Come Hype Up Topus!

The Adventurers' Guild's third floor, Sid's office.

The entire floor, which had been enchanted with soundproofing magic, was quite quiet. The noise from downstairs couldn't penetrate the space at all, except for the soft scratching of Gina's pen on paper.

Si Telan sat upright on the sofa, with steaming black tea in front of her and Silver Shield pieced together.

"Unfortunately, there is no magical power left on it. Even if it is repaired, it will just be an ordinary shield."

Sid shook his head. He was listening to Si Telan recount the events of the battle to subdue the "Full Moon Queen's" Mimic Tear. As a so-called expert in magic, he was naturally interested in the "Topus's Force Field" and the shield imbued with that magic.

Seeing that it could not regain its former power, I couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.

But since painting fragments can be obtained repeatedly, and Si Telan has explained how to obtain them, it's only a matter of time before a new painting is collected.

When the new paintings were all gathered, Sid decided to go in and see for himself what the so-called "force field that deflects the gods" really looked like.

That must have been a scene Goddess of Beauty and legends.

Just then, Gina put down her pen, stretched her shoulders, and said, "The background information on the new area 'Lake Liurnia' has been compiled."

"Very good," Sid tapped the wooden armrest. "Could you please read it aloud so I can hear it?"

"Hmm." Gina turned to the first page of the document and put on her glasses.

"In an unknown period of time, in a place called 'The Lands Between,' the first magicians observed Meteor Shower on a snowy mountain. From this, they comprehended magic related to stars and established the Raya Lucaria Magic Academy, which was governed by the Caria Royal Family."

"The magic brought by the stars hides dangers. Excessive contact with the origin of the stars can bring danger to magicians, even physical mutations. Magic masters Azur and Lusat were expelled from the academy for excessive contact with the origin, and their follower, the magician Sellen also pursued the origin, was also wanted by the academy."

"The academy's strength has grown, the academic faction has risen, and the conflict with the royal family has continued to grow, eventually escalating into a war. It is impossible to know which side will win the war, but since Queen Renara of Queen Full Moon Queen Rella resides in the academy, perhaps this means that the royal family will ultimately prevail."

"During the war, or perhaps after the war, the academy sealed its gates, and no one noticed that an ordinary mage named Topus could not return."

"One day, the being known as the Tarnished —whom Lady Si Telan called the White Wolf because of his attire—met Topus, learned magic from him, and forged a deep bond with him while finding him the key to return to the academy."

"After parting ways with Topus, White Wolf met Sellen and followed him to further his magical studies. After that, he broke through the academy to clear Sellen's name. Afterwards, Sellen successfully returned to the academy and became a tutor."

"It was probably during this return to the academy that the White Wolf discovered Topus, who had dedicated his life to studying magic, obtained his legendary magic, and used it to humiliate the academy. In the battle against a being that appeared to be a god, he used Topus's Force Field to deflect the god's attack, thus proving the greatness of Topus's posthumous work."

"After that, the White Wolf became the 'Elden Lord,' whose meaning is currently unclear. He and Princess Ranni of the Moon took away the Full Moon Queen and have not been seen since, 'bringing a moment of peace to this world.'"

"This is the timeline summarized based on the intelligence we have gathered so far. The intelligence comes from descriptions of weapons, equipment, and magic, as well as the oral accounts of the Sorting Hat."

In short, it was by integrating a lot of fragmented information that we were able to deduce such a relatively complete timeline.

"There are many questions here. What does 'Elden Lord' mean? What does 'peace' mean? And what exactly does 'that thing' that is repeatedly mentioned behind the portraits of the mentors refer to?"

"Isn't it just Topus's Force Field?" Si Telan said.

Sid shook his head and said, "Based on the information we have so far, the academy possesses two techniques that can counter magic: [Carian Retaliation] and [Full Moon of Rennala]. If that's the case, then Topus's Force Field shouldn't cause the academy to isolate itself."

"So either it has a use that we don't know about, or 'that thing' refers to something else. I'm more inclined to the latter."

Si Telan looked helpless and said, "Researching these things is really troublesome."

"But that's the fun of it." Sid took a sip of hot tea and said, "Thank you for the intelligence. As for your request, are you really prepared?"

"I have a very strong Spirit Power, so feel free to do it."

Si Telan smiled nonchalantly and said, "It may sound a bit silly, but I really want my teacher to become famous, cough cough, I mean to make Topus famous, so that people can see what he has created, and that his talent should not end like that."

"Forgive my bluntness, but empathizing with images in the Painting World may not be a good thing."

"It doesn't matter. I witnessed Topus' story firsthand and even used his power to achieve a glorious victory in the end. So he is my teacher and I am his student. There's no problem with that," Si Telan said calmly.

"Alright, then we'll go with your idea."

Sid did not continue to persuade him, but instead said to his assistant Gina, "Go prepare the ritual, the memory extraction magic ritual."

Memory extraction magic is a type of magic with a high degree of danger and a high barrier to entry. It can extract a segment of a creature's memory and seal it as an image in Image Stone.

Only a small group of people with the most delicate magical skills and the highest magical talent can use this kind of magic. Moreover, it also requires a certain level of mental strength from the person being extracted. If the strength is too low and they cannot withstand the ritual, it will lead to failure or even paralysis. This makes this kind of magic not very practical.

Si Telan had complete confidence in her Spirit Power, and also believed in Sid's magical abilities, and most importantly—

She couldn't wait to let people see what was happening in the Painting World, and had absolutely no patience to wait for the next person to find all the Painting Fragment!

I estimate that her current mindset is exactly the same as Da Er's, who couldn't wait to tell the story of Artorias after witnessing it.

She completely embraced the identity of "Topus' disciple".

A day later, an image titled "Force Field of Rejecting Gods" appeared in Bede City and began to be sold in the name of the guild, along with methods for obtaining related painting fragments.

Two days later, the number of images circulated skyrocketed, with people scrambling to buy blank Image Stone to replicate the footage, and Image Stone were sold out throughout the city.

Three days later, newspapers in the city began to publish reports about Topus like sharks smelling blood, creating a craze no less intense than that for Artorias. Images of Topus began to spread rapidly beyond the city, and its influence was beginning to emerge.

Four days later, the hopeful video was received in all areas completely covered by the influence of the Zane Dungeon. Since there were not enough Image Stone for everyone, some people began to organize public screenings of the video. All caravans began to urgently purchase Image Stone, and the Bede Family had already started making related merchandise the next day.

Five days later, everyone in Topus knew about it, and "Force Field of Rejecting Gods" became the most frequently mentioned phrase.

Six days later, in Spring Sun City, in the Verdant Dungeon, a couple who came here for tourism left behind Image Stone that recorded Topus' image, which was picked up by the city lord Hai Nisi.

"What is this? Image Stone from the Zane Dungeon? Let me see!"

"Is this bald uncle the main character? He looks weak. What will he talk about?"

"He seems like a pretty nice person, but he's a bit too insecure. I would be very happy to have a teacher with that kind of personality."

"Waaah, teacher, why did you leave like that, teacher?"

"Wow, so cool! The teacher's magic has thoroughly humiliated this great being!"

Hai Nisi's reaction is probably the same reaction as everyone who has seen the video; it feels like it's become a formula.

The azure force field and the golden meteor—this is the most profound impression the film leaves on every viewer. A world-destroying meteor is deflected by a seemingly insignificant force field; human wisdom has defied the might of the gods.

Those who delve into the footage and dungeon information have discovered that the requirements for using the force field are very low, and the War Ash version is usable by everyone. Even a farmer tilling the fields by the roadside can use it to deflect the proud magic of a mage, or even the magic of a god!

This, this is the most magnificent aspect of Topus's Force Field! Human ingenuity has triumphed!

Perhaps it is precisely because Topus' talent is mediocre that he was able to create technology that ordinary people can use. Compared to it, Carian Retaliation and Full Moon, which one can only be used by geniuses?

Once this was discovered, Topus became famous not only among adventurers but also among ordinary people.

Someone created a painting depicting a force field fighting against the Elden Beast, but the main character wielding the force field was changed to Topus. Hopefully, the Elden Lord won't mind this small alteration.

Only seven days have passed, Topus has already become a rising star after the veteran star Farron Undead Legion.

But some are happy while others are sad.

"What kind of force field deflects the gods? Nonsense!"

Not only the Holy Light Church, but also various organizations with gods they believe in reacted strongly to Topus's fame, seeing it as a weakening of the gods' authority, which they could not accept.

Even the Sparkfire Church, which worships the fire god Gwyn, felt uneasy.

The magicians also felt offended. Ever since the force field became famous, they felt that people were looking at them with a subtle gaze, as if they were being looked down upon.

Damn it, so what if the force field can deflect magic? You can't get it anyway, so why do you look down on us! The mages were all seething with anger that they couldn't vent.

Disputes began to emerge, but these disputes actually benefited the Zane Dungeon, as they increased its visibility and generated more buzz.

So you can often see a young shopkeeper with black hair and black eyes stirring up trouble everywhere in the city, he's become a complete instigator, he must digest the potion very quickly (crossed out).

All of this was in line with Si Telan's expectations.

During this time, she temporarily left the ranks of the elves and instead became Sun Warrior in Lake Liurnia, but her goal was to help others obtain the Painting Fragment "Waste Stone".

The effect of just looking at the images extracted from her mind is still a bit lacking; only by witnessing the story firsthand can one perceive its impact.

Today, one of the people she helped finally collected all the fragments and entered the world.

It is the Sword Saint Gapar.

The Zane Dungeon, the Academy Gate Town.

"Clang, clang"

The sound of hammering came from next door. Si Telan and Jia Paer sat on the floor in the room next to the blacksmith, who was holding a Silver Shield in his arms, which meant that he had already entered the Painting World.

"Has Mr. Jia Paer already used the Tear Drop Larva?" Si Telan asked with a smile. "Shouldn't I call you a Magic Master now?"

Jia Paer waved his hand, his expression somewhat strange.

"No, I haven't used it yet. How should I put it? My feelings right now are a bit complicated, especially..."

He tapped the Silver Shield and sighed, "After seeing those scenes, magic doesn't feel so cool anymore."

After witnessing the White Wolf use a force field to destroy the academy, deflecting a bunch of seemingly cool magic spells, and finally facing the Elden Meteor head-on, Jia Paer's filter of magic was shattered, and his longing for it was swept into the trash heap.

Stylish ranged spells would be deflected, but simple, unadorned magical weapons would remain unaffected by the force field.

After emerging from the Painting World, he stared at the [Carian Greatsword] and [Heimo Hammer] in his hands for an entire night, and finally had to admit—

"I don't think I want to be a magician as much anymore."

Jia Paer's expression was somewhat indescribable, a mixture of disappointment and frustration, but also a strange sense of liberation from the shackles of obsession.

Magic can be deflected, but his painstakingly honed swordsmanship and physical prowess cannot.

Melee combat seems cooler; magic that can be deflected isn't stylish at all.

Upon noticing his appearance, Si Telan almost burst out laughing. It might sound shameful, but she felt a little pleased. She hadn't expected that Topus's Force Field would pull the swordsman, who had always wanted to be a magician, back to the "right path."

"Anyway, thank you for your help. If you hadn't told me, I probably would never have found the first fragment, and I wouldn't have seen such a wonderful sight," Jia Paer said sincerely.

"So, are you going to stay here? I heard you stayed in the dungeon for the Tear Drop Larva," Si Telan asked.

"It's time to go. I've been here for so long that I've almost forgotten my original purpose."

Jia Paer smiled and shook his head. "I've decided to use the Tear Drop Larva to raise my intelligence by a few levels, just enough to use a few spells. That would fulfill a dream I had when I was young. As for when I'll leave..."

He stretched his limbs and suddenly regained his spirited demeanor.

"I plan to help my lovely apprentices fulfill their dreams first, and then I will leave when everything is over."

"Dream?" Si Telan tilted her head.

Jia Paer held up a few fingers and said:

"Leon wants to hunt the Furious Rajang, Malu wants a pair of beautiful twin swords, Delu wants to exchange for Force Eruption from the Endless Reincarnation, Te Er wants a good hammer."

"And then there's Da Er. That kid's got his mind written all over his face. He just came to see me not long ago."

The Sword Saint revealed the expression of a kind old man, truly resembling a good master who cares about his disciple.

"He asked to join me in bringing peace to the Farron Undead Legion."