Chapter 115 :

I thought the first Golden Mask had one of the two, but if all of them were in the same state, then it might not be a simple hidden trait.

There was no way all eleven people here had the same hidden trait.

To do that, they would all have to raise the exact same talent tech tree.

………… That’s impossible unless you’re a gamer, a player.

Even gamers and players don’t know much about “hidden traits.”

And they all conveniently raised it?

‘Interesting fellows.’

Truly, I couldn’t understand them.

Which is why, it was amusing.

I believed I had conquered everything in Pangaenia.

Though I was defeated in the great expedition, that was merely due to variables, and didn’t I win the battle against the Demon King itself?

Yet here existed an unknown place, filled with this many unknown beings that I had never reached.

‘Just as I don’t know you, you won’t be able to know me.’

Above all, the fact that none of us knew each other was a highly amusing situation.

I had hidden or altered my identity many times, but this was completely different from those cases.

It was a battle of who would grasp the other first.

Like some kind of mind game.

A mind game at a level I had never experienced before.

“… If the Three Swords said so, then it must be true.”

At last, the Golden Fox Mask spoke as if it were nothing.

A husky woman’s voice.

Her attitude was endlessly languid.

But anyway.

‘Golden Fox Mask, huh.’

Every transcendence I had met in the Empire had worn a “Fox Mask.”

Don’t tell me that the origin of all the fox masks is that woman?

Even the one presumed to be my old sub-character, “Descent of the Thunder God,” had worn a Silver Fox Mask.

That wasn’t the only strange thing.

Ten of them wore masks shaped like various beasts, yet only the “Golden Mask” wore a plain mask. That too felt suspicious.

I was dying of curiosity, but didn’t show it.

Showing curiosity here was no different from admitting defeat.

“In that case, you should show your ‘Orthodox.’”

“Mhm. Last confirmation. Even if the Three Swords is certain, it’s different when we see it with our own eyes.”

“Show it.”

Look at that. Aren’t they already getting curious on their own?

They want me to reveal that I am a fellow patron of an Orthodox.

Even though the Three Swords of the Empire pledged an oath and even the two Golden Masks had vouched for me, they still didn’t trust it easily.

Meaning,

‘There is no trust among them.’

These bastards didn’t trust each other.

They simply didn’t have such a thing as trust.

With this, I learned something else.

They were rivals.

The ones gathered here were in a relationship where stabbing each other in the back at any moment wouldn’t be strange.

If eleven rivals became twelve, of course their mood would sour.

Whatever the case, I shrugged.

“Ridiculous fools.”

Then I smirked and spoke as though they were laughably pathetic.

A voice that showed not even 1g of curiosity.

As if their behavior was genuinely funny to me.

Those who get curious first are the ones who reveal their cards—such is the rule.

‘I need to confirm their Orthodox first.’

And right now, I couldn’t recklessly show “Hel.”

I still didn’t know exactly what they meant by “Orthodox.”

The Three Swords confirmed it, but I had no idea if it was simply because of Hel’s appearance, or because of something else entirely.

“… Ridiculous fools? Are you talking about me?”

“Heh.”

At first it was amusing, but now I wasn’t amused anymore.

In other words, I had crossed the line.

One by one, murderous gazes locked onto me.

But it didn’t matter.

Even such killing intent couldn’t penetrate this “Wall of Light.”

‘Invincible. All damage and effects are nullified.’

The Throne of Radiant Light granted invincibility as long as one remained inside its domain. It was thanks to this that I had withstood the supreme dragon, Riley, for so long.

The most Throne of Radiant Light also worked the same.

Not just murderous gazes — even if they filled their killing intent and launched all sorts of attacks, as long as I sat here, I was invincible.

I crossed my arms and casually crossed my legs as if it wasn’t worth responding.

Even without speaking, they could see how confident I was.

“…………”

Silence flowed under the heavy atmosphere.

And then—

“… Since we must all show our ‘Orthodox’ before we can proceed with the ‘Banquet,’ I’ll go first.”

The Golden Mask opened his mouth.

He raised his hand and drew a circle.

Crackle!

A blue line was drawn along his hand.

Sparks shot off the line like static electricity.

Once the circle was completed—

—Krrrkkrkr!

The Golden Mask’s “Orthodox” revealed itself.

***

A gleam appeared in the Golden Mask’s eyes.

‘Now then, how will he react?’

The man who first appeared as Hudson’s escort.

He knew he had used Hudson to hide his identity, but he had never imagined he was a patron of an Orthodox.

Yet there were only eleven Orthodox in the Reaper Church.

For so long, “11” had been considered the perfect number, but now that bias had been broken, and 12 had been completed.

Then is he a fake?

But if the Three Swords swore on it, he couldn’t be fake.

The one who bears the title of Three Swords is an “Executor,” and at the same time a “faithful servant.”

And servants naturally recognize their master.

If the Twelfth Orthodox truly existed, the only remaining factor was the patron.

Thus, the Golden Mask decided to gauge the patron’s vessel.

‘Ordinary people would suffocate in this territory.’

A place where everyone was guarded against everyone else.

If the energy they released tangled, the destructive power was beyond imagination.

So overwhelming that even a great powerhouse would have to react.

Even if he had the hidden trait, the Heart of the Iron-Blooded Monarch, it would be the same.

Whether it was the White King or the Black King, or anything above — the same applied.

And yet—

He brought out the Throne of Radiant Light and sat in it, showing no reaction whatsoever.

He provoked them instead.

‘… Truly an amusing fellow.’

Where did this kind of guy crawl out from?

Or was it the ability of that throne?

Either way, he was someone who surpassed expectations.

Now let’s see if his “Orthodox” could also do so.

“You’ve gained one more wing since last time.”

“Well, after devouring so many ‘Souls of Sinners,’ it’s only natural.”

“Six wings. Three pairs.”

The Golden Mask’s Orthodox appeared through the warp.

Everyone watched closely.

Some admired and gasped, some stayed silent and frowned.

—Krrkrkr!

The Golden Mask’s Orthodox had six black wings, and it took the form of a small reaper holding a scythe.

The little reaper perched on the Golden Mask’s hand wore a disturbing grin, looking at the masters of the golden masks.

“Hmph, I can’t let the Golden Mask be the star of this Banquet. I should show the growth of my own ‘Orthodox’ as well.”

At the same time, the one wearing the Golden Lion Mask also drew a small circle with his hand.

Sparks danced along the circle.

And when the warp opened—

—Kuhrhrh!

This time, a burly reaper appeared.

It was small in height but massive in build, with five wings and a thick horn on its forehead.

“… You’ve gained a horn.”

“Looks like the body got bigger too.”

“What in the world is it eating to grow every time we see it?”

The other patrons murmured in slight awe.

It wasn’t as impressive as the Golden Mask’s Orthodox, but it had clearly grown stronger.

Not wanting to lose, they each began revealing their Orthodox one by one.

—Kehehehe!

—Kikikikiki!

The one with the Golden Wolf Mask summoned a thin reaper who laughed mischievously.

The one with the Golden Sheep Mask summoned a round reaper who smirked like a brat.

All the “little reapers” appeared in different forms.

All those known as Orthodox had the form of reapers with wings — differing in number of wings, horns, or star-filled hollow eyes.

And thus all eleven Orthodox revealed themselves.

“Now. It is your turn.”

… The Golden Mask stared straight at me.

Now I understood clearly.

The difference between “Hel” and the other Orthodox.

The difference between me and them.

“Why are you staying still?”

“Are you unable to draw the ‘line’?”

“No way. If you’re truly a patron of an Orthodox, you must at least be able to draw a ‘line.’”

“So you really are a fake.”

The line.

When they drew circles, warps formed.

And their Orthodox emerged.

But I didn’t need to draw the “line” they spoke of.

Rip—!

Space tore open.

In the shape of a scythe.

Crackle! Crackle-crackle-crackle!

Sparks erupted all over the torn “line.”

A scene incomparable to the tiny sparks of their hand-drawn circles.

“Hm?”

“That is…!”

“The Orthodox opening a warp directly?”

They finally understood.

Their Orthodox required the patron to open a path.

But Hel could open her own gate.

A patron — one who leads. As their name implies, they summon and lead their Orthodox directly.

That was the first difference between them and me.

I didn’t need to know how to draw a line. I didn’t need to draw one at all.

But compared to the second difference, the first was nothing.

The decisive second difference between them and me—

—Kyahahaha!

With a thunderous, boisterous laugh, Hel cut open space and revealed itself.