Clearing the Game at the End of the World - Chapter 73

Chapter 73 – In the Name of Honor (7)

‘No wonder why the plan seemed to be going so smoothly! Everything worked out too well for such a lousy excuse! When did she start playing along? From the beginning? When she brought in Jekers? When I confessed that I wasn’t associated with the Queen? When I mentioned the Savior’s Order?’

Unlike his chaotic mind, Professor’s mouth spoke calmly.

“I swear. I, Professor, swear that until the day my own will dies, I will serve everything I have for humanity.”

It was my last pride leaving out the phrase [for the Order] like most warrior oaths did. Damn it, fine! Yeah! My pride’s hurt! I lost! I completely lost to that snake woman!

After looking down at Professor with a satisfied expression, Senadis turned to the surrounding priests and paladin.

“Now, there is a new warrior among us. I do want to spend time to bless him properly, but as the information ‘Warrior Professor’ requires urgent handling, we will have to make do with a shortened ceremony. The priests and paladins should create troops and head to the Singing Helm tavern at once.”

“We will follow the light’s will.”

“Latura, Ro Haram.”

The priests and paladins left the church as soon as the bishop issued the order. To think that the heretics’ base was there in front of their faces. They would have struggled to wait that long.

So when they departed, and only Professor and the bishop were left inside the church, Senadis, who seemed unfazed by the oil smearing into her robes, kneeled right in front of Professor and faced him.

“I like your quick-wittedness and reaction to solving situations. Oh, Ro Haram. Your will is where I stand. How thankful you provided such a talented one to me.”

Without the priests in their presence, the woman started to reveal her true colors. Her voice changed from solemn and holy to a lighter feeling. She had already realized that I figured out her snake-like intentions and decided to honestly reveal them. Well, it was hard for her to ignore it since I was baring my teeth at her the moment the priests left.

“Since when… did you plan this?”

“Hm… that’s a difficult question. It was much too different from the original plan to start with. I don’t know if I should say this went as planned or not.”

As she said that, she took out a worn letter folded twice over from her robe.

“The first time I heard about you was through this letter.”

“What… is it?”

“Ahah. Why don’t you read it for yourself?”

After glaring at the woman smiling like a sly fox, he snatched the letter from her hands and opened it.

“This…”

“Isn’t it surprising? When I first received this letter from the church’s informant, I thought over and over that this had to be fake. That’s only natural since the one that sent this recommendation letter for a certain man was none other than the representative of the knights, Charlotte De Agart!”

On the paper Professor held was a description written in awkward noble formality about how Professor was a person that could devote himself to Rodrick and that he was a man worthy enough to become a knight, along with Charlotte’s seal.

“H—huh?”

Not only did she carry me to the church and make a ruckus to save me, but Charlotte—the Charlotte left a recommendation letter?

– Soygaybar : ????????

– Speedwagon : Woah.

– Mukaba : Charlotte’s route… is open? That impregnable person?

– Udnam_undam : Is this some weird trend in World 3 where ugly guys are popular?

– Jokass : Ayo, Professor’s stream just entered the Top 50 ranking on the Community. I think the word spread that he found a way to open Charlotte’s route.

– G Dating Sim G : Hello everyone. I am from the ‘R19 Play Association’, those who want to remember the beautiful past of the world. We give our word of appreciation to the ones leading the efforts to open new paths, and will leave our meaning of thanks here. We hope too meet once again in the future. Thank you.

– takealook : That’s a suspiciously large number….

– Speedwagon : Unlock requirements: Over 30% contribution on the battlefield for the troops allied with the character / Charlotte De Agart’s Approval / Almost complete wipeout of the allies. Especially all of Charlotte’s close troops need to be dead / Player needs to be wounded close to death, and the contribution to the battles up to that would need to be known / After all of the previous criteria have been met, the enemy needs to be driven out and Charlotte needs to be alive. /

These are the minimal conditions from the confirmed information so far. Only an assumption.

– G Dating Sim G : Thank you~

– 美しさ賛美 : Thank you~

– G Dating Sim G : Thank you~

– Bachigass : Thank you~

– Olden_One : They say that in the mist are countless geniuses that amount to the stars of the sky… it seems that there is one that finally found the path to the answer to the unsolved question… This information earned with your life will be used well.

Uh… hhmm… everyone seems surprised. I was too. I knew that Charlotte was thinking well of me, but not enough to write a recommendation. The representative of the knights herself was trying to pull strings to get me in. I’m not completely sure, but isn’t this a serious a serious sign?

Professor was in a happy daze, then suddenly frustratedly hit the ground.

‘Damn it! If only that infection didn’t reach an impossible level to treat, then I could have switched over right then to a royal knight route! And maybe even possibly make Charlotte my ally!’

Aghh, I’m sad. I’m so terribly sad. If only I had looked out for myself a little more, then I could have been playing the game happily without going through this mess. A royal knight is an A-rank job. It would have been at least a hundred times easier than this.

Regardless of whether Professor was suffering or not, Senadis continued to talk.

“The Light’s Order is quite interested in Miss Agart. It’s only natural for those who worship the god of light to be interested in the knight that’s called the ‘Sun of the Battlefield’. At some point, there were even some priests that believed she was a child given by Ro Haram. But to think such a woman personally submitted a recommendation letter for a man. I commanded them to look into you because I thought that was interesting… but you know the rest of the story. How would I have known that such suspicious information would be given to me?”

“Then was the oracle all a lie?”

“As if I would dare borrow Ro Haram’s name to lie. The oracle was true. But I did know that the target of the oracle was the Savior’s Order. It’s harder to not know that it was them, seeing how widespread their name already is across the entire world.”

“What a c—”

“C?”

“Catastrophe.”

Professor was about to curse from the disbelief of this entire situation but swallowed it back in. In the end, she was still a bishop. Cockiness will kill. Let’s slowly and calmy take in the situation.

Even then, he must have failed in hiding his boiling anger, as Senadis laughed humorously after looking at Professor’s face.

“But the situation flowed in a much different from what I predicted. The original plan was to completely frame you as a heretic and then save you from death’s door by pleading to the priests, then take you in as a part of the church to reel in Miss Agart as well.”

Tap tap.

The female bishop drummed on Professor’s head and smiled brightly once again.

“But when we actually met, it turns out that you’re an incredibly bright, witty, and sensible person with even the ability to gain intel on the Queen. Who could have known that you would be such a valuable being? When I heard the base of the Savior’s Order that not even us priests could find out, I realized it. Ah, the Lord has bestowed this man upon us. He had given us a tool to brighten our way when we were wandering through these dark times. According to miss Agart’s letter, it seems that your strategic abilities in battle were almost beyond human levels. Throwing away such talent would be a waste, not to mention ignoring Ro Haram’s will.”

“Tch!”

Professor slapped her hand away, but Senadis got up from her position unfazed and walked up to the Ro Haram statue.

“You should know this, but I’ll repeat it for the sake of both of us. Professor, you cannot reject the will of the church. You are already much too deeply intertwined with the mutes. No matter how you make yourself look, the church can drag you in as a heretic at any time. You know this, right?”

“… Damn it.”

“I’ll take that as a yes. At first, you were going to be used as bait to make Miss Agart a warrior… but now that we have you as a card, there’s no reason to make her an ally, turning all of the Rodrick Kingdom into an enemy.”

Professor could feel that the conversation had been dancing around the main point. She knows my identity and wants to use me to lure in Miss Agart. But now they didn’t need her and were using me instead. For what, though? Why did they want me?

Professor spoke up in a rather blunt tone.

“A Warrior describes someone that has been given a mission from the church. Why don’t we stop the small talk and get to the point? How big even is this mission that you’re spending all of this time putting it in a nice candy wrapper?”

“… Latura, Ro Haram. Please have mercy on us.”

Senadis, who was quietly praying to the statue for a moment, turned around when Professor spoke up. For some reason, her standing in front of the statue made it seem like she was standing at a further distance.

After hesitating for a moment, Senadis finally opened her mouth.

“The number of monsters is only increasing by the day, and Rodrick has already lost 3 of its cities. Not only the Light’s Order, but all of the other churches are also predicting that a dark future lies ahead.”

“Anyone that’s been on the battlefield knows tha—”

“They are going to create a death squad. Those who will risk their lives to infiltrate the heart of the enemy and kill the cause of all evil, the Queen.”

As if pondering the weight of every word she uttered, Senadis spoke slowly, word by word, solemnly.

“Professor, I want you to use your abilities and lead this death squad. May you become their pathfinder and lead the flames to the Queen.”

‘It’s a death sentence.’

That was the first thought that popped into his mind when he heard the words death squad.

The word itself was already reeking with the stench of death. A squad that executed a mission putting their life on the line. The mission to drill into the deepest core of the mute’s base and kill the Queen, the cause of this war.

‘It’s foolish. I don’t know who’s going to be in the squad, but the mission success rate is too low. It’s almost certain that it will fai—’

Just then, a feeling passed through Professor’s mind. A very sticky and disgusting feeling.

“… It’s a mission with no chance of success, not to mention survive. Can you all even call yourselves the servants of god?”

“The light always bears a child to darkness. As the servants of Ro Haram, it’s needed to worship the darkness he bars as well. We are more than ready to sink into the shadows for the light.”

“What a pretty way to say that you’ll gladly get your hands dirty.”

‘The church is not interested in the success of this mission.’

Whether the death squad succeeded in their mission or not, the moment they infiltrated the enemy’s territory, their job was already done. Even if they failed to kill the Queen, it was proving the fact that a single squad of people can be used to target the weakest spot of the mutes. That would be enough to restrict the actions of the Queen’s children, the talking mutes, that were rampaging across the entire world. Because they cared more about the Queen than their own lives, such a threat will cause them to shrink back, and that buys more time for humanity to prepare. Additionally, they were able to get rid of the risky people that had the possibility to threaten them, so it was a win-win situation for the church.

“It’s becoming more of a shame that I need to send you the more we talk to realize the objective of the death squad in that instant. I really do want to try and make you a priest if I could…”

“Quit with the formalities, will you?”

“Ahah. If you hadn’t been tainted by evil, then we could have worked together.”

That was the conclusion. He had proven himself through the truth spell, but because he had already been in the grasp of the mutes, he was untrustworthy. Since there was a suicide mission that just happened to need a smart person, he was kept alive.

Between the ceremonial bowls lying in front of the statue, Senadis picked up a necklace with a metal circle decoration that had a hole in the middle, then passed it over Professor’s neck. The large necklace that reached from his collarbone to the pit of his stomach made him uncomfortable, but it seemed to be a high-quality relic that had a pretty strong divine power.

“Thou warrior, who hast sworn to remain human even tainted by evil. I, servant of Ro Haram, Collector of Light, El Senadis, bless thou. May this relic, the ‘Light of Nelphia,’ light thy path through this harsh mission.”

“…How nice of you to bless a dead body. Why don’t you give me a holy sword if you had the choice?”

“I’m already pushing the limits giving you a relic. The archbishop had said that this was all over once the death squad had left.”

Senadis bowed her head and clasped her hands together as if she was praying.

“But you, you are the church’s warrior that I have appointed myself. We pushed you to the edge, but even then, I will hope that you return alive.”

“Is it even okay for you to pray for a ‘tainted’ guy like me?”

“Ro Haram is sure to forgive me for that much.”

After hanging the necklace on my neck, Senadis deeply bowed toward me.

“I wish for your safe return, Warrior Professor. You will find my acolyte waiting outside. You must leave now, warrior. Please, may the light lead your path.”

“…”

Quietly glaring at the woman, Professor stood up. Even while he walked towards the door, Senadis did not once raise her body from the bow. To Professor, that was incredibly, incredibly uncomfortable.

“…Well, the last part was nice, so I’ll say one last thing for you as well.”

Whilst holding the door to the church entrance, he spoke, still facing away from the woman.

“It’ll be better for someone like you to quit being a bishop. I’ve never seen someone talk so much trying to send someone to the battlefield. If you know they can’t reject the mission, all you need to tell them is go.”

“….”

“What I’m saying is, just go back to being a normal priest and serve that light or something. Don’t push yourself into that position just to get shoved around by the higher ups.”

“…But the Lord needs me.”

“My goodness. I’ve never felt bad for someone for being so good.”

Creaak—

When Professor opened the church doors, the bright sunlight outside made him grimace. It was so bright that it blinded him.

“…I’ll close the door.”

Bang!

After slamming the door shut, he followed the priest waiting for him off the church grounds.

[ Aren’t you supposed to comfort a woman that’s crying? That’s what is says here. ]

‘Not this time. Comforting her is useless.’

Senadis was crying as she sent Professor off. As if even showing her tears was sinful, she bowed her head to the ground. Even she, who needed to create these plans in the church’s shadows, seemed to be just another pawn—a pawn that needed to pretend she was corrupt and vile to push someone off the cliff.

“I definitely hate people that have to do with ideology and belief.”

“Pardon?”

“Ah, I’m just talking to myself.”

During the entire trip following the acolyte, Professor couldn’t get rid of this uncomfortable feeling in his heart.

“Where are we going exactly?”

“There is a small lodging for guests in the back of the church. The people that will be assisting with your mission will be waiting there.”

“The people on the mission, you say…”

Professor was lost in thought as he followed the acolyte through the well-maintained garden.

‘It’s a forced mission, but it’s not completely screwed looking at the situation. It might even be a good chance for me.’

This was a death squad that’s been made recently, but looking at the overall picture of the events, it was similar to the storyline that the people on the Community were used to.

‘It’s identical to the mission that Player Rank 3, Emperor Qianliu, received. It’s the same event.’

It was the completely same story progression as the ranker that cleared World 3. Professor’s playthrough, which had been completely all over the place in the past, had suddenly been set on the right track.

‘The only problem is, when Emperor Qianliu received this mission, he’d already done a bunch of other things and had a decent amount of Hero Unit members with him. Even putting aside the allies, Emperor Qiuanliu himself has god-tier controls.’

There are actually a decent amount of people that call Emperor Qianliu’s World 3 clear data a ‘fake’ or ‘incomplete’ clear data. That’s because Emperor Qianliu, this madman, didn’t care about any of the future worlds and just concentrated on leveling up his current character, then accepted this death squad mission at the start of the game and overwhelmed the Queen’s base, and cleared the game.

‘Compared to that, my current state is a complete joke.’

Even if it was near the start of the game, Emperor Qianliu already had enough strength to use his sword to cut down castle walls in just one slash. Looking at the videos, when the sword he had broke, he used the broken sword to create a 2-meter-long sword aura and used his own body to cut down the mutes. As a former fighter-type player myself, I had no idea how he manages to do that. Looking at his moves, the man was definitely another breed in real life as well.

And me, on the other hand?

A body that’s useless without mute’s blood, and even with blood, I would probably barely manage to reach maybe the heel of Emperor Qianliu. Allies? There’s no one. The only thing I’d probably win in is sustainability, since we’re fighting in mute territory.

Even if he was on the same route, it was going to be impossible to just barrel through as Emperor Qianliu had done.

‘The allies that are going to be on my team are going to be important though….’

If I was weak, then at least my allies needed to be strong. When Emperor Qianliu left for the missions, I believe his allies were the Roam Snake, a legendary archer, and Princess Argaleia.

I don’t even want anything big. They don’t even need to be Hero rank units, just ones that will pull their own weight. Looking at the situation, they’re also probably guys that are hard for the church to deal with. Just please give me some people I can use!

“We have arrived. I’m not permitted to enter, so you must go on your own. Your squad members will inform you of the mission details.”

After saying his final words, the acolyte left without looking back.

– Soygaybar : Oh, is it another gacha? Ally gacha?

– Noru_is_druig : ‘Church Select, Awkward Introductions’ Pack. 10 pull lez do it.

– Jokass : At least one of them should be a named character. They need to be strong enough to at least get close to the Queen.

‘Please! I don’t need named characters! Just a healer, mage, and tanker—wait no, I’m the tanker, so just a healer, mage and dps!’

Praying desperately, Professor opened the door to the building his allies were waiting in.