Golden Experience

“Perhaps… it seems we are under attack by Lady Blanc.”

In a hurry, I flew to the capital of Wells and upon inquiring with Mare, that was the report.

“What? Blanc? Why?”

“I cannot say for certain the reason… Currently, Lady Kerry and the Holy Church are coordinating with the knights outside the city walls to restrain the massive undead. Please have a look there.”

As instructed, I [Summoned] Kerry’s perspective and shared it.

Indeed, those undead were her familiars. They seemed to be a Giant Corpse and a Flesh Golem.

While it was not impossible for them to occur naturally, if such conspicuous creatures were wandering around, it would have become a topic on the forum, especially in a city with somewhat lower defense capabilities; it would likely have been destroyed.

If these undead were not naturally occurring, then they were most likely created by me. Since undead fusion had only been done once, it was undoubtedly from the previous production batch, the result of merging Blanc’s zombies as an experiment.

Or rather, it would be faster to ask Blanc directly.

“Hello, Blanc? What are you doing right now?”

“Oh, Rare-chan! Right now? It’s a secret!”

“Could it be that you’re attacking a city? Perhaps Wells’s capital?”

“Eh? Amazing! How did you know? Are you a mind reader?”

“Ah, so that was it.”

It was indeed Blanc. While it was unclear why she did such a thing, it wasn’t like Blanc had done something wrong. They had discussed cooperating as much as possible with Lyra included in their three-way conversation.

However, regarding Wells, no one had declared any specific actions yet, except maybe Lyra releasing bandits or something trivial. It was all minor.

In terms of timing, Blanc and I had both set their sights on this country almost simultaneously, with me operating covertly and Blanc planning a large-scale attack, coincidentally colliding. That’s probably the case.

“No, actually, I’m in the city right now.”

“Eh!? Is that so!?”

It wasn’t necessary to report every detail of future attacks or actions to each other. After-the-fact reporting was sufficient. I had intended to do so, and it seemed Blanc too.

“I see… So, it means Rare-chan came here first. What should I do? Should I go back? Uhh, I’m sorry?”

“No, it’s mutual. Just wait a moment. You can continue your attack as planned.”

However, since they had collided right at the beginning, there was no helping it.

The accident had already occurred.

Moreover, it was a big deal for the NPCs and players living in this city.

In the midst of dealing with the incoming horde of angels, the sudden appearance of a saint from the Holy Church, followed by the onslaught of a massive undead, was too abrupt. Even though it was an event, the unfolding was so rapid that it would likely cause confusion. One would worry that the reports to the country were already congested somewhere.

However, if Blanc suddenly retreated now, it would look suspicious.

If the giant undead, which had been attacking with great enthusiasm, were to back away without any particular reason, it might be suspected that someone had given them instructions to do so.

Especially now, when angels are scattering large numbers of Pure Hearts. It is unclear if there really are any living necromancers, but if Gustav’s story is correct, they must be very active.

If there is such a person, he or she would be suspected. If there is, or rather, as far as I know, there is definitely one necromancer who has infiltrated the royal capital. Of course, that refers to me.

Logically speaking, there is no solid evidence linking a Pure Heart to a giant undead creature, but if there is even the slightest reason to believe so, people will readily believe it. It is called normalcy bias. People tend to believe what they want to believe.

Then there are scenarios that are more sensational and make us want to believe them.

For example, a giant undead appeared at the same time as the angel, but the city was protected by the saint sent by God.

This is where the Church of the Holy Church of Wells, which has a reputation for match pumping, comes in.

<I want you to listen to me while I attack you. I’m in the city right now──>

*

The walls that envelop the capital of Wells are remarkably high. However, the undead currently attacking the city are large enough to seemingly reach over those towering walls.

This is the capital, the most heavily defended place in Wells. The quality of the knights defending the city is higher than in other towns, and their numbers are greater.

Even recently, creatures called angels had been indiscriminately attacking cities, but this capital had not suffered any significant damage. This was not only due to the strength of the knights but also because of a remarkable savior.

A radiant maiden known as the “Saint” from the Wells Holy Church appeared, diverting and defeating the attacking angels single-handedly, repeating heroic actions.

This city, or rather this entire country, felt protected by the watchful eyes of the gods.

However, on this day, giant undead suddenly appeared from a distance and headed towards the city.

The undead approached the city walls, knocking down several knights. While its strength was not enough to render the knights incapacitated with a single blow, its sheer size provided an advantage.

The attacks from the knights seemed to inflict damage, but the giant undead’s high vitality made it appear less effective.

Thanks to capable bishops from the Wells Holy Church and mercenaries affiliated with the city’s trade guild participating in the defense, the situation had not escalated to the point of breaching the city walls, but it seemed to be only a matter of time.

To make matters worse, an alarming number of giant undead, double the attacking force, appeared as reinforcements.

The original undead, perhaps due to accumulated damage, fell back, allowing the newly arrived undead to take the forefront, breaking the spirits of the knights. The citizens looked up to the sky in despair.

However, God had not forsaken Wells.

Enter the aforementioned Saint. Her hair gleamed even in the dim twilight as she swiftly ascended the city walls. Without a moment for the residents and knights to react with surprise, she leaped outside the city and, using her proficient [Sacred Magic], obliterated the nearby giant undead that had not yet suffered damage.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Magic, however, is not omnipotent. Once cast, there is a cooldown period called recast time before the same magic can be used again.

But that wasn’t a cause for concern either.

The Saint ascended the bodies of the giant undead, just like the city walls, kicked the enemy’s shoulder to leap, and thrust her sword into the top of its head.

Whether it was a skill or a feat, the head of the giant undead pierced by the sword exploded as if struck by [Sacred Magic], and it fell to the ground.

By the time the Saint had already moved on to the next enemy before the fallen one, slashing its neck. As one foe fell, she seamlessly moved on to the next, and the next, defeating the undead in a flowing sequence.

By the time the reinforcements of giant undead that appeared later were mostly taken care of, the remaining undead seemed to sense the disadvantage and fled back to where they came from.

“…And they fled. All’s well that ends well, I suppose.”

Timing my sword thrust with Mare, I blew away the head of the Giant Corpse with [Sacred Magic] and took a breath. The ones I had summoned from Liebe’s grassland with the recent call were the last batch.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, I decided to enhance the fame of the Saint. However, not wanting to harm Blanc’s pawns for that, I summoned identical Giant Corpses and had Mare defeat them. They portrayed it as if things were turning unfavorable after Mare’s defeat, and Blanc and the others naturally withdrew.

“Good job!”

“Thank you. Sorry, Blanc. I’ll make it up to you.”

“Nah! It’s my fault for attacking on my own without saying anything.”

“We did say it’s mutual, right? If Blanc wants to start a war anywhere, how about Shape? It’s the least important place right now, but what do you think?”

By the way, if Blanc could keep an eye on Shape, which is not easily observable, it would be a great help.

“Anywhere’s fine! Alright, let’s go there after this!”

“Eh!? Right now? Well, okay. Let me know when you decide. Once the cleanup here is done, I’ll come check the situation.”

“Roger! Oh, by the way, you were so cool, Mare-chan, right? The saintly girl! Graceful entrance! Wells’ beautiful Saint!”

“…Well, see you later.”

While the situation was contained before the city walls could be breached, some knights had injuries. Parts of the attacked city walls had collapsed. The church provided aid to the injured knights, and once healed, the knights assisted in repairing the walls. Kerry’s controlled trade guild also contributed manpower. Skilled craftsmen under their command swiftly progressed with the wall repairs, thanks to their abilities.

After the departure of the Giant Corpses, the Wells capital was filled with joy. Citizens were celebrating in the main streets and squares, and the owners of taverns and daytime stalls were selling simple dishes, expecting loose purse strings from the joyous residents. Of course, the first to start this were the merchants under my command.

The goal was not to make money. It was to ensure that the residents remembered that they overcame this threat thanks to the church. The commotion would serve as a good reminder of this event later.

Human memory is vague and tends to fade over time. Especially for things observed or heard only once. However, if multiple senses, such as smell or taste, are involved in the experience, memories tend to last longer and become more vivid.

It was unknown if NPCs or AI in the game had such specifications. In fact, it was unclear whether AI even experienced forgetfulness. But it was better to do it than not. At least for now, the entire city had a positive atmosphere.

Looking down from above, Saint Mare and the Holy Church appeared incredibly popular. It was unknown how the knights, dominated by nobles and royalty, felt, but at least the guards, or soldiers, seemed to look favorably upon them, probably due to receiving healing from the knights.

“Well, there might be nobles thinking it’s better to die and respawn than create debts by getting healed, but…”

For now, there was no sign of anyone recognizing me from below. However, that might not be the case forever. When Mare was urged to climb the city walls, I used my Demonic Shield as a foothold. Originally, I had considered using myself as a stepping stone, but Mare vehemently rejected the idea. We had to settle for using my Demonic Shield, which was possible because Mare could perceive it.

Demonic Shields with LP could be seen with True Eyes. In other words, if someone with True Eyes were present, I would appear as an unnatural overlap of multiple LP instances. Players with True Eyes like the archer who targeted me in the Hiers capital did exist. And NPCs with such skills, like the angels, also existed.

From their perspective, disappearing into the air and floating might seem suspicious.

“Whether I disappear or not, I still stand out. Well, nothing can be done about this. It might be useful when I want to efficiently find someone with True Eyes, though.”

As the commotion began to settle down, Blanc contacted me. It seemed she had arrived at Shape. My underlings, the Giant Corpses, had respawned in the grassland. I would lend them if needed, as an apology.