༺ Nauda Airgetlam (3) ༻
The treasury of the Danann, Mag Mell.
Originally, it was a hidden location that was only accessible after Erin Danua’s death in the latter portion of the game.
Upon clearing the trials of this place, the player was guaranteed access to either a legendary or an epic item.
The item you obtain here depended on the skill route the player chose for themselves, and being a mage, Park Sihu had received ‘Enbarr, the Horse with a Fluttering Mane’.
The magic horse Enbarr was a mount that could race atop the ocean and who always protected its rider. Park Sihu rode this horse and sprinted around while pouring magic everywhere.
It was a treasure that perfectly covered the greatest weakness of a mage, their mobility, with the added benefit of keeping its rider safe.
Were they going to give me four of such overpowered treasures?
“I, the Son of the Ocean, Manannan Mac Lir present Korin Lork, the First Spear of the current Ard Ri, Erin Danua, with the demon-slicing red spear, Gae Derg.
“This spear nullifies magic barriers and always leads to a critical injury once thrown at a beast.”
『Gae Derg. Grade: Legendary』
-Completely nullifies the magic effects on one specific target.
-When fighting against a beast-type enemy, you inflict 350% additional damage. Any beast wounded by the spear is inflicted with the curse, ‘Beastial Hunt of the Red Spear’.
『Access Denied due to Insufficient Qualification』
I couldn’t see the item description like a normal player, but I was already fully aware of what Gae Derg did. In the last iteration, the weapon I received was Gae Buidhe, the yellow spear. This was mainly due to the fact that my job back then was to be the vanguard for Park Sihu.
But in this iteration, the red spear was probably going to be more useful for me.
“I, Dagda Mor, and the Danann of the Earth and the King of Gods who killed the giants. I shall give you the harp made of the divine tree and cats.”
『Uaithne. Grade: Legendary』
The string instrument of the King of Gods, Dagda. Playing the string made with the liver of the king of cats will result in special magical effects.
It is the legendary bane of giants that smacked nine giants to death. Believe in yourself and bash them down.
-A magical effect is applied to every location affected by the sound.
-It will fly into the master’s hand from anywhere.
-Bashing a giant with the harp inflicts 1,200% additional damage.
『Access Denied due to Insufficient Qualification』
“Huu, huu…!”
I couldn’t read the message on the system window, but I could see it! Think back, my brain cells! Remember the harp that Saintess Estelle used to use!
Despite looking and sounding like a joke, I knew how powerful and overpowered this thing really was!
In this iteration, can I… do it? A revolution!!?
“I, the Danann of Healing, Dian Cecht will grant you the magic eyes of a cat…”
“Wait wait wait.”
“What?”
“The magic eyes of a cat are a bit… Uhh, putting aside the design, you have to actually dig out the eyes and transplant it, right? That’s a bit…”
In the game, people did it to make their characters look unique but in the real world, it came at the cost of actually digging your eyes out. It was a lot riskier than Airgetlam, which was in the form of a gauntlet.
Besides, the ability itself wasn’t that good either. The Eyes of Curse was good, but there was also the ‘Eyesight of a Beast’ that was activated passively at night, thus it was an item that had an advantage and a disadvantage.
“Tch. Young people these days don’t even appreciate what they’re given.”
“Umm… sorry.”
Dian Cecht, who was known to be quite temperamental, grumbled before throwing me a flask that contained an ominous green liquid bubbling inside it. This… looked familiar.
“That is the venom of serpents that was obtained after opening the heart of a baby and killing the snakes inside it. The poison is very potent and pouring the content of that flask into a river will surely kill every organism in it.”
“…Open the heart of… what?”
“A baby.”
“What the… What?”
I almost swore without realizing it.
Am I in the presence of a fucking baby killer?
“That baby had serpents that would lead the world to destruction inside it. It was only thanks to my foresight that we were able to prevent it.”
“Ugh…”
So anyways, was this the poison gathered from serpents that came out of a baby’s heart? Where did I see this from?
『Boiling Venom. Grade: Legendary』
The venom of serpents that were inside the heart of the baby cursed with Apocalypse.
-You may only use this once.
-It kills all the organisms of the ‘Basin’.
『Access Denied due to Insufficient Qualification』
“Ah…”
I remembered where this was from. This… was the poison that was poured onto the south.
It was the poison that was used in the game when the entire continent was under attack. Although it could only be used once, it was a potent poison that killed everyone nearby.
This wasn’t a simple venom; it was a mythical poison that even had the potential to destroy the world of gods.
I was wondering where Dun Scaith got this from, but it seemed to have been from Mag Mell.
In fact, I was wondering how to stop that disaster in the future but, it appeared that I had coincidentally prevented it.
“You can only use it once so be mindful of how you use it.”
“T, thank you.”
Manannan, Dagda and Dian Cecht. After them, it was now Nuada’s turn. Even though he said he wasn’t that fond of me, he didn’t seem to have that much of an opinion now that I had passed the trial.
“Take this. It’s yours from now on.”
Nuada said while reaching out with his arm. Then, his lustrous silver arm slowly peeled itself before moving over to my left.
『Airgetlam. Grade: Epic』
A weapon created in collaboration with the Danann of Healing, Dian Cecht, and the blacksmith, Goibniu, completed by the son of Dian Cecht, Miach.
It is the only device that can endure an infinite amount of power and is an impenetrable armor that never breaks.
-You can store infinite power inside.
-When equipped as a set with the Sun, Claiomh Solais, your mana increases by 200%.
『Access Denied due to Insufficient Qualification』
I couldn’t tell the exact amount, but I could feel an incredible surge in energy the moment this silver arm was laid on top of my own.
It was a hidden piece in the game that was in the possession of Valtazar’s strongest subject, Eochaid Bres. Actually, it couldn’t even be considered a hidden piece because there was no way for the player to obtain Airgetlam in the first place.
Considering the absurd ability of Claiomh Solais… it was safe to assume that this silver arm was also overpowered.
“…”
Last of them all was the Danann of Light, Lugh.
The master of the Spear of Light, Areadbhair, and the strongest Danann in the annals of history. As well as… the supporter of Tates Valtazar.
Even back in the game, Lugh Lamhfada’s treasures were simply unobtainable.
“I am sure you know already. I have no plans of helping nor supporting you.”
“Nuada has given me his treasure though?”
“That is because you are the inheritor of the Sun. The moment Claiomh Solais acknowledged you as its master, you have already technically inherited Nuada’s divinity.”
That was how significant the 4 great treasures of the Danann were.
Each and every one of them was an incredible treasure that represented an Ard Ri – Dagda’s Undry, Nuada’s Claiomh Solais, and Lugh’s Areadbhair.
Those were, after all, the greatest treasures that represented their might as the Kings of Gods.
“Tates Valtazar inherited my Divinity of Light… I have already given him everything and have nothing left for you.”
Lugh Lamhfada. He was the Danann who wished for the fall of the Goidels the most. That must be why he left the inheritor, Tates, and gave him everything from the get-go.
“However, if you defeat my successor, then I will leave the rest to you.”
“What? Is that okay?”
Even in the game, it was impossible to retrieve Valtazar’s treasures after defeating him. It was because the treasures had an incredibly strong ego that did not acknowledge the player as their new master.
“Brat. This is not the fight between Goidels and the Danann. It is an honorable battle between a Danann and a Danann.
“You are the successor decided by Erin Danua, the Danann of Justice. Whether you win or lose, everything that happens henceforth will depend solely on you.
“Why do you think the Danann here have given you a generous amount of treasures? It’s because, in one way or another, we have acknowledged you as an inheritor of our own.”
I was momentarily lost for words.
This was different from the time the player visited Mag Mell. This… was a different battle altogether.
“Well, you will realize when the time comes. No matter who wins… our long wish will come to fruition regardless.”
His suggestive words marked the end to the trials of the gods.
……….
……
…
“What a fierce presence he had for himself.”
The rest of the Danann in the place genuinely agreed to Manannans’ words.
They had been longing for the appearance of a hero. They had been waiting for a hero who was not afraid to burn everything they had in a short period of life.
Korin Lork was an ideal hero for them.
A passionate and brave young man, who could throw himself away with more passion than anyone else in the world.
Even the futile actions of a mediocre man tended to bloom with beauty at times, so how beautiful and blinding would the flames of a hero with the world on the line truly be?
“I like him. Although he was not born with the body of a hero, he was born with the characteristics of one.”
Dagda saw him in a good light.
By nature, heroes were special and different from birth. In a lot of ways, Korin Lork was a normal person… whose birth, body, mana, and aura were all subpar compared to a hero.
However, there was one heroic quality that he was born with.
“The soul of a hero. Now that isn’t something anyone can get.”
Dagda saw the people that gathered next to him. Unlike Park Sihu, those talents had gathered next to him upon being genuinely and sincerely moved by his will.
Although their gender was heavily leaning towards one side, earning the admiration of women was also one of the characteristics of a hero.
“Hmph. Despite whatever you say, he is nothing but a fool who couldn’t see through the true nature of his comrade until he was eventually betrayed.”
Nuada spoke harshly of his successor. It was from slight discontent and out of a stubborn thought that someone had to raise an opposing view.
Although Nuada himself did not look down on Korin’s hard work, he had been hoping that the successor of the Sun would be a perfect genius, just like the Danann of Light and the murderer of giants, who had succeeded his throne as the King of Gods.
“…”
Lugh Lamhfada.
The King of Gods who supported a hero who stood on the other side of the spectrum of Korin. The other Danann were interested in what evaluation he would give Korin, as one who already had a perfect hero, Tates Valtazar, as his successor.
“He’s weak. The only talent he excels in compared to Valtazar, would be his demonic charm that bewitches both male and female.”
“Kukuk…! No wonder Oengus likes him so much.”
“However, Lia Fail chose him as the destined contender and even rewound the loop of time.”
“…”
Time Regression.
That was a power that even the gods couldn’t enforce. The only reason they knew it happened was because they had seen through the memories of Korin Lork of the timeline before the regression of the world.
“There is no denying that he, shouldering the great aspiration of saving the world, is the only possible contender against the hero who wishes to destroy it.”
The reason Park Sihu and other countless powerhouses of the world hadn’t been acknowledged by Lia Fail was simple.
They lacked the qualification of a hero that ought to save the world.
Lia Fail was looking for someone who could sincerely work hard for the salvation of the world, and not for personal reasons or benefit. And Korin Lork was the one whom Lia Fail decided on – he was the only one deemed worthy of shouldering that destiny.
“We have no choice but to watch on. Old ones like us have no right to meddle with the world.”
Lugh ended his evaluation with that. Nuada was unhappy with his successor, while Lugh’s successor was one destined to fight against him.
Whoever came out on top, their story would result in a mythical epic of the contemporary heroes.
“By the way, was that enough gift for celebrating Erin’s marriage?”
“Ehem! Like I said, that’s not it!”
“That’s why I gave mine though?”
“…”
“I think we should have at least given him a few pigs that regenerate day after day no matter how much you eat.”
“We can do that when they bring a few grandchildren for us to see.”
“’A few’? I think it’ll be a lot more than that.”
“…Let’s stop there. Unless you want to hear a mouthful from her later.”
………
……
…
Meanwhile, the Danann of Love, Oengus explained the situation to the three girls in their separate dimensions.
“Haht…! Did I fail the trial? I, I don’t remember anything though?”
“Ehng? W, when did I take a trial? Sir?”
“…Do it again.”
The girls each showed different reactions but fundamentally they were of the same mindset. They were concerned about the boy who had to advance through the trials on his lonesome and felt guilty for being unable to help him throughout his journey.
‘Ahh~. What a beautiful sight to behold.’
Three girls who were in love with the same hero. Of course, there were more than just three but… wasn’t this like the three goddesses of war giving their blessings to the hero?
“And he’s the successor of the King of Gods, Nuada, of all Danann. I suppose this is also a part of the fate if anything.”
Before the girls who couldn’t accept the outcome of their trial, Oengus widened his arms and said to them with a sweet voice.
“This too must be a destined encounter. I have already received permission from the three goddesses. Let me give each of you a small gift!”
Oengus wanted to personally watch all the interesting events his gifts would bring about, but that was for those of the present world to enjoy.
Simply imagining the future was already good enough of an entertainment for the Danann of Love.
***
Bishop Renault Lusignan of the Xeruem Order was recently able to tell first-hand just how much his status had fallen.
It was because all of his plans; the ascension of Hua Ran the Heavenly Yaksha, her massacre and the resulting negative impression of the demons, as well as their plan to support the Tower of Mages for their attack had all failed miserably.
The stupid sorcerer of the East who was supposed to ascend Hua Ran into a true monster was neutralized like a fool, and the Chargers of the Cross that he forced into the Academy were all missing.
That much was big enough for him to lose a great amount of say within the Order. Fortunately, the terrorist attack of the mages from the Tower, which almost failed, turned on its toe thanks to Tates Valtazar moving personally to assassinate the chairman but…
『In the first place, if Xeruem supported us properly with accurate information, this would have never happened!』
The worthless and hasty sorcerers of the Tower of Mages were busy shifting the blame to them.
Elder Admelech, the leader of the Red Cult, and dozens of mages went completely missing, whereas the leader of the Black Cult, Elder Morushtan, was imprisoned by the templars of Zeon after having his secret laboratory discovered.
Two of the seven cults of the Tower of Mages were pretty much eradicated, so it wasn’t a surprise that they were creating a fuss.
『Adelene speaking.』
In the end, due to the seriousness of the matter at hand, Adelene of Gold, the Lord of the Tower, even attended the divine conference of Xeruem to ask for proper assistance. There was only one piece of information that he wanted, and it was Bishop Renault’s job to obtain that.
『Sir Bishop.』
“Ohh, Germain. Our esteemed brother of faith.”
He therefore spoke to the spy Germain Luther, the freshman at Merkarva Academy, to gather the information required.
“I heard you have recently joined a promising Guardians Guild. So, have you found it?”
『…Yes. Thanks to that, it was very helpful in finding the information you have commanded for.』
Germain, who had been struggling to find meaningful pieces of information, started bringing more and more significant news after entering Korin Guardians. It was slightly irritating that it just happened to be the same guild as those demon women, but that mattered not as long as he could gather helpful clues.
Because there was no way that they could possibly tell that Germain was a spy from Xeruem thanks to him going through several processes to disguise his identity!
………
……
…
After hearing the report from Germain, Renault’s countenance turned a lot brighter. Germain had perfectly brought the exact pieces of information that he was after!
“Truly magnificent, brother. I believe with this we can enforce divine punishment to those wicked protestants and the servants of evil.”
『…』
One of the requirements to reach a high status at the Order was proficiency at reading the mood and people’s expressions. Therefore, Renault was immediately able to tell that there was something wrong from the look on Germain’s face.
“Hmm? Did something happen?”
『Bishop… Have you, by any chance, laid your hands on the taboo?』
“What do you… mean by that?”
A faint crack appeared on Renault’s tranquil expression. Taboo? There were too many of them that he had no idea what he was referring to.
Of course, the taboo was only from the general perception of the world, and Renault himself considered all his actions to be just, for he considered the requirements of his plans as tools rather than people.
『…During a mission, I found a laboratory of a black mage, and inside was a letter from you, Sir Bishop.』
“…”
‘How annoying,’ thought Renault, but after concealing his wicked mind, he maintained a gentle look on his face.
“When following the path given to us by the god, there are times when we must walk through puddles of mud.”
『B, but… This!』
Didn’t you sacrifice those innocent children?
Renault did not wait for Germain to finish his words.
“Remember the times when we were hunting the witches? Innocent sacrifices? Of course, there were some, but thanks to that, we were able to cleanse hundreds of witches, right? Those sacrifices were unfortunate yet necessary.
“The path to justice is, as you see, extremely perilous and painful. Our enemies are enormous and ignorant. Those who seek the true faith are only a few compared to them.
“The hardest choices require the strongest wills. My brother. Please take pity on them. However, that does not change the fact that it was something that had to be done. The god will know their sacrifices.”
The bishop persuaded Germain through a long speech. There was no need to fully persuade him – all he needed to do was pull the rope slightly back towards the Order, where he had spent his entire life, from his conscience.
『…Understood.』
In the end, Germain gave up on reporting about Renault. Renault indirectly implied that the higher-ups were related to this incident so he decided to let it slip for now.
A single event was unable to shatter the faith that he had been brainwashed into believing ever since a young age.
“Tch.”
However, Renault did not miss the faint waver of emotion that appeared on Germain’s expression. That slight falter was bound to eventually come back as a large tidal wave.
After finishing the call, while summarizing everything he heard from him, Renault let out a ruthless remark to himself with a cold look on his face.
“Insolent brat. I must deal with him once this is over.”
He couldn’t put aside even the tiniest of concerns, because the Advent of Paradise and the regression to the era of the gods was directly related to his future.
“For now… let’s focus on these.”
『Escorting plans of Elder Morushtan』
『Sealing the Saintess』
Those were two big plans. According to the information provided by Germain, it wouldn’t be impossible to carry out those two plans at the same time.
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