Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Augmented Reality
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Anyone would pay good money just to watch a duel between powerhouses, no matter who they were.
If they could witness a life-or-death battle between the strong, there would be no shortage of people willing to shell out a million gold to etch it into their eyes.
And if there existed an item that could 'replay' such fights between powerhouses on demand, nobles would line up to offer entire castles in exchange.
But going beyond mere playback, to recreate the movements and even let you experience the sensations?
'A treasure among treasures.'
He could confidently say that even every treasure in the imperial treasury couldn't match this single function.
No, no treasure in the world could even come close.
Guooo-.
Croft's aura blazed around his entire body like a scorching sun.
[The brain's simultaneous activation area is 18% activated.]
Without activating his brain to slow down time, it was so fast he couldn't even capture it with his eyes.
He could activate up to 25% at maximum, but pushing to the limit felt like his brain was burning up, and he could only endure a few seconds.
To take it all in for a long time, 18% was just right.
[The brain's simultaneous activation area is 18% activated.]
Every time aura clashed against aura, space itself warped.
Without activating his brain to slow down time, it was so fast he couldn't even capture it with his eyes.
A clash between a swordsman once called the strongest and a current Sword Master.
He could activate up to 25% at maximum, but pushing to the limit felt like his brain was burning up, and he could only endure a few seconds.
It was a sight rarely seen even in the chaos of war.
To take it all in for a long time, 18% was just right.
It wasn't just about watching.
Kwak!
Thanks to Zero, he was recording all those images.
Chwaaa!
Not just Croft, but to capture even the opponent's Sword Master movements in detail.
'Impressive.'
20 exchanges.
The number of clashes it took for Patrick's head to fly from Croft's sword.
Patrick was a skilled swordsman even among the Sword Masters under Carlos Grand Duke. Yet he fell to Croft in just 20 exchanges.
'Not all Sword Masters are created equal.'
The standard humanity used to measure 'strength.'
Unlike mages, humanity lacked ways to gauge swordsmen beyond simply manifesting aura.
Especially for 'off-the-charts' existences like Croft, there was no method at all.
"S-Spare me!"
"Kuaaaak!"
Kwang!
Ku aaaang!
One side grew noisy.
A massive ice golem the size of a mountain was crushing soldiers and knights.
Edis. He was a battle mage who could conjure golems using ice.
Controlling mana from the golem's core, he overwhelmed them.
The situation was resolving in an instant.
The most worrisome Pagan had also seized victory by tearing out Crow's throat.
'Excellent.'
Having savored it all, he gave his overall assessment.
It deserved a perfect 100 out of 100.
"You're awfully relaxed."
"Someone once said the most fun thing in the world is watching a fight."
To Kaisel's question, he shrugged.
By decapitating Thebeus and instilling caution in the two Sword Masters, he had done his part.
In Crow's case, he had been too wary of no-incantation spells coming from nowhere, making him a bit lax in tracking Pagan's movements.
"How long do you plan to keep up the Kaisel act?"
He shot back.
Kaisel—no, Baal—gazed at Edis on the battlefield and replied.
"I'made a contract. I'll live as Kaisel until this child's grandfather dies."
"And after that?"
"Who knows. Shall I tour the human world? Or maybe marry into your side? Ah, Kaisel would like that too. I feel oddly drawn to you—must be his taste?"
Rather than touring the human world, she aimed to exterminate humanity and become the Demon King of Baek-eun.
But that was a story for later.
For now, she showed no particular hatred for humanity.
"Tell me about the Feats."
Tsk. With a click of her tongue, she explained.
"...The gods have an aversion to 'anomalous existences.' Like you and me, for example? So they try to eliminate them under the name of 'Feats.'"
Malfiel's seventh Feat.
It was none other than eliminating the Demon King of Baek-eun.
'I could become a target of the Feats too...'
In other words, Malfiel could show up anytime, anywhere, to take his head.
Their reunion might come sooner than expected.
Or a third Feat achiever he hadn't even considered might appear.
"Don't worry too much. They won't notice if you don't do anything flashy."
"What exactly counts as flashy?"
"Any act that challenges the gods."
Challenging the gods.
That meant the Demon King of Baek-eun wasn't targeted for massacring humanity, but for daring to challenge the gods, making her a Feat target.
It probably wasn't just about fighting gods.
It likely meant any intrusion into the gods' domain.
'Trying to resurrect the dead, perhaps?'
Baal was more composed than expected.
She wasn't the type to dive headfirst into danger.
She even showed flexibility in trying to win him over.
She had shared her own authority with him, after all.
It was hard to imagine her becoming a Feat target.
Soon, the deafness faded.
Baal had lifted the mana she used to conceal their conversation.
"Your Highness, we're finished cleaning up."
Edis and Croft approached, having handled even the last stragglers.
Baal immediately switched to acting mode.
"Grandfather, are you alright?"
"Are you the one who's alright? Not hurt anywhere?"
"Yes. Grandfather protected me, so I'm fine."
She was the picture of a granddaughter doting tearfully on her grandfather.
There seemed to be no immediate danger, so it was fine to leave her be.
Forcing the A.I. removal could turn her into a vegetable, costing him the 8th-circle archmage he had just acquired.
'If she ever threatens me, eliminate her immediately.'
[Yes, Master. I've administered a minimal 'dummy data' overlay including the 'A.I. Removal Tool' via nanomachines.]
Did Baal know?
That the psionic energy she shared made creating dummy data much easier.
That it allowed him to implant nanomachines without suspicion.
It was insurance, just in case.
No one knew what the future held.
Using Edis's magic, they buried all the corpses underground, then boarded the carriage toward Prelude Forest.
The only ice forest in the north.
This place had surrendered early, avoiding Carlos's sword.
To speed up the northern conquest and reclaim the holy site, Carlos officially spared places that surrendered.
Even outside of war, Prelude Forest freely allowed outsiders.
Unlike the reclusive northern tribes, it chose openness and gained wealth in return.
It even did business with continental merchants, so a single carriage entering wasn't suspicious.
'The path to the holy site lies here.'
He had led the carriage here to head to the holy site.
"...There are quite a few imperial soldiers."
Edis noted.
In the village coexisting with the forest, there were unfamiliar presences.
Imperial soldiers.
Likely sent by Carlos Grand Duke to monitor the place.
Even after surrender, it was wise to prepare for contingencies.
But they paid little attention to the carriage.
Croft spoke up.
"They're high on drugs."
All the soldiers were drugged.
Under powerful hallucinogens and stimulants, they were acting out wildly.
Some lay collapsed on the ground as a baseline, others cackled at the air.
Of course, dosing soldiers with drugs for victory wasn't unheard of in military history.
But Emperor Deus had strictly forbidden it.
Drug addiction and dependency couldn't be cured even by divine power.
Most ended up as wrecks after the war.
Moreover, the drug Carlos Grand Duke gave his soldiers was the notoriously dangerous 'Devil's Death.'
Josephine Empress's secretly mixed 'Devil's Whisper' was child's play by comparison.
"S-Spare me!"
"Puhaha! Hear that? Begging for his life?"
"Hey, you barbaric savages! Come out and save him if you dare!"
The village was utter chaos.
Residents peered pitifully at the woman through door cracks, doors barred shut.
"Marquis Britton! Isn't this bitch a new one?"
"These black-hearted barbarians are damn good at hiding them."
"Should we raze it again on a big scale?"
Soldiers gathered in the square, grinning lewdly.
"I said to offer up all the virgins, but they're still testing my patience."
At the center, a man scowled.
Grabbing the hair of a half-stripped woman, the woman beside her wept.
"M-Marquis Britton, please spare my daughter at least!"
"You filthy slut, who do you think you're clinging to?"
He kicked her away and trampled her.
Still unsatisfied, he drew his sword and scanned the surroundings.
"Watch closely, you northern barbarians! This is what happens if you defy my orders!"
As he prepared to slit her throat—familiarly, not for the first or second time—Germin stopped the carriage.
"...What are you lot?"
The man, Britton, frowned.
He had seen merchants' carriages before, but this was definitely new.
And its style was imperial.
"These bastards. A strange carriage struts right up to me, and no one stopped it?"
Even drugged, a new carriage reaching the village center unchecked was absurd.
What was more ridiculous was them boldly stopping in this situation.
They looked like imperial merchants ignorant of northern affairs.
"Drag them out and make them kneel before me! What are you waiting for?!"
Soldiers approached the carriage.
Spotting Kaisel inside, they leered.
"Whew!"
"Marquis Britton, prime goods."
"Kill the old folks?"
Deranged enough to plunder an imperial-style carriage.
Britton approached, peeked inside, and his eyes widened.
"Heh heh heh, fortune walks right to me. Satisfy me tonight, and I'll specially spare you..."
"Croft, bare your fangs."
Srrek!
Not even a death cry.
The moment his words ended, Croft severed Britton's head.
As the head hit the ground with a thin spray of blood, the soldiers froze like ice.
Croft stepped out and addressed them.
"Kneel. Crown Prince Reinhardt is here."
Parsel the administrator paled.
Marquis Britton, in charge of this territory, dying by the blade was bad enough, but the biggest problem was Crown Prince Reinhardt before him.
'Why are Crown Prince Reinhardt and Sir Croft in the north?'
The north. Prelude Forest was far from the battlefield.
He'd never heard of imperial figures visiting, not even from other nobles or Carlos Grand Duke's house.
He could lose his head with one misstep.
"Crown Prince Reinhardt. What brings you to this remote northern land...?"
"Does my presence here bother you?"
"N-No, not at all! Surely you're here to inspect for the empire's peace!"
Damn. A slip of the tongue. He felt like he was dying. Maybe his head was already gone.
Parsel touched his neck.
Fortunately, it was still attached.
"I heard this is a midpoint supply route to the holy site. Correct?"
"Yes, that's right."
"And the place distributing 'Devil's Death' under the guise of supplies."
"Th-That's... a misunderstanding!"
Parsel shook his head frantically.
Devil's Death was strictly banned in the empire.
Traffickers or users faced execution regardless of status.
Carlos Grand Duke might ignore it, but lower nobles couldn't.
"Misunderstanding. A misunderstanding."
With a smirk and a gesture, Edis entered, opening the door.
Pagan shouldered a barrel filled with white powder called Devil's Death.
"Heuk...!"
"Administrator Parsel. The empire's laws are strict. You, as an imperial citizen, know better than anyone the punishment for trafficking Devil's Death."
"M-Mercy, sire!"
Parsel dropped to his knees.
Caught red-handed, denial meant death anyway.
Carlos Grand Duke would stand by. He'd drown the territory's soldiers, claiming Britton acted alone.
Parsel knew this well.
'He knew everything!'
That's why he summarily executed Marquis Britton.
Parsel's mouth went dry.
"Do you want to live?"
"Y-You're sparing me...?"
"No."
"Aaa..."
Parsel shed tears.
Strength drained from his body.
But his attitude flipped at the next words.
"We'll stay here for two days. Obey my orders perfectly until then, and I'll spare you."
"Any command, Your Highness!"
Thud! Thud!
Parsel slammed his forehead on the ground repeatedly.
Late evening.
Guided by the administrator, they stayed in the house where Marquis Britton had lodged.
'A soft bed.'
He eyed the bed upon entering the room.
He had missed it so much.
Like reuniting with a friend after years.
After tidying his clothes, he lay on the plush bed, sleep rushing in.
But there was something to do first.
'Zero. Execute Deep Dream.'
[Admin Authority upgraded to Rank 5, unlocking 'Augmented Reality, Deep Dream.']
[Augmented Reality can continue within Master's dreams.]
[Executing Deep Dream.]
[Beginning 'replay' based on recorded footage.]
Soon, another world unfolded before his eyes.
An empty space.
"..."
Before him stood Croft, gripping his sword.
[End of Augmented Reality]