—
Chapter 50
—
One of the hidden classes, the Bard, was revealed.
The first person to discover the Bard was ‘Lee Hyun-woo,’ whose real name was the same as his Akare nickname.
Upon further investigation, it was found that he was a promising singer-songwriter.
However, due to not promptly treating the sudden hearing loss he developed during his military service, it progressed to an acquired hearing disability.
The situation was highly condensed, but it was still a case of “the military being the military” in South Korea.
When he reported symptoms of sudden hearing loss, he received sceptical glances as if he were faking it.
And a misdiagnosis of “no issues” from an incompetent military doctor prevented proper measures from being taken.
It was just as tragic when the first Heretic was discovered, and it’s just as tragic now with the first Bard.
“A beacon of hope for those with disabilities, huh.”
Akare and reality were strictly separate domains for its players.
What happened in reality could not influence Akare, and the reverse was also true.
Of course, if something happened to a player’s physical body in reality, an automatic warning message would appear.
Ensuring the safety of Akare players was the top priority.
This was also why they insisted on capsules instead of headgear-style access devices.
“This feels nice.”
He knew well the feeling of being someone’s hope.
After all, he had once lived the life of a hero.
Each time he embarked on a journey to protect another world from the Object of Destruction,
there would always be daring little kids cheering for him beyond the departure line.
The memory of those adorable and admirable kids was still vivid in his mind.
“···Should I just go all out?”
By casting auxiliary recovery magic on the capsules. Or imbuing them with divine power.
There were already conspiracy theories, such as “Record Eye is torturing aliens alive to extract alien technology.”
In a time when people revered a mere director as a goddess and referred to a regular virtual reality as a new world,
introducing capsules that mildly (?) improved users’ health wouldn’t be too far-fetched.
- ··Would it?
I wasn’t entirely sure myself.
A small amount of divine power might work.
Something that only took effect after users spent long periods in the capsule.
“Aka-chan, could you come here for a moment?”
“You called for me.”
Aka-chan, who had been enjoying a mini tea party with macarons in the living room, came running over.
Aka-chan. Originally the Akashic Records managing the otherworld.
I wondered how the “Akashic Records” would interpret the mischief I was planning.
To seek advice, I subtly asked Aka-chan,
“Do you think Earth’s Akashic Records would permit imbuing divine power into capsules?”
“Molru?”
“Excuse me?”
“Aka-chan, you’ve been spending too much time on those community boards.”
When I gave her a pointed look, Aka-chan continued,
“Hmm… I’m not sure about that.”
“If even Aka-chan doesn’t know, then who would?”
“Perhaps it’s best to ask the entity in question directly.”
“The entity? Oh, you’re already listening, aren’t you?”
There was no need to elaborate on who Aka-chan was referring to.
I’d already noticed.
Every time I rested by sleeping, Aka-chan would meet Earth’s Akashic Records.
And right now, in this very place, Earth’s Akashic Records—
Ah, calling it that is too cumbersome.
Let’s just call it Earth-chan.
Back to the point, I had an inkling of why Earth-chan was secretly eavesdropping on my conversation with Aka-chan.
“Earth-chan is such a shy one, huh.”
Even now, despite eavesdropping, there was no reaction.
The presence of the Akashic Records could be sensed.
This was due to the resonance of the Creator’s authority.
The Creator’s authority, granted only to the Akashic Records, was also now within me.
In other words, like Aka-chan, I could sense Earth-chan’s presence too.
Because I was half an Aka-chan myself…
“Imbuing a small amount of divine power into the capsules should be fine, right?”
“Affirmative. Refusing even this would be petty.”
Silence.
They say silence means consent.
Does that mean I can go ahead?
As the thought crossed my mind, a will was conveyed.
– Akare and Record Eye must grow further. They should not falter due to a mere miracle.
So it’s a no for now.
Well, that’s understandable.
What Earth-chan truly desires is to suppress the countless Objects of Destruction existing on Earth.
Akare could be seen as a suppressor for those entities.
Current virtual reality technology and capsules are already ahead of humanity’s time.
If divine power capable of causing miracles were added to that…
It was highly likely this wouldn’t stop at mere conspiracy theories.
Akare might even become the target of a witch hunt due to conspiracy theories and agitation.
Didn’t they already try something similar not long ago?
The Gate Control Board. And the big names in the PC gaming industry backing them.
Although Akare was loved by many,
nothing in the world is loved by everyone.
Where there are supporters, there are detractors; where there are allies, there are enemies.
Those who saw Akare as an enemy could cause the very means to suppress time bombs, Akare, to collapse.
That was probably Earth-chan’s biggest concern.
“But Earth-chan also forcibly sent me here.”
I understood the reasoning behind rejecting it for Akare’s future,
but what could I do when I wanted to do it?
I made a move that couldn’t be refused.
– That’s…
“You’re not trying to brag about slightly supporting Akare’s development, are you?”
Even if you dug into it, that act ultimately benefited Earth-chan as well.
She knew that when she provided help. And such deliberate help couldn’t be considered a reward.
After everything I endured in another world,
shouldn’t I get a fair reward?
“Agreed. Not repaying a benefactor would be a disgrace to the Akashic Records.”
– Guh…
Aka-chan’s well-timed interjection felt more reassuring than an army.
‘Come to think of it, Aka-chan shared the Creator’s authority with me.’
Invisible attention shifted to Aka-chan,
but Aka-chan simply stuck close to me and cheekily stuck out her tongue.
Perhaps because of that infuriating gesture, Earth-chan’s will conveyed approval.
– Understood. I’ll trust you with it.
“You’re not planning to call it even with this, are you?”
– That’s not my intention.
With that final will, Earth-chan’s presence faded away.
“Sigh… Another task added to the list.”
Even after the Elderheim update, there were still two boss raids and countless minor patches to work on.
Now, adding the task of imbuing a small amount of divine power into distributed and yet-to-be-distributed capsules.
“Looks like I’ll be stuck in a work party for a while.”
Still, I felt good.
***
[The broadcast of Daehyeop Kim has started. – Akashic Records 30 minutes ago]
[Broadcast title of Daehyeop Kim: The Day We Head to the New Area, Elderheim]
Currently, Daehyeop Kim had entered Elderheim.
A forest densely populated with massive trees, rarely seen in reality.
Although the Empire had a hunting ground called the “Ashen Bark Forest,”
compared to the trees in Elderheim, they might as well be saplings.
The trees in Elderheim were so enormous that each one felt like a World Tree.
Vroom-!
While following the Guide Arrow of the Main Quest,
a noise that didn’t suit the nature-filled background rang out.
“A motorcycle?”
“What’s a motorcycle?”
Raven, who was walking beside Daehyeop Kim, expressed her confusion.
How was he supposed to explain this?
As Daehyeop Kim pondered, a flashy motorcycle stopped beside him.
“A human? Wow, you’re really human!”
Wearing black goggles and a black bodysuit that outlined her figure,
she looked like she stepped out of a cyberpunk fantasy, complete with a motorcycle.
But her ears were notably long and pointed, unlike those of humans.
An Elf. The figure riding the motorcycle was none other than an Elf.
“Stay right there. Move, and I’ll cut you down.”
Raven pointed her sword at the Elf who had appeared out of nowhere.
Had the awakening of the power of the Object of Destruction occurred?
Just like when the Ancient Necromancer had possessed her body, Raven’s form changed.
She became the silver-haired, red-eyed beauty that had captivated the community.
“My, my. A human threatening an Elf in the Elf’s own territory.”
“…Well, that does look odd.”
Though the scene seemed strange, it couldn’t be helped.
The widely known image of Elves didn’t match the one before them.
“Interesting. You’re an odd bunch, aren’t you?”
“Odd?”
“Yeah. I’m odd, too. An odd Elf who enjoys traveling the world despite being born an Elf of Elderheim.”
The Elf extended her gloved hand.
“I’m Celestia. Nice to meet you.”
“Uh… I’m Daehyeop. From the Empire.”
Daehyeop Kim shook the hand Celestia offered.
Then, he felt a sharp gaze from beside him.
“And the scary odd lady over there, what’s your name?”
“…Raven.”
“Raven. That’s a nice name.”
Seeing Daehyeop Kim’s gaze frequently shift toward her motorcycle, Celestia tapped it lightly.
“If you’re from the Empire, this must be your first time seeing one. This is a magical engineering bike, a specialty from ‘Neo Metal City,’ located at the edge of the continent. It’s a high-speed transportation device made with independently developed magical engineering. Just swap out the mana stones, and it can run almost indefinitely. The riding experience is fantastic—when you go full speed, it feels so exhilarating that…”
“Stop. That’s enough of an explanation.”
What a peculiar one. A TMI-loving oddball.
For the sake of smooth broadcasting, Daehyeop Kim cut her off.
Though Celestia smacked her lips in disappointment, she didn’t bring up the magical engineering bike again.
―――
So there’s cyberpunk in this world too?
Wow, lol.
Probably won’t appear until much later.
Celestia’s motorcycle is massive, geez – [Deleted message.]
Haah… Celestia noona…
Raven being jealous is so cute.
―――
“By the way, what brings you two to Elderheim?”
“We heard news that the World Tree was in danger, so we came to resolve the issue…”
“A human, not an Elf? Pfft! I thought only the girl was odd, but you’re an oddball too!”
In truth, they had come to prove whether Raven could truly be an ally to humanity.
However, since Celestia didn’t know this,
she simply saw Daehyeop Kim and Raven as fellow oddballs.
Oddballs like her.
“Unfortunately, you’re too late.”
“What do you mean?”
Just then, a gust of wind blew.
It wasn’t an ordinary breeze.
Chills ran down their spines, and an indescribable sense of foreboding crawled down their backs.
“You felt it, didn’t you? That something was wrong the moment you stepped into Elderheim?”
Elderheim, the homeland of the Elves, was a closed nation.
Humans couldn’t enter. The two races were practically mortal enemies.
Of course, thanks to a hero who saved Elderheim a thousand years ago, their relations had slightly improved.
But a thousand years was enough time for the Elves who had received the hero’s grace to return to nature.
Naturally, as generations changed, relations reverted to how they had been.
Under the influence of Elven mana and the World Tree, Elderheim became a place humans couldn’t access.
“Usually, when a human intrudes, the Elven guards come to threaten and chase them away. But have you met any Elves besides me?”
Daehyeop Kim shook his head to deny it.
“As an Elf, I can sense it. Our Mother has returned to how she was a thousand years ago.”
“The Twisted World Tree…”
“Oh, so you know? I didn’t think you would.”
How could he not?
Standing right beside him was a living, breathing Object of Destruction.
Not just one but a being infused with two Objects of Destruction.
“First, I’ll change my clothes.”
“Do you really have to do it here?”
“Yes. When returning home, it’s customary to wear traditional attire.”
“…I see.”
Raven, who had been quietly observing, hugged Daehyeop Kim from behind.
She then raised her hand to cover Daehyeop Kim’s eyes.
Seeing this, Celestia whistled and smirked.
“What a cute couple. There was no need to cover his eyes, though.”
Snap-!
As Celestia snapped her fingers, her outfit instantly transformed.
―――
A magical girl? Seriously?
What the hell, Aurora!
We didn’t even get to see it!
They switched to third-person perspective, damn it.
Ugh, Aurora is such a tease.
So this is the wandering Elf from the teaser.
Lol, Aurora, handling viewer requests like a pro.
―――
The moment Raven covered Daehyeop Kim’s eyes, the perspective switched to third-person,
preventing viewers from seeing Celestia change clothes.
Disappointed viewers showered Aurora with sarcastic praise.
—
Read More at – GENZNOVEL.COM!!
PLEASE JOIN OUR DISCORD AND SUBSCRIBE THE ROLE TO RECEIVE LATEST NOTIFICATIONS!!
Click here -> https://discord.gg/S8c2kGVr2g
Comment