novelraw Chapter 115
Chapter 115
Ch.115 His Assumption Would Soon Be Proven Wrong
Auros rubbed his forehead.
“Hmm… I don’t understand. Honestly, I’ve no idea what this ‘game’ you speak of is. The only games I know are card games or chess.”
Indeed—how could I explain computer games to people here?
I’d have to explain computers first…
But how do you explain a universal machine like that?
Then I recalled Auros once mentioning gods engaging in ‘amusements.’
“Think of it simply—just as dragons play for diversion, we enjoy a virtual world as entertainment.”
“Oh? How fascinating.”
“In this virtual world, modeled after yours, we experience your world’s possible futures.”
“Hrm… Strange. Why would gods go through such trouble?”
“Well… they must have had a reason. We paid money to play it, after all.”
The Lord and Emperor eyed me skeptically.
“You can’t seriously think the gods needed money?”
“I agree. Gods wouldn’t do such a thing out of boredom.”
“What gain would I have from lying? Anyway—in the game, the King of the Dead had only three fixed vessels. Selena wasn’t one of them. In fact, she never appeared in the game at all.”
“So you wonder why the gods replicated everything exactly—but excluded only Selena?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
Auros furrowed his brow deeply.
“Hmm… now that you mention it, that is strange. Truly odd. But tell me—how did the game end?”
“The King of the Dead was destroyed by players before shattering the fifth Seal Stone.”
After his death, the endgame ‘Hell’ opened—and reaching its end unlocked ‘Heaven.’
Though grandly named, they were simply dungeons where previously defeated bosses returned stronger.
Each had only one safe town for players to rest—
one in Hell, one in Heaven.
“Oh? Then…”
“If Selena’s power is so overwhelming that the game always ends in apocalypse… perhaps she was deliberately excluded.”
Games have ‘nerfs’—mechanics to balance overpowered elements.
What if Selena was removed to nerf the King of the Dead?
If her presence as King of the Dead broke the game’s balance entirely…
Could such an entity truly exist in reality?
Would that mean this world’s true fate is annihilation?
Perhaps that’s why the gods summoned players—
to introduce variables.
“Are you saying… this world is doomed to end?”
The mood in the garden turned grave.
“Mommy? What happens if the world ends?”
At Aria’s innocent question, Icira replied coldly,
“Everything ends.”
“Ends? What ends?”
“All life dies.”
“Die? Why?”
Aria couldn’t grasp it.
“I’ll explain later. Be quiet now.”
Watching Aria suck her finger in confusion, I couldn’t help but smile.
“Oh? What were you saying again?”
At my words, Auros asked with a hardened expression,
“You asked if our world signifies an apocalypse.”
I nodded slightly, uncertain.
“Only if we remain ignorant of Selena’s Gift.”
“Hmm… what kind of Gift could possibly be that powerful?”
Stroking his chin, Auros shook his head.
“I can’t tell. Gifts from the gods defy logic. But if I see the King of the Dead myself, I’ll recognize his Gift.”
“That’s good news. He’ll have to return to break the Seal Stones anyway.”
Auros gave a small nod.
“Very well. Icira—if the King of the Dead appears, summon me. I’ll identify his Gift.”
“Yes. I shall.”
Just then, a familiar voice reached my ears.
“Master!”
Leah and Cecilia appeared.
“Oh? Hey—everyone doing well?”
At my greeting, their faces lit up—then they glanced at each other…
“Hmph! Don’t act all friendly with me!”
“That’s right! We came to see Priest Hans, not you!”
Both flushed slightly, turning away with exaggerated huffs—I was baffled.
“So why did you come, then?”
“Well…”
“Well…”
They spoke at once, overlapping.
Oh dear… your act is way too consistent.
I saw right through them.
They pretended to dislike me—to spread bad rumors and scare off rivals.
Frankly, I hoped at least one would drop out—so I forced my lips downward.
I trust only you two.
…Well, Mia makes three, doesn’t it?
“We—we came to see Mia!”
“Yes! We’re done with each other—stop clinging so desperately!”
Cl—clinging? Me?
Cecilia’s words stung.
Desperately clinging? To whom?
But I couldn’t afford to get angry—
what if Cecilia doubled down on spreading awful rumors about me?
So I plastered on a strained smile and let it go.
‘Sigh… Better this than being torn into four pieces…’
“Oh? You’re here too?”
Another lovely voice made me turn—a gray-haired beauty watched me.
“Oh—Scarlet! Long time no see?”
She smiled brightly. “Yes, it’s been a while.”
Scarlet stepped lightly forward.
“Have you been well?”
“Same as always.”
She asked sweetly, “What brings you here?”
At that moment—
“Wait! Scarlet, keep your distance! Have you forgotten how lecherous our Master is?!”
“Exactly! If you’re nice to guys like him, they think you like them!”
At Leah and Cecilia’s outbursts, Scarlet gave a mature, amused smile.
“Heh heh—really? Besides… isn’t someone like Hans… acceptable?”
“What?!”
“What did you say?!”
Seeing the two girls flare with jealousy, I felt dizzy.
“Actually—why did you come?”
When Scarlet asked again, I scratched my cheek.
“To verify Selena’s traits…”
Suddenly, Leah lunged and grabbed my collar, shaking me violently.
“What?! Her again?! You’re checking up on her?! Even after nearly dying last time, you still haven’t learned?! You damn Master!”
“That’s right! Priest Hans! No matter how obsessed you are with women, meeting the one who tried to kill you is insane!”
“Waaah!”
Leah shook me so hard my head rattled; Cecilia punched my chest repeatedly.
Total chaos.
“E-everyone, calm down! It’s not like that!”
Mia stepped in to separate them—
“Mia! Don’t let go! He needs more beatings to wake up! How can he flirt with women in a crisis like this?!”
“Exactly! We must fix Priest Hans’s rotten mindset once and for all!”
As the petite women rolled up their sleeves, I cried out:
“No! Seriously, it’s not like that! Please!”
Just as I tried to flee—
“Hans? Where are you going?”
Scarlet stood behind me, her expression eerily calm.
“S-Scarlet? You… trust me, right?”
“I’m not so sure…”
With a chilling mutter, she seized both my arms—
“Die, you womanizer!”
“Let’s see if you can flirt even in hell!”
Cecilia and Leah charged, ramming into me chest-first.
“Waaargh!”
Only after Icira and Mia finally calmed them did I manage to explain that Selena had become the King of the Dead.
“What? The woman who tried to kill you is now the King of the Dead?!”
“That’s impossible! She must’ve approached you from the start to steal divine power! How can such a person exist?!”
Now the two railed against Selena—
while Scarlet just watched me with an unreadable gaze.
“But Hans—you knew the future. How could you still fall for her?”
“Well… Selena was unknown even to me.”
At my words, her face turned deathly pale.
“What do you mean?”
Looks like I’d have to explain it all over again…
***
The King of the Dead and Davinus sat at a table, discussing yesterday’s dungeon.
“Poison and Guardians…”
Davinus pondered how to fulfill his King’s orders.
“What symptoms did you experience?”
A reasonable question—he needed to identify the poison to prepare an antidote.
“My lungs burned as if melting. Blood surged back up my throat.”
“A burning pain in the lungs… Hmm. Was it a vapor-based toxin?”
The King nodded. “Likely. My nostrils burned first.”
“Hmm… vapor poison is rare.”
Ingested poisons were common—but gaseous ones, extremely uncommon.
“Moreover, as a Sword Saint, I’m nearly immune to ordinary poisons—but this was different.”
As a final-boss-tier entity, the King of the Dead had defenses surpassing even dragons.
Only Hans’s most potent, lethal poison—crafted to cripple such a being—had this effect.
Ordinary people would’ve died instantly from lungs dissolving in agony.
“It was the strongest poison I’ve ever encountered. I can’t even guess its composition.”
“Did the vapor have color?”
“None. But it had an intensely sharp scent—painful to the nose.”
“Hmm… if we neutralize that poison, can you defeat the Guardians?”
“Of course. Though numerous, I have strategies.”
Confident in his King, Davinus nodded.
“Understood. I’ll investigate the poison thoroughly. I’m certain we’ll find a solution.”
“Not ‘we’ll find a solution.’ You will bring me a solution—without fail!”
“Yes. I’ll do my utmost.”
Davinus’s eyes shone with faith in his organization.
‘Even a rival couldn’t create a poison with no antidote… There must be a way.’
But his assumption would soon be proven wrong.
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