Ch.123118 – Bonds of Blood

“How much time left? What time is it now?”

“10 o’clock. About an hour left.”

“I’ve skipped all the story parts I could skip, and I don’t think I can reduce the combat time any further.”

“With 10/10/10 stats, the bosses have way too much HP.”

“Isn’t the Part 3 boss the Pope? You could have skipped Sariel and Ramiel if you didn’t make eye contact with them, why didn’t you do that?”

(Manager 1): “Before entering the Part 3 boss fight, you need to kill the angels and save Daniel as groundwork.”

(Manager 2): “+Not kill but release them.”

“You’re saying I should let Daniel go? LMAO”

“He’s the root of all evil, how can I tolerate that?”

“It’s more impressive that you haven’t died once yet.”

“This is seriously an impossible playthrough.”

“Adella has gotten so strong that it’s somewhat easier than Part 1.”

[LG Chaos: The last one is the Double Lariat pattern. The middle range is an instant death zone that can’t be blocked, so be careful!]

[Veixel: Adella is turning her back, so don’t dodge early – maximize your DPS!]

“Instant death but maximize DPS? lol How am I supposed to do that?!”

“And NoName pulls it off.”

“It’s hard to even follow with my eyes.”

Spells that sounded easy in theory rained down on NoName one after another.

But she deflected the fallen angels’ swords with machine-like precision.

She grabbed a buzzing fallen angel’s head like a fly and slammed it into the ground.

NoName didn’t even need to say anything as Adella ended the battle by plunging a dagger into its heart.

CRACK!

A fissure appeared where the fallen angels had been.

The statues had been functioning as sealing stones.

The barren land where not even a blade of grass grew split in two, and the sound of mechanical gears turning emanated from within the crack.

CLANK-CLANK-

A massive cage like those used for animal circuses at carnivals rose from the ground.

NoName could easily identify the people collapsed inside.

“Daniel, Lepi…”

Daniel rubbed his eyes as the harsh sunlight roused him to consciousness. Having been deprived of light for so long, his pupils needed time to adjust.

Seeing the two familiar female figures outside the prison, Daniel smiled brightly.

“Adella! Forest Keeper! You came to rescue us!”

Daniel grabbed the bars and stood up with a bright expression.

Seeing this, Adella gritted her teeth.

“How could you…! Because of you, our Abyss and NoName too! We all nearly died!”

“What are you talking about, Adella? I…”

“I know everything… you Imperial puppet!”

Adella swung her fist through the bars.

Hit by that blow, Daniel flew to the opposite side of the cage and collapsed weakly.

“If you… if you hadn’t manipulated Gestalt, none of this would have happened. Why did you do it?!”

Adella pleaded in an almost crying voice.

How many regressions had she endured because of one absurd invasion plan?

“We almost died because of you! No, we definitely all died! You knowingly sent us to our deaths!”

Adella could vividly recount memories from all the regressions as if they had happened yesterday.

“Say something! Why did you do it?!”

“You’re talking as if I’m the only one at fault?”

“Huh?”

Daniel grabbed the bars with both hands and shouted in an angry voice.

“Did I steal the Laurel? Or did I personally oversee the Yggdrasil experiment? I was just following orders. I’m a victim too!”

“You… you…”

“Since you know everything, then you must know that Lepi is my mother? Can you even empathize with my situation? The Empire has my mother as a hostage, and if the Papal State discovers my identity, my head will immediately roll. No, you wouldn’t understand. Street trash like you don’t have anything precious to protect!”

He continued to spew his grievances with bloodshot eyes. Though Adella found every word repulsive and tried to shut her ears, he kept talking.

“Ten years, for a whole decade I’ve been hiding from the Papal State that wants to find and kill us. The slaves sacrificed for experiments? Why should I care? Whether they die starving on the streets or die in the forest, it’s all the same.”

“So you knew Yggdrasil was a demon summoning circle and still committed such acts?”

“Demon? Ha. Listen well. Whatever demon is summoned, the world will be much more livable than it is now.”

“What?”

The essence of reclaiming the Laurel was ultimately a power struggle between demon worshippers.

The Imperial faction led by the Crown Prince concealed Yggdrasil’s growth by claiming it was a forest purification project to deceive the Emperor’s eyes.

But the truth cannot be hidden forever. While the naive delegation was transferring the Laurel, spies planted by the Papal State, including Jin Chronicle, discovered this fact.

The Empire and the Papal State attacked the delegation to take the Laurel by force, causing the five Laurels to be scattered.

“This world is already in the hands of demon worshippers anyway. The Empire or the Papal State, all of them! Better for one side to win quickly so the war can end!”

The Pope who worships Beelzebub, and the Crown Prince who worships Belphegor.

Besides them, fanatics worshipping various demons were everywhere.

Daniel, who knew the true power of the Laurel, tried to steal the Laurel of Reincarnation to use as a bargaining chip with someone who could heal his mother, but feeling threatened by NoName’s appearance, he had no choice but to hand over the Laurel.

If she had been from the Imperial or Papal faction, his life would have been forfeit before anything else.

“Then why did you plan the Academy invasion operation…!”

“Gestalt was trying to check my identity by contacting headquarters? I had no choice if I wanted to stay in the Empire longer.”

To destroy evidence, he sent an anonymous tip to Jin Chronicle and made the other members who didn’t know much about the Laurel betray them.

Jin Chronicle defeated the empty Abyss Branch 15, and Daniel escaped in the confusion. It seemed like a perfect plan at first glance.

However, Jin Chronicle, finding this suspicious, contacted the Papal Inquisitor in advance, causing his plan to fail.

“I’ll kill you… I’ll kill you!”

“You think I’m telling you all this without having an ace up my sleeve? You monsters could kill me anytime. You’re looking for the Laurel of Creation, right? I guarantee that without the Execution Blade of Fama, you’ll never defeat the Pope. And I know where it is.”

Daniel spoke with certainty.

He gently stroked Lepi’s head as she stirred from the shouting.

“Get Lepi and me out of here and let us go. I won’t ask for anything more. Why are you glaring at me like that? This is how the weak survive. Don’t blame me, blame this world.”

“…”

“You don’t even know where Gestalt is now, right? If you don’t decide quickly, that old man might die.”

Currently, NoName possesses the Laurels of ‘Reincarnation,’ ‘Life,’ and ‘Diligence.’

‘Creation’ was in the Pope’s hands, and ‘Death’ was still missing.

[SaveMeFromGradSchool: If you let Daniel and Lepi go here, he’ll tell you the random spawn coordinates for the Execution Blade of Fama. On the first playthrough, there’s a chance Daniel is lying, so don’t just kill him after he tells you. If you go there and the blade isn’t there, you need to go back and confront him.]

“Sis! Are you going to believe that bastard? He’s been lying from start to finish! Who do you think made us go through all this?!”

-I really want to stab this guy, can’t believe we can’t kill him~

-Can we really not defeat the Pope without the Execution Blade of Fama?

-You have to find the Life Vessel while evading fanatic pursuers

-Let’s be tough, streamer. If you kill him here, Adella dies too

-If only there wasn’t a time attack, we could just handle this easily

-Are there that many spawn locations for the Execution Blade of Fama?

-So many. At least 30 minutes, and if you’re unlucky, over two hours.

[SaveMeFromGradSchool: Streamer, you’re not going to, right? If you really kill him, you won’t be able to finish in time!]

“What are you hesitating for? What if he betrays us again?!”

Daniel was overflowing with confidence. In contrast, Adella pleaded with teary eyes.

“Right now, you’re… just possessing that body… Have you ever imagined what pain the original owner of that body went through? You’re plenty capable. You can easily defeat the Pope without something like that execution blade!”

Adella suddenly mentioned possession.

-?????????

-??????

-Did she just say possession?

-How did she know?

-I’m getting scared now

-She’s realized the player’s existence?

-bruh bruh bruh bruh

-Great, I need to sleep early and go to work tomorrow, but this ruins everything

-I thought there was no script after Part 1! What the hell is this?!

NoName bit her lip tightly at the unexpected words.

“Do you know who I am?”

“I… don’t know exactly, but an angel from another world? Anyway, you definitely said so yourself. At night.”

-?

-I skipped the story, so who was she talking to?

-AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!

-LMAO this is insane

-Has the end of humanity finally arrived?

“I understand you need to recover the Laurels as quickly as possible. But does it make sense to spare that guy just to find a way to defeat the Pope? Who do you think made us die over and over again to escape that hellish Academy! That doesn’t mean we need to stoop to the level of those demon lords or whatever!”

Adella had thought the two years after failing the Academy exam were hell, but she had already adapted to that life.

And she hated Daniel so much for completely destroying it that she wanted to pierce his throat right then and there.

She continued to persuade NoName, thinking that if it weren’t for his manipulation, she might have eventually gotten along well with the other members.

NoName hesitated, blinking rapidly while alternately examining Adella’s face and body.

“Demon Lord… Demon Lord… You and I need to talk later.”

NoName picked up her sword.

Adella flinched and stepped back.

Regardless, NoName approached the cage one step, two steps. The muddy water splashed around, dirtying the green grass.

“Get me out quickly. I’ve been in here too long and I’m itching all over.”

“I understand all your actions, Daniel. You tried to protect your mother without betraying your blood ties, and you had no choice but to act that way to survive in this harsh world.”

“Sis, I mean, NoName!”

“As expected… I thought you would understand. You also abandoned all your comrades in the forest and escaped, right?”

Adella and Daniel showed opposite emotions.

“But blood ties alone aren’t enough reason for me to forgive you. Is that really all the reason why I shouldn’t kill you here?”

“You… you’re joking, right? If you kill me… you’ll never defeat the Pope, no matter what… Do I look like I’m lying?”

“Why is it that in gambling, people think all wins are due to their own merit, but all losses are someone else’s fault?”

“No. This can’t be… You can’t do this to me. You better think carefully. If you kill me, all of you will die at the Papal State!”

“If you entered the gambling den, you should pay the price when you leave. That’s only natural.”

NoName drew her sword.

Daniel ran to the opposite side of the prison, trying to distance himself as much as possible, but the energy emanating from NoName’s sword was long enough to pierce through the entire prison.

Her cold, unwavering gaze. This person would definitely, certainly kill him.

Daniel’s heart pounded unbearably, causing him pain.

I’m going to die, I’m going to die, I’m going to die.

The man clutched one side of his chest and fell to his knees on the cold iron floor.

By the time he realized it wasn’t just fear making his chest hurt, he could see NoName’s emotionless expression through the tilting bars.

“You’re an adult, aren’t you? You need to take responsibility.”