we’re safe for now.
At that moment, an audacious idea flickered through my mind.
If that ‘Divine Punishment’ was indeed delivered by the goddess, then that beam of light is likely directly connected to her. If I could ride that beam to glean information…
I secured Evil God-chan as a weight and moved closer to Yuna, trudging forward against the wind one step at a time.
“Mima, what are you doing?!”
“…If I leave without gaining anything, it would be a waste!”
I could hear Yuna’s voice of concern behind me.
“D-Don’t! It’s dangerous! Y-You’ll get hurt!”
Maybe I could get hurt, but seeing the goddess take such a reckless shot at ‘that thing’ fills me with hope.
The amiable being, who grants divine power even if I chatter behind her back, fires off such a senseless bombardment just because ‘that thing’ barely shows on her radar.
That realization gives me hope. Understanding the goddess could aid against ‘that thing.’ Extracting it completely from my head is no longer a mere dream.
Then!
At that moment, I would achieve a happy ending. No need to touch any strange entities; I could happily live forever with Yuna and Yuli!
I finally arrived at the beam of light.
The inheritance fable had been released now that the High Priest was dead, and the beam was gradually shrinking. Checking from various angles out of caution, I found there’s no detection ability in this beam.
There would be no second beam shot down at my head if I recklessly stuck my hand in.
I took a deep breath and plunged my hand into that lump of heat.
“Ah, hot…”
Szzzzz!. My clothes burned away and my skin began to slowly melt. Ah, as expected, it’s not that hostile after all. The laser that melted the High Priest felt quite warm to me.
Relatively warm, but my hand was burning like hell.
I infused my magic. And I ascended along that pillar of divine power. It felt like navigating against a torrential waterfall.
I was pushing my brain to its limits. Twisting the magic into a triple fold for a breakthrough and analyzing the weaknesses of the divine power column, I calculate the shortest route upwards, delving in one particle at a time.
It’s working. Somehow… it’s working!
I pushed my body deeper inside. Arm, then shoulder deep.
Grrrkk…
Szzzzz!. The smell of roasting flesh wafted through the air, and as my skin burned and the fibers of my internal muscles began to show, I finally touched it.
■■■■■■■…
An enormous amount of information, encrypted in an incomprehensible dialect. So vast that I couldn’t even trace its outline. Reading it all could take a decade.
So, just a portion. The weakest part, just that bit to analyze. Show me your secrets. I want clues to deduce something about you.
[Se■■■■■cure ■■rate ■■%]
Just a bit more, tell me what it means.
[Se■■■red■cure ho■d rate 2■%…]
Just a little bit more, just a bit further──
===============================================================
“Cough!”
Snap. My hood was tugged. I was yanked backward and fell away from the beam of light.
Looking up, there was Evil God-chan. With her arms crossed and stomping her feet. When I questioned her expression of why she interrupted me, she raised two fingers.
One finger bent, pointing at my arm.
What a gruesome sight. It touched bone. I might have lost my left arm if I had stayed any longer.
And bending the other one, she pointed at my side.
“…”
Yuna, who silently cried without a sound, was staring at me. It seems my foolishness led her to feel sad and wronged.
I needed to soothe her right away, but I was utterly preoccupied with assembling the mound of information I had just acquired in my brain.
Those were not words to overlook with nonchalance. Words that could frighten me into optimism. The information gleaned from the goddess was as follows:
[Se■■purification■hit rate 24%…]
[Warning: If the damage rate exceeds 30%, the administrator will commence purification.]
Damage rates and purification.
Perhaps I had caught a glimpse of some premonition of a disaster.
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