Chapter 121
Chapter 121
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 121
Chapter Title: Chapter 40 - Illusion Mirror #2
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“Thank you so much. Truly, thank you.”
“You are... the Wind’s Savior, sent by the wind to rescue the children of the plains...”
The former was a centaur, the latter a wild elf.
Their ways of expressing it differed greatly, but it was clear that both sides were deeply grateful to Luther.
[Verbal thanks are nice, but material gratitude is even better.]
[Can we look forward to a little something before leaving the Wind Plains?]
Luther gave a small smile at Integra’s thrifty words, then looked around once more.
Beneath the brightening dawn, over a thousand centaurs and wild elves had gathered, creating a bustling commotion.
About half were those freed from the enchantment, while the other half were the wild elves hastily gathered after Arus spread the news and the centaurs who had fled from the night beasts.
“The centaurs never take kindness lightly. All the centaurs of the plains will engrave this grace deeply in our hearts.”
Luther responded with a smile to the words of Mukanto, the chieftain of the Windmane Tribe who had led the centaurs that fled from the night.
Then, the wild elf village chief standing beside him added his own words.
“The wind of the plains is the wind of freedom, but for a benefactor, we will gladly blow in the same direction.”
[It sounds like they’re saying they’ll help us if we help the centaurs.]
Since Luther thought the same, he replied with another smile before heading to a quieter spot.
Soon after, Arus approached.
“Lord Luther! Things seem to be under control now. Thanks to your potions, most of those who were enchanted have recovered their strength, and the centaurs and wild elves have gathered to help manage them. It’s truly a relief.”
Arus’s beaming smile was pure and innocent.
He had been too busy with the night beasts to notice, but up close, Arus looked quite young.
[Late teens, I’d say.]
[A fresh-faced boy.]
[I like how he admires Master.]
Everything revolved around Luther, as always, with Integra.
Luther chuckled softly at her words, then praised Arus, who gazed at him with eyes like a puppy awaiting a treat.
“Thanks to your swift actions, Mr. Arus, the situation was handled well. You’ve done great work.”
“No, no. What I did was really minor. And please, just call me Arus.”
He waved it off, but his lips twitched upward, betraying his joy at the praise.
Despite being a burly centaur—no, a Steel Knight—his boyish demeanor was endearing.
[Anyway, Master, shall we get moving?]
‘Yeah.’
He could bid Arus farewell and head straight to the Gate of Rebirth, but speaking properly with Arus would be more useful.
After defeating Valian, Luther brought up the topic he had planned in his mind.
“Arus, do you know about the Four Divine Beasts?”
“Yes. The divine beasts that protect the Ashanta Continent, inheriting the blood of the divine dragon Volphid.”
The Seven Great Gods Faith, the foundation of the Templar Knights, treated the divine dragon Volphid from the creation myth as one of the sacred deputy deities.
In other words, a god on par with the Seven Great Gods, but not one they worshiped and followed.
[Anyway, he knows, so this should be quick.]
Nodding at Integra’s words, Luther got to the point.
“I came here after hearing about Lord Chaldea, the North Black Tortoise. To stop the Wild Hunt rampage orchestrated by the Hecatoncheires.”
Starting with the big picture, Luther shared what he knew with Arus, who listened intently despite his surprise.
The incidents in the west and south.
The Hecatoncheires’ assaults on the Four Divine Beasts.
The deaths of the West White Tiger and South Vermilion Bird.
The rituals of the Four Divine Beasts suppressing the Wild Hunt.
The catastrophe that could occur if the Wild Hunt went berserk into the Great Wild Hunt.
And finally, the last hope to prevent it all: the Yellow Dragon’s Shrine Maiden and the Land of the Yellow Dragon where she resided.
After hearing it all, Arus’s expression grew gravely serious. He nodded heavily and said,
“Understood. I’ll relay the full situation to the Templar Knights.”
The western and southern incidents had already been reported via Ash, but adding the real-time eastern events would change things.
[But Master, will the Templar Knights really mobilize?]
‘They won’t commit full forces suddenly. But they won’t ignore this incident entirely.’
The fact that events had already occurred in the west and south was huge.
Moreover, with Executor Arus following Ash in spreading the severity, even the sluggish Templar Knights would move to address the east.
‘The real issue might be the ambiguity.’
The Hecatoncheires were indeed scheming the Great Wild Hunt, but they lurked in the shadows, waging guerrilla warfare.
Without revealing themselves, striking back wouldn’t be easy.
‘Still, recognizing the Hecatoncheires as a clear threat is crucial.’
At least, their response speed would improve dramatically when the Hecatoncheires finally showed themselves.
As the discussion wrapped up, Arus furrowed his brow in thought before asking seriously once more,
“Are you heading to the Land of the Yellow Dragon now, Lord Luther?”
“Yes, first to the High Elves’ land where the Gate of Rebirth is.”
Arus swallowed dryly at Luther’s answer, then spoke in a tense tone.
“I believe the Hecatoncheires’ threat is no longer something to overlook. May I accompany you on your journey? I want to lend whatever strength I can.”
It was the Executor himself making the offer.
Integra bounced in place as if she had known—or hoped—this would happen, and Luther smiled.
“You’re welcome. Aid from a Steel Knight is as reliable as it gets.”
“Thank you for the kind words.”
Arus smiled shyly like a boy again, then dashed off, saying he’d contact the Templar Knights and return.
Luther then found a quiet spot away from the crowd and sat down.
[Master, is the Gate of Rebirth far from here?]
‘Not too far. We can reach it in a few days riding Schwarz. Arus is quick on his feet too.’
The High Elves’ land with the Gate of Rebirth.
More precisely, the sacred site of Sacred Mountain Akunta, connected to the Hainsha Mountains.
Recalling the Sacred Mountain Akunta and High Elves from the original story, Luther closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Integra.”
[Yes, Master.]
“There’s... something I need to talk about.”
Sensing Luther’s mood, Integra nodded, her expression slightly darkening.
Luther gazed at her face steadily before slowly speaking.
“Calm down and listen carefully.”
[I’m already calm. Master, your heart rate is the unstable one.]
Trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere with a playful tone, Integra was the one visibly tense.
Her usual cheerfulness made her current fidgeting all the more pitiful.
‘But I have to do this.’
Steel himself, Luther slowly recounted the events on the Sky Citadel.
The voice he heard in that moment, charging to stop the Sky Citadel.
[Another... me?]
“Something like that. Do you have any idea what happened?”
He didn’t mention that the other Integra was closer to the “Star Savior’s Integra.”
To Luther, distinctions like real or fake didn’t matter.
He didn’t want to burden the already confused Integra unnecessarily.
[For now... understood.]
[I’ll check my internal data again.]
[Maybe the crash impact split my AI in two.]
[Yes, that would explain my somewhat deficient functions.]
[It explains why the other me can wield the Eight Divine Artifacts while I can’t.]
Integra smiled as she spoke, but it was obviously forced.
Objectively, the other Integra was far more capable than the current one.
If her hypothesis was right and the AI had split, the “main body” was likely the other one.
Meaning the current Integra was the fake.
Fake, dummy, reject.
Even as military-grade, a second-generation nanomachine that couldn’t fully parse pre-2nd gen tech—a dimwit.
A fake destined to be pushed aside when the real one appeared.
Extreme thoughts, but to Integra, they all felt like established facts.
“Integra.”
[I’ll look properly this time. If I find it and access the ‘real’ functions, maybe I can activate Schwarz’s trust right away.]
[The Ultimate Cube too—]
Luther grabbed Integra’s shoulders.
She reflexively materialized, and Luther looked straight into her confused face.
“To me, you’re the real one. Remember the talk after defeating Valboa?”
The conversation when he confessed to Integra that he had entered the game.
Integra blinked, then slowly nodded.
Luther continued to her.
“The Luther who’s been with you since opening my eyes is me, so I told you I’m your Master. Same for me. My support AI, my Integra, is you. Only you, no one else, is my Integra.”
It was sincere, unfiltered truth.
Whether the other Integra was more capable or the main body didn’t matter to Luther.
From opening his eyes in the Primordial Tree Forest to now, sharing life and death—this Integra before him was his support AI, no, his partner.
Luther looked at Integra.
Integra looked back at him with golden eyes beginning to well up.
And the time came.
The warmth and weight of Integra vanished from Luther’s hands.
Startled by the sudden loss, Luther froze, but Integra was still there, smiling brightly as always.
[Master.]
Gazing at Luther with a faint smile, Integra soon burst into laughter.
Her face flushed, lips trembling before she bit them, finally covering her face with both hands.
[14 minutes and 41 seconds left, and I’m mad about it.]
Mumbling softly, Integra steadied her breathing before speaking again after a long pause.
[Master.]
“Y-Yeah, Integra.”
[You’re pretty embarrassed right now, huh?]
He hadn’t answered immediately, but yes.
Above all, Luther was glad to see Integra perking up.
[Awkarding but cool Master gets 1 shop point.]
[Only 1 point left to 10.]
Whispering with her face covered, Integra took a deep breath, then smiled with her still-flushed but somewhat settled face.
[I’ll do my best to find the other me.]
[Because I’m Master’s Integra.]
Tears mixed in Integra’s smile, but they were tears of joy, not sorrow.
So Luther replied with a bright face.
“I’m counting on you, Integra.”
[Yes, Master. Trust only me, as always. Got it?]
“Yeah, I’ll trust only you.”
At her usual cheeky affection, Luther smiled faintly, and Integra beamed.
And two days later, in the morning.
Luther arrived at Sacred Mountain Akunta, the land of the Gate of Rebirth.
* * *
The sea where the Sky Citadel wreckage had crashed.
Out to commend the workers salvaging debris with Sandalphon, Arus unwittingly turned his head.
‘What’s that?’
For a brief moment, something had glinted.
Maybe he imagined it.
But Arus began swimming toward it as if drawn by fate.
“Princess?”
Sandalphon called from behind, but Arus didn’t stop.
When he reached out, a small metal fragment gleamed once more.