Chapter 337
Chapter 337
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 337
Chapter Title: Wave of Precepts (2)
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The Ice Queen slowly raised her hand and spoke.
“Weak mortals, kneel before me.”
The Ice Queen's voice was so serious that the tourists clapped and cheered, enjoying the show.
“Great voice! That was pretty convincing!”
“Hey, Your Majesty! Look over here! Come on, let's get a handshake with the Ice Queen while we're at it... Gack!”
The man suddenly clutched his throat and dropped to his knees.
The same thing happened to everyone else simultaneously.
Their faces, flushed with blood, looked as if they were about to burst. They desperately gasped for air, but their breathing only grew more ragged.
The only ones still standing normally were Shirone and his companions.
Shirone observed the change in the people. Somehow, necklaces with conical spikes had been fastened around their necks.
Liria frowned and muttered.
“Is that a Collar of Precepts...?”
A Collar of Precepts was an exorcism tool of the Exorcist Assembly that embodied the principles of the Precepts in its form. Its effectiveness was maximized the closer it was to a perfect circle.
The ones available to civilians were mere imitations, capable of little more than promoting mental and physical stability.
However, an official Collar of Precepts, the kind carried by an exorcist, could not even be crafted by anyone less than an arms master who had reached the state of Nirvana.
In Liria's eyes, the collars around the people's necks were genuine.
Although the perfection of the circle couldn't be distinguished by the naked eye, exorcists with long years of training could sense the nature of the circle with their mind's eye.
“A Binding Collar of Precepts. It's not of this world. You all be careful. If you get swept up in the wave of Precepts, you'll end up just like them.”
As everyone affected by the wave of Precepts lost the strength in their legs and knelt, the collars loosened, finally allowing air into their windpipes.
Ragged gasps could be heard from all around.
“Gasp! Cough! What is this? Who put this collar on me?”
“Hey! Somebody please get this thing off!”
Watching the people cry out in terror, Jokre felt a thrill run down his spine.
The form of the collars was a manifestation of the Ice Queen's unique memories, but the method of choking people was a strategy he had suggested.
The Ice Queen could change the rules of the world.
He had wondered if this was truly possible, but seeing everyone on their knees made him realize it with certainty.
The legend of the Ice Queen, who had dominated an era 800 years ago, was entirely true.
‘It worked! It really worked! I can't believe a day like this has come for me.’
At this rate, ruling the world was no longer just a dream.
What's more, perhaps due to her 800-year hibernation, she couldn't remember anything from her past.
The sorceress who had once made the world tremble in fear had become like a child who could be coaxed with a piece of candy.
‘The Ice Queen will be mine.’
His plan was to sort things out here and then gently persuade the Ice Queen to become his woman.
Dating someone over eight hundred years old was strange, but it seemed she would yield if he persuaded her well, and above all, she was beautiful.
Her looks didn't fall short in the slightest, even when compared to Amy, who had coldly dumped him five years ago.
While he was lost in such delusions, the Ice Queen turned to him and asked.
“Is this how it's done?”
Jokre smiled with satisfaction at the Ice Queen's attitude, relying on him and asking about every little thing.
But there was no need to displease her yet, so he bowed his head as if addressing a real queen and replied.
“Yes. Everyone will come to obey you, Your Majesty.”
Liria realized that Jokre's influence was at play in most of the elements that constituted the Ice Queen's personality.
‘So it's just as the prophecy foretold...’
As with most myths of advent, the Ice Queen had met a single human and was now poised to plunge the world into a pit of evil.
Shirone watched the grim spectacle of hundreds of people kneeling with a weary expression.
“What in the world is this? It doesn't seem like magic.”
It was a natural question for someone who knew nothing of the Precepts.
This wasn't an equivalent exchange.
There was no way to fasten choking collars on hundreds of people simply because they didn't follow an order.
Even the Irregular Formula of Igirīn, the Fairy Chief of Heaven, wasn't this bizarre.
Dante, having no time to explain, said curtly.
“It's an ability called the Precepts. Be careful. That woman has the power to change the rules of the world.”
“Change the rules?”
The first thing Shirone thought of was the Akashic Records.
But no being, unless they were an Infinite Mage, could warp the rules on such a massive scale.
That left only one possibility.
It was the Akashic Records to begin with.
“Is she... some kind of conceptual entity?”
Liria's eyes widened, and she turned her head.
To see a spiritual entity incarnated in a human body and grasp its essence was impossible for anyone not versed in the spiritual arts.
‘This boy... he knows about the Precepts...’
Most people live their lives unaware that the world operates according to a set of overarching rules.
It was astonishing that Shirone knew the mechanics of the Precepts, a secret passed down to only a select few even in the sanctums.
“That's right. She was a spiritual entity whose rank couldn't even be measured to begin with. It's a phenomenon called a Demigod. It's impossible for you, who don't know the Precepts, to defend against her. Don't leave my side.”
Amy raised a fist and shouted at Jokre.
“You! What in the world are you plotting?”
“Hahaha! Plotting? You still think this is a game? We're going to conquer the world.”
“Stop talking nonsense! You want me to hit you for real?”
Jokre scoffed and addressed the crowd.
“Everyone, worship the Queen. If you do not obey, Her Majesty's Precepts will kill you.”
As the collars tightened around their necks, the pale-faced people supported themselves with their hands on the ground, choking and sputtering.
Then, with strained voices, they cried out.
“L-Long live the Queen!”
“We will follow the Queen!”
When the complexions of those who worshipped the queen returned to normal, Shirone finally grasped the gravity of the situation.
The Precepts were even being applied to Jokre's commands. Unlike magic, which logically designated a target, the Precepts were a process of rebalancing the whole.
As the praises for the Ice Queen pierced the sky, Jokre experienced a pleasure he had never felt before in his life.
It felt as if they were all worshipping him.
“How about it? This is my power. If you join me now, I'll spare you from ending up like them.”
Jokre expected Shirone's group to be trembling in fear. But contrary to his expectations, none of them moved; they were just watching the situation unfold.
Dante, with his hands in his pockets, sauntered forward at an angle.
“Hey, you. Have you lost your mind? Do you have any idea what you're doing right now?”
“Ha! You think I'm crazy? Don't be ridiculous! Can't you see the state these people are in? You'll all end up just like them.”
“You just nearly killed hundreds of people.”
The color drained from Jokre's face.
“Saying you'll rule the world? Do you even know what that means? You can really take responsibility for those words, can't you?”
“Kugh...!”
Jokre couldn't answer.
Becoming the ruler of the world was an ambition every man had dreamt of at least once. But in reality, he was just a man who didn't want to go to prison, and even more so, didn't want to die.
The Ice Queen could change the rules. Therefore, if he put a leash on them, they would obey his commands, if only because they didn't want to die.
This was the full extent of Jokre's calculated thoughts.
But what if they refused?
They would all become corpses with broken necks.
Of course, no one in the world wanted to die, but just imagining it sent an unbearable fear creeping over him.
‘Can I really conquer the world?’
Perhaps he had gone temporarily insane, just as Dante said.
As he was thinking this, he heard Vivian's voice.
“Hmph! So what? If they listen to us, no one dies! In that case, you'll be the first victims!”
Jokre turned to Vivian with a dazed expression. Overnight, the look in her eyes had completely changed.
“Did you think you'd be the main characters forever? We're the ones in control of this situation now!”
‘Vivian...’
Jokre looked at Vivian and understood.
She was prepared to lose everything to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
That's right, there was no turning back now. Having come this far, he had to see it through to the end, no matter what.
A grand enterprise requires courage, after all.
Having regained his composure, Jokre stepped forward with his hand outstretched.
“Kneel, Amy. And beg for my forgiveness. If you don't, I will kill everyone here.”
Shocked by Jokre's words, the people lifted their heads. It already felt as if the collars were tightening around their necks.
“Hey! Kneel! We're really going to die at this rate!”
“You damn brats! Just do what he says! Beg for forgiveness!”
The tourists didn't care what Shirone's group had done wrong to Jokre.
If they didn't follow the order, everyone would die.
Even if they had done nothing wrong, it was only right that they obey Jokre.
“Beg! Beg them for all you're worth! I have a wife and kids! It's nothing!”
“Please, save me! Do as he says!”
No one in Shirone's group moved.
If they ceded control here, they would be dragged along by Jokre's group from now on.
Amy glared at Jokre with cold eyes.
“Why me, of all people? Why are you so set on getting an apology from me? Is it because I didn't accept your feelings?”
As Amy hit the nail on the head, Jokre's face turned red.
Gone was the flustered girl from the skating rink. This was a battlefield, and worrying about personal feelings was a luxury.
‘It's working. That guy, did he really want an apology from me because of that? How foolish...’
Provoking Jokre wouldn't necessarily lead to a good solution, but to create variables, she had to rattle her opponent.
Just as planned, Jokre couldn't hide his bewilderment. He felt as if his petty-mindedness had been exposed, and anger surged within him.
“Shut up! If you don't do as I say, everyone dies! Are you really saying you don't care if all these people die?”
Dante said.
“If people die, it'll be you who killed them. We didn't do anything. Go ahead, become a murderer and live as a fugitive for the rest of your life.”
Dante was serious.
For a mage, distinguishing between good and evil was not a particularly important issue. In a situation with no solution, it was better to sacrifice people than to let things spiral into the worst-case scenario.
“Amy, don't be swayed by a guy like that. He doesn't have the guts.”
Jokre shouted threateningly.
“Hmph! Is that so? You want me to really kill them? Huh!”
The terrified people hurled abuse at Amy.
“You damn bitch! Are you trying to get us all killed? Kneel! Beg for forgiveness!”
“Please, save me! We're all going to die!”
Amy bit her lip.
Her judgment was no different from Dante's. Giving in to their demands would only lead to greater ones.
But as the one being singled out, with hundreds of lives hanging on her decision, her blood ran cold.
“Let's buy some time. I'll do as you say.”
As Amy approached, the corners of Jokre's mouth lifted.
‘Of course. Who does she think she is to resist?’
Just then, Shirone grabbed Amy's shoulder. As Amy turned with a surprised look, Jokre's eyes flashed with anger.
“What do you think you're doing? You want to protect your girlfriend's pride even if it means everyone dies?”
Shirone didn't bother to deny it.
“That's right. Amy has no reason to obey you.”
Jokre's face twisted.
Was this the so-called cold-heartedness of a mage?
No, it was arrogance.
There was no way that protecting his lover's pride could be more valuable than hundreds of lives.