Surviving without God

«.......»

Gunther silently stared at the box that had been delivered from the alchemy workshop. Luxurious packaging, neatly wrapped in white silk. On top of it, the signs of sealing magic shimmered with a faint silvery glow.

Shu-u-u-u-un—

The moment he touched it with his hand, the signs went out, and the wrapping unfurled by itself. Soon, Nezzi appeared in a spherical shape. Its pure, semi-transparent surface was flawless, without a single speck of dust.

[The Drug-Addicted Saint takes a deep breath with an excited look]

The Crystal of Superspeed, gifted by Flying Ahead of the Wind, served as the primary material. On top of it, layer after layer of precious catalysts worth a full five hundred gold had been added. A true embodiment of fusion.

“Whew.”

Gunther’s face, reaching out toward Nezzi, was slightly tense. The fact that good materials had gone into Nezzi did not necessarily mean its effectiveness would be directly proportional to their cost. Sometimes unwanted effects manifested (for example, instead of the desired increase in mana, physical strength grew), so Gunther felt both anxiety and anticipation at the same time.

Tap—

At last, when his fingers touched the surface, Nezzi trembled softly, giving off a faint warmth. In that very instant, a detailed pop-up window sprang up.

[Item acquired! Core of the Celestial Vault]

“Carve the pulse of the heavens into your blood.”

Rank: Ancient

Type: Consumable item (single-use)

Description: Nezzi created through the fusion of a gift from a deity who cleaved the skies like a hurricane, and the secret knowledge of a great master alchemist. Within the pure sphere, turbulent currents of wind and mana circulate without rest. It permanently restructures the consumer’s nervous system and mana channels, granting fast reaction and speed.

Effects: Mana + 7~11

All abilities related to ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) movement +10% (movement speed, dodge distance, jumping, shock absorption when falling, etc.)

Mana recovery speed +15%

Slight improvement to reaction speed and spatial perception.

...Done.

The tension drained out of Gunther, and open joy showed on his face. The effort of gathering catalysts with similar effects had been worth it. The mana value had turned out decent too, but what stirred him most was the magnificent option: +15% to mana recovery speed.

“This doesn’t even compare to the Lizard Nezzi I absorbed earlier.”

Rather than simply increasing the total amount of mana, being able to restore mana quickly even in the middle of combat was a far more valuable achievement. It covered his weak point—stamina.

[The Drug-Addicted Saint clears her throat with a proud look]

[The King of Ninety-Nine Defeats expects that combined with the Art of the Pure Heart, this will definitely produce a synergistic effect]

[Alphonse of Red Street mutters that he feels strangely left out]

“All right, then...”

Gunther called Ryan over to stand guard, and finished preparing for practice. Low-ranked Nezzi, like the one from the lizard, could be absorbed instantly, with the effect taking hold at once, but Nezzi above a certain level had its own restrictions. If someone interfered in the process, that colossal energy could slip out of control inside the body, leaving irreversible damage behind.

“Let’s go.”

He slowly evened out his breathing and placed the “Core of the Celestial Vault” into his mouth. In the blink of an eye, cold, heavy mana spread from the tip of his tongue to its root. Soon, that energy flowed through his vessels like a majestic waterfall.

— Kh-a-a-ak!

A sharp pain that felt as if his body were being torn apart. But he was someone who had learned, on his own skin, how the weak were treated—from the events three years ago to the recent encounter with the 4th Platoon.

He needed to become stronger. That simple, painful desire held up his mind. Before long, the enormous force began to surge through his body, following the formulas of the Art of the Pure Heart.

.

.

.

Tiling!

[Through a harmonious method of practice, you have efficiently absorbed the power contained in the Core of the Celestial Vault]

[Art of the Pure Heart has reached Level 2]

[Mana +13 / Vitality +4 / Strength +3 / Agility +3]

[Agility has reached 40]

[The reaction speed of your nervous system has improved, allowing you to instantly control even the smallest movements]

[The continuity of evasion and mobility have greatly improved]

[Mana has reached 20]

[You can manifest Aura]

[Manifestation of Aura: By releasing highly concentrated mana onto the surface of your body, you can apply it for attack, defense, and presence control]

[Mana has condensed into new channels, and its flow has become significantly smoother]

[The flow of mana synchronized with the nervous system and muscle fibers, greatly increasing reaction speed and output power]

***

A few days later. Two people, avoiding the busy main streets, quietly turned into a narrow alley, far from the noise. One of them, a man in glasses, pulled a small metal device from his belt and pressed it to the wall—

U-u-u-u-um—

A surprisingly spacious room opened up. An old but neatly cleaned warehouse. Inside stood a single pitch-black car, half-destroyed. The face of the second one, a giant, twisted into a grimace of pain.

“Change your expression, Parco. Old man Gordon will fix it later.”

“Damn, if only my hands could fix even chunks of metal, how great would that be.”

Grumbling, Parco sat down on the crumpled hood. At least there was some comfort: the car was wrecked, but the mission was completed.

“Anyway, what about the guys? Did we make contact?”

“Yeah. At the latest, by tomorrow afternoon they’ll be at the rendezvous point.”

The man in glasses hesitated slightly, then continued.

“...So we’ll proceed with the operation with a team of five, bringing the rookie along.”

At those words, a brief silence fell. Both of them recalled the rookie they had met in the Lower City a few days ago. Parco snorted and asked,

“You... disappointed, huh?”

The answer came instantly.

“Disappointed. I expected a lot when they said he was promising, and some scrawny weakling shows up.”

“Hey, but still...”

“Fine. He isn’t completely hopeless.”

Thanks to Gunther handling the bait role better than expected, it had been far easier for them to complete the job. After a short pause, the man in glasses adjusted his frames and continued.

“Maybe he’s... a special guy, with something unreadable inside him.”

“Special,” huh. Parco sputtered at the word.

“Anyway, I’ve got a good feeling. For some reason, it feels like we’ll make a great team.”

“Well, I don’t know about that, but I can guarantee he’s furious at us right now. He’s probably boiling with indignation.”

“Come on, he doesn’t look like the petty type.”

“We’ll see soon.”

Step—step—

Footsteps of the rookie echoed from outside the secret space.

.

.

.

The moment he set foot inside the warehouse, notification sounds rang out one after another.

Tiling!

[Act 1 Chapter 3 — Cleared!]

[MVP — Gunther Sirhe]

[Congratulations! You have officially joined the secret organization Night Raven and, having gained special trust from the leadership, have been immediately assigned to the special independent unit “Executive Squad, 4th Platoon”]

[...Great expectations are being placed on your future]

[Branching: Status “Under the Crow’s Wing” confirmed.]

[Due to your choice, the main scenario of Act 1 Chapter 4 will be updated]

[Attention: Act 1 Chapter 3 is not a combat stage, so achievement evaluation was performed not by the number of deaths, but by the level of attention within the organization]

[※ You have achieved a transcendent result.]

— Due to exceeding standard parameters, reward distribution has been temporarily suspended.

— The reward system is being urgently revised. Please wait.

It was the exact same message as the time he had received a box with a random stat in Act 1 Chapter 2. A sign that enormous rewards would soon come pouring in. Of course, without the blessing of “◇” he wouldn’t receive side rewards like a stat box, but either way he would get something useful. And a bit of Karma would come too.

“Good. Rewards just keep raining down.”

That was why he could greet, with a refreshed mood, the pair who had thrown him into a pile of garbage.

“Two days. Glad to see you’re alive.”

“...Mm?” “Eh?”

At the sight of Gunther, surprise flickered in both of their eyes. The man in glasses whispered first.

“What’s with that cool look?”

“O-oh, I like it. Told you I had a good feeling.”

“No, more than that...”

“More than that?”

“Nothing.”

...In just a few days, the aura coming off him had changed drastically. While the man in glasses suspiciously fiddled with his frames, Parco suddenly held out his huge palm.

“Hey, rookie. Last time we were busy and couldn’t properly say hello. Let me introduce myself officially. I’m Parco, and this is Levain.”

Gunther looked at him with mild confusion.

“...Why are you saying your names, not your codenames?”

“Well, it’s a long story. A tradition of the 4th Platoon, I guess?”

“......”

If you looked closely, the two of them were unmasked today as well. Their masks hung from their belts. The 4th Platoon—this place seemed to have a somewhat relaxed atmosphere.

“Gunther.”

“Oh, the name’s great! Nice to meet you, Gunther.”

Gunther shook Parco’s hand, studying both of their faces as he did.

Levain had a pale face and gave the impression of a scholar. Short chestnut hair like a student’s, glasses on the bridge of his nose, behind which a sharp, piercing gaze glinted. Despite his lean build, his hands were covered in calluses and scars. They were the hands of someone who had worked with something complicated for a long time.

[Alphonse of Red Street watches with keen interest]

Parco, on the other hand, radiated a completely different aura. Dark skin, hair braided into a long braid down to his waist. He was built no smaller than Ryan, but his hands were clean. A palm without a single callus clasped Gunther’s hand in friendly strength.

“...Not a close-combat fighter.”

There wasn’t a trace of that crazed expression or manner of speech he had seen two days ago in either of them. They seemed like the type whose behavior during a mission and in everyday life was radically different. As he was thinking that, Parco scratched the back of his head and continued.

“So, first of all! About what happened two days ago...”

Gunther gave a slight shake of his head.

“It was probably necessary for the mission. No complaints.”

“...Oh.”

“Hm...”

If he started nitpicking and interrogating these types about why they did what they did, it would only lower their affinity. Better to close the topic like this—“coolly.” And he hadn’t misjudged.

“Nice, nice. Thanks for understanding. Now that you’re officially assigned, it won’t happen again. I promise.”

With booming laughter, Parco slapped Gunther on the back. His gaze became even more favorable.

“But it’s still our duty to explain what it was for. It’ll be a long talk, so focus.”

At that moment, Levain, who had been silently standing in the corner of the warehouse, walked up.

“It won’t be long. I’ll explain briefly. But it directly concerns the operation ahead... your first mission, so listen carefully.”

“Okay. I’m all ears.”

Dr-r-rk—

With a clatter, they rolled a board covered in notes out in front of Gunther.

“Before we start... how are you with basic knowledge of the situation on the continent, rookie?”

“I know the broad strokes.”

“Then you know that the Border City and Luthien aren’t exactly on friendly terms.”

Gunther nodded shortly. A familiar setting that any player of couldn’t not know.

“The mayor and most of the council members can’t stand Luthien.”

You could tell from the shelves of banned books in the city libraries alone. There weren’t many believers in the city, so it didn’t buckle under the Theocracy’s pressure. There was a reason Luthien fanatics still only lurked in the Lower City. Levain continued.

“On the contrary, it’s Luthien that has to keep looking over its shoulder at the Border City right now.”

Gunther added an explanation.

“Yeah. With their clashes with the heretics of the Badlands and the Kingdoms’ Alliance, they don’t have spare forces to make new enemies. And the import of magical tools... Of course, they’re waiting for a convenient moment to take the city, but for now they’re being cautious.”

That was a hint that he knew enough and it was time to get to the point. The corner of Levain’s mouth twitched, and his gaze shifted strangely.

“Hm... So the talk about minimum erudition wasn’t a lie. Let’s discuss that in more detail...”

“O-oh no, not this again!” Parco cut in, throwing his hands up. “In short: despite all that, lately the Luthien guys have been acting extremely weird.”

Leaving the dissatisfied Levain behind, Parco began writing in the corner of the board: Cult of Abundance, Golden Harvest Squad, Banquet Group, and so on.

“...They suddenly stopped caring about secrecy and started openly moving their combat groups around.”

Gunther frowned.

“And for what?”

“The Labyrinth. They sent everyone into the Labyrinth.”

For a moment, silence settled.

“That really is strange.”

Yes, the Labyrinth yielded valuable cores, components, and relics. But it wasn’t a strong enough reason for Luthien to deploy combat groups, further straining already fragile diplomatic relations.

“They’re sweeping every floor of the Labyrinth with every force available. Suspicious, isn’t it?”

“...So there’s something in the Labyrinth.”

“Exactly. Something they have to get at any cost, even if it means massive losses.”

Gunther’s expression slowly grew more serious. And not only because of the gravity of the information.

“This... is a pretty unusual development.”

Of course, the content of Act 1 Chapter 4 could change depending on the player’s choices in the early chapters. There were dozens of variations. But they all shared roughly the same backbone. What Levain was saying now, Gunther had never heard before.

“...Did an event like this happen at this point?”

Maybe being assigned to the 4th Platoon had become the trigger for a completely new scenario. His thoughts were a mess, but Gunther kept the conversation going.

“And you caused all that chaos a couple days ago to find out what exactly Luthien is hunting... to get information?”

“Exactly. We hit their liaison point, stole the report records, and literally just yesterday we finished decoding them. That’s how we learned it.”

Pride showed on Parco’s face.

“We learned they’re looking for some kind of ‘Sacred Artifact,’ the boundaries of their search, and even the suspected location of the thing.”

Gunther didn’t even have time to ask a counterquestion.

“We don’t know which god the artifact belongs to or why it ended up in the Labyrinth. One thing’s clear: they’re obsessed with it to the point of madness.”

“It could be a relic of some powerful evil god, or an artifact of a friendly benevolent deity... So what’s next?”

The most important question. The answer came from Levain, who had been silent until now.

“We intercept it.”

After that weighty statement came the explanations.

“Remember I said there are only four of us in the 4th Platoon? The other two already infiltrated the Labyrinth. We go in tomorrow, on the day access opens, link up with them, and immediately begin the capture operation.”

Hearing that, Gunther raised his eyebrows slightly.

“Tomorrow?”

“Yeah, tomorrow.”

“And what are you planning to do until then?”

It was only midday; there was still plenty of time before sunset. The answer came at once.

“Right. Until tomorrow, we have free time.”

“......?”

Parco smiled slyly and dropped his heavy hand onto Gunther’s shoulder.

“To go into a job together, we need to tighten up teamwork with the new partner a bit, right?”

Levain added his own line.

“Of course, we studied the reports on you carefully, but...”

Their voices overlapped.

“We’re the type who judge after seeing someone in action.”

“Consider it a kind of OT (orientation).”

...OT? Some internal test of the 4th Platoon? Gunther, surprised, still nodded. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

“Getting in sync before a serious operation matters.”

Then Levain picked up the eraser again and stood in front of the board.

“All right. I’ll outline today’s plan for strengthening teamwork...”

“O-o-oh, enough!”

Whee-e-e-in—

Parco, dragging Levain by the arm, opened the warehouse door.

“We’ll talk on the way.”

.

.

.

Tiling!

[It has been confirmed that the various current scenarios pursue one goal]

[List of scenarios]

Personal scenario: “Thorns of the Executive Squad”.

Main scenario, Act 1 Chapter 4: “Deeper into the Labyrinth”.

[The first objective of the scenario has been updated]

[Before beginning the full-scale operation, establish teamwork with the two platoon members]