This Is Not His Home

The Shadow Fiend's massacre did not leave the giant with a corpse that could be resurrected.

Or perhaps it simply devoured all the corpses itself.

Besides the antlers, the monk and the red figure resurrected by the antlers were also torn apart and devoured by the Shadow Demon.

The Shadow Fiend seems particularly adept at dealing with these resurrected dead—it always precisely attacks their hearts and heads simultaneously. A single, deft pierce is enough to kill them instantly. As skillfully and elegantly as a seasoned diner peeling a crab shell.

Watching the Shadow Demon liquefy again, dripping from the hole and returning to the shadow pool beneath him, Iver asked curiously, "Is the killing and devouring you did in your dream also real and effective 'nutrients' for you?"

"Certainly."

The Shadow Demon let out a low, hoarse voice, like a lion's growl, "Instead, this is more easily digestible food."

"These lives are phantoms formed from the power of the Pillar God. The reason why humans can be sacrifices and food for demons is because humans are a race directly influenced by the Serpent Father and the Constant Self. Just as the Supreme Heaven influences giants, the Candlelight influences elves, and Twilight influences the dead... Humans are born with the ability to transcend and love, but the strength of each person's ability varies."

"Humanity's desire for transcendence becomes the fuel and sustenance for demons. However, this process requires digestion."

"But these beings in the Dream Realm, these illusory bodies you use, and other life forms including giants, although they appear to be human, are in essence genuine illusion demons... our own kind who are too weak to have any self-awareness."

"Although I'm a little disappointed that this ritual wasn't self-constructed by the Serpent Father, and eating them won't make me stronger... in terms of taste, they can be considered pretty delicious cookies."

Iver understood.

This is similar to taking Great Sin Beast to a dungeon to increase experience for the corresponding attribute. Phantoms can devour other Phantoms of the same attribute to grow stronger. All the living beings constructed in the Dream Realm ritual possess intelligence and can act according to certain rules because these "intelligent individuals" are actually Phantoms mimicking the corresponding individuals.

Their power is illusory, temporarily bestowed by the Pillar God.

Just like a ghost that doesn't know it's dead.

... No wonder the Nine Pillar Gods could so easily construct various "duplications"—this world wasn't something they created bit by bit, but rather something they directly imported from history in batches.

All they have to do is extract a fragment from history: a small area lasting a few hours and limited in scope, and then grant temporary life and intellect to specific individuals within it.

Because those people are merely constructed "phantom-type artificial intelligence," and the scenarios can be fine-tuned. Under the interference of the Nine Pillar Gods, the final development may differ from actual history.

That's why this is "another possibility for history".

The NPCs in those rituals were unaware that they were part of the ritual because they were actually NPCs! Or rather, they all knew their NPC identities but were just pretending to be oblivious.

Rather than calling it a game or a script, it's more like a ritual, an experiment, a sandbox—by building a simulation environment, introducing nine variables, and observing how things ultimately change.

That's why they have to "import an identity" and there are various tasks that earn points. This is a reward mechanism designed to motivate them and prevent them from doing nothing and wasting a simulation opportunity.

It's also possible to create a simulated environment... and then introduce people from the Nine Paths into it, from which they are selected.

Both possibilities exist, but the latter is more likely.

Because, based on the two rituals that Iver has participated in so far, the historical prototypes are clearly not stories in which all Nine Paths could participate.

In the first ceremony, at least Sherlock's role as the "newsboy" clearly shouldn't have appeared in actual history. The same goes for the knight playing the watchman. They might have had some role in history, but at most they would have been fleeting extras, unrelated to the murder of Alexander and his wife.

The second ceremony was even more obvious.

The bodies they used should all belong to warriors of the "Path of Strength" in real history.

Putting aside other considerations, it's absolutely impossible for a knight to exist on the Path of Authority —because in an era when the Supreme Heaven still existed, there was no Path of Authority. In other words, if they were to appear in a simulated environment, the knight's supernatural powers should be completely unusable.

That's really strange.

The Nine Pillar Gods seem to want to do something, but they don't seem to care much about the outcome. At least for lower-level Promotion Ritual Promotion Ritual, they entrust the presiding over them to their apostles, indicating that they are not particularly concerned about the results. Yet, they still go to great lengths to create dungeons and write quests...

Perhaps the right answer will only be found when Iver is promoted to a higher position and participates in the Promotion Ritual presided over by the Pillar God himself.

"Should we go find the Holy Lance now?"

Lily's voice rang out from behind Iver, who was deep in thought, "We've actually advanced successfully, haven't we?"

"Of course," Iver temporarily put aside his completely clueless thoughts, looked up and chuckled, "I have absolutely no idea about the full picture of this ritual right now."

"If I won so easily, I'd feel a bit resentful. Opportunities for promotion are limited, and this is a chance to personally experience a certain period of history..."

"But where is the Holy Lance? We don't have much time left, and a thorough search might not be enough."

"No need, I know where the Holy Lance is."

Iver replied, "You've run past three storage rooms now... If I'm not mistaken, these three storage rooms should be in the corners, right?"

"Right."

Lily replied, "They are in the three corners of the east, south, and west. We are currently on the west side. The knights are arguing on the south side, and I and... the antlers appeared on the east side."

Iver analyzed, "This is a temple, so its construction must have followed certain rules. The buildings to the east and west can be connected in a line, and there is no passage further north. So, roughly speaking, this building is a triangle with its pointed end pointing south. And the three storage rooms are at the end of the building."

"As mentioned in the mission notes, the chances of the giants going to the three storage rooms are random—if their bedroom is in the far north, the probability of them going to the three storage rooms will be different. Giants have bear-like habits and hibernate. In this case, they will tend to take the shorter route... which means that the south is a safer direction."

"But in fact, there are lights only near the south. Giants don't have night vision, and the fact that lights are on at that altitude means that giants have been here recently. We were captured on the second day, and some people must have been eaten yesterday. So the people who were eaten yesterday probably came from the southern storage room."

"Therefore, I assume that the distance from the giant's bedroom to the three storage rooms is the same. So the giant couple should be located in the very middle of this triangle."

—However, Iver felt something was off about this place.

The Sacred Number of the Supreme Heaven should be seven.

Regardless of its triangular architectural structure, the number of three storage rooms, or the occasional candlelight... it looks more like a candle-bearing sanctuary. The Candle Holder Cathedral in Avalon has this triangular structure with its apex pointing south.

The giants lacked night vision, yet the corridor was unusually dark.

So, is it possible that the giants deliberately removed the extra lights, making the temple appear less bright? If it were a temple for candlelight, it should have been brightly lit. Conversely, if it weren't bright enough, it would undermine the concept of a temple.

Furthermore, the "Giant Couple" had killed an apostle who Dedication Path. This suggests that they must also be apostles.

The apostles who Dedication Path share a similar personality with the Candle Masters, generally being kind to others. They almost never attack the apostles of other Pillar God, not even those under the command of Serpent Father or Amber.

Not to mention entering the temples of other apostles to attack them.

"If this couple were quite warlike and powerful, then their collection of relics should be far more than just this one Holy Lance. Similarly, they should have been rewarded with more than just a Magic Cauldron, and we shouldn't have been given the mission to 'kill a giant with the Holy Lance ' in the first place."

"So when I noticed that the layout of this building was similar to the Candle Holder Cathedral, I had a hunch... Could this have been the Candlemast's sanctuary, which they then violently seized using their numerical advantage and a sneak attack? That's why they killed the apostles who Dedication Path and collected their weapons."

Iver speculated, "If this temple was looted, then there's a reason why the Magic Cauldron is here—killing the other apostles is an act of extreme violence that would be rewarded by the Supreme Heaven. The Magic Cauldron, which only the Holy Lance can shatter, is essentially a sacred relic."

"But these are all just guesses, aren't they?" Lily said softly.

"That's right, but it's easy to verify," Iver replied. "I made a plan after I heard Thunder's scream."

"The mission specifically mentioned that a loud noise would awaken the giant. And that time the noise was extremely loud. I was in the vicinity at the time, following the rule of 'only going along the left wall' when I heard the sound of thunder."

"That scream was enough to attract the giant. But from the time the scream came until we left... about ten minutes passed, and we didn't hear any footsteps from the giant."

"So I speculated at the time that the giants were most likely asleep. They needed time to wake up."

"Then I must consider the worst-case scenario—the giant who went to check the situation might not have been two, but only one. If only one came out, and the other giant woke up and guarded the bedroom, it would be more dangerous for us to pass by. According to the Pillar God's assumption, we should have sneaked in and searched for the Holy Lance."

"Because of Thunder's scream, the original plan was disrupted. That's why I just deliberately slammed the door here and made a loud noise. The volume was probably slightly less than Thunder's scream."

"The west and south sides are far apart. If a giant went to the south side before, and now there's a sound coming from the direction of the western storage room... the remaining giant should also come to check the situation."

In this way, both giants can be lured out from the direction of the bedroom.

Just as Iver and Lily were whispering to each other, they heard a rumbling sound of footsteps.

They immediately hid.

Soon, as the handle turned, a door opened.

— Emerging from within was a male giant with a waterfall-like reddish-brown beard and a body covered in red bear fur, resembling a brown bear standing upright.

He was like an ape with a human face, or a bear with a human face.

His body was like a small mountain, and his dark red muscles were as hard as rock.

The giant's back was somewhat hunched, and his hands were long enough to reach his knees. One hand carried a huge lantern, while the other was raised high and gripped a doorknob. His eyes were enormous, but his eyelids drooped due to old age. The drooping eyelids were like heavy curtains, and it would probably take someone standing on his shoulders and using a long fork to lift them up.

Iver's conjecture was confirmed the instant the Titans appeared—

Because the giant was only thirteen or fourteen meters tall. The doorknob was almost at his throat height, which was an awkward height.

In other words, this is not his home.

And Iver even recognized the red-haired giant's identity—

His name as the boss is [Aspartavas - Giant Chieftain], and he is one of the final bosses of the 3.4 version of Shadow of Avalon.

He has another identity—he will become an apostle in the Domain of Love in the future.

Because this old giant is actually the Shadow Angel of the Domain of Love, and the brother of Scathach, the Valkyrie who was pulled down by the Ouroboros Ring Ritual.