Chapter 225

Chapter 225 Tangled and Twisted Fates (2)

“Come out.”

At just those words, Rice Cake timidly crawled out from beneath the bed. Still, she seemed to gauge my mood, sitting quietly at the foot instead of climbing onto my thigh.

Rice Cake had grown to about twice the size compared to when I had first absorbed the piece of divinity.

From observing her over a few days, it seemed clear that she grew in proportion to the amount of mana she consumed.

Until now, she only consumed enough to avoid death, which slowed her growth.

‘If she grows larger, it’ll be easier to involve her in battles.’

To help Rice Cake grow faster, I released some mana and brought out a stack of papers I had stolen from the Protoram count’s household. There’s no time to waste on dawdling.

As I focused on skimming Reitan’s search records, I figured out the first place we needed to go, santorna.

I wasn’t sure of the exact location, but it was clear Reitan had found something near Santorna recently. So I chose Santorna as our first destination.

Moreover, it had been mentioned by Vellego when he had investigated Reitan before. ‘It’s often mentioned just when it seems forgotten.’

Since it kept coming up, I decided it was time to check it out personally. I notified the party about our trip to Santorna, and as soon as the schedule was set, the system returned.

“Did it go well?”

I could sense a triumphant aura from the system’s presence. It seemed it had managed to extract considerable divinity.

‘In a lousy situation, this is at least good news.’

Thanks to it, in the upcoming fourth selection, we would be able to recruit more players. But it wasn’t the only good news.

Just as I was getting ready to finish my day and sleep, a message came through,

– Balloon: We have crossed over to Earth. From what I hear, it seems they plan to attack directly.

News arrived that the seeds planted a few months ago had sprouted.

* * *

「Progress 100%」

「The patch is complete.」

「Attribute mana possessed by enemies can now be materialized.」

「Attribute Mana Stones have been added to the item list.」

「The fourth player selection is underway. (2,000,000/2,000,000)」

First one hundred, then ten thousand, then one hundred thousand, and fifty thousand next. Today, a staggering two million people were dragged to the battlefield overnight.

Seeing the overwhelming numbers, I instinctively suppressed a sigh.

‘At least it’s good that the attribute mana drop, which had been updating for weeks, is finally completed.’

This would provide power and opportunities to ordinary mana users who had been marginalized in magic. I tried to focus on the positives, taking a good look around.

We arrived at Santorna via a portal attached to the temple.

‘This place feels more like a city than a castle.’

No matter where I looked, there was no sign of a fortress wall that should surround a city. Instead, much like Habon, it was backed by cliffs.

‘Perhaps because the mages made this their base.’

Even if an attack came, there was a sense of arrogance that they would be safe. But now, it was just a desolate city that had lost its former glory.

Our ultimate destination, santorna, was quite barren. Although the city was vast enough to accommodate millions, the actual residents numbered less than a few hundred thousand.

‘Let’s start moving.’

To draw as little attention as possible, we used the portal at a dark hour before dawn. ‘While we can’t hide the symbol,’

As long as no one saw it, witnesses would be minimal. Hooded for caution, we traversed the city. Then, standing behind me, Kim Yul clicked his tongue and muttered.

“Wow, there really isn’t a quiet day with these folks.”

Kim Yul was staring into the air.

“Why now?” asked Yang Taeho.

Kim Yul’s answer was straightforward.

“Because of the Chinese. They’ve flooded the comm today.”

China was currently in a civil war. Unlike a typical civil war, the focal point was the players’ instigation.

But it was too serious to dismiss as anything other than a civil war.

From two nights ago, starting with the disappearance of the national president, key figures began vanishing one by one.

Politicians who could follow the associations’ instructions—those who comply with players’ demands—were being swapped in.

Not that they were killed. Instead, they were gathered in one place and surrounded by a barrier.

‘When they emerge from the barrier, everything will be over.’

By then, ordinary people powerless against players would have no way to intervene.

‘Til then, there would be some bloodshed, though.’

The conflict between players aligned with the new political power and those associations released was fierce.

‘Thankfully, the associations’ influence grew stronger.’

In the beginning, a few fatalities occurred. At that instant, the association intervened.

Twenty investigators of various nationalities stormed into China. Leading them was Ethan, now in charge of the association’s police department.

The investigators were all of a high standard, at least at the gold rank, which put the Chinese in a position where they couldn’t afford to hesitate.

‘They pinpointed and eliminated the murderers.’

After repeated warnings, when murders persisted, the player association took a tougher stance.

If someone committed murder, the association would make sure they faced death. Ethan and his bounty hunters played a crucial role in instilling that perception.

As the situation unfolded, the Chinese began to hold back from killing each other. But the conflict itself continued.

Due to this, terror and riot-related reports were constantly being written in China.

In the player community, the two factions were exchanging harsh criticisms and insults in their frustration of not being able to kill each other.

Foreign players, no longer able to bear it, began expressing their discontent, sparking another round of chaos.

The recent post catching my eye was a perfect example.

Title: Stop Posting So Much – Posted by: Robin Hood

Content: Solve your issues among yourselves. Why clutter the public board with your brawls and live broadcasts? Use that time flooding the board to stab the other side.

– Eagle: Right

– Anna: They really don’t know moderation.

– Sauron: They’re causing every possible harm to others, what’s the deal?

– 1896jj: I hope this topples all the regimes mixing in socialism, including Russia.

⌎ Cowboy: And throw out those dictators fattening themselves on the people’s backs.

⌎ Revolution: Let’s just wipe them all at once.

⌎ Famous Novelist: Stop, whether they’re killers or political offenders, if they touch civilians, the association will execute them. Didn’t you see the last notice?

⌎ Baby Shark: What does “execute” mean?

⌎ Famous Novelist: It means they’ll chase them down and kill them.

– Romeo: I wonder how many have died this time… It breaks my heart.

⌎ Juliet: Oh my, what are you doing here…?

⌎ Falcon: What are you two up to?

– Crocodile: Speaking of, why is it just the socialists in Asia making moves? Typical monkeys.

⌎ Yun Jihwan: What do you have in your head? Russia is in Europe, you know?

⌎ Surprise Gift: Maybe you lack knowledge. Ever heard of Eurasia?

⌎ Tanaka: I’m tempted to list how low standard things are in Europe and the Americas. What about terror groups and drugs?

⌎ Alessandro: It’s the Chinese making those drugs.

⌎ Snowflake: Good job. Who doesn’t have dirt when you dig into them?

The exploitation of a group that could be cursed without guilt was like a frenzy of piranhas attacking fresh prey.

The base instinct of trying to drag others down when criticized was deplorable. It’s exhausting, no matter how often I watch it.

I clicked my tongue internally and closed the community window. At the same time, I instructed Kim Yul, who continued monitoring the community, to stop.

“Ignore it. Watching just gives you stress. What’s the point?”

“But we need to know the situation. Hyung, you’re busy. I can handle this.”

It’s pointless.

‘Information floating around in the communities lacks accuracy.’

There’s plenty of ways to deal with it without needing to gather stress-inducing information like that.

“If you’re curious, I’ll compile and tell you, so don’t waste your time.”

“Oh, you have a source of information?”

“The guy we caught back when the investigation team was running.”

“Ah, then alright.”

No sooner had Kim Yul answered than a new chat message came through.

– Balloon: As expected, some are starting to surrender. It’s happening faster and in greater numbers than I thought. But the situation isn’t good. The remaining are feeling threatened and have started channeling mana. This morning, three new gold ranks suddenly appeared. They all wield fire-attribute mana.

The timing was impeccable.

As I had told Kim Yul moments ago—I had an informant who reported in detail what was going on in China.

‘Real name, La Yuan.’

I was informed by Bunny Foot that he was someone who used to be involved with the collection of players in China.

Naturally, he was among the enslaved when we cracked down on the people trafficking in Chinese humans. He agreed to become my eyes and ears in exchange for protection.

‘A lot of folks in the association do take notice of my moves.’

Even if not, some would willingly help if I asked.

I sent a message to Ethan, asking him to subtly assist La Yuan.

On Earth, where the symbol doesn’t appear, going unnoticed is like a walk in the park.

‘After all, this is a game the association has set up.’

Lending a slight hand wouldn’t lead to significant problems later on.

‘At worst, those opposing Lily might make an issue of it.’

But that wouldn’t even scratch the surface of real problems.

Soon, Ethan’s reply confirmed he understood.

After sending a message to La Yuan that support was coming, I closed all the windows.

All that filled my view were various icons and minimized message windows.

It wasn’t corrupted ground this time, so no map was available.

As a result, my line of sight was open for the first time in a while.

But really, my mind was elsewhere.

Rice Cake was constantly sharing its vision with me.

What I saw was the main street of a silent, dark city.

The creature that left the temple ahead of us was bounding across the city in earnest.

‘Vision sharing is quite handy, indeed.’

With the assumption that Reitan’s subordinates might be in Santorna, sending her to scout areas I couldn’t enter was possible, which was why I brought her along.

Rice Cake insisted on connecting its vision repeatedly, as if to show it knew what to do.

Though its frequent connections were a bit bothersome…

‘It’s fine, I suppose.’

Better to see than not see anything at all, so I let it be.

‘I can roughly guess where things are.’

As we moved to leave the city, I took out an item from my pocket to check.

It was the pocket watch I took from Reitan a few days ago.

‘I thought about stealing the divinity from it.’

For now, I’m holding off.

Even the system couldn’t identify whose divinity was embedded in the object.

I needed to carry it until I learned more about this new divinity.

Otherwise, I might have held onto it for a different reason.

‘It has its uses as it is.’

Opening the lid revealed neither the hour nor the minute hand but a compass needle.

What I thought was a timepiece turned out to be a compass.

Without item information, I had the system investigate it.

It confirmed that the object reacted to divinity, revealing its primary function.

Reitan locating Plarow’s divine fragment wasn’t by chance.

‘This tool was crafted specifically to locate scattered pieces of divinity.’

Currently, the compass needle pointed northwest.

Without any city walls, there was no need to bother with entering and exiting.

After correcting our course, my thought train filled again.

Thoughts that hadn’t once disappeared since we set foot out on this journey.

‘I remember an enemy searching for Gallonic came from Santorna.’

Damned System