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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Chapter 122
“Wow… Wow, this is insane. Is that an ability you can control?”
“No.”
“Even a 7th-circle mage is already beyond belief, but this… I don’t even know how to describe it. Sorry, but… at least until you can control that, stay outside the territory. I’ll make sure you have a place to stay and all the supplies you need.”
As she said, isolation was the safest option for me at the moment.
So, I had been staying at an empty forest ranger’s house in the mountains, a little ways from the territory, for about four days.
“You want some of this too?”
“I’m actually useful now.”
Luna, who had been feeling down after losing Fatelord, came to visit me after a few days, seemingly somewhat recovered.
Or rather, according to Melissa, she had intended to come right away as soon as she heard that I had obtained and unleashed the power of death.
As I stared at her, she gave me a lopsided grin.
There was something oddly cheerful about her smile.
Narrowing my eyes, I reached out and pinched her cheek, pulling it.
“Ow.”
“I pulled it because I wanted it to hurt. You okay now?”
“I’m fine.”
Good.
Since I needed a tester anyway, this worked out well.
“Try using this.”
I handed her a new Paradise Artifact, which she took in her hands.
She had rarely used virtual reality artifacts other than the ones she was developing herself.
Well, considering she had been sealed away for so long, the Paradise Artifact probably didn’t feel all that different from her usual environment.
It wouldn’t be anything special to her.
“What’s new about it?”
The original Paradise Artifact primarily simulated a beach setting.
The most it allowed was summoning objects to make resting and entertainment more convenient.
If you asked whether that provided long-lasting amusement, the answer would be a bit ambiguous.
And even if I were to create a whole new field now, would that really change anything?
It wasn’t like these artifacts were connected in a network like the internet from my previous life.
It wouldn’t have much meaning.
So, I made an addition—something fun to do inside it.
I started by adding a new field.
The basic concept was to store data in moonstones and secure them using necromantic magic.
Then, by infusing additional materials, I turned them into artifacts capable of resonating with the human mind.
The way they were used remained unchanged.
The problem was that moonstone processing still had flaws, making unlimited data storage impossible.
I could only add things one by one.
If I could create a refining device by grinding down even a top-grade magic stone, that would be ideal, but… I wasn’t about to waste such a valuable resource on this.
So, I shifted my focus to entertainment.
Something simple that could be enjoyed alone.
In the past, some products came with basic games bundled in.
Inspired by that, I added a few simple games.
There was no need for anything too complicated or grand.
Just common games like chess, well-known board games, and a turn-based RPG where you controlled characters with your mind instead of manual input.
The story was a classic adventure:
A hero pulls out a sacred sword, leaves their village, gathers companions, storms the Demon King’s castle, and fights a fierce battle.
And after their victory, they marry the one they love—your typical cliché.
Balancing, items, and skills?
There was no need to overcomplicate things.
I had spent too much of my past life dealing with numbers and stats anyway.
Of course, I wasn’t particularly talented in this area, so it was still just a prototype.
But that was fine—testers could give feedback while playing.
Luna stared at me with wide eyes before snatching the artifact from my hand.
Then, she practically collapsed into my lap, curling up against me as she activated the artifact.
Since she was the one testing it, I had no reason to activate mine as well.
She remained immersed in the artifact for over an hour.
It took longer than I expected, but in the meantime, I sat in my rocking chair, using the necromantic spell [Memory Reloading] to extract data from my memories and engrave it into a test moonstone.
If only I could remotely update existing data… but I was still far from implementing such a technology.
Maybe I should create a monster collection game next.
Throwing hollow cubes to capture monsters, using those monsters to fight others, winning, and capturing even more…
It was a genre that had been incredibly popular in my past life.
Copyrights?
That didn’t matter here.
Since she had been in the artifact for too long, I forcibly shut it down.
Startled, Luna, who had been curled up in my lap with her eyes closed, flinched and lifted her head.
Then, she stared at me.
Her night-sky-colored eyes were strikingly beautiful.
“Leon.”
“How was it?”
“Give it back! I was about to defeat the dungeon boss, and you—how could you?!”
Snatching the artifact from my hand, she immediately leaped off me and dashed away.
Then, she threw herself onto the bed and restarted the artifact.
…Was it really that fun?
I hadn’t expected this strong of a reaction.
Thud!
Just then, the door burst open, and a giant mascot costume head poked inside.
“I heard the news! Young Master!”
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Join our Discord for release updates!
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There was only one lunatic in my memory who would come charging in while wearing a mascot suit.
Isna Mielephon.
I didn’t even need to ask why she was here.
“Lady Isna? How did you get here? I heard you were under house arrest.”
At my question, she placed her hands on her hips, still not bothering to remove the mascot head, and spoke in a grave and serious tone.
“Obviously, I ran away. My mother won’t chase me here.”
I immediately turned my head away, choosing to ignore her.
* * *
Currently, no one was allowed to enter the place where I was staying.
The power of death that I unleashed had no sense of friend or foe.
If it exploded even once, nothing within its range would survive.
Luna shouldn’t have been able to come either, but for some reason, ever since she arrived, controlling my power had become significantly easier.
Because of that, even Melissa hadn’t objected.
Luna had also assured us with absolute confidence that she wouldn’t be affected by it.
However, Isna was a different matter.
“How did you get here?”
"I heard the news. Also, I wanted to tell you about what happened recently in the Berner County. But... it seems there were no casualties, fortunately."
"We were lucky. It exploded in the uninhabited demon realm."
"I see. That direction, huh..."
"Pardon?"
"Oh, it's nothing! I was just curious."
Her bright smile as she looked up at me with her hands behind her back was filled with nothing but innocence.
In a way, it was the most transparent kind of smile.
However, looking at that twin-tailed girl smiling so cheerfully gave me a strange sense of déjà vu.
Is she foolish?
No, that couldn't be.
She might appear cheerful and airheaded, but if you carefully observe her actions, it becomes clear that she is anything but a fool.
Her bright smile and seemingly clueless behavior naturally lower people's guards.
But having already experienced several instances proving that she was not as simple as she appeared, I couldn't ignore the déjà vu I felt.
Was this guilt?
Or something else entirely?
As I pondered in silence, she clapped her hands, breaking the atmosphere.
"Anyway, let me try what you're making, too. You must have added new features."
"I have something to ask you, Lady."
"Go ahead."
"Are you dissatisfied with this engagement?"
Still, I had to ask.
"Hmm, I feel like we've had a similar conversation before. I don’t see any particular reason to refuse this match."
"Someone of your status wouldn’t need to enter into a political marriage without affection."
"Love isn’t that complicated. If you live together and help each other, feelings naturally develop."
At her words, I let out a small chuckle.
Yeah.
She wasn’t wrong.
Since I was still inexperienced when it came to relationships, I took a moment to organize my thoughts.
"I think I mentioned this before, but I have no intention of tying you down just because we're engaged. So don’t worry."
"......"
She smiled brightly.
And yet, that smile carried a subtle chill.
"You know, if I like someone, I wouldn’t mind considering polygamy."
The idea of a duke’s daughter accepting polygamy was unheard of.
But somehow, she seemed entirely capable of it.
What would a duke’s daughter even lack?
"Of course, even if it’s not marriage, you and I get along well, so we could just remain good friends."
"I’ll keep that in mind."
"You seem to have taken a liking to Luna."
"Are you certain?"
"I may act this way, but I’m not as dense as you are, my lord. More importantly, will you let me try the new product?"
When I placed the newly developed Paradise Artifact in her palm, Isna leaned back comfortably in a nearby rocking chair and activated the artifact.
Exactly an hour later, when I turned off her artifact and asked for her feedback, she immediately responded:
"Ah! I haven’t even gotten the dungeon boss drop item yet..."
She pouted and quickly turned the artifact back on.
When I turned my head, I noticed that Luna still hadn’t come out.
After some thought, I didn't hesitate to short-circuit both artifacts.
* * *
The threshold of enjoyment ultimately depends on how much one has been exposed to that enjoyment.
This world isn’t necessarily a boring place, but it’s true that many of the things I’ve created feel novel to people.
"The best weapon setup is an ogre gear one-shot war hammer build."
"I think the dual-sword setup from the legendary warrior Barin is better. The way the greatsword splits is just..."
...
"Among the first town’s recruitable companions, Jamel is a debuff specialist dark mage..."
"If you break the pots inside the village elder’s house in the starting town, you get healing items..."
Since I banned the use of the artifact, they were now debating amongst themselves.
I had simply made these things for fun.
I never intended for them to be this engrossing.
Of course, I hadn’t put much thought into the quality either.
I had simply digitized memories and implemented them.
The internal mechanics were nothing more than a crude patchwork with no real originality.
Honestly, I had expected board games like chess to be more popular if anything, not this.
"Can’t you give me some constructive feedback instead of going on like this?"
"Forget that, just unlock the next area already. Why are there so many unfinished zones? You’re going to complete it and release it anyway, right? Ah! Hurry up! Release it nowwwww!"
"Agreed. Hurry up and release it."
These people...
Honestly, I never intended for the game aspects of the Paradise Artifact to become widespread.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Join our Discord for release updates!
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