Chapter 76
The white-haired Rian Kaltz walked forward.
Though the space was empty and covered in a peculiar color sche, a path of a color difficult to distinguish from the background materialized along the way he walked.
I, too, followed behind him.
I wondered where we were going, and then I saw a massive sphere in the distance, a strange blend of white and black.
I presud it was our destination.
Upon closer inspection, I noticed another color besides black and white, but strangely, it was hard to discern exactly what color it was.
Then, suddenly, Rian Kaltz stopped walking.
He turned and opened his mouth.
“Do you see that cube?”
“…It was a cube? Not a sphere?”
“I see. So it is still in the form of a sphere… Thanks to that, I think I can gauge the extent of things.”
Once again, he began the conversation with an enigmatic remark.
He did not advance any further.
I could not tell if he had decided it was aningless because we were seeing different things, or if there was so other intention.
“First, I would like to tell you about the current situation Odin is facing. Within the limits of what I am allowed to say.”
In other words.
It ant that, just as before, he could not tell everything.
Both Reysia and the Rian Kaltz before .
I felt like I was going to go mad with curiosity and frustration, wondering what was sealing their lips.
As if he knew my heart, the Rian Kaltz before gave a slight smile and began to speak.
“How much do you know about Rodos?”
“…The Purity’s official number one ranked unit. A unit that, despite having combat power and operational capabilities inferior even to units ranked within the top ten, let alone Odin at number two, holds onto its number one spot because of its abnormally high reputation and title.”
“That is correct. In terms of combat power alone, Rodos would not even make it into the top ten. Nevertheless, the reason Rodos can remain in the number one position is because of the title ‘Queen’s Sword’.”
Queen’s Sword.
It was nothing special.
It was a title signifying that they, unlike other units, were the Queen's direct subordinates, able to communicate directly with the Purity Queen.
Because of this, it was standard theory among D&K players that Rodos was not a user, but an NPC unit managed by AI.
This led to widespread unofficial rumors that Odin was the true number one.
“The fact that Rodos' na has co up ans they’re connected to Odin, doesn’t it?”
“That is correct.”
The contents of the dream I had a while ago naturally ca to mind.
The dream in which Reysia, Joshua, and the commander of Rodos had appeared.
No, in truth, I thought of it less as a dream and more as a kind of hallucination Reysia had intentionally shown .
In any case, what was clear was that there was a problem with Odin.
“Currently, Rodos is trying to hand over their position, the number one ranking, to Odin.”
“……?”
What was this?
Wouldn't that be a good thing for Odin?
One of the reasons I had put D&K down for several months was that the ga had beco too easy, but another reason was that I had grown tired of not being able to find a way to defeat Rodos and claim the number one spot.
And yet, now that I was gone, they were offering to hand over the number one position.
It was utterly absurd.
As if reading the emotion in my expression, Rian Kaltz gave a small smile.
“It is not just the honor of being number one that they intend to hand over.”
“What do you an?”
“They are trying to make Odin the Queen’s direct subordinate unit.”
“……”
The mont I heard that, I felt extrely displeased.
Odin was the unit I had nurtured with great care.
Official rank two.
Unofficial rank one.
How much ti and effort had I poured in to reach that position?
But now, for so person called the Queen to suddenly appear and try to take over the whole spread by just placing a spoon on the table, it was only natural for my anger to flare up.
“Odin refused… but in the end, Odin is still a Purity unit that follows the Queen. They will not be able to withstand the Queen’s pressure, which insists that the commander’s position cannot be left vacant forever.”
“……”
“You of all people would understand. From the Purity’s perspective, they cannot let Odin, which is eagerly awaiting the commander’s return, sit idle in the rear indefinitely. Is that not so? Commander.”
“…Haa.”
In the end, the reason Odin was being pressured by Rodos, the Queen’s direct subordinates, was because I had left Odin unattended for a while.
Of course, it wasn't my fault that I ca to this world.
But in any case, it was a fact that my absence had put Odin in an uncomfortable situation.
“Reysia is desperately refusing the Queen’s command. To her, the only one she should follow is you. On the other hand, Joshua is hesitating. He is a person with a lot of affection, and he is worried about the penalties the ntally weaker mbers of the unit will suffer if they continue to defy the Queen’s command.”
“Penalties?”
As if to answer my question, Rian Kaltz opened his mouth.
However, after moving his lips for a mont, he frowned as if sothing had gone wrong and shook his head.
“I find it difficult to speak about the penalties.”
“What’s the reason? Didn’t you say you would tell everything?”
“I did not say everything. Even if I wanted to, I cannot. This is also why Reysia made Tet and Roka collide. The massive mana storm generated by the collision of two Leviathans with enormous amounts of mana allows us to briefly escape the Queen’s surveillance. Of course, it is not perfect…”
“So… the reason you made Tet and Roka collide was just to create ti for to talk to you?”
“It is not ‘just’. If we did not do so, we could not escape the Queen’s influence.”
A little more force was added to his voice.
A light silence followed.
Using that brief silence, I fell into thought.
The existence of the Queen, who kept appearing in our conversation, was extrely botherso.
The Queen I knew was rely a symbolic figure for the Purity.
A pillar essential to the ga's story, but in the actual gaplay process, her importance was infinitely low—a symbolic presence.
But the more I listened to Rian Kaltz, the more I realized that the power the Queen possessed was by no ans small, that she was more than just a symbolic figure.
“…What happens if Odin becos the Queen’s direct subordinate unit?”
“Many things will change. A great many things…”
As if he didn’t even want to think about it, Rian Kaltz closed his eyes and turned his head away.
He did not speak further on this matter, but I could tell from his reaction.
If Odin were to beco the Queen’s direct subordinate unit, even this small connection that remained between and Odin would be completely severed.
“What does Reysia want from ?”
She must have her own thoughts.
Reysia was extrely competent.
She was not one to assert her own opinions in front of , but occasionally, she would co up with an unexpected strategy and achieve distinguished service, such as turning a disadvantageous tide of battle on its head.
Her fighting style was the sa.
She was a brainy type who knew how to fight by thoroughly analyzing the enemy, rather than just relying on her own power and skills.
Such a Reysia would not be just stubbornly resisting without a plan.
She must have a plan to overco the current situation.
I thought that as a re soldier of the Alliance with no power, I would just have to follow her plan.
However.
“Nothing.”
The answer that ca back was shocking.
“What do you an?”
“You do not have to do anything. In any case, there is a limit to what you, a re soldier of the Alliance, can do.”
“That’s…”
He was right.
Right now, I was not Odin’s commander.
I was a field commander of Unit 917, fighting for the rgan Kingdom, a nation under the Alliance.
That was my position.
At the sa ti, a question arose.
“Then why did you put on a performance like making Tet and Roka collide to bring here?”
“There are two reasons. One is to earnestly request that you be wary of the Queen and trust Reysia, as everything she does is for you.”
“Then what’s the second reason?”
“It was to inform you that the Black Dragon of the Alliance is also an untrustworthy existence.”
Rian Kaltz’s eyes glinted sharply.
If the Purity had a Queen, then the opposing Alliance was ruled by a leader known as the Black Dragon.
I did not know much about the Black Dragon.
Just that he was not simply a monarch who ruled over humans, but a religious figure revered by all the monarchs, nobles, and people of the Alliance.
And one other thing.
That he bestowed grace upon those who believed in and followed him in tangible forms, such as black mana.
That was all the information I had on the Black Dragon.
“Untrustworthy?”
“At one ti, the Alliance was driven into a corner by you. To be precise, by the Odin you led… However, for so reason, you let go of Odin.”
“……”
“Odin waited eagerly for your return. There was a ti when they did nothing, staying in the rear of the battlefield, unwavering even under Rodos' pressure, waiting solely for your return. Thanks to that, the Alliance was able to breathe, and they prepared counterasures for a counterattack.”
Sohow.
The surrounding environnt seed to have changed a little.
The white that filled this world was still silently holding its place, but the black space was flickering wildly.
As if it were angry.
As if I wasn’t the only one seeing it that way, Rian Kaltz glanced at the black background once and snorted.
“Copying the nurturing system used by the Purity was also part of that plan. Thanks to that, they were able to bring the one-sided tide of battle to a 50-50 stalemate. However, the Black Dragon must have still been worried. He himself knew very well that the reason the Purity and the Alliance could maintain a sharp confrontation was solely because Odin was not moving. Therefore, the Black Dragon made a move.”
“……”
“A prominent Purity hero. A being more dangerous than the strongest hero, Reysia. The commander of Odin. It was to assassinate you.”
A chill ran down my spine, and my hand unconsciously went to my neck.
The mont I confird that my head was still firmly attached to my body, I could feel my heart beating rapidly.
I hadn’t been afraid when I was the enemy.
Even if assassins targeting my neck ca, Odin's heroes and the defense system we had built would protect , and at that ti, D&K was just a ga for enjoynt.
But now it was different.
I was a low-ranking soldier belonging to the Alliance ruled by the Black Dragon.
Without even needing to send assassins, with a single command from the Black Dragon, I would be captured without being able to resist, and dragged to the executioner's block on the guillotine.
“The result must have been a failure.”
“Why do you think it was a failure?”
“Because I’m alive and well like this…”
Rian Kaltz smiled again.
It wasn't a sneer, but sothing… similar to the smile my father, who had been seriously injured in an accident when I was young, had forced himself to show to reassure as I cried in shock.
He approached .
“Who are you?”
“You ask an obvious question. Rian Kaltz.”
Then the man before erased the smile from his lips, placed his right hand on his chest, and said.
“Then who am I?”
“…Rian Kaltz.”
“I will ask again. Who are you?”
Ah.
Now I thought I understood what this man wanted.
Who am I?
I am Rian Kaltz, Odin’s commander and the field commander of Unit 917.
But that was rely the role assigned to .
“…Lee Seo-han.”
Yes.
That is my na.
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