#143
Episode 143
Ixia (6)
By the time the brilliant golden flash disappeared, Ixia’s appearance had changed significantly.
The ring, which boasted its beauty with its splendid decorations, was gone, and it returned to its plain appearance as when I first got Ixia. However, contrary to its plain appearance, great mana swirled within Ixia.
‘How much has the performance been upgraded?’
Jeong Do opened Ixia’s information window with anticipation, but he couldn’t help but have doubts.
Ixia’s information was no different from the most recently confirmed information. In other words, there was no improvement in ability. Jeongdo looked at Ixia in embarrassment, and Ixia responded in a crawling voice as if she was embarrassed.
<Ah, not yet. Digestion… no! This is because synchronization is not progressing well. I absorbed too many sisters at once.>
“… … .”
This glutton was like that during Orochi, and is she doing it again this time?
“Then why did your appearance change?”
<Because all of our energy to keep our appearance beautiful is being spent on synchronization. Hehe. Don’t stare. I’m so ugly now.>
“You’re so diverse, really.”
Jeongdo sighed. And at the same time, Perseus’s lordship ended.
<A character of the highest level has been loaded. Mana increases by 10 and stats increase by 10.>
And as a reward, two roulette wheels spun quickly and the degree naturally loaded the wire. Roulette soon presented two options.
<Complete immunity to petrification>, <Master of Arms>
“You both look good.”
I thought about it for a while, but I was soon able to make my choice without hesitation.
<You have acquired the skill <Master of Arms>.>
Immunity to petrification seemed like a good skill, but I couldn’t choose it while abandoning the tempting name <Master of Arms>! Crucially, the space occupied by the <Master of Arms> skill in roulette was also narrow.
“Okay, then what should I do now?”
I obtained 6 Ixia parts and defeated one Elyos, so my goal could be seen as being exceeded. I want to collect more parts, but now I don’t know where the remaining parts are… … .
<Master? I think there are still sisters left in this world?>
“huh? where?”
<I can feel my sister’s energy in the capital the Elyos mentioned earlier. After absorbing another sister, I was able to feel the energy of a distant sister.>
“… “Didn’t you say earlier that you were digesting your abilities?”
<We are opening up the features that will be most helpful to the owner first!>
okay. It’s definitely a good feature. In fact, I felt uncomfortable returning to Earth like this. Because the Elyos were not completely destroyed, nor were Ixia completely gathered.
After completing maintenance for a day, the ship quickly moved towards the capital.
* * * * * *
“That’s cool.”
I was impressed by the view of the capital city from the hillside. A large and high wall surrounded the capital in a hexagonal shape. A total of six large castle gates were attached to each wall, and the walls were filled with various types of buildings.
Jeongdo went down the mountain and walked toward the nearest castle gate.
<Master? Won’t they do an identity check? I think it would be better to just hide and climb over the castle wall.>
“That makes sense.”
There was no way that Jeong-do, who had come from Earth through space transfer, would have had any means of proving his identity. However, even though he understood that Ixia’s advice was correct, he confidently walked towards the gate.
<Master?>
“are you okay. “Nothing will happen.”
When Jeong-do arrived in front of the castle gate, the guard standing guard stopped him.
“stop. Take out something to prove your identity… Oh my. It was rude. “You are the ‘chosen one.’”
“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”
“I had just been chosen, so I still lacked the strength to feel like a peer. I’m really sorry.”
“no. It could be so. I understand.”
“thank you. “I hope you have a pleasant trip to the capital.”
After saying that, the sentry loudly shouted, ‘Choose, pass!’ With those words as a signal, the large castle gate slowly began to open. The priest bowed his head slightly towards the guard and entered the castle gate.
“As expected.”
What a chosen one that damn thing is.
No matter where I went or what I did, I never aroused suspicion. Everyone sends strong favor beyond the level of suspicion. To some extent, I had a feeling that this ‘choice’ was a key element of Heaven’s conspiracy.
Inside the capital, the situation was the same as the city of Oilan that I visited last time.
Shabby buildings and streets overflowing with filth greet you as soon as you enter the castle gate.
Still, seeing the little kids laughing and playing hide-and-seek, things seemed a little better than in the last city. It seemed clear that both cities were suffering from extreme poverty.
“Ixia. “Where do you feel the silence?”
<It’s the exact center of the city.>
At those words, Jeongdo looked at the huge building in the very center of the capital. All the buildings in the village inside the hexagonal wall were lower than the outer wall, but the building in the very center of the capital was as tall and thick as the outer wall.
‘It’s Hwangseong.’
The energy of Ixia parts was flowing from there. Jeongdo straightened his legs towards Hwangseong.
Before entering the imperial castle, another hexagonal wall appeared. The capital of the empire also had the same structure as Oilan, which Jeong Do first visited.
A double wall structure where the village is separated by another wall within the wall.
This time too, Jeong-do was able to enter the inner sanctuary without any suspicion. And the village inside the fortress was incomparably more luxurious than the village outside the fortress.
“It’s a shocking sight to see again.”
Is it because I saw an extreme scene?
The moment I entered the village inside the castle, I felt a strange sense of discomfort.
People were full of energy and had smiles on their faces. Even Jeong-do, who seemed like a foreigner, smiled and greeted me and gave me something to eat.
Just like in the village outside the castle, there were children here too. However, compared to the children outside playing hide and seek, the children inside were playing a different game.
“yap! “Die the dirty polyp!”
“I am the dragon slayer!”
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
There was a large doll in the shape of a dragon in the middle of the square, and children were stabbing the dragon doll with various weapons. And those who appeared to be children and parents were watching with joy.
I was just about to pass the kids, thinking I was seeing something weird.
“uh?”
I was a little surprised.
This is because it was discovered that the child’s sword stabbing the polyp was overlaid with a faint sword energy. And only after seeing it did he realize the identity of the sense of discomfort he felt inside.
Jeongdo moved quickly through the city. And as I looked around the city, I looked at each person in detail. After taking a look around the square, I was certain of this.
“… Everyone here. “They are the ones who manipulate mana.”
All without a single person.
Regardless of age, gender, or occupation, everyone within the inner circle could handle mana. After confirming that fact, I went outside the castle and took another look at the shabby village.
And I was able to confirm.
This means that not a single person outside the inner circle can handle mana.
“This is the essence of choice.”
Did it mean that you were chosen by Mana?
Mana is power. Those with power and those without power were naturally divided, which led to this extreme village structure…
<Huh? master. But, of course, there were people who manipulated mana when I was here. But we lived together well.>
“hmm. “Then what is it?”
Did I guess wrong?
no. It was clear that whether or not mana was used was the criterion for dividing the village. However, something must be added there to create a structure called ‘selection’.
Jeong-do walked around the inside of the castle, wondering what it was. He looked around the entire village outside the inner city, but could not find any more points, so this time he walked towards the Hwangseong Fortress.
And when we almost reached the imperial castle.
Jeong-do was able to see a strange sight again.
‘No, it’s not a particularly strange sight.’
A long procession was lined up at one side of the imperial castle gate. It was similar to the scene of waiting in line for a very popular restaurant on Earth.
‘Is this a real restaurant?’
A restaurant inside the castle?
No matter how strange the world is, it is not like that. Jeong Do walked towards the crowd of people lined up to answer his question. The closer you get to people, the more delicious is it? The question began to grow stronger.
As expected, everyone waiting in line had a smile on their face. As if waiting for something very exciting. Do-do walked towards that direction and asked the man standing at the back in line.
“hello. “Can you tell me what this line is?”
“hmm? “Are you a foreigner?”
“yes. “I was looking around the street and I was curious.”
“You are very lucky. If you are a foreigner, hurry up and stand in line. “Today is the day of ‘renewal’ that only the ‘chosen’ can experience.”
“… renewal?”
‘Select’ followed by ‘Update’.
Again, an unknown word appeared, but Jeongdo’s eyes sparkled.
If you don’t know it, you should try it yourself. Fortunately, there were no restrictions on experiencing renewal. All you had to do was be the ‘chosen one’.
The line got shorter quickly and it didn’t take long for it to be my turn. The sentry guarding the imperial castle smiled and began to guide Jeong Do.
“Congratulations on your renewal. “Is this your first time renewing?”
“yes.”
“Then I will guide you directly. Please follow the guide.”
As he entered the castle under the guidance of a sentry, a pretty woman greeted him. The beauty introduced herself as her guide and led her degree to the renewal site. She wasn’t far, so after walking for a few minutes she was soon in front of a large door.
“From here, you must enter the ‘Chosen One’ hall. Because information must be protected. You said this was your first time renewing, right? Once inside, there will be a large crystal ball in the center. If you shed some mana there, the update will proceed and show you the results. “It’s the same process as when you first got chosen.”
After saying that, the beauty disappeared back in the direction she came from. After making sure that her beau was far away, she pushed open the large door and entered her room.
‘Somehow, it feels like I’ve suddenly entered the middle of an incident.’
Well, it was a place I had to come to anyway to get Ixia parts. For now, I focused on the situation in front of me. As the beauty instructed, there was a large crystal ball in the exact center of the room.
Jeongdo approached the crystal ball. However, instead of infusing her mana as the beauty told her to, she used observation.
‘You can’t just touch something you don’t know what it is.’
Then, poison penetrates into the body… Oh, it was an all-out attack, indeed. Anyway, something harmful could have happened, so we needed to be careful.
Tiring!
The crystal ball information was displayed along with a notification sound.
And the moment I read the first line of information, my face couldn’t help but harden.
“… … .”
<Awaker-Listhenia>
<This is a device that awakens ordinary people into mana users and displays the user’s information. Listhenia’s Awaker, unlike Earth’s, has two more special magic engraved on it.>
<One, those who awaken through the Awaker will no longer be able to doubt the Awaker creator.>
<Two, those who awaken through the Awaker develop a deep sense of hostility toward dragons.>
Awaker.
Surprisingly, the identity of the crystal ball was an Awaken that also existed on Earth. At least now I can clearly understand the situation.
‘All the people in the village were mana users who had awakened as Awakers!’
The creator of Awaker ‘selects’ people, awakens them, and gives them strong power. Humans who have gained strong military power constantly hunt the dragon species, and the dragon species’ power gradually decreases. Naturally, as the power of the dragon species protecting Listhenia decreases, it will become easier for other universes to invade… !
“Young man, aren’t you renewing?”
While Jeong-do was watching Awaker and was lost in thought, he suddenly heard a voice like that. Jeong-do hurriedly turned his head to where the voice came from, and there was an old man with a gentle expression smiling at him.
Jeongdo reflexively used observation towards the old man.
‘… Rotten.’
I was shocked in a way that could not be compared to when I observed Awaker. The following was displayed in the notification window:
<This is a type of entity whose information cannot be confirmed using the skill <Observation>.>
<Relevant Type: Miracle of the Beginning>
