Chapter 107: Scattering Area Bombs
by fnovelpia
Disqualified as the price for using the magic of the Elder Dragon.
As a result, I thought I would be taken straight to the Empire.
“…….Are you sure it’s okay for me to come along?”
I was currently waiting outside the arena with Baek Mokgong.
Upon hearing my question, Baek Mokgong looked back as if stating the obvious.
“Didn’t you say with your own mouth that there would be an assassination attempt on the Saintess? Then, the one who provided the information should also be present.”
In fact, I was planning to stay here somehow through negotiation anyway.
With so many variables, no one could predict which direction the scenario would take.
I needed to intervene to steer it towards the proper course as much as possible.
But without any need for that, Baek Mokgong simply brought me here without hesitation.
Of course, this was very welcome from my perspective.
‘Did she notice my intentions and bring me along?’
It was a bit of a stretch, but Baek Mokgong’s insight was exceptional.
If it were her, she might have caught on to some of my thoughts.
Clank—
In the meantime, Baek Mokgong ordered an imperial knight to unlock the handcuffs on my wrists.
I felt a bit more alive once they were off.
However,
“What if I escape like this?”
“Heh, go ahead and try to run.”
There’s no way I’d escape.
If I follow along like this, I’ll be able to use the Elder Dragon’s magic legally.
Above all, there was no way I could escape from Baek Mokgong.
With my current level, I’d stand no chance even if I gave it my all.
Knowing all this, she said that.
Of course, it was my fault for testing her.
“Now then, tell me your thoughts on this Saintess assassination incident.”
Baek Mokgong dismissed the imperial knights to allow me to speak freely.
“Who were the people leading the assassination of the Saintess?”
“High priests from the Holy Kingdom of Lium and one cardinal.”
“Hmm, and why would they do that?”
She didn’t ask how I came by this information.
That’s something she could ask about later anyway.
What mattered now was why the culprits were planning such a thing.
“There are two kings in the Holy Kingdom.”
“King Lium and the Holy King.”
Normally, the title would be ‘Pope,’ but the Empire declared that the name ‘Emperor’ was reserved solely for Hyserion.
Because of this, even the Holy Order had no choice but to use the term ‘Holy King’ instead of ‘Pope.’
“The power balance between King Lium and the Holy King was originally stable. But the emergence of one individual changed the situation completely.”
“The Saintess, Acrede Saint Narea, I presume.”
Baek Mokgong responded immediately.
She was a duchess of the Empire.
Although she wasn’t deeply involved in the Empire’s political affairs at the moment, she was naturally well-versed in the world’s currents.
Therefore, she could effortlessly continue the conversation without me having to explain everything.
“Due to the birth of the Saintess, the power balance between King Lium and the Holy King was disrupted. Before King Lium could be cornered by the Holy King, he sought to eliminate the Saintess. Is that what you’re saying?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
The ones attempting to assassinate the Saintess were priests aligned with King Lium and one cardinal.
Having understood everything, Baek Mokgong stroked her chin.
“If he did such a thing, wouldn’t King Lium be the one to face trouble?”
“If it’s revealed that the Saintess’s death was ordered by King Lium, yes.”
Baek Mokgong’s eyes changed instantly.
“King Lium brought in another faction.”
“A cult of mystery fanatics, the Mysticism Group.”
“Puhahaha!”
Baek Mokgong burst into loud laughter.
I understood her reaction.
It was because the Mysticism Group was an organization that Baek Mokgong herself had personally crushed.
Murderous intent gleamed in her eyes.
“Those pests were still lurking right under my nose.”
The cult of mystery fanatics.
The Mysticism Group.
They are an organization that believes all humans must be enlightened by mysteries to achieve ultimate transcendence.
They need two things to achieve their goal.
One is the denial of the gods rooted in this world.
Mysteries are labeled as heretical things that failed to become divine, but the Mysticism Group views it differently.
They believe that mystery is the ultimate form that life can reach.
Therefore, they think that for this world to become truly prosperous, everything related to the gods must be erased.
The second is to transform all beings in the world into mysteries.
Since they preach that all humans must be enlightened by mystery to achieve ultimate transcendence, they aim to turn every human into a mystery.
In fact, they have a history of capturing humans and transforming them into mysteries.
Baek Mokgong, who single-handedly stopped them, was deeply enraged by this.
That’s why she went on a rampage, mercilessly hunting down every last one of them.
However, they survived with the tenacity of cockroaches.
As a result, they were once again trying to impose their will.
“Lately, the occurrence rate of mysteries has been increasing.”
“Yes, it’s their doing.”
Mysteries are heretical things that failed to become divine.
The Mysticism Group deliberately corrupted those aspiring to divinity, thus creating mysteries.
My fist clenched silently.
This was because the Iron Empress that appeared in the Great Forest of Spirits was also their doing.
‘The Iron Empress is a keyword that subtly reveals the existence of the Mysticism Group.’
And this incident is the episode that brings the Mysticism Group into the main scenario.
The Mysticism Group is a troublesome faction even within the story.
Not only do they increase the occurrence rate of problematic mysteries, later on, they also form an alliance with the Duke of Robliaju.
Depending on how many of them are defeated during the scenario, the difficulty of the final scenario changes significantly.
In other words, the more thoroughly the Mysticism Group is eradicated, the better.
Therefore, I intend to uproot every last one of them.
“Well, this changes the story quite a bit.”
Even Baek Mokgong can’t interfere in the power struggles within the Holy Kingdom.
But if the Mysticism Group is involved, it’s a different story.
They are a group of criminals officially recognized by the Empire and several other nations.
There was more than enough reason for Baek Mokgong to take action.
“And now I understand why you know about this matter.”
Baek Mokgong’s eyes turned to me.
“You were approached by the Mysticism Group, weren’t you?”
I possess a mystery within me.
It wouldn’t be strange at all if they tried to recruit me.
They are infinitely generous to those who harbor mysteries.
‘But the Mysticism Group never actually approached me directly.’
In the story, the Mysticism Group approaches Lucas as well.
Lucas, like me, possesses the body of steel.
Because of this, he immediately attracted their attention.
However, unlike Lucas, the Mysticism Group never made contact with me.
‘Well, I’m not exactly Lucas, after all.’
Maybe I didn’t meet their standards.
But that’s just my story.
From Baek Mokgong’s perspective, it wouldn’t have been strange if the Mysticism Group had approached me at any time.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Since learning about the saintess assassination incident could be attributed to the Mysticism Group, there was no reason not to take advantage of this misunderstanding.
When I promptly agreed, Baek Mokgong raised her hand.
Then, she started roughly patting my head.
“As expected, my eyes were right. I’m glad I kept you alive under the Hero’s Special Law.”
Baek Mokgong has a fondness for people who walk the path of a hero.
In her eyes, I must have looked like someone unmistakably on that heroic journey.
Even though all I’m doing is desperately trying to piece together the canon storyline.
“Well then, when do you think the Mysticism Group will strike?”
“I believe it will be the moment the saintess returns to the Kingdom of Lium.”
The moment when the saintess, exhausted from the international exhibition match, feels most at ease.
The cardinal and the priests will create an opening for the Mysticism Group to strike.
During that process, several priests will die, and the cardinal will be severely wounded while fighting against the Mysticism Group,
But ultimately, they fail to protect the saintess.
As a result, the Holy Order is shaken to its core after losing the saintess blessed by the goddess.
‘Ending it there would be sufficient, but…’
Failing to prevent the saintess’s assassination leads to one of the bad endings.
Bad Ending
The Goddess’s Disappointment
Due to the power struggle within the Holy Kingdom, the child blessed by the goddess dies.
It was only natural for the goddess to feel disappointed.
However, this bad ending is slightly different from the others.
Because the game itself remains playable.
The real problem comes afterward.
【 The goddess withdraws her grace, causing all divine power to vanish. 】
The disappearance of divine power.
Because of this, the priests from the Blazing Butterfly Arc are completely wiped out.
The absence of the most crucial healer class.
From that point on, the difficulty of the Blazing Butterfly Arc’s quests increases exponentially.
No matter how good the party composition is, the lack of healers leads to continuous casualties.
Even if they barely manage to hold on by recruiting spirit shamans like Grantoni, that only applies to the main character’s party.
Separate from the main character, other parties entering the Demonic Palace are annihilated.
As a result, all students from the academy are wiped out.
Naturally, the saturation of the apostles’ power becomes uncontrollable, eventually leading to the descent of the Evil Existence.
That is the bad ending known as ‘The Goddess’s Disappointment’.
It’s one of those bad endings that absolutely must be prevented.
That’s why I prepared in advance.
“Well then, I’ll make sure to thoroughly grind them into fine mincemeat.”
The most terrifying existence to the Mysticism Group.
The hero among heroes, Baek Mokgong.
‘This is my greatest gift.’
I’ll gratefully accept it.
* * *
The Wings of the Goddess.
Sky Dragon Transformation.
And even the student being taken away as a price for using the Elder Dragon’s magic.
The main tournament was nothing but a series of chaos.
However, the shock they delivered was unmatched.
The audience could hardly focus on any other matches in the finals.
“Wings of the Goddess… I never thought I’d live to see such a thing.”
“More than that, wasn’t it the Elder Dragon’s magic? I was doubtful, but who would’ve thought it was the real deal!”
Even though the main tournament was still ongoing, the audience kept chattering about the first match of the Round of 64.
The battle between Hanon and Isabel didn’t reach a clear conclusion.
After both of them clashed with all their might, Hanon was immediately taken away.
Perhaps because of that, some were even arguing about who had the upper hand between the two.
On the arena that wasn’t getting much attention, a man was walking up.
A man with ashen hair, wearing a slightly annoyed expression.
His name was Solvas Umbra.
A boy known as the Son of Shadows.
He was famous for his perpetually relaxed demeanor, but during this tournament, he just couldn’t bring himself to smile.
The reason was none other than Hanon Airei, who appeared in the earlier match.
The humiliation he suffered at his hands during the preliminaries.
He had been waiting for this tournament to get his revenge, but Hanon stole all the spotlight from the match and then made a quick escape.
Even now, it was the same.
None of the spectators were paying attention to the current match.
They acted as if they had already watched the final match of the tournament.
To Solvas, it was utterly humiliating.
‘That bastard.’
He could almost feel himself grinding his teeth in anger.
Crunch—
At that moment, he heard the sound of teeth grinding.
Solvas turned his head in confusion.
Blue hair fluttered in the wind.
Solvas flinched involuntarily.
Under that blue hair,
Eyes as blue as her hair were blazing with fierce intensity.
Crack—
Her teeth ground once more.
The Unyielding Blue Flame.
Eve.
His opponent in today’s match.
“Hanon Airei.”
In her eyes burned a fury so intense that even Solvas felt a chill.
“I won’t let him get away with this.”
For some reason, Eve was absolutely furious.
“Begin the match!”
With the announcer’s shout, Eve’s blue flames surged high enough to touch the sky.
Even the audience, who had been chattering about the earlier match, was so startled that they turned their attention back to the fight.
Seeing this, Solvas realized that he had become the target of her wrath.
They were both Six Stars,
So how did it end up like this?
Casting a meager shadow compared to Eve’s fierce blue flames,
Solvas quietly closed his eyes.
Damn that bastard.
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