NoveLight ™
"Altar of Shadows". In this chapter, the Double has acted exclusively for two purposes: to force the expedition to waste the Stone of Truth, and if this fails, to cause riots in order to reduce the number of the expedition.
In this sense, there was one main suspect.
"What city are you from?"
Kylman Partean, a mage from Hans G's team, who cut the expedition in half in one sentence. At first I thought he had accidentally stepped on a mine. It seemed that the mage's team, except for Hans G, didn't know that the dwarf's group was from Noark.
"Dwarf, why did you point at me as a Double? Are you the Double?"
I tirelessly inquired from the dwarven crew where their gear came from, what exactly the clerk had told them when the ID tags were issued, and so on.
I asked countless questions that the dwarf could not answer, which aroused suspicion. However, at that moment, I did not pay attention to one thing. How did the dwarf seem to the Double, baffled by such a simple question?
Probably, it seemed strange. After that, he should ask himself why.
The double was in the body of an intellectual magician. Through questions that the dwarf could not answer, he would get to the bottom of the truth about Noark. Perhaps he was also greedy. Not only did its bearer have a suitable item for this situation, but it also became easier to hide one's identity with successful use.
"Oh, he's gone."
The Double Bastards know how to play dead. That's how they beat me many times in the game. If death wasn't instantaneous, that son of a bitch would hibernate and keep himself alive to trick players. For example, like now.
"Whoaeeeeee
As soon as the potion was poured onto the wound, the Double waved his hands furiously. If I didn't know about it, then the only way out would be to use the Stone of Truth on Raven, even after the other candidates had already been beaten to death.
"It's a double!"
When she was finally cleared of the false accusation, Raven screamed in a more joyful voice than ever before.
Even screaming in agony, the Double bastard tried to deny it.
"N-no!" Hey! It's not me! Cues!
How stupid do you think people are? It was absurd, but arguing with the monster was even more stupid. I just grabbed him by the hair and walked down the aisle.
As he approached the altar, the Double's struggle intensified.
"How...!?"
Finally, he stopped making excuses and expressed his doubts.
I grinned. In fact, the decisive reason was something else.
Why don't you practice acting?
A mage's greatest weakness is close combat, but this bastard dodged the dwarven's axe aimed directly at his head and got it shouldered. If he hadn't expected a surprise attack, it wouldn't have been possible. The fact that he died of it instantly was also ridiculous. Maybe if it was due to profuse bleeding, but how could he stop breathing before the female guide could give him a potion?
[You have successfully discovered a usurper inhabiting the body of an expedition member].
As soon as I placed the Double's head on the altar, pure white light began to emanate from it. At the same time, the forest trembled, as if in an earthquake.
"Whoeeeeee!"
Something like a shadow burst out of the Magus' head and swept through the trees, emitting a terrifying scream.
"Oh! It's gone!
It disappeared in one direction. However, there was no need to worry. This meant that Chapter 3 was over.
[Used one Stone of Truth. Unlock the seal: 10%].
[Hurry up and kill the usurper before he regains his sealed power].
Now it was time to fight the final boss.
"Björn, let's follow him!"
"Stop." We have to do something before that.
I calmed Einar down and checked on Parthean's condition. More precisely, it was Raven who did it.
"How is he?"
"His wound is almost healed, so he should wake up soon."
- I see.
As soon as I called her, Raven looked around at Parthean. After that, she finally drooped. She seemed to regain her sanity and relax.
"Phew...
The Melee Sisters and Mr. Bear came over with embarrassed faces, and each said a few words.
"Wow, so this guy was a Double...
"I told you it wasn't me!"
"Ahem, you're a mage for a reason. Who would have thought that in such a situation someone could stay alive?
"Ha... And what were you going to do if it really was me?
"Aruru!" You know me, don't you? I believed in you!
"Yes, of course... and what kind of Aruru is this?
"What?!" Don't you like Aruru? Ainar looked depressed, as if she had been offended.
Of course, this did not affect Raven.
"Would you like that!?" Arua Raven! Please call me by my first name or last name. I don't like such...
"I wanted to call you by your name, but it's hard to pronounce...
When Einhar lowered her head, Raven hesitated and asked cautiously.
"Do you want to call me by my first name?" What do you mean?
"You're a human and a mage, but you're also a dear teammate.
Ainar, as befits a barbarian, uttered these awkward words without changing her expression.
"Ha, that's a stupid pronunciation...
Raven took a deep breath, as if she couldn't believe she was doing this, and turned away from Einhar.
"It doesn't matter. Call me what you will.
"Really!?"
— Yes. They're calling me something similar at School anyway, so I don't have to be angry with you.
"Thank you, Aruru!"
It was a touching sight of the friendship between teammates as a result of overcoming difficulties.
Seeing this, I thought this:
This girl, although she does not look like one, is weak to such things. I'll take advantage of this in the future if I do something wrong.
I made a mental note to myself and, after a short conversation, proceeded to maintenance. There was a lot to do before the boss fight.
"Both of you, stop fooling around and come here."
First I called the female guide and the recovered Dumb Warrior.
"I suppose you've heard about the situation?"
— ... I do.
It seemed that Hans G and the elf archer were evil spirits came as a shock to him, as his eyes remained empty.
"Pull yourself together. You'll do it when you get out of here.
"What can I do?"
"Tell me what you can do."
I tested the Dumb Warrior's combat power: what essences he possessed, what form of combat he was capable of, and so on. Usually this information is never told to an outsider, but in the current situation he cooperated with me very obediently.
"Okay, what about you?"
"Except for finding the way, I will not help in battle. Excuse me.
We had one rank 6 warrior and one unranked guide.
"Nevertheless, Partean will be very useful to you. He is a rank 5 Magus.
"What?" Rank 5?
— Yes. Although he does not specialize in offensive magic, but in other aspects. He played the biggest role in the team. You should hear the details for yourself when he wakes up.
I was genuinely surprised, because Raven was still a rank 6 Magus.
How the hell did Hansoo manage to persuade such an outstanding talent to work with him?
This means that we will have to catch a Guardian consisting of seven people, including a rank 5 Magus...
I still couldn't understand the situation properly. I didn't have enough paint to paint the right picture. So while Partean was recovering, I was digging through the trophies of the dwarf team.
"Check every thing. If something stands out, let Raven inspect it. We must use everything we can.
I examined the items belonging to Hans G, an elf archer, a swordsman beastman, a dwarf, a sorcerer, and a priest of Karui.
The archer brought to the altar was put into a spirit state, and it was possible to check his belongings only after the Chasm was cleared, so let's pass by for now.
"Arrung!" How about this?
"I feel mana here. But I don't see any magic formulas, so it can't be a magic device... Most likely, this is a numbered item.
"Oooh!" Those boots! They fit me perfectly!
"These boots are made of half-troll leather. They also possess the magic of [Haste]. They are expensive, so wear them with caution. Later, you will have to pay for them.
Since each of the dwarven gang members was a mid-level researcher, every time we opened the bag, something useful was discovered.
It was like opening a treasure vault.
"Raven, can you check that too?" I know it's made of litinum, but why was it made into a necklace?
"It's because of the conductivity of mana. Even if you use the same magic, the effectiveness will be different. So let's see, this necklace...
As if that were her calling, Raven was quick to determine the value of all kinds of items.
However, this process took longer than expected, and at some point, Partean woke up as well.
"Uh...
Seeing the bodies of his comrades and various equipment in the forest, the middle-aged Magus fell into confusion. I sent the Dumb Warrior to explain the situation.
"Y-you mean the Double was in my body?... Noark... Yes, no wonder their bags were full of unused gear. It is logical if they are from there... Chrisen and Meyrin were evil spirits...?
As the explanation continued, the magician lost his complexion.
Perhaps this was the character of the magician, because even in such a situation, he came up to me and thanked me.
"Thank you. If it weren't for you, something truly terrible would have happened.
"If you're grateful, go and help Raven." Now is not the time to relax.
— Definitely.
After Partean joined, the pace accelerated.
Surprisingly, he was also an expert in such things.
— ... Evaluative magic? Are you from Narman School?
"Come to think of it, we didn't even introduce ourselves. Faithfully.
"I'm Arua Raven of the Altemion School.
"Haha, I know. Only one school has such a magnificent symbol on its mantle.
"Our master might go a little too far...
With the arrival of Parthean, a magician from the Narman School capable of special assessment, it became possible to classify not only numbered items, but also objects that previously could not be clearly identified. And so some time passed.
"It looks like we've sorted out all the useful things. Let's stop and get together.
Having finished sorting, we packed up and began temporary distribution.
"I warn you in advance, I will write down all the things that you take now and keep a full record. If you want to continue using it, you will have to pay for it later. Got it?
"I see!"
"Then, Einar, come here."
I looked at the ordered list and handed everyone the items I had received. I had only one criterion: who would have this subject more effective.
"Give the shoes to Mike."
"No way! They won't suit her anyway!
"Don't worry. I checked that they come with the magic of [Size Adjustment].
Not that my decisions were made flawlessly, but this is what the authority of a leader is for.
"Ainar."
"Good. Give...
Starting with Ainar, the rest of my team picked up usable equipment, either one or five per person.
God, how much money could we get for all this?
Every time after a fight with an explorer, an understanding begins to come from the depths of your soul why everyone is so looting.
"Well, that's all.
The remaining loot was divided and stored in the sub-spaces of Raven and me. It wasn't just for security reasons, it was just too much.
*Smirk*
Looking at my new gear, I couldn't help but smile.
Indeed, it was the law of the Hans effect.
[Equipped No2,988, Badge of the Guards Corps, Item Level +1,485]
[Equipped No8,667, Rogue of the Wildlands, Item Level +315]
[Equipping Idiom Gaiters. Item Level +400]
Bastard Double, consider you dead.
***
[Bjorn Jandel].
Level: 5
Build: 555 (Nov. +5)
Spirit: 198 (нов. +15)
Special Abilities: 191
Item Level: 3,068 (Nov. +2,200)
Total Combat Strength: 1,731 (new +570)
Acquired essences: