Chapter 31: The Faith Tablet

Observing the expressions of the three people, Kana sat back down.

He looked at the three before him. Words that were too world-shaking were, paradoxically, harder to believe.

"Can something of that magnitude really destroy the world?" Aliris asked, somewhat puzzled.

*If something of that level can destroy the world, does that mean I could destroy the world too? Then I'm actually quite powerful,* Aliris couldn't help but think.

Blake said nothing; the influence of the Void still lingered in his mind.

Popot looked completely unconvinced, eyeing Kana as if he were some cultist charlatan. Having traveled far and wide, she had seen plenty of such charlatans. She just hadn't expected a prince of a nation to believe in such things.

"How could you possibly know such important information?"

It wasn't surprising that Popot was skeptical. Even if Kana was a prince, his country was far too small. Moreover, it was exceptionally barren, completely out of sync with most other nations. This country could truly be described as a backwater place detached from the rest of the world. Usually, only remote villages or small towns were like this, not an entire nation.

Kana didn't expect them to believe him instantly. Although there were signs now, they were clearly rare and faint. Research into the Void was something only a very small number of people in this world understood.

If nothing unexpected happened, he was likely currently the person who understood the Void best. After this period of time, he no longer held onto any illusions. He had indeed come to this world, replacing the original Kana and becoming a member of this world.

Therefore, certain things had to be resolved. For instance, the invasion of the Void. If it wasn't resolved, the entire world would perish along with him, and that was definitely not an option.

Fortunately, at least in the original game plot, this problem was eventually resolved through the efforts of countless people. If he wanted to achieve something in the future, he needed to establish an interesting persona for himself. For example, one who could see omens of the future, or warnings of dangers to come.

Such an ability wasn't far-fetched; after all, even the most absurd thing, the Genesis Stone, was real. What was so impossible about being able to see fragments of the future?

"I can see omens of the future."

"?"

As soon as these words left his mouth, it wasn't just Popot; even Aliris couldn't help but walk over and pat Kana's head.

"Do you need to rest? Perhaps you are too tired today, Your Highness," Aliris said, looking somewhat worried.

Kana gave a helpless smile. "I know you don't believe me, so I didn't prepare for you to believe me. You only need to know about this matter; later on, you will naturally come to believe my words."

Kana didn't expect them to believe him directly; he was mainly just adding a "patch" to his own identity. Later, when he inevitably knew things that he shouldn't logically know, they would automatically fill in the blanks in this direction. He wouldn't need to explain himself much then.

"The Void's influence on the soul is fatal, especially for souls that have not yet mastered special powers," Kana said, shifting the topic directly.

Having said that, Kana pointed at Aliris and Popot. Looking at Blake, he explained, "Aliris possesses the power to control blood, which I call Blood Magic. Popot is a scholar and a caster; she also possesses the power to manipulate magic."

He then pointed to himself. "Although I cannot yet control these powers, I know clearly that the power of Blood Magic also resides within me. Just like the Count, we are all members of the royal family."

"So, essentially, we are all souls capable of manipulating special powers. These special powers provide a sort of protection to the soul. This way, the weak flashes of the Abyss cannot affect us, much like how we are sheltered under a tree where the sunlight cannot reach."

Kana then pointed at Blake. "But you are different; you have not yet mastered these powers. You are standing naked in the sunlight without anything to shield you from the flashes of the Abyss, so you naturally suffered some influence. However, because of your long-term training as a knight, you have already tempered your willpower, allowing you to break free from the influence through sheer force of will. But the residual influence still clings to the surface of your soul. Fortunately, this was only a faint flash of the Abyss, so the impact is not great and will disappear on its own after some time."

Kana's words allowed Blake to breathe a sigh of relief. At least this problem was recoverable; it just required some time.

Before he knew it, Blake had come to believe Kana's words implicitly. Especially in areas he did not understand, Blake tended to favor Kana's knowledge. And to be honest, though he didn't want to admit it, a small part of him believed in the doomsday Kana spoke of. Because he had personally experienced the influence of the Void, even if it was only the most common form.

Popot listened from the side. Unlike Blake and Aliris, she was sufficiently erudite and had traveled to many places. She did not understand, or even know of, the Void. But she was essentially a caster, even if not a particularly powerful one.

She had also witnessed the flash of the Abyss at that time. There was no flow of mana; with her mastery of magic, she couldn't even cast the simplest cantrip in such an environment. But her mental strength remained, and she had a very profound perception of how that flash had affected her.

Therefore, as Kana explained the Void's flashes, she had to admit that he was likely correct. At least based on her own experience, his words were accurate. This made her doubt whether everything Kana had said previously was true. The words that previously seemed too absurd now carried a certain degree of credibility.

"Alright, that's enough of the science lesson. I still need to write a letter to the Count."

With that, Kana stood up, returned to his room, and took out paper and pen to begin writing to his uncle.

He left the others behind to digest what he had just said; they needed a little time.

Inside the room, Kana wrote in the letter

"Dear Uncle, I do not know the current situation on the front lines...

I believe you are well aware that our ability to block the vampire forces is limited. Once they regain control of those cities and regroup their forces, failure will be inevitable. I believe you also understand the vampires' conversion of the city residents.

Before that happens, I believe you should prepare a way out for yourself. Based on my reconnaissance over the past few days, we might be able to leave via the waterways. We only need to construct some vessels, even simple rafts. I hope to receive your approval to organize the people of Riverbend Town to build river craft that can be used for transport later, so that we may..."

After finishing and sealing the letter, he handed it to a soldier outside.

Aliris stood guard in the courtyard. Blake had already left, and Popot had returned to her room.

Kana returned to his own room. His mind kept replaying the image of the ratman who had been influenced by the Abyss.

*I didn't expect the Void's reconnaissance units to be present this early?*

In the game's plot, the main storylines of each version were always foreshadowed. The world-ending crisis of the Abyss invasion in version 4.0 had been foreshadowed long ago. After players dug deep, the earliest hints appeared in version 2.0.

Kana hadn't expected to discover it during the game's starting version, 1.0, and even run into it head-on.

Thinking carefully, a reasonable explanation could indeed be found. For example, in version 1.0, the players' main activity areas were around the starting village, half of the Kingdom of Cohen, and the half of the Kingdom of Safro near the mountains. One was an undeveloped wilderness, and the other was a nation affected by vampires, leaving only enemies behind. The main issue in version 1.0 was resolving the Blood Calamity caused by the Kingdom of Safro. It wasn't until version 2.0 that the map expanded to the continent beneath their feet.

Since there were traces of the Abyss's influence on the continent they were currently standing on, other continents must have shown signs of influence much earlier.

Although he could make preparations early, thinking about such distant problems was premature. The most important things right now were the small piece of the Genesis Stone and the ruins where it was located.

He took out the main trophy from this mission—the other half of the relic disc. Then he took out the other half obtained from the fishmen and joined them together.

It was evident that the stone slab was exceptionally sturdy; the two halves fit together perfectly without a seam. The pattern formed when joined was a strangely shaped tree, growing in a triangular silhouette.

The ancient alchemical empire—Betwil. A nation that had already been destroyed, leaving only ruins.

It was now nearing dusk outside. Tomorrow, he could take the two stone slabs to explore those ruins.

Thinking of this, Kana felt an inexplicable surge of excitement. He decided to exercise in the courtyard; the growth of his strength could not stop.

(End of Chapter)