Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Dragon (1)
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[Configuring data based on the recorded video.]
[Reconstructing based on the collected data.]
[Avatar of the target 'Croft' has been created.]
[User's mental protection program is active.]
An avatar created based on the combat data accumulated against Croft so far.
The avatar of Croft, expressionless to the extreme, was right in front of me as my training partner.
The function that allowed me to train even skimping on sleep time was 'Deep Dream'.
A new ability unlocked with the upgrade of Admin Authority!
'It's identical.'
I couldn't help but be amazed.
Every vein, every wrinkle—it was perfectly replicated.
It didn't even feel like I was in a dream.
'Heh.'
I could only marvel anew at Zero's capabilities.
But I couldn't just stand there dumbfounded.
Aura began rising from Croft's entire body.
It was exactly what he'd shown when crushing Patrick.
I could only marvel anew at Zero's capabilities.
It was exactly what he'd shown when crushing Patrick.
But I couldn't just stand there dumbfounded.
A sword was already gripped in my hand before I knew it.
Aura began rising from Croft's entire body.
'What an immense pressure.'
I wondered if this was what Patrick had felt.
Thanks to the mental protection program, I wasn't sure, but aside from my legs trembling, I felt surprisingly fine.
I gripped my sword and assumed a stance.
My body's movements felt natural.
There was no awkwardness at all, as if it were my real body.
In that case, I could do it.
It was time to show the results of my training so far.
[Starting simulation.]
As I finished preparing, Zero spoke.
And at that moment.
"......!"
Croft was suddenly right in front of me.
The moment I sensed his presence, my sword was cleaved in two.
[Simulation ended.]
I touched my neck with both hands.
Fortunately, it was still attached.
And Croft's avatar had returned to its original position.
It must have been reset to the initial state.
The sensation of my neck being severed was vivid, but it quickly subsided.
This was also due to the mental protection program.
If not, it felt like it would affect reality too.
'I couldn't even swing my sword properly.'
I grimaced.
I hadn't expected to win from the start, but failing to even swing properly bruised my pride.
"This time, Patrick."
Yeah. Croft was too greedy.
I needed to lower my sights a bit and train realistically.
[Avatar of the target 'Patrick' has been created.]
[Starting simulation.]
Alright, this time I'll block that one strike...
[Simulation ended.]
......As expected, a Sword Master is a Sword Master.
Instead, I'm grateful that the mountain I need to climb is so tall.
The greater the sense of accomplishment when I reach the top.
"Thebeus next."
[Insufficient data on target 'Thebeus.']
Come to think of it, I'd never seen Thebeus fight properly.
He'd ultimately been decapitated by a perfect strike.
It was only natural there was no data to accumulate.
Zero said.
[You can create a virtual avatar using detailed settings.]
[Please set it according to the granular metrics derived from accumulated combat measurement data.]
Several windows soon appeared before my eyes.
—Level of an average adult male.
—Level of an elite soldier.
—Level of a regular knight.
—Level of an elite knight.
[With the combat-based metrics measured so far, avatars up to combat level 40 can be generated.]
[You can set the level and number of opponents.]
[Detailed settings for scenarios and backgrounds are also possible.]
This meant that even without recorded footage, higher-level avatars could be created as more combat data accumulated.
A universal machine that allowed fighting in every possible scenario by setting levels, numbers, situations, and backgrounds.
Admiration welled up naturally, but something suddenly piqued my curiosity.
"What level is Croft?"
[Based on accumulated combat data, the result is combat level 110. Error margin within 10%, and it may vary depending on the situation or condition that day.]
110.
Still unfathomably distant.
That's why I couldn't get a sense of it at all.
"And Patrick?"
[Derived solely from recorded footage, it reaches level 90.]
Patrick was among the stronger Sword Masters.
A powerhouse who could exchange twenty bouts with Croft.
If he was level 90, then a typical Sword Master would be around 70 or 80.
"Then what about me?"
[Master's combat level cannot be measured.]
Cannot be measured?
Meaning it couldn't be gauged.
"Why can't it be measured?"
[Too many variable factors at play. More combat data is needed.]
I clicked my tongue in disappointment.
Well, I understood Zero's point. Zero itself was such a massive variable, and the recently acquired psionic energy was hard to quantify precisely in terms of raw power.
Of course, there was no need to blindly trust these levels.
Variables arise with multiple factors involved.
Zero had said it could vary by situation or condition that day, so it wasn't an 'absolute' result.
In short, a reference point.
And this space allowed preparation and training for every possible case.
"Start with level 1, one opponent."
So, let's climb step by step from the beginning.
My goal was to test my limits, break through them, and reach the summit.
***
"......Did you not sleep well?"
I shook my head at Germin's question.
I had slept properly.
The problem was dying countless times in augmented reality.
No matter the 'mental protection program' being active, facing death nearly ten times caused the accumulated pain to surge all at once.
'I got too immersed.'
At first, I fought avatars with just level settings, but later I set multiple levels and even simulated chaotic battlefield scenarios.
'Around elite knight level.'
That was my current level.
Capable of 1:1 against an elite knight. But if I didn't insist on frontal clashes, I could handle stronger opponents.
"I'm fine. Just tossed and turned a bit."
I shook off my fatigue and stepped outside, where people had gathered in the village square.
All residents of Prelude Forest.
They sat in a circle around Pargan, heads bowed in prayer.
The northern folk all revered Pargan, treating him like a god.
"They're honoring Pargan, who protected the forest, and the deceased," Germin said.
Meaning they were finally holding the funerals they couldn't due to Marquis Brijeton.
As the sacred ritual ended, the residents rose and bowed to me.
Friendly gazes.
Because I'd traveled with Pargan?
Or for slaying Marquis Brijeton and imprisoning his soldiers?
Two children from the ritual approached me holding white flowers.
Amora and Apir, the ones I'd saved from Thebeus.
They bowed and offered the flowers.
"For me?"
At my question, both Amora and Apir nodded vigorously.
White flowers.
They believed the souls of the dead resided in them.
I couldn't grasp the meaning of giving them to me.
"Flowers offered hoping for the gods' blessings. Usually given to family or companions, but those children have lost everyone."
So they gave them to me.
A sign of gratitude for saving them, probably.
"Of course, it also means hoping to be together forever..."
Germin murmured softly with a smile.
Reinhardt receiving flowers looked utterly awkward.
He couldn't even react properly.
Goodwill from others was still unfamiliar to him.
But he needed to get used to it.
'Keep giving love and receiving it. You'll grow accustomed soon enough.'
Reinhardt was gradually changing his surroundings.
And himself along with them.
It would take time, but eventually, he'd win everyone's love.
Germin wiped away tears with his hand.
Now, he could die without regrets.
The once reclusive Reinhardt, who allowed no one into his domain, was now living and breathing alongside people.
Moments later, the two children grinned brightly and hugged Reinhardt.
"Heh, impudent little ones."
Daring to hug the Crown Prince of the Empire at will.
"How about becoming their guardian?"
"Taking them to the palace?"
"No. Once the war ends, building a school in this forest would be good. Prelude Forest is open-minded, after all."
"You think this forest will remain until the war ends?"
"......I don't know."
Germin answered honestly.
He didn't know.
Perhaps the forest itself might vanish.
If Carlos Grand Duke succeeded in his northern conquest, that would happen.
'I need to make the northern conquest fail.'
Yet I sympathized with his cause to some extent.
The North was like the Empire's cherished dream.
The mines there held immense value.
But assuming barbarians couldn't be reasoned with was a grave mistake.
Moreover, Carlos Grand Duke was mistaken.
The northern folk would never be subjugated.
They would never yield.
They'd keep fighting to reclaim their lands.
The losses from that equaled 20% of the Empire's annual budget.
In famine years, even more.
Eventually, the North would gain independence, unite, and pressure the Empire.
I couldn't go through that hell again.
"Germin. How much 'Devil's Death' did we get from Parsel the administrator?"
"Twenty oak barrels' worth."
"Enough for 2 million to inhale simultaneously."
In other words, 200,000 soldiers could inhale it ten times each.
'The stock must have been running low by now.'
Devil's Death had far higher addictiveness than other drugs.
If stocks ran out, who knew what the soldiers would do.
Supplying in bulk suggested they'd nearly depleted reserves while lingering near the holy site.
It was also for the full-scale holy site assault.
"Burn it all."
Of course, this wasn't everything.
Similar drug depots existed in other surrendered cities.
'I know the locations. Just find and burn them.'
The Devil's Death Carlos Grand Duke administered for a swift northern conquest.
He couldn't even imagine it grabbing him by the ankle now.
But after the war, when they started cutting off drug distribution tails, investigations into storage sites had occurred.
So if we found and burned them all, they'd self-destruct from within.
That would naturally open the path to the holy site.
The 7 Great Mysteries.
The North's guardian deity.
'Dragon.'
I was one step closer to it.
***
Carlos Grand Duke's face twisted.
"Thebeus is dead?"
"Yes, Your Grace. Buried with Patrick and Crowe."
It had been a while with no word, so he'd sent another tracking squad.
The news they brought was hard to believe.
Thebeus was dead.
Even with Patrick and Crowe sent along, he was dead.
They'd been sent prepared for contingencies, structured to handle Croft and escape if needed.
Yet they hadn't returned.
"It wasn't just Croft."
"Yes. At least a 7th Circle Archmage and Pargan were with him, as far as we can tell."
Mage traces and Pargan's traces were easy to spot.
With that lineup, total annihilation made sense.
"......Foolish boy."
Tsk. Carlos Grand Duke clicked his tongue.
Thebeus was the dimmest among his sons.
That's why he'd kept him in the rear, but trouble had arisen anyway.
Should he assemble another team?
Crown Prince Reinhardt coming north with intent seemed certain.
He'd sent a letter to the imperial family, but no reply.
Only word that damnable Deus was strictly controlling access to the Crown Prince's palace.
Pretending ignorance.
Or perhaps Emperor Deus truly knew nothing of this.
'What is your intent, Reinhardt.'
I couldn't read him.
He used to be the easiest to read in the world.
"Your Grace. Big trouble."
A knight burst into the tent.
"What is it?"
"'Devil's Death' shipments have stopped coming in."
"Distribution delayed?"
"No. None are arriving at all."
What nonsense was this?
The mystery was soon resolved.
"Your Grace! 'Dusk Cave' was raided!"
"'Ice Temple' was raided too."
Reports poured in.
Raids themselves weren't major issues.
Few soldiers garrisoned there.
But the problem was they were all intermediate cities storing 'Devil's Death'.
At the news that raids had occurred and all Devil's Death burned, Carlos Grand Duke clenched his fist.
"Who the hell..."
Rumble!
Fierce winds whipped around him.
The tent flew off, and surrounding knights were hurled into the air.
Boom! Rumble rumble!
Lightning raged, electricity swirling around Carlos Grand Duke's body.
Absolute Domain 'Sanctuary' activated.
An absolute authority no one could invade!
Even his subordinate Sword Masters trembled and backed away in fear.
'I'll smash them to pieces.'
Even if it was the Emperor or a god.
Killing intent swirled in Carlos Grand Duke's eyes.