novelraw Chapter 175: A New Possibility (3)
Chapter 175: A New Possibility (3)
Translator: Dreamscribe
Particles of light swirled around Leon.
Having received the light of all the heroes and the people of Arsilan, Leon was shining far more brilliantly than before.
Kwaaa!
A pillar of light fell toward Leon and blew away the entire blackened sky. Only the pitifully closed Great Rift remained, staining the blue sky.
“How dare you…!”
The reversed Leon, whose entire body had become rags, grabbed the demonic sword with trembling hands. When he reached out toward the Great Rift, viscous fluid flowed down through the cracks of the Great Rift and was sucked into him. The Lord of Despair beyond the Great Rift screamed as all his power was being taken away.
After restoring his body, the reversed Leon swung the demonic sword toward the Leon flickering with light. However, the dark current he emitted dissipated and vanished before it could even reach Leon.
When Leon reached out his hand from within the light, the body of the reversed Leon was pushed all the way to the far end.
Kwaang!
He crashed into what little remained of a building and was buried in the rubble. Leon looked at that spot with cold eyes, then turned his body and returned to the Legion of Light.
Countless heroes and people of Arsilan looked at him.
As soon as Leon saw everyone, he immediately bowed his head.
“Thank you. And I am sorry. What happened is largely my fault.”
At Leon’s words, the heroes let out small laughs.
“No, it is fine. It was not bad being able to see a different Leon nim.”
“That is right. We recorded everything on video from beginning to end, so let us watch it together later.”
Hearing that, Leon staggered.
He covered his face with his hands and let out a sigh. Whether he had memories from the time he was the reversed Leon or not, he could not stop his face from turning red.
It was a perfect dark past.
“I will enact it as kingdom law. From now on, all broadcasts of that video will be prohibited.”
“Your Majesty. I am sorry, but under the laws of the Kingdom of Sillion, we cannot suppress the freedom of the heroes.”
Heina immediately rebutted.
Kingdom law existed solely for the protection of Arsilan. Even Leon could not change it arbitrarily.
“We will make goods as well.”
“We should just print it out and wear it.”
“We will even make clothes for you.”
Leon lowered his head.
Seeing that sight, the people of Arsilan also laughed.
There had been despairing events, but now, even if they fell into the very center of despair, they could laugh. In an Arsilan way, they had learned how to fight joyfully.
“…I have truly committed many wrongs.”
Leon’s mental state was completely tattered. It looked as though he might turn into particles of light and disappear at any moment.
Kwaaaang!
Darkness exploded from among the rubble.
The reversed Leon glared at the Legion of Light with a face twisted like an evil spirit.
The dark legion, which had been standing still, also began to move.
Once again, darkness was surging in.
Leon looked at that darkness and then formed a deep smile at the corner of his mouth.
“It is time to return the light I received from all of you.”
The true light of Arsilan.
It was a light that had never been seen anywhere until now. It possessed infinite possibilities and could embrace everything. It seemed to represent the changed Arsilan.
Leon focused and extended his hand forward.
Paaaah!
At first, a golden light surged. It was Ella’s light. Then the starlight of the guardian dragon appeared, and the colors of the heroes and the people of Arsilan seeped in. And at the end, even the darkness born within the Abyss was embraced.
Therefore, darkness was no longer frightening.
Darkness was merely a beautiful night that brought rest to Arsilan.
From Leon’s hand, a Holy Sword slowly began to be created.
A blade containing the sun, the stars, and Arsilan was formed, and darkness became a sturdy hilt that supported that light. The true Holy Sword of Arsilan, containing all the light and darkness of the world and new possibilities, finally descended before everyone.
[The true Holy Sword of Arsilan has been born!]
It felt as though the entire city of LA had been illuminated by the radiant light contained within the Holy Sword.
When Leon raised the Holy Sword high, particles of light flowed out from the Holy Sword and newly settled into everyone’s souls.
[The Holy Sword of Arsilan made just for you has been completed. The Holy Sword settles within your soul.]
*The Holy Sword that embraces new possibilities will accompany your growth.*The light of the Holy Sword is an absolute power that can stand against Erosion as well as all that is impure.
*By consuming Magic Power and Health, you can imbue the light of the Holy Sword into your weapon.
*If you meet the conditions for the 3rd class advancement, you can challenge the 3rd class advancement at any time through the light of the Holy Sword.
One had to reach a certain level to freely use the light of the Holy Sword in order to perform the 2nd class advancement. However, now Leon was standing here.
“O, ooh!”
“Th, this is the Holy Sword!”
“Kya!”
From everyone’s weapons, the radiant light of Arsilan burst forth. Upon seeing that light, the dark legion could not approach and hesitated. The reversed Leon was the same.
As if by promise, the Legion of Light all waited for Leon’s command.
“Arsilan!”
When Leon thrust the Holy Sword forward, light burst out, laying down a path of light made of particles of light. The dark legion that touched it suffered in agony as their bodies melted away.
“By order of the King! Protect the world of the heroes!”
They had been waiting for those words.
Arsilan.
We are all citizens of the Kingdom of Sillion.
We share the same light and look toward the same future.
At this place, the heroes and the people of Arsilan truly became one. The bonds built within the Arsilan Saga will continue forever, as long as the light of the Holy Sword does not fade.
“For Arsilan!”
“For the Kingdom of Sillion!”
“Gaza!”
The Legion of Light let out a roar and began to charge.
The reversed Leon swung the demonic sword, trying to wipe out the Legion of Light, but his darkness could not reach them. It was because Leon’s Holy Sword blocked everything.
Leon turned into particles of light and appeared before the reversed Leon. The reversed Leon swung the demonic sword with all his strength. Darkness that seemed capable of erasing the city was contained within it, but when it reached Leon, it quietly disappeared. It was not annihilated. Leon’s Holy Sword had even embraced the darkness of the reversed Leon.
The same thing happened to the Legion of Light.
“O, ooh! When we get hit by those bastards’ attacks, our Magic Power recovers?”
“Kya! The Holy Sword’s performance is insane.”
The attacks of the dark legion also could not deal any damage.
Before the light of the Holy Sword that embraced new possibilities, they were nothing more than bundles of experience points.
The reversed Leon flailed, wildly swinging the demonic sword. Leon watched him, then cut his wrist with the Holy Sword.
The demonic sword was embedded into the ground.
Leon reached out and grabbed the handle of the demonic sword. Starting from the blade, the demonic sword disassembled and was absorbed into the handle of the Holy Sword. At that moment, the light of the Holy Sword burned even more brightly.
The reversed Leon staggered backward, seemingly shocked by the sight.
“Th, that cannot be…”
Leon looked at him, pale and frightened, then stabbed the Holy Sword straight into his chest. He grabbed the blade to pull it out, but his hand scattered and disappeared futilely. It was an overwhelming gap that could not be bridged by one’s own strength alone.
Kwaaa!
When Leon twisted the Holy Sword, light exploded and swept over the reversed Leon. The reversed Leon completely disappeared from LA. The dark legion that had been opposing the Legion of Light also stopped moving.
Ssss!
The dark legion likewise scattered and was absorbed into the Legion of Light. At the same time, the reversed world also began to fall apart.
[The reversed world is disappearing.]
[Arsilan’s influence has reached its maximum!]
*The LA field is added to the Dimension Gate.
*Other cities that had been bound to the LA field are released.
*The LA field is dyed in the light of Arsilan.
The long and despairing battle came to an end.
“D, did we win?”
“Kya!”
“We won!”
“Finally!”
Before the heroes could even cheer, the LA citizens and tourists who had been watching with anxious hearts were the first to erupt in applause. The news was delivered as breaking news, and LA and the other cities where the Gate of Souls had been installed were swept up in a festive atmosphere.
“It was tough, but it worked out somehow.”
“This is a hidden route, right? The Holy Sword seems stronger than in the existing history.”
“Probably?”
There were many gains.
A Holy Sword far more powerful than the one that would have been born in the existing history had been created. It was tremendous growth achieved by overcoming despair.
“What do I do now? I do not want to go to work.”
“This dopamine is insane.”
The newbies who had started from Episode 4 could not come to their senses amid the continuously surging dopamine. Episode 4 was the very essence of the Arsilan Saga, concentrated to its core.
“For now…”
“Let us enjoy today!”
The LA field, filled with new quests, was waiting for the heroes.
***
The LA incident was cleanly concluded.
There had been thoughts about creating a more desperate situation or adding a twist, but ending it here was right. Arsilan had already become one.
The heroes and the people of Arsilan had come to understand each other far too well and had been dyed in the same light.
Jinwoo distributed the completed Holy Sword to all the heroes and the people of Arsilan. He placed the Holy Sword deep within their souls and opened new possibilities. Even if a higher existence of Erosion were to pour in all its power, it would not be able to affect souls in which the Holy Sword resided.
Content also poured out in the LA field added to the Dimension Gate. As soon as the battle ended, everything developed by FS Games was deployed.
The army of the Kingdom of Sillion, led by Leon and Heina, returned to Arsilan, and everyone else remained in the LA field to enjoy quests.
As soon as Jinwoo arrived at the royal palace, he went to work at FS Games. Then, in the situation room, he observed the state of the LA field.
“A hidden route… it is amazing.”
“Even the Erosion Headquarters said it was impossible to reach, right?”
“Looking at the IF story, the probability really was extremely low.”
The IF story was also released through the Dimension Gate. It allowed players to experience the IF route for a certain period of time.
Among them, the route most frequently experienced by the heroes was the Empire of Evil route. It was a story in which one became a fallen hero and followed Leon, the Emperor of Darkness, to dye Arsilan in darkness. It belonged to the route where one created an ordinary Holy Sword rather than an enhanced one and was defeated before the overwhelming power of the demonic sword.
Jinwoo planned to add the IF routes to the Dimension Gate going forward. For now, it was only a trial version, but there was potential for it to develop into full content later.
Title: Thank goodness
The Empire of Evil route is really the worst.
I cried my eyes out when Evanth was annihilated.
After analyzing it, they said that in our case, we had helped a lot in another timeline, so they came to help us. Seriously, thank goodness.
All the other routes are ambiguous too.
We almost got into huge trouble.
Anonymous1(KR): This really is a hidden route.
└Anonymous2(US): How did they even achieve this?
└Anonymous3(FR): After checking, there were really an insane number of branching points. Even if we make only the best choices, the hidden route does not open. We have to make several mistakes too.
Anonymous4(KR): God-tier game
Of course, it was nothing more than a misunderstanding, but in any case, it was a world that we were creating.
“CEO-nim! A hero attempting the 3rd class advancement has appeared.”
At the employee’s words, Jinwoo looked at the holographic information window. It had only just been revealed, yet a hero who met the conditions had already appeared and was attempting it.
‘Is it NorthernGrandDuke?’
Upon checking, it was not NorthernGrandDuke. She was carefully contemplating between the path of light and the path of darkness. The employees flinched when they saw the hero in the information window.
“RomanticBard?”
“Oh no…”
“Hurry and mute him!”
RomanticBard, who had power-leveled in the LA field, was the first to attempt the 3rd class advancement. Light flickered over his instrument, and then an information window appeared.
[Qualified hero, will you advance toward the complete light for Arsilan? Or will you become the darkness that supports Arsilan?]
[Darkness!]
SockThief next to him flinched and looked at him.
[Aren’t you deciding too easily?]
[Inner darkness, that is music.]
[Ah, I do not think so…]
RomanticBard was moved to the location for the 3rd class advancement. It was a stage with countless spectators. The spectators were dolls, and all of them were holding scoreboards.
The 3rd class advancement was a personalized trial.
An reversed RomanticBard came up onto the stage. It was a trial that required showing a performance that surpassed one’s reversed self. Unless he was clearly better than his current self, he could not overcome it.
Growth of the soul.
That was the purpose of the 3rd class advancement.
RomanticBard and the reversed RomanticBard began a performance duel.
When the reversed RomanticBard finished his performance, all of the audience seats gave high scores. It was 9.7 points. On the other hand, RomanticBard received 0 points.
“It looks like he will not be able to do the 3rd class advancement.”
“That is a relief.”
The employees said that and felt reassured.
Jinwoo also nodded.
‘For the balance of the Arsilan Saga as well…’
Honestly, Jinwoo wished RomanticBard would stay as he was. If he became any stronger here, it would be troublesome in many ways. RomanticBard challenged it all day like that. However, he could not surpass 0.1 points.
It was a complete mess of a performance no matter who looked at it. In comparison, the reversed RomanticBard dealt devastating damage to allies, but the performance itself was excellent. The employees in the situation room merely kept the information window open beside them and did not pay attention.
Jinwoo watched from the CEO’s office, then stood up from his seat when it was time to get off work. He was about to turn off the information window when.
SockThief approached the dejected RomanticBard.
[Why do you perform and sing?]
SockThief asked a fundamental question.
RomanticBard fell into deep thought, then stood up as if he had realized something. Seeing that sight, SockThief smiled faintly.
[Of course…]
[Right. Of course…]
RomanticBard and SockThief looked at each other.
Jinwoo thought that ordinary words like ‘to give joy to the audience’ or ‘to be together with the audience’ would come out. With such words, the trial could not be overcome.
[It is for myself.]
[To give joy to the audience…, huh?]
SockThief became blank-faced at RomanticBard’s words.
[I do it because I enjoy it. That is it. There was no need to care about the audience’s scores in the first place.]
[No, I think you should care about them…]
[My art is entirely my own. It is not something others should evaluate.]
[Wait!]
[I will be back.]
RomanticBard headed toward the 3rd class advancement location with a fresh smile. Jinwoo, who had been about to leave work, sat back down and watched RomanticBard again.
When the reversed RomanticBard tried to perform first, RomanticBard approached him and smashed his head with his instrument.
Pueok!
The reversed RomanticBard collapsed straight down. RomanticBard’s insane performance began. The spectators sitting in the audience wrote down 0 points, but he continued the performance.
The spectators who kept writing 0 points could not endure his performance and their heads exploded on the spot.
[The subject of the 3rd class advancement trial has disappeared. It is considered that the trial has been passed.]
RomanticBard completed the 3rd class advancement!
The body of the reversed RomanticBard lying on the floor began to melt and turned into a skeleton. That skeleton crawled over to RomanticBard and clung to his body.
[Darkness settles into your body.]
[Congratulations! You have become the Conductor of Screams!]
RomanticBard’s body transformed into a skeleton emitting blue ghostly light from its eyes.
[Lv.120]RomanticBard
Title: [A]The First Undead
Class: Conductor of Screams (3rd, Hidden)
Race: Undead
Affiliation: Romance Domain
Position: ???
[Owned Traits]
*You have acquired a new trait.
[A]Death Orchestra
Through performance, you can summon a skeleton orchestra. The skeleton orchestra will obey only your commands and will perform any piece you desires.
RomanticBard, who had become the Conductor of Screams, exited the 3rd class advancement location and appeared again before SockThief.
[Uh…]
SockThief froze upon seeing his appearance.
[Thanks to you, SockThief nim, I was able to do the 3rd class advancement.]
[Th…, please do not spread rumors that it was thanks to me. I am begging you.]
SockThief had ended up giving birth to a disaster.
Jinwoo tightly shut his eyes.
It was the moment when the first undead hero of Arsilan was born.