Episode 324: The Golden Labyrinth (4)
―You have cleared the 1st floor.
―Yggdrasil regenerates the memories of the <Golden King>, the owner of the hierarchy.
“You mean to regenerate the memory of the master of the hierarchy?”
While Jaehyun was flustered, a pure white light blinked in his vision.
before losing consciousness. Ratatosk’s voice is heard.
“Yeeeee—every time you clear each floor in Yggdrasil, the hidden story about the owner of that floor or the PhiPi field is played out!”
However, Ratatosque’s voice did not reach Jaehyun and Seo Ina properly. It was because the two people’s vision was dotted with complete darkness.
‘What the hell is this… !’
Jaehyun was taken aback, but soon came to his senses.
Has the system sent itself to a harsh place once or twice?
It wasn’t surprising at all.
When Jaehyun, who had made up his mind, tried to calm himself down. My vision slowly began to return to normal.
What followed was the story of a certain king.
At the same time, a low voice like a subtitle resonates in my ears.
[This is the story of a king who loved a certain people.]
* * *
[This is the story of a king who loved a certain people.]
For some reason, when the same story was heard again, Jaehyun first checked to see if his comrades were all right.
Fortunately, Seo In-na, Papi, and Ratatosque were all together.
Anyway, I cleared the stairs, but it wouldn’t be a problem if there was a penalty.
Jaehyun thought so and looked around.
‘Here… It is in the memory of the Golden King during his lifetime.’
He could intuitively understand.
The scenery he could see reflected the audience room of a certain kingdom.
Also, on the throne there was a king with a distraught face in a filthy appearance.
He was holding his forehead with both hands.
At that time, the voices of the servants standing next to him were heard.
“Odin told me to send a tribute this time in September.”
At those words, the king groaned briefly. He said, suppressing his frustration.
“How much gold did you ask for again this time?”
The servant hesitated for a moment at the king’s question, then closed his eyes tightly and answered.
“He told me to prepare at least twice as much as before. If not, he said he would spread a pestilence in the country next year.”
[…] They must be people who serve Odin. … Judging by the situation, I don’t know why, but I feel like I’m being threatened… .]
Seo Eana spoke to me through telepathy.
Jaehyun nodded.
Perhaps the Golden King was one of many humans who served Odin at first. But something had happened, and it seemed that his faith had faded.
‘It is highly likely that the amount of gold that has to be given as a ‘tribute’, which is being talked about, has had an effect on his faith.’
If the amount of tribute to be paid is too large, there will inevitably be disruptions to the kingdom’s operation. Even if anger builds up from it, there is nothing strange about it.
Jaehyun pondered for a while, and then conveyed his thoughts.
[It seems that greed didn’t make him the Golden King. Same goes for the first system sound I heard.]
This is the story of a king who loved his people.
No matter how you look at it, the system is trying to tell the story of the hidden golden king.
No, it would be more accurate to assume that Yggdrasil was doing that.
“Can’t we collect tribute somehow?”
The king said with a worried expression, but the servant shook his head.
“Impossible. As long as you don’t attack the dragon’s nest… .”
“Ask Odin for a little more ending… .”
“That is also impossible. Odin said he wouldn’t wait any longer… … .”
“… i get it. Somehow, I will find a way within today.”
The scene cuts off there, and not long after, the scene continues.
* * *
“Are you serious?”
The king is standing in a different place than before.
Nearby stood a man who appeared to be the captain of the guard.
He is looking down from the top of the great wall that surrounds the border.
There, their people are starving to death.
A small determination dwells in the sad king’s eyes, and at the same time, the narration continues.
[Odin demanded more tribute each year. As each day passed, more people died of starvation and poverty, and the king was forced to suffer from deep guilt and worry.]
The king pondered for a while, and finally spoke to the captain of the guard.
“I will hit another country. If you don’t somehow collect the gold and give it to Odin, all the people will die. There is no other way.”
“but… Isn’t that your way?”
[The king was never one who coveted others for his own.]
[However, the helplessness of having no way and the guilt of having to somehow save the dying person in front of him were forcing him to move.]
The king said with a sad expression on his face, looking at the earth covered with dusk.
“yes… okay. not my way… But I can’t help it.”
The scene moved on to the next scene. The king gathers his army and gathers those who can’t even eat properly to attack the neighboring country.
“Kill the enemy soldiers immediately! Otherwise, our people will die!”
The captain was at the forefront.
The king is also commanding the soldiers from the front.
It was not a common sight.
Anyway, the king who has to survive until the end is fighting at the forefront.
The king of the enemy country and his entourage raise their voices as if grieved.
“Why are you attacking our kingdom! Weren’t you our ally?! You know what you’re doing!”
The king said nothing.
[It was probably the king’s guilt. Even though it was a foreign country, it was a country of friendly relations that exchanged goods and continued to stay together.]
[However, they eventually had to make a choice. To protect my family, to protect my people, I had to kill others.]
[Finally, the king subjugated the enemy country and took away a lot of gold. Eventually, the king was able to pay tribute to Odin that year.]
* * *
Jaehyun and Seo Ina. And Ratatosque said no more.
As the screen continues.
His more miserable life continues to be projected.
* * *
The king fought battle after battle, but the tribute to be paid increased each year.
The men of the village had to be taken to the battlefield when they turned 15, and more than half of them returned dead.
However, if the tribute is not paid, everyone will die.
The king had to choose.
Because that was better than everyone dying.
It was a bitter utilitarian conclusion, but there was no other way.
The king continued to attack other nations, and went out in search of treasure… he killed the dragon
But even so, he continued to suffer in agony.
The amount of tribute Odin demands increases each year.
This is because it was not at an acceptable level.
and which year
In the end, an epidemic broke out in the kingdom that could not pay tribute.
About 70% of the total population died.
The only survivors are the king and a few of his closest aides.
And there were only sturdy men in the army who could fight.
* * *
The king realized.
He was tricked by Odin.
That this hell will never end by paying tribute.
People continued to die, and he was furious.
However, at the same time, he wanted to save even the survivors.
because.
The king, who loved his people, made a decision.
[I will raid the treasure house of the gods.]
The treasure house of the gods. It was said that there were full of weapons of the gods.
The king reached there, got the treasure, and tried to kill the god, Odin to be exact.
However, such a miracle could not have happened to him, who was only a human being.
In the end, the king was captured by Odin. said Odin.
[As a reward for daring to stand against me, you will kill the people you love most with your own hands.]
The king died miserably by Odin’s magic.
Also, with death, he was born as a new being.
While stuffed in Yggdrasil, he killed the people and countless humans who followed him, and the corpses formed a mountain.
Soon the king became greedy and did a foolish thing.
His story was so erroneously transmitted to the world that we call it the miserable words of a foolish human who challenged God.
The story of a king who coveted gold ended so miserably.
At the end of the continued narration, Jaehyun felt his fists tighten without even realizing it.
[This is the story of a king who coveted gold.]
―The story of the golden king ends playing.
* * *
Jaehyun, Seo Ina, Ratatosque and Papi were all able to return to reality.
It was thanks to the end of all memory regeneration.
Jaehyun nodded for a moment. In front of his eyes was the still undead Golden King.
Jaehyun looked at him and opened his mouth slowly.
“I was told from earlier that I had to keep it that way. Were they your people?”
The Golden King said he didn’t care even as he watched his body crumble.
“Yes… all. My people… my… dead by hand… I am… Cursed being… .”
“I was definitely cursed. Because Odin stuffed you here.”
Even as Jaehyun said that, he looked at him with a sad expression.
golden king. With only a skeleton left now, he was trying to get himself up somehow.
Jaehyun thought of the first time he met Poppy.
At that time, he lost his self due to the curse caused by Andvari’s ring.
I couldn’t move my body freely because I was playing in Odin’s hands.
As for Jaehyun, the situation then and now seemed to overlap.
“me… kill me… .”
“okay. I’ll kill you even if you don’t look at me like that. You look so ugly now compared to when you were alive.”
“thanks… all… .”
―Active skill <Divinity Conquest> is activated.
Jae-hyun activated Divinity Usurpation and took away his dignity.
The level given by Odin.
I can’t bring them all, but for now this is the best. Jaehyun reminded himself that he had to become stronger quickly.
“I am… I am… .”
at that time.
The Golden King opened his mouth to say something.
Jaehyun shook his head.
Due to the aftermath of the skill, the golden king’s bones began to fly. It was impossible for him to say anything now that even his mouth was gone.
However, Jaehyun already knew what he wanted to say.
“It is not your fault.”
It was Odin who killed the people.
It wasn’t your fault in the first place.
After Jaehyun swallowed the last two words, he watched the golden king fly away. Looking behind her, I saw Seo In-na’s dark expression.
She bit her lip sullenly.
“… Who has been fighting this… There must have been countless of them before, right?”
“… okay. I was one of them.”
“… How could you… .”
Seo Ina lowered her head in disbelief.
It must be because I became emotional because I came to see the memories. Because she’s not used to this kind of thing yet.
But you have to accept it.
Because this is reality.
It sucks, but it’s reality.
What happened after Odin seized power after the first Ragnarok.
It is impossible to undo all this.
The past has already passed.
In the death of the giants he saw in the mirror of Urd, Jae-hyeon realized that.
What you can do should always be sought in the present.
“let’s go. to the next floor.”
Because of that, Jaehyun had no choice but to say that.
Seeing his determined expression, Seo Ina nodded.
Jiying.
With the complete death of the Golden King, a portal formed in the throne he stood on. Jaehyun and Seo Ina intuitively realized that it was to go to the second floor.
Just like that, when the two of them were ready to move on to the next level.
[This is the last gift I can give.]
Everyone stopped for a moment at the sudden voice.
Then, an unexpected message came to my ears.
[You have attacked the first floor of the Spiral Tower with the hidden route.]
[Golden King’s Legacy (Myth-equipment item) will be paid separately.]
