NOVEL NEXT Chapter 26
『Kim Shi Yu』
●Constellation: Limen, the Primordial God
●Disposition: Chaotic Good
●Job: Apostle
●Titles: Dark Pope and 32 others
-Detailed Stat Overview-
◆Stats
◆Special Stats
-Skill List-
▲Passive Skills
▲Active Skills
*’?’ signifies exceeding the current system’s standards. 2nd synchronization is planned to occur with a future system update.
**
“In the end, nothing has really changed, right?”
I frowned while looking at the status window that appeared before my eyes.
Compared to the status window that was full of blanks in the early stages of my return, something did appear.
The problem was that what replaced those blanks were just ‘?’.
Still, it seemed to roughly display the stats and special stats I possessed.
Especially when I saw the Level 7
However, one element that I hadn’t seen in Eden was added.
The
Considering it raised the causality limitation allowed for me, it didn’t seem to be a bad thing. Of course, I still couldn’t gauge the extent of the causality given to me.
“It’s confusing.”
After briefly checking the changes that occurred to me, I casually closed the message window.
There were no noticeable changes.
The only thing that caught my attention was the <2nd Update> written at the bottom of the status window.
It was definitely a term that reeked of a foul smell, but there was nothing I could figure out at the moment.
So what can I do? I’ll just focus on the present.
As I was having these thoughts, Leo brought his hand to his monocle and said,
“What will you do with them?”
“Who knows?”
The ‘them’ Leo referred to were other players who had been watching us from a distance for some time.
They were all stiffly staring at us.
A notable point was that they were divided into two groups based on a fairly large abandoned building located in the center.
They seemed to be players belonging to the major guilds fighting in Ground Zero.
I looked at the two groups for a moment, then stopped Leo, who was about to rush out at any moment.
“They don’t seem to have any intention to fight, so why bother?”
“For Your Holiness’s safety, all risk factors need to be eliminated. They are people who saw injustice but did not fight together. I don’t think they can be trusted.”
It was a statement that clearly showed Leo’s personality, but I waved my hand and said,
“Does a priest start with fists after becoming one? Let’s try to solve it with words as you said this time.”
“Will it be alright?”
“Yeah. You just stay here and keep an eye on those trash. Someone might try to steal them.”
I pointed to Yoo Se-hyuk and the ‘human origami’ scattered on the ground with my chin.
Then Leo took out a Bible from his bosom with his left hand and answered,
“If that is Your Holiness’s will, I will do so.”
They are the ones we will hand over to the Ministry of Supernatural Management as a gift.
If left alone, the National Guild Alliance guys would probably try to completely erase the traces.
Since Leo also understood my intention, he nodded without saying much, and I patted his back before casually walking forward.
There was no need to go out of my way to find where the mana stone mine was.
It was because a quite vast amount of mana could be felt from the back of the two groups of players.
Moreover, that wasn’t all.
The magic that Leo and I felt when entering Ground Zero was also being felt from that place.
“As expected.”
I frowned and walked forward.
And finally, I arrived at the ruins where the players were positioned, and soon they revealed themselves from among the ruins.
As I expected, they were divided into two groups.
They quickly took formation on both sides based on where I was standing.
They may have intended to show the most imposing appearance possible, but they couldn’t hide their fear.
Moreover, some of them were trembling their legs so pitifully that it was heartbreaking.
They seemed to maintain their formation as they belonged to major guilds, but they didn’t even seem to have the will to fight.
Well.
If they still had the will to fight even after witnessing the merciless scene of violence just now, they would have rushed in long ago.
I smiled at them as brightly as possible and said,
“Someone might think I’m the bad guy. Loosen up your expressions. If you can’t, should I do it for you?”
At my words, they all raised the corners of their mouths, even if it was forced. A strange expression that was neither a smile nor a crying face.
It couldn’t help but be a delightful expression to see.
“I’m in a really good mood since you’re all welcoming me like this. Great, is there no one in charge here?”
At my question, after a moment, one person each stepped forward from both sides.
A woman with green hair wearing what seemed to be light armor and a black-haired man wearing medium armor.
They were people who had nothing in common, from gender to style, but they shared one thing.
Both of their faces were pale as a ghost.
I leisurely examined the two, then said in a subtle voice,
“Are you two the ones in charge?”
“That’s… right.”
“…Yes.”
“I thought there might be S-rank hunters since major guilds clashed here. But it doesn’t seem to be quite at that level, huh?”
Minister Yoo Seon-ho’s prediction was correct.
The hunters confronting each other here were A-rank hunters at best.
In other words, the conflict between guilds had not yet escalated to an all-out war.
In fact, that was natural.
If S-rank hunters had moved, someone would have surely caught the scent and rushed to the mana stone mine.
In the end, as the mining volume decreased, they wanted to take a larger share of the pie, but they couldn’t deploy S-rank hunters, so local battles took place between the easily manageable A-rank hunters.
Come to think of it, these people also did what they were told to do from above.
It was irksome that they didn’t help in my and Leo’s battle, but I had no intention of strongly pushing them.
I slightly nodded and said to them,
“Of course, the outcome would have been very different if you hadn’t put down your weapons as you are now. Alright. Now, would you two like to go see the mana stone mine with me?”
“That’s… our authority…”
“Permission from the higher-ups…”
At my words, the two hesitated and avoided answering, and I looked at them and bitterly raised the corner of my mouth.
Then, in a very cheeky voice, I said,
“Oh my. I’m thinking of going to see it right now. If you have any complaints, please tell me now… Ah, right. Ground Zero is an Lawless area, right? Haha! Ah, don’t mind it. Even though I may not look like it, I’m a religious person. I just said that because a Lawless area is interesting, just interesting.”
Even outside, the law is far, and the fist is close.
But what if even that law doesn’t exist?
In that case, you can say that the fist is everything. A very primitive structure where everything is accomplished through violence.
I think this Ground Zero is a place where that saying fits perfectly.
***
“This is the place.”
“Ah, thank you, Mr. Oh-seong. Ms. Hye-rim, thank you too.”
“Not at all.”
The ruins were once the schoolyard of a school called ‘Jungang High School.’
I looked at the crudely built entrance to the mine on the ruins and nodded with satisfaction.
I was able to hear quite a bit of information on the way here.
The major guilds that clashed in Ground Zero were divided into two factions: one faction centered around the No. 1 guild, Daeho Guild, and the other faction centered around the No. 2 and No. 3 guilds, Hive Guild and Taesan Guild.
And the person in charge representing the Daeho Guild faction in Ground Zero was Mr. Shin Oh-seong, and the person in charge representing the Hive and Taesan Guild faction was Ms. Choi Hye-rim.
The two of them kept claiming that the other side was responsible for everything on the way here, but in fact, I wasn’t interested in who launched the preemptive attack.
I just focused on the fact that they weren’t notified in advance by their superiors that I would appear here.
Moreover, they were also unaware of the identities of the criminals that Leo and I had dealt with earlier.
In a word, it meant that it was an independent decision of the higher-ups.
“The big shots collude with each other and entrust requests, while the people below continue to shed blood without knowing… It’s nice to see that it’s still the same after 5 years.”
“May I ask what you mean by that?”
“It means both of you should cheer up, brothers and sisters. Don’t worry about it.”
I lightly waved my hand, then looked at the mana stone mine again.
There was no need to go into the mana stone mine.
Just by feeling the mana, I could confirm how much mana stone was buried here.
“Hmm.”
If top-grade mana stones are being mined, then roughly 7 tons with this level of mana?
I don’t know how much mana stone was buried initially, but the fact that 7 tons of top-grade mana stones still remain was very good news for me.
If it were an ordinary mineral, 7 tons would be less than a fingernail’s worth, but it’s a different story if it’s top-grade mana stones.
If it were in Eden, all the magic towers on the continent would have participated in the auction and still had leftovers.
It’s easier to understand if you think that a medium-sized magic tower consumes about 700kg of top-grade mana stones in a year.
“The reserve amount is passable for now.”
Mana stones are not minerals needed only by mages.
Fundamentally, mana is the purest form of energy.
And what is formed when they gather is mana stones, which gain very unique properties.
When touched by divine power, mana stones transform into
The opposite is also true. If infused with magic power, mana stones transform into
“Just like now.”
I couldn’t help but frown at the magic power felt from the upper part of the mine.
As I got closer, I began to feel magic power, very familiar magic power.
The very magic power possessed by the doppelganger in Yeoju and the lich that appeared in Guro-gu last time.
I only had a hunch from indirectly confirming it from them, but if the magic power was this blatant and pure, I could be certain.
“The Demon King of Pride?”
Among the 7 Demon Kings of Eden, the one I had first torn apart.
The Demon King of Pride.
The one I had turned into ashes down to the last shred of flesh by igniting the Purification Flame.
His magic power was clearly felt in this mine.
No, to be precise, the magic power of pride was slowly engulfing the mana stone mine.
The cause of the Magi that Leo and I felt when entering Ground Zero earlier seemed to be this.
I said to Mr. Oh-seong and Ms. Hye-rim with a deeply furrowed brow,
“Has anyone recently entered the mine?”
If the Magi spreading has only progressed this much, it means that it began relatively recently.
However, at my question, the two simultaneously shook their heads and answered,
“No one.”
“Mining was temporarily suspended.”
“I see.”
I didn’t have any expectations in the first place, so there was nothing to be disappointed about.
“This won’t do.”
Originally, I was going to look around a bit more and decide, but I had to modify the plan due to the magic power of pride. Mana stones that have turned into Magi stones cannot be turned into divine stones.
I quickly made a decision and took out the
Woong!
The
“What are you… trying to do?”
“Mr. Shi Yu?”
This is why I hate quick-witted ones.
Instead of answering their questions, I gripped the Proof of Limen.
Then, a message window appeared before my eyes.
[You can declare sacred ground in the current area using the item
“I declare sacred ground.”
[The current area is declared as sacred ground.]
The divine power emanating from the
A dazzling and beautiful sight that could blind the eyes.
Beams of light that could only be described as sacred descended upon the crumbled ruins.
Mr. Oh-seong and Ms. Hye-rim were staring at the scene in a daze, and I also looked at the beautiful scene and pleasantly said,
“I have decided to dedicate this place to Limen.”
At my words, the two of them instantly returned to reality and soon looked at me with wide eyes.
“…Pardon?”
“What does that…”
I smiled subtly at their reaction and concluded,
“Limen desires this land. As one who follows Her, I really have no choice. Hoho.”