NOVEL NEXT Chapter 9
“Disappear.”
The Crown Prince, soaring through the air on the wings of the Elder Guardian, swung the Holy Sword infused with Knight Ren’s prowess in a grand arc.
Kwahahahaha!
The massive blade of divine power emitted from the Holy Sword swept through the horde of monstrous creatures.
“Thank you for your hard work, Hero.”
Once the battle ended, Saint Cartecia approached him, offering a towel.
“Oh, thank you.”
The Crown Prince accepted the towel and wiped his sweat.
‘…This is too easy.’
Basically, what was given were the Hero’s body and the Holy Sword.
With the ability to absorb and utilize essence he’d gained in the last episode, coupled with the powers of the characters he’d summoned, there was no adversary who could stand against him.
It was such a stark contrast to the struggles he faced in Episode 0, where he had to navigate using only an ordinary spear and the physique of a regular soldier.
“If we keep going like this, the restoration of the surface world isn’t far off, Hero!”
The Crown Prince returned to the holy ground alongside the cheering Saint with a bright, spirited sound.
‘By the way, didn’t they say the Abyssal Minions had infiltrated this story? Why haven’t they shown up yet?’
About 60% of the monstrous creatures on the surface had already been wiped out.
If the battles continued in this manner, the complete reclaiming of the surface world was just around the corner.
The Crown Prince scratched his head and stepped into the holy ground.
It’s going to end smoothly and boringly, huh?
That can’t be right.
The Crown Prince was sure that with the Abyssal Minions involved, something unexpected would occur.
“AAAAHHHHHH!”
As he entered the holy ground, a spine-chilling scream echoed out.
– Kyaaaaah!
– Krirk!
“Monsters!”
“Save me!”
“Holy Knight! Holy Knight!”
“When will the Hero return?”
Despite being humanity’s last bastion and the safest holy ground from the monsters, it was already overflowing with them.
“This is nonsense! The holy ground has barriers personally built by the Star Lord, so monsters shouldn’t be able to enter!”
Saint Cartecia froze at the shocking sight.
The Crown Prince calmly assessed the surrounding situation.
A passage filled with over 70 monstrous creatures.
Only one of which was from the Elder Guardian’s ranks.
They weren’t particularly tough enemies.
‘Could it be that the plan was to bypass me and invade the holy ground?’
The monsters appeared to surge from the edges of the holy ground, springing forth from the Department of Mage Engineering.
‘That must be where that Abyssal Minion is lurking.’
Muttering that it wouldn’t end so dull, the Crown Prince grinned, gripping the Holy Sword tightly as he launched himself at the monsters.
KWAAM! KWAAM! KWAAM!
Having fought alongside the Saint to eliminate the monsters, the Crown Prince beheaded the last remaining Elder Guardian and flung open the door to the Department of Mage Engineering.
As he opened the door, the chilling stench of blood flooded the air, greeting the Crown Prince and his party with its foulness.
“……This is troubling.”
The horrific sight of remnants of those who were once human scattered all around was enough to leave even the seasoned Saint gasping in shock.
“……It was faster than I expected.”
In the center of the Department of Mage Engineering stood a man with slicked-back hair wearing a mask, gripping Ian Kalyuga by the collar.
“Pleasure to meet you, Hero… No, the new director of the Archive. I am Orpheus, of the Abyss.”
‘Orpheus….’
The first foe he encountered who possessed intelligence from the Abyss.
Was this individual going to be the main enemy in the future narrative of the Akashic Archive?
“Why don’t you let go of the person you’re holding? He’s not even participating in the battle.”
The Crown Prince stepped forward with a feigned relaxed demeanor, making the suggestion.
‘Now I understand why they targeted this place during the ambush. Given that the Department of Mage Engineering has been annihilated, we can’t afford to lose that person.’
The Department of Mage Engineering was responsible for repairing and enhancing weapons and armor. With them wiped out, except for their head, Ian, losing him would significantly impact their continued combat capabilities.
“You’re saying something interesting.”
Orpheus grabbed the unconscious Ian’s head with his hand.
“Sleep—!”
KRAK!
Before the Hero could utter a single word, Ian’s head exploded like a watermelon, showering blood and brain matter everywhere.
“But this sinner cannot be left alive.”
Ian’s body, now headless, collapsed weakly.
Simultaneously, crumpled candy wrappers tumbled from his pocket.
“I-Ian! No!”
“…There’s no room for negotiations.”
“That’s just ridiculous. The reserve director of the Archive is discussing negotiations with the Abyss?”
“If you insist on drinking the poison.”
The Crown Prince infused his Holy Sword with strength.
Losing the entirety of the Department of Mage Engineering was indeed a critical blow.
However, the opponent had overlooked one crucial fact in dealing such damage.
‘Eliminating this guy here would solve things.’
The only minion of the Abyss that had entered the story was Orpheus, right in front of him.
If he removed him, there wouldn’t be any adversary in this tale.
‘Considering they didn’t opt for a direct confrontation but instead employed a roundabout strategy to unleash monsters, their strength probably isn’t that formidable.’
“Reserve Director, let me tell you one thing.”
As he spoke, Orpheus’s body began to shimmer and fade into the background.
“Spatial movement! Are you trying to escape?”
BANG!
The Crown Prince quickly dashed forward and swung his sword, but only caught air.
“You can’t deal with the Abyss using such simplistic methods. You’d do well to remember that.”
Otherwise, you’ll just get devoured by the Abyss.
Before long, he vanished completely, as if he were never there at all.
“Orpheus!”
Only the Crown Prince’s shout echoed over the pool of blood that remained.
*
As the Crown Prince observed the aftermath of the unprecedented assault on the holy ground by the Abyss, he fell into deep thought.
In this situation where the repair and enhancement of equipment had become impossible, could they still clear the story?
Considering the levels of the monsters he had seen when he returned to the surface, it didn’t seem completely impossible.
‘But the real problem is that Orpheus guy.’
He had been right in front of him, yet he failed to inflict a single blow and let him slip away.
If such a foe disrupted their combat through guerrilla warfare, it would become a tremendous challenge in their current situation where they had lost combat sustainability.
“If I were my usual self, I’d probably find such hardships amusing and dive right in….”
But he couldn’t delay clearing this.
The Crown Prince had a reason to rush through this story.
[Would you like to exit the game?]
[Unsaved progress may be lost.]
“It doesn’t matter. That’s the goal.”
Beep!
Through the forced quit button, the Crown Prince disconnected from the Akashic Archive.
As the virtual reality faded, the familiar ceiling of his bedroom came into view.
Reconnecting.
As he booted the Akashic Archive again, his vision was engulfed in darkness.
[Shall we start Story Mode?]
“Yeah. Let’s begin.”
Erasing unsaved progress through the forced disconnect, he became a pseudo-reincarnator, ready to navigate the game more smoothly.
Since the Raypania continent was not yet widely populated with the game as it was on Earth, it wasn’t a commonly used technique. However, a few quick-witted players like the Crown Prince had discovered this ability to exploit and make their gameplay easier.
In the previous playthrough, the Crown Prince had refrained from using the save function at all, preparing for unforeseen circumstances.
“Hero! You’ve opened your eyes!”
[You have been summoned as a Hero born to stop the invasion from another realm.]
– You have been summoned to the underground holy ground as a hero tasked with defending against the monstrous creatures from another realm. In this world, humanity has hidden underground to escape the invasions of the Abyss. Reclaim the surface from these monsters and thwart the minions of the Abyss that have infiltrated through the cracks of the Abyss.
Thanks to the last automatic save being at the beginning of the story, the Crown Prince could return to the point where the story started.
Orpheus of the Abyss.
“This time will be different.”
With a sly smile, the Crown Prince stepped forward without hesitation.
The Crown Prince carried out the actions he had taken in the previous round.
This was to ensure that any butterfly effect caused by changes in his actions wouldn’t affect Orpheus’s behavior patterns.
‘It should be around this point.’
Then, it was the moment when Orpheus had assaulted the Department of Mage Engineering in the previous chapter.
The Crown Prince gathered all the forces of the holy ground and positioned them at the route where Orpheus had entered the holy ground, waiting.
He waited and waited.
“……Why? Why isn’t he coming?”
But even after waiting for a long time, Orpheus did not arrive.
Ultimately, the Crown Prince had no choice but to withdraw his forces. He couldn’t keep all these busy people gathered at one place for no reason.
Receiving looks that questioned, “Is this really the Hero?” the Crown Prince scratched his head.
‘I’m sure I acted exactly like in the previous round. Did something influence that Orpheus?’
The Crown Prince, intending to check back at the Department of Mage Engineering, dismissed the gathered forces and sought out Ian Kalyuga.
What he found in the Department of Mage Engineering was—
Drip drip.
“Oh. Are you finally here, reserve director?”
Devastated by Orpheus, it lay in ruins.
*
– Seriously, what’s up with this Orpheus guy? He remembers everything even after you turn it off and on again?
– High-ranking minions of the Abyss do not rely on the [story], so they can remember unsaved content.
– Wasn’t this a game? Is the [Akashic Archive] reality now?
– This is total nonsense! How can we win against this!
I laughed as I watched the players’ reactions in the community, Aperaio.
This time, the Seven Deadly Sins of Destruction made their first appearance.
They were the highest-ranking executives of the Abyss and would serve as the main villains in the [Archive Saga]. Thus, as subjective entities that are not bound by the story, they can share memories despite players having the ability to save & load.
This concept was inspired by a brutal visual novel game I played in my previous life.
It was a device to give impact to Orpheus’s introduction; technically speaking, it doesn’t fully follow the players’ regression.
The moment the player reaches the holy ground, the player’s memories are injected into the Orpheus character.
This allows Orpheus to be aware of the actions the player took in the last round, responding as if they had also faded back together with the player.
It was achievable through the Star Lord’s dreamlike abilities.
A villain character breaking the Fourth Wall.
Of course, it doesn’t break the game itself, but it is limited to the story of the Archive, and it will surely strike a shock to the players.
Since Act 1 focuses heavily on providing the villains with a narrative, it could easily feel chaotic if not done right.
From this standpoint, players may wonder if clearing this is even possible.
Yet in terms of ultimate difficulty, it is even simpler than the tutorial.
As long as the players have the will, it’s impossible not to clear it.
Because what Orpheus desires most is his own death.