"At the beginning of the Magic Circle's collapse, before civilization fell into ruin, there were already many races in the world."
Linde stopped S&M. He knew S&M definitely liked hearing him tell historical stories. A game's success and quality weren't just about the gameplay, but also about its depth.
The current situation was perfect for a bit of exposition.
He was also wary of Banshee Lake.
"Ring Scholars" were destined to become the title hardcore players of "Doomsday Magic Circle" would earn.
Like Soul Scholars, like the Scribes...
"Humans, Sorcerers, Elves, Necromancers, Lizardfolk, Banshees... Humans weren't the most powerful race in this world. Before we received the blessings of the gods, before we learned to use tools, in the eyes of other creatures, we were just pigs to be farmed."
He looked at S&M and saw that S&M was silently nodding.
Was he recording?
"Many kingdoms existed in the world. Even the former Land Kingdom wasn't the most powerful, but it was still recognized by other countries. Each kingdom had a king who defended humanity's stable rule. Even if the night was long and help was far away, they had to keep the flame burning. It was more difficult than you can imagine for weak humans to preserve the spark of civilization..."
He paused, and said: "Therefore, every king, for the continuation of their race, must become more cruel, more domineering, and also greater."
"The King declared war on all power within the border, as long as they swore fealty to the King, life would continue as usual."
"Swear fealty to the King, or die."
Linde looked in the direction of Banshee Lake. "Some races feared the King's power and chose to submit, but others didn't care. This included the Banshees."
"They lived in the water and had no contact with humans. The Banshees even sent an envoy to visit the royal palace, but in the end, the envoy died inside the palace."
"Not only that, but all the escorts accompanying the envoy were beheaded and hung on the golden walls of Golia. This is the consequence of disobeying the King's orders."
Linde didn't think there was anything wrong with that. He probably would have done the same thing himself. Carrying so many responsibilities, it wasn't easy to navigate all the different forces. After all, as king, the most important thing was to protect humanity. The survival of other races was not as important.
"The Banshees have a blood feud with humans, and you'll find them in all deep waters. So, when you hear a mesmerizing song, it's best to run immediately." Linde concluded.
He didn't go into too much detail about the Banshee War, otherwise, they wouldn't get anything done today and might as well just set up camp right there.
"Maybe, if you want to know more, you can go find Eluna the Granny. She used to serve God in the Sun Church. Distant yet regrettable stories are as vast as the Milky Way above. Maybe you can glean some lost secrets from them?"
"I will, Lord!" S&M said, bowing his head.
Then he said, "So, are there Banshees ahead of us? The kind with a beautiful upper body and a fish tail?"
His eyes sparkled, clearly interested.
"Don't try to communicate with those crazy race-haters just because of their beauty. They're beyond communication. We knew long ago that there's no reasoning with them."
"I understand," S&M said, his expression eager, indicating that what he understood wasn't the same thing as what Linde said.
A pervert always has his own special understanding. (Adapting LSP - 色狼 to its closest english internet equivalent).
"If you really do encounter them, I hope your sword can enlighten them, help them regain their sanity, and at least know who they should be afraid of, instead of hiding in watery cages and snarling." Linde turned to face the direction in the air that gave him a faint burning sensation, and said, "That direction... we'll explore it later."
S&M, who had been lost in thought, suddenly widened his eyes.
"Ah, I get it!"
What do you get?
Born with a "know-it-all" constitution?
"So that's how the invisible wall is done! This game is really well prepared." (Adapting 空气墙, literally "air wall", to its gaming term equivalent).
The sun hung high, but the daylight was extremely dim.
The sky was painted a dull yellow, and the red clouds looked like they were burning in a fire, covering the village roofs with a unique autumn desolation.
Dilapidated wooden houses, desolate grass, gaunt old men, mad hymns.
Linde and S&M entered the village, one after the other.
The sun shone down on the listless villagers, pressing their shadows against the walls.
The harsh sunlight made the shadows on the walls twitch.
The villagers seemed "normal," except for their rambling chants. They didn't exhibit any overly dramatic behavior.
They ignored the two uninvited guests.
Having already witnessed the madness of these people, S&M nervously huddled closer to Linde.
"Where are the seeds you mentioned?" Linde's hand was already gripping the hilt of his broken sword. The forearm-length hilt in his grasp gave him a little peace of mind.
"In their village's farmland."
"Farmland?"
This really was... farming, then.
Or maybe a raid on a farm.
"Flame~"
Who was singing!
Linde turned to see an old villager completely cloaked in tattered black robes, raising a torch.
Lighting a torch in broad daylight?
"Burn~"
Someone else was singing. This time, the person was carrying a rake.
Sickles, butcher knives, spears, wooden sticks, candlesticks...
The villagers seemed to have reached a consensus in an instant, and they mixed together in a seemingly chaotic but very orderly way. The various farm implements and pieces of furniture were brandished wildly amidst the hymns.
The flames were blood red.
"Awoo~!" The villagers finally roared, transforming into wildebeests stampeding across the plains. They kicked up dust and trampled their companions who had stumbled, charging toward Linde and S&M.
The dense, blood-red flames instantly dominated their vision.
Some villagers were hit by their own companions and howled in agony as they burned in the blood-red flames, eventually turning to ashes.
"They weren't this enthusiastic when I came last time," S&M said. "Also, I think I've seen people like them somewhere else."
"They are followers of fire." Linde didn't know what kind of fire these people worshipped. Faith, after all, was far too free.
But he knew exactly what these people were: the lowest of the low, mere wild dogs.
"Mad Sages! They tried to believe in and understand the divine word, only to become crazed fanatics." Linde swept his broken sword horizontally.
The broken sword sent one Mad Sage flying, then knocked over a bunch more like bowling pins.
"Holy crap!"
S&M, who had been one-shotted last time, was shocked to see Linde control the enemy's attacks with just a few swings.
The gap was still huge... indeed, the gap was enormous!
Linde didn't let his guard down just because the enemies were weak. Being able to borrow the power of a god, even a little bit, was enough to give him a headache.
Who knew what would happen if you got caught in that blood-red fire.
A burning torch flew through the air and landed on S&M.
"Ah! My experience! It's stealing my experience again!" S&M cried out in agony.
Now Linde knew how dangerous that fire was. It was burning experience points! He had to stay away.
Linde, now fully engaged in combat, had excellent rhythm. The Queen Devourer's broken sword was clumsy, but he managed to cleave every flaming projectile in half.
Blood-red sparks flew everywhere, but none of them landed on him.
Linde had already used Crowley's Wrath on his armor, which would preemptively ignite any blood-red flames.
Wrath and blood-fire burned.
The flames that spurted out spread in all directions. Unlike Linde, who was protected by the Wrath, the villager Mad Sages were ignited by the Wrath exploding from his body.
The swaying, contorted figures turned into chimneys, pumping straight plumes of black smoke into the sky.
The ground trembled.
Each time the broken sword was raised and lowered, it created a shockwave with a considerable range. The tremors persisted, then exploded into scorched earth as Linde raised the broken sword high again.
Linde took a large step past S&M, his burning, heavily armored figure dashing into the battlefield.
In an instant, both the twisting, struggling villager Mad Sages and the burning, contorted black smoke chimney Mad Sages were drawn into the vortex centered on Linde.
The frenzied vortex increased its suction force as the broken sword rotated, and upon a target being drawn in, it would quickly grind them into mincemeat!