#132
It was a foolish hope.
There was no way Athanasuki, of all people, wouldn’t recognize Athanas’ voice immediately.
I had to think fast.
First, I need to convince Reyes.
#131
I always figured the Player of the God of War was just winging it—throwing out wild guesses, improvising left and right.
But was Insanity actually encouraging that kind of misunderstanding?
Why would he do something like that?
#130
Thinking I could handle this maniac might be the biggest blunder I’ve ever made.
Stay calm. Think it through.
Nothing irreversible has happened. Yet.
If Nasir figures out the effects of distortion and reports it to Casimir…
Casimir will come looking for me, won’t she?
I’ll have to come up with some excuse for her. Somehow.
#129
I felt uneasy, but with the Saint gone, it was time to deal with the aftermath.
Crazy how all that chaos just happened, and it’s only been ten minutes.
Andrea, the obedient servant of the Distorted One, wasn’t really a problem. He’d do whatever the ‘Prophet’ commanded without hesitation.
No, the real problem was Nasir, the inquisitor.
#128
Wow, that actually worked.
I blinked the notification window away.
...Does that mean ‘Forced Persuasion’ will work now too?
Technically, ‘Rank’ or influence isn’t a skill in the traditional sense. It’s just the system’s way of flashing a pop-up to tell me the conditions for an ability are met. But the real question is whether Forced Persuasion will come through for me this time.
#127
I did my best to keep calm.
If he can use distortion like that, there’s no way I can overpower him by force.
I just need to stall. Buy some time.
If I can keep him occupied long enough, the Saint will show up. And when that happens? This bastard’s getting a Game Over.
#126
“You know who I am?”
“...Yeah.”
How could anyone not know this guy?
Athanas Anatagasukidesu.
With a username that literally translates to “Athanas, I love you,”, this crazy bastard wasn’t just infamous—he was legendary long before Conclude was released.
#125
You’re seriously asking me that?
“What’s the quest reward?”
The Prophet hesitated, his lips twitching nervously. “...It increases favorability.”
Forcing someone’s favorability up? As expected of the Distorted One, it’s creepy as hell.
“It won’t work on me.” I crossed my arms. “I’ve got a trait that blocks mental interference, so you can just forget about it.”
The Prophet shook his head, quick and stiff. “No, not yours. Mine increases.”
#124
A faint sense of unease crept over me.
It doesn’t exactly feel ominous, though...
How do I even explain this?
...It’s like he suddenly finds me interesting?
“Hey, why are you just staring at me? I told you to ask another question.”
“You seem... friendlier all of a sudden.”
#123
His reaction is... surprisingly normal.
I had braced myself for something more dramatic. If he was as crazy as I thought—still treating this entire situation like some game to “win”—he should’ve freaked out the moment he realized his distortion had no effect on me. Honestly, I half-expected him to whip out a knife and hold it to my throat.
#122
Go ahead, take it. I dare you.
The Saint was going to show up any second, and when that happened, this idiot had no chance of escaping.
He’ll probably drop the stolen relic and make a run for it, though.
But really, it didn’t matter whether he ran or tried to keep it.
Actually, that might be even better.
Because that thing’s basically a GPS tracker anyway.
No scenario ended with him not being totally screwed.
#121
Who in their right mind would believe that garbage?
“…You’re not convinced, I see.” Andrea sighed, his fingers opening slowly to reveal an object dangling from a fragile thread. It swayed softly, catching the dim light.
“Do you know what this is?”