A Veteran in a Dead Game - Chapter 198



Only Krnovel

198. Suspicion (1)

The taste of Amrita was clean. No, it was so clean that you couldn’t taste anything. To be honest, it was no different from drinking plain water.

But it couldn’t end there. Immediately after drinking, Kyle could feel some force stirring in his stomach.

Amrita.

Originally, it was an elixir that appeared in the Genesis section of a myth. However, in the original text, it was an elixir that granted immortality to the gods, but in this world called Piltos, it was implemented a little differently.

Although it greatly extends lifespan, it does not make a person immortal. However, it is clear that it is an elixir that ultimately grants surprisingly powerful powers.

[Trained Body, Quadrupedalism, Wind Wall, Murderous Intent, Iron Wall, Legs of a Fair Player, Vampirism+, Night Vision, Keen Eyes+, Amazing Strength+, Agility+, Hardened Skin, Brawler, Vomiting, Weapon Proficiency, Physical Training, Photosynthesis, Jumping, Water Steal]

First of all, all skills below level 7 have been strengthened by one level.

This is truly a groundbreaking performance. Even though it only targets low-level skills, it is equivalent to obtaining more than ten reinforcement tickets just by simple calculation.

Even new skills below level 7 that you acquire in the future will automatically receive this effect, so the long-term benefits will be significant.

‘Just by strengthening passive skills, you can gain significant ability value.’

Skills that he already utilizes well, such as wind wall, blood sucking, jumping, and quadrupedal walking, have also been strengthened, so Kyle’s overall combat power has greatly improved.

It’s not for nothing that when Kyle first saw the golden cauldron, he vowed to get it.

“…….”

Kyle slowly clenched and unclenched his hands repeatedly, anticipating the task of assessing the value of his newfound power.

Up to this point, the effects are already amazing, if not groundbreaking.

Surprisingly, the elixir called Amrita gave one last, most important gift.

[2nd Grade: Fractal]

The first 2nd-grade skill obtained.

Considering that 1st grade skills were virtually impossible to obtain, 2nd grade was the highest grade skill in practical terms.

Of course, if it was original, it wouldn’t be a strange reward.

The golden cauldron is an incredibly rare item. From there, a long, long quest begins. At the end, there is a difficult event called the Harmful Mixing Ritual.

Since it was designed to go through all that process, it was designed to give a fitting reward.

But in Kyle’s case, since he skipped a lot of the cumbersome intermediate steps, it seemed like a relatively small effort compared to the wonderfully large reward.

‘If we really want to be specific, it’s like I’ve already repeated the intermediate process several times. It was just an experience in the game, though.’

Kyle raised his right arm, then slowly lowered it in a large circle. In the wake of his arm, a residual image of several photographs were left, as if they had been glued together.

As a result, when Kyle lowered his arms again, the afterimages of his arms made it look like Kyle had multiple arms.

It’s not like I actually grew arms. As proof, the newly-appeared arms quickly disappeared.

‘It’s a strange feeling.’

Kyle savored the sensation, then took four slow steps forward and looked back.

At every place I set foot, there was another Kyle.

Kyle reached out to his newly created illusion, but he couldn’t grab it. His outstretched hand simply passed through the illusion.

It meant that the image of Kyle before my eyes was nothing more than an illusion without substance.

So then, does that mean that the skill called ‘Fractal (Kaleidoscope)’ is just a skill that creates an illusion that looks exactly like you?

No, that’s not it. If that were all, it wouldn’t have been a 2nd-tier skill in the first place.

Pazjut-

The illusions Kyle left behind used their skills. The first illusion created an ice spear and launched it upward, the second illusion created a holy spear and held it, and the third illusion unleashed a chain of lightning.

Those skills aren’t just empty words. They have real destructive power that can penetrate and crush enemies.

In other words, fractals are skills that implement clones that wield the skills you have.

To quote a slightly more plausible explanation from the settings book –

‘The realization of possibility.’

Yeah, you could put it this way.

Of course, there are clear limitations and restrictions. Fractal itself is not a skill that can produce the kind of tremendous firepower that a tier 2 skill would.

However, it was clear that it had utility befitting a 2nd-grade skill. This would provide Kyle with an incredibly strong possibility to lead him to victory.

*

There was no one to welcome Kyle after he finished the ritual of mixing the harmful substances. This meant that Mael, Kind, and even Sera all left without waiting for Kyle.

It was strange. They had promised to distribute the earnings immediately after the event, but no one did.

However, Kyle couldn’t help but be convinced when he saw the scenery spread out in the distance.

Because it was an absurd sight, with buildings several dozen stories high floating in the air and all sorts of city elements, such as roads and streetlights, passing by between them.

Meanwhile, the neon signs and searchlights attached to the building were still on, making the scene quite chaotic and chaotic.

A chaotic and colorful picture that is not often seen. However, it was not an ordinary situation to anyone who saw it.

‘I don’t think they’re planning on rebuilding the city right now. Could it be… someone is trying to raid the dungeon?’

If that’s the case, it makes sense that Sarah and other members of the regeneration group were absent. It was such an emergency.

With that thought, Kyle started walking towards the Central Tower.

If the members of the regeneration club were gathered, the place would be the conference room of the Central Tower. Also, in the midst of all the chaos, the only building that remained intact was the Central Tower.

While running across the Ark City, Kyle had the rare experience of having to take a detour to avoid landing buildings or having the road he was running on rise up.

As it happened, the road led around Central Tower, and Kyle felt as if he were riding on a conveyor belt or moving walkway.

In such a situation, Kyle was able to lower his gaze and get a clear view of the city’s situation.

‘I don’t see any residents.’

It looks like they evacuated a long time ago. Well, if they hadn’t, there would have been an accident, like getting crushed by a falling building or something.

Taat-

Kyle shortened his route by running along walls that cut through the air, or by stepping onto things like streetlights, railings, and rooftops that flew past.

“uh!”

Soon, I ran into Sarah, who was just coming out of the main entrance of the Central Tower.

“You came out earlier than I thought? I was just about to go back. Looks like you finished the event well.”

“You’ve finished it well. But it seems like there’s a problem on this side.”

Sarah answered with a sigh.

“That’s right. There was chaos. Someone tried to raid the Ark Dungeon.”

“It’s past tense.”

“The conquest has stopped for now. The flying buildings are flying now because we need to clean up the mess. We need to return the city to its original design.”

Sarah then briefly explained the situation.

After finishing the ritual of mixing the harmful substances and coming out, they said that the dungeon raid had begun. When the members of the Regeneration Society hurriedly started investigating, the raid was stopped.

“We still haven’t caught the culprit. What’s certain is that… one of the members of the Regeneration Society betrayed them.”

Sarah’s eyes sank. Her expression was a mixture of sadness and anger.

There is a traitor among you.

For Sarah, who believed she had received a favor from the Rebirth Society and was dedicated to repaying that favor, this must have been something she hated to even imagine.

Even this was a betrayal of the utmost fatality. Wasn’t it something that could ruin the Ark, the biggest project of the Regeneration Society?

It was a serious situation that could have caused the great plan that had dreamed of the eternity of mankind to be completely shattered before it even began.

“Did you catch the culprit?”

“yet.”

Sarah shook her head.

“There probably weren’t many members staying in the ark.”

“That’s true, but… the problem is that every member of the ark could become a suspect.”

“It seems that the gimmick for city building isn’t particularly restricted to a specific location.”

“I guess so. This is the first time I’ve found out about it, too.”

Sarah continued, extending her finger towards Kyle.

“There’s only one exception to the rule: you, Kyle.”

“I thought you were in a position where you wouldn’t be suspected either.”

Sarah joined the regeneration group only when the ark was almost completed. She hadn’t even been born when the ark city was first designed, so she obviously wouldn’t know how to conquer dungeons. Unless someone tells her…

“I see.”

As he thought about it, Kyle figured out a reason why Sarah couldn’t escape her suspicions either.

“Is it possible that this betrayal was not the work of a single perpetrator?”

Sarah nodded grimly.

“I knew that the buildings of the city could float like that. But I still don’t know how to do it. But how can you believe me? Someone could have taught me and told me to do it.”

Sarah continued grumbling.

“Even the fact that we were conducting a ritual of mixing harmful substances can’t be an alibi. The attack started right around the time we were leaving.”

“What a coincidence.”

“yes?”

Someone planned this. On that subject, it was so easy to give up on the strategy. Unless they were trying to pull off a terrible prank, there must have been some intention behind it.

“So, how do you plan to respond?”

“First, I gave an emergency order to the members who were outside to return. At least the members who were outside aren’t the ones who carried out the execution. After that, we have to proceed according to the manual for the crisis situation.”

It seems that the regeneration club had prepared its own means of dealing with it.

“Oh, by the way, you don’t have to worry about the spirit conquest preparations you requested. The members who were working on that task have been excluded from the return target. The Demon King and Vampire side have also left behind the necessary personnel.”

It was fortunate for Kyle, since he thought it wouldn’t be strange for the Regeneration Society to react in a fit of rage if the Ark were in danger.

However, the regeneration group calmly and thoroughly distributed its personnel in a situation where the very foundation of its activities could be shaken.

“I won’t bother you with this matter. You are still a guest, after all. Rather than such a complicated story, aren’t you curious about the results of the Yuehuagwan ritual event?”

Sarah smiled and held up an umbrella.

“It’s Varuna’s umbrella.”

“I’ve already tried it out! It’s raining cats and dogs. I feel full after drinking just a few drops!”

Sarah patted her belly.

“We just got what we needed.”

This item can cause rain to fall on a narrow area once a day. The rainwater provides ample nutrients, making it a welcome addition to the Regeneration Society when building the ark.

That one umbrella could easily feed hundreds of people.

“Of course, there were a few things you might like. There were elixirs, for example-”

“Ah, it’s nice to meet you again.”

Just then someone approached Kyle and Sarah.

“Mr. Saladan.”

It was Saladan.

“I’d like to talk to you two for a moment. Is that okay?”

“Suddenly?”

Before Kyle could answer, Sarah was the first to block Saladan’s path.

“It wasn’t all of a sudden. Isn’t Kyle the only person I can trust in this situation?”

“…….”

“I’m sorry to bother you, but this is an emergency situation where the Ark is in danger. In the midst of all this, Kind disappeared right after the Harmful Agitator ritual. I was wondering if I could get some advice or information…”

Saladan narrowed his eyes.

“Is there any reason why I shouldn’t talk to you alone, Kyle?”

“That’s not… but….”

“I just wanted to chat for a bit, like you, Sarah.”

Just a moment ago, Sarah and Kyle were talking to each other. How could Sarah firmly tell Saladan that it was not okay?

To others, it would look like Sarah was recklessly stopping Saladan.

“Listen.”

“okay.”

Since Kyle said it didn’t matter, Sarah had no reason to stop Saladan. She left with a very uneasy expression on her face.

“Mr. Saladan. I’ll go up to the conference room first.”

“Yes, I see.”

Kyle, who had been quietly watching Sarah’s back as she entered the Central Tower, spoke first.

“So, what are you curious about? I don’t really have anything to say about this matter.”

Kyle can tell you anything he wants about the disaster relief. However, he doesn’t know anything about the dungeon called the Ark. In the first place, it wasn’t even a dungeon that appeared in the game.

However, he cannot help identify the suspect. He does not know all the members of the Ark, and of course he does not know the relationships between them.

There are some people who are suspicious. For example, the Saladan in front of you is the most suspicious person.

but.

‘This is just a suspicion based on my level of favorability.’

There is no basis, no evidence. Can’t you just drive people away based on fragmentary and old experiences and intuition?

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I actually didn’t come here to ask for advice about the ark or this situation. I just wanted to create an opportunity for the two of you to talk.”

“then?”

Saladan turned his gaze and looked at Kyle. Through his thin eyelids, his bright yellow eyes looked straight at Kyle.

“Partshet’s secret laboratory. You’ve been in and out of there, right?”

“…….”

“I wanted to hear your impressions of the tour there.”