"Are you trying to kill me?!"
Ryou shouted as he dodged frantically.
Those beams of light seemed harmlessly bright, but that was completely an illusion. Each one, infused with the magic of Venus, possessed the attack power of at least an A-rank.
With Ryou's small frame, even in his regular state, let alone using a descent card to transform into a heroic spirit, he would be gravely injured just by touching them.
Fortunately, although Ishtar was angry, she knew her limits. The golden beams, while closely pursuing him, were still quite far from his body. Ishtar was venting her anger rather than trying to harm him.
Finally, Ishtar seemed to have calmed down. The golden beams sank into the ground, instantly creating several bottomless holes.
Ryou briefly introduced Ishtar to Jeanne and Siegfried. Though the two were surprised by Ishtar's origin, they didn't ask too many questions.
Siegfried, in his current state, resembled a robot learning to mimic human emotions—constantly observing but never commenting. As for Jeanne, although she was quite puzzled by Ishtar's origins, being in the same space as Ryou made her feel an uncontrollable urge to escape. It wasn't dislike, but rather a mix of sweetness, like caramel pudding, and the bitterness of her duties being desecrated.
In summary, her feelings were too complicated to handle, so she chose to avoid the situation for now.
Ryou, however, couldn't worry about Jeanne at the moment. He pulled Ishtar aside, making a secret hand gesture to signal Medea, who had been observing quietly, to follow.
"How did you break free from the dimension state? I mean, how did you make yourself visible to the people of this world?"
Ryou fired off his questions rapidly.
Ishtar, looking utterly bored, played with her hair and extended her right hand.
"...You're ruthless!"
Ryou gritted his teeth and spent 10,000 energy points from the system to exchange for five gems that were beautiful but useless in combat, placing them in Ishtar's palm. As soon as he did, Ishtar quickly retracted her hand, as if afraid he might take them back.
"Thank you for your patronage!"
She eagerly admired the gems under the moonlight, praising them as she did.
"Wow~! As expected of a Master, so generous!"
"Hey, you're a goddess. Can't you have a little more dignity? I refuse to believe these gems caught your eye!"
Ryou couldn't help but complain.
Ishtar shot him a disdainful glance.
"What do you know? The most beautiful treasures are those taken from others."
This woman was surely a devil in goddess's clothing!
Ryou was now one hundred percent certain.
"I've compensated you, so can you answer my question now?"
Still playing with the gems, Ishtar answered nonchalantly.
"What's so hard about that? Even that little girl next to you can easily do it. All it takes is a bit of spatial manipulation."
Ryou quickly turned to Medea.
Medea nodded obediently.
"Master, I only just figured it out. Actually..."
She then launched into a long explanation.
Ryou recognized every word she said, but when strung together, his brain couldn't process it.
Ryou glanced at Medea, who was talking non-stop. As expected of future Witch of Betrayal, her knowledge is top-notch!
"No need to make it so complicated. Just think of it as creating a bounded field around our bodies, similar to a spatial door, allowing us to observe the outside world at any time."
With that explanation, Ryou immediately understood. It was like the function of a certain eternally seventeen-year-old... beautiful girl, similar to a gap.
Wasn't this a divine skill for ambushes!?
As if seeing through his expectations, Ishtar added another sentence.
"But this requires extremely precise manipulation of magic, which takes up most of our energy. It's fine for normal activities, but forget about using it in combat."
So it's practically useless... Wait!
A flash of inspiration struck Ryou's mind. An excellent idea emerged—who said a skill that only makes them visible is useless? And who decided that? The only one who can decide that is me!
After a moment of contemplation, Ryou realized his plan was indeed feasible.
It was true: only players could be useless, not the skills they possessed.
...
Putting aside the lively and cheerful atmosphere on Ryou's side for now.
One of the losers in this three-way meeting, the Yggdmillennia Clan, was shrouded in misery.
Astolfo's Master, the silver-haired mature woman Celenike, was in a rage.
No, that couldn't even be called anger anymore—she had completely blackened.
She dragged a person who resembled Rider into her little black room and shut the door.
Then came various shrill screams and maniacal laughter from inside.
After a long time, the sounds gradually stopped.
Celenike emerged, wearing nothing but seductive lace underwear, her snow-white skin and stunning figure fully exposed to the air.
What should have been an utterly tempting scene, if not for the blood and internal fragments splattered on her body and the crazed expression on her face.
The wooden table beside her had turned into an execution stage from a horror movie, with blood mixed with internal fragments forming a lake. The homunculus's body on it was completely unrecognizable.
The candlelight in the room flickered, casting Celenike's shadow on the blood-stained wall, making her look like a terrifying mad demon.
"Astolfo! You are mine! You will always be mine! I won't let anyone take you away! Hahaha!!"
Her eerie laughter pierced through the thin wooden door, echoing throughout the castle, making even the nearby patrolling homunculi instinctively avoid the area.
By tomorrow, when she realizes her connection with Astolfo is completely severed, who knows what kind of madness she will fall into...
Tonight was destined to be an uneasy night for the Yggdmillennia Clan.
Avicebron returned to his room alone.
He quietly gazed out the window, his face hidden behind a brass mask, making it impossible to discern his thoughts.
Avicebron felt the growing rift between himself and the Black faction.
The Golem Workshop, hiding the incomplete Noble Phantasm, and even the increased number of patrolling homunculi outside his room made it evident.
As a great magus and the founder of Kabbalah magic, Avicebron naturally had an extraordinary mind. He could easily see that he was being watched, isolated, and marginalized.
"Having identified the threat, they will soon dismantle the incomplete Golem Keter Malkuth. For the sake of my wish, there's only one path left..."
Avicebron murmured to himself.
He raised his bronze-gloved hand and pressed it to the ground.
The granite floor immediately formed a lump, then quickly transformed into a small stone figure, as if molded by invisible hands.
Avicebron casually pinched a miniature golem into shape, showcasing his profound mastery of golem magic.
"Go!"
Avicebron waved his hand.
The palm-sized golem immediately sank into the marble floor, following his command. The marble rippled like water, but soon, there was only a faint ring of ripples left as the golem completely submerged, moving towards Avicebron's target.
The homunculi patrolling outside the door did not notice any anomalies inside, nor did they detect the slight ripples under their feet on the marble floor.
In the clan leader's room of the Yggdmillennia Castle, Darnic was downing vodka one glass after another.
He reeked of alcohol, with his clothes dotted with spilled liquor.
The once high-spirited and noble-like Darnic now seemed like a dejected and desperate loser in life.
A beautiful homunculus maid, dressed in traditional maid attire, sat beside him, tending to his wounds.
Homunculi, adjusted by Gordes, was already above average in appearance.
And as the clan leader's maid, her appearance was top-notch, exquisitely doll-like.
Moreover, the lack of emotional fluctuations in homunculi gave her a cold, iceberg-like demeanor, adding to her allure.
This exquisite doll quietly sat beside Darnic, treating his wounds.
The wound on Darnic's severed hand had long been treated by Fiore, but the hand with the Command Seals was kept by Vlad III.
After Darnic's incident, the former king of Romania no longer trusted anyone.
As the leader of the Yggdmillennia Clan, he had been reduced to nothing more than a magical battery for Servants. No, even less than a battery.
Using Gordes' homunculus technology, a large number of homunculi served as magical batteries, ensuring the Black faction's Servants never worried about mana, while the Yggdmillennia clan's magi could freely use their magecraft.
The logistical preparations of the Yggdmillennia Clan were first-class.
But now, it seemed like the biggest mockery to Darnic. He was merely a wedge to maintain Vlad's manifestation in the world, nothing more.
This effectively excluded him from the Holy Grail War, kicking him out before it even began.
Disheartened, Darnic handed all affairs over to Fiore and locked himself in his room, drinking alone.
Crash!
He lost his grip on his glass, which fell to the floor, spilling cold liquor all over him.
The maid beside him showed no impatience, quietly picking up a silk cloth to wipe him down.
Darnic had always been indifferent to homunculi, seeing them as less than chess pieces—just useful tools.
But today, under the influence of alcohol and despair, he felt a strong impulse.
With a sudden roar, he pounced on the maid, knocking her onto the bed.
As he moved violently, the thin fabric flew into the air like snowflakes.
Darnic pressed down on the maid...
Throughout, the maid did not resist his rough actions. Instead, she gently held his head to her chest.
Soon, the room was filled with sounds of bestial growls and heavy breathing.
After a moment of passion, Danik suddenly said coldly, "Leave."
Facing Danic's ruthless command, the Homunculus maid had no complaints. She silently sat up.
Her fair and smooth skin was covered with various wounds—bruises, redness, bite marks that drew blood, and scratches from nails.
The Homunculus maid, seemingly oblivious to the pain, quietly dressed, bowed, and then left the room.
Once the footsteps of the Homunculus maid faded away, Darnic suddenly grabbed the staff by his side and activated the bounded field of the room, ensuring that no one could investigate what happened inside.
"Come out, Caster! I know it's you!"
Darnic said, his gaze sweeping towards a spot on the wall.
Just moments ago, while he was working on the maid, he sensed a wave of magical energy emanating from that direction.
With Darnic's intelligence, it took only a moment to understand that the only one who would visit him, the disgraced head of the Yggdmillennia, was none other than Avicebron, who had also been ostracized and pushed aside.
"I thought you would be down for good. It's good to see you so spirited…"
A small golem emerged from the marble, and Avicebron's voice, as calm as still water, came from within.
"Spare me the pleasantries! There's no point in probing or beating around the bush when we're the only two failures left in the entire castle!"
Darnic rudely interrupted Avicebron before he could finish speaking.
"Indeed, but I don't consider us failures. If you cooperate with me, we still have a chance to turn things around."
Even when trying to persuade, Avicebron's tone remained flat and unmodulated, showing no talent for coaxing. However, his target of persuasion was Darnic, who was in the same desperate situation, which made the outcome different.
"Turn things around? Just the two of us? And what makes you think I would listen to someone as dangerous as you, who hopes to bring about the end of the world?"
Darnic questioned loudly, using it to cover his feelings of inferiority and pain.
Avicebron paid no mind to Darnic's rudeness and continued to persuade in his calm tone.
"Because you have no choice, just like me. Your servants, your clan, and your friends no longer trust you. You have nothing left but an empty title. Oh, and maybe those artificial humans who are like dolls."
Despite Avicebron's calm voice, Darnic picked up on the clear insult, and anger surged within him. He grabbed a nearby candlestick and threw it, shouting, "Shut up!"
The candlestick crashed against the wall near the miniature golem, and Avicebron fell silent. The room was filled only with Darnic's heavy breathing.
Suddenly, Darnic burst into maniacal laughter, his expression filled with madness.
"Hahaha! You're right! Since these bastards have taken everything from me, why shouldn't I drag them down with me? What does it matter if the world is destroyed? What does it have to do with me? Tell me, what should I do!"
Darnic stopped laughing and coldly stared at the miniature golem. He knew Avicebron was observing him through the golem, but he didn't care. All he had left was a murderous intent ready to overflow.
"Rest assured, we Kabbalah magus follow the principle of equivalent exchange. You will benefit greatly from this cooperation," Avicebron's voice came again from the miniature golem.
"It doesn't matter! The Mage's Association, the Yggdmillennia, that damned vampire, and most unforgivably, that man—I want them all dead!"
Darnic's remaining left hand clenched tightly, so forcefully that the wound on his right severed arm reopened.
"As you wish..."
The miniature golem's eyes blinked, emitting an eerie light.
In the vast Yggdmillennia castle, another person was drowning his sorrows in alcohol.
"Bastards! Every single one of them looks down on me!"
Gordes drank the liquor in his cup in one gulp and then threw the glass harshly onto the floor.
Crash!
The glass shattered into pieces, scattering everywhere.
"Damn it, that supposedly fair and just Ruler! Without any reason, they just took my Servant from me, the Master! How infuriating!"
"Ah! What should I do!"
The mocking gazes of the lower-level magi of the Yggdmillennia haunted Gordes, making him wish for death. He frantically tugged at his golden curls as if trying to pull them all out.
Thud, thud, thud!
At that moment, someone knocked on his room door.
"Who's there? So annoying!"
Drunk and grumbling, Gordes opened the door.
A figure exuding a cold aura stood there.
"It's me."
"Da-Darnic... Clan Head! Why are you here?"
Darnic's long-standing authority instinctively made Gordes feel fearful.
Especially since he had just been ranting and cursing while drinking, cursing nearly everyone, including Darnic.
Now, with Darnic appearing at his door, Gordes felt a pang of guilt and wondered if Darnic had heard him and had come to confront him.
"Gordes, it seems like you're doing well."
Darnic's face showed a sinister smile.
Seeing this, Gordes couldn't help but shiver. He had been suppressed by Darnic for so long that he had developed a psychological shadow. In front of Darnic, he felt like a mouse facing a cat.
"No, no, how could I be? Clan Head, I didn't know you would honor me with your presence. What brings you here?"
Gordes's face immediately showed a fawning smile as he rubbed his hands together.
"Ah, I just have something to ask of you."
Darnic suddenly showed a bizarre smile.
His staff moved with lightning speed, pressing against Gordes's forehead. The gem at the tip of the staff began to emit a strange purple-black glow.
"Let me borrow your body for a while."
"Da-Da..."
Still in a drunken stupor, Gordes couldn't react in time.
It wasn't until the staff touched his forehead, and he felt a bizarre force drilling into his brain, that Gordes snapped awake.
But before he could cry out, a strong sense of drowsiness overwhelmed him, and he lost consciousness.
In Darnic's eyes, Gordes's eyes immediately lost their luster.
"Success..."
Darnic sighed in relief.
Looking at Gordes, now like a puppet, Darnic's face twisted into a cold smile.
"Gordes, I will remember your contribution. When I become the god of the new world, hahahaha!"
The light illuminated his face, which was filled with a manic grin, resembling a gambler who had lost everything and was making a final desperate bet.
At the same time, Roche, who was in the golem workshop, received a telepathic message from his Servant, Avicebron, instructing him to bring a valuable magical material to the lakeside.
Roche hesitated for a long time, but his eyes eventually hardened with determination.
Soon, a small figure clutching a bandaged object sneaked out of the golem workshop and headed towards the lake.
Under the moonlight, the shimmering surface of the lake reflected a silvery glow, but who could have imagined that a terrifying golem with world-ending power was hidden beneath this beautiful scenery?
"Master! Master! I've brought what you wanted."
Roche said as he handed over the bandaged object, about the size of a baby.
"You did bring it, but what I want is none other than you, Roche!"
Saying this, Avicebron suddenly extended a finger and shot a purple magic bullet, severing the arm with the Command Seal, and then grabbed Roche by the collar.
Roche, only a thirteen-year-old boy, screamed in agony from the sudden pain of losing his arm.
However, Avicebron, seemingly indifferent, lifted him by the collar.
"You are precisely the chosen one, the best core for the Golem Keter Malkuth. When the world becomes a paradise, it will remember your contribution..."
As Avicebron spoke, the lake waters began to ripple, and a gigantic, monstrous humanoid golem slowly emerged from the water.
Its entire body appeared to be made of dark gray rock, with a semi-circular arc extending from its back and four long bone spikes. Its head resembled a skull wrapped in rock, with five eyes in total—three large and two small.
Though it had not yet awakened, an overwhelming aura emanated from it.
Although Avicebron's face was obscured by a mask, making his expression unreadable, a fanatical fervor was palpable from his demeanor.
"Master! Master! Why? Could it be, as that person said, you intend to destroy the world?"
Roche, enduring the pain of his severed arm, questioned Avicebron.
"Ah, you are correct. Just as that man said, in life, I was deeply misanthropic, especially loathing the filthy humans. I couldn't even stand to look at them, which is why I wore this brass mask. All the dirty humans in this world need to be purified, and you are no exception, Roche."
Avicebron's voice was cold and merciless.
"Why! I admired you so much! I respected you so much!"
"Your feelings for me did bring some comfort, but I despise all humans. Did you naively think I wouldn't discard you?"
As Avicebron spoke, he forcefully hurled Roche towards the chest of the giant golem, aiming at its core. Once it consumed Roche, the terrifying golem would activate and purify the world into a paradise.
"Farewell, Roche. You have the right to hate me."
Avicebron said with chilling coldness.
"No! No! I just wanted to make golems, not become one!"
Roche cried out in midair.
At that moment, a series of whistling sounds filled the air as hundreds of black iron stakes flew from afar, intercepting Roche like a net.
"I thought I was cold enough, but I never imagined you could go this far. Avicebron, you despicable traitor, you even make me feel heartbroken."
PS: 1 Power Stone = 1 Push up