Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 143

143. The Tumultuous Continent (4)

The war between the six major guilds.

The world of War Lord was shaken by the news, capturing the attention of every player. Even those who had never played the game were inundated with news about the conflict.

Special articles flooded news outlets, and broadcasts were filled with stories about the war.

A massive clash, unprecedented in scale.

Skirmishes between advance teams were already erupting in various locations, with numerous subordinate guilds and troops under the six major guilds converging from all directions.

Conversely, players near the border regions were fleeing en masse.

“Sigh, just when we managed to scrape together enough resources to build a guild hall in the city, this happens.”

“I told you we should have set it up in a safer location.”

“What choice did we have? That was the cheapest land available! We can only hope the city remains intact until the war is over. But with so many people involved…”

Behind them, a long line of other players followed, grumbling as they evacuated.

No one was happy about abandoning their bases of operation, but they had to flee to avoid getting caught in the crossfire and dying.

Moreover, the most ruthless Player Killer [PK] guilds thrived in chaotic situations like this.

Those fleeing the war were easy targets, making it safer to blend in with the crowds.

“Look! It’s the Battlefield Artists Guild!”

A man shouted, pointing ahead.

A group of players approached from the opposite direction.

It was the Battlefield Artists, one of War Lord’s most renowned mercenary guilds.

Leading the group was Harts, the guild leader.

The appearance of a famous guild and its leader drew gasps of admiration.

As a mercenary guild composed of high-level elites, they were all equipped with top-tier gear.

“T-there’s Shockwave too!”

He exclaimed, impressed by another guild passing by.

Famous mercenary guilds from all over were being hired to fight in this war.

The mercenary guilds hired by Nightmare were moving, and the mercenary groups heading to the battlefield passed them in opposite directions.

“I heard that the High Team and Destruction Instinct guilds are moving on the Dawn side.”

“All the famous mercenary groups on the continent are on the move. Are they really planning to go all out?”

Hearing about it was one thing, but seeing it firsthand was another.

The players murmured, sensing the unusual atmosphere.

Nightmare and Dawn Guilds.

Two giants among the six guilds, capable of reshaping the landscape of War Lord, had begun to mobilize.

The mercenary forces moving on both sides were immense.

‘It’s amazing after all,’ Ail thought.

Mixed in with the crowd, he watched the spectacle unfold.

This was already the fourth time he had witnessed the movement of forces just while crossing this area. Considering the length of the front lines between the two guilds, he couldn’t even begin to estimate the overall scale of the war.

‘Even though the top 12 guilds were already fighting each other, the southeastern part of the continent has virtually become a battlefield.’

Local battles were erupting in various border areas even now.

Even though the main forces on both sides had not yet clashed in a full-scale war, large-scale battles were taking place one after another.

‘Still, I definitely made money.’

As Ail had predicted, the mine was hit.

Thanks to Nightmare’s swift action, the Nocturnum mine area, which was the primary target, was completely destroyed.

As a result, Dawn’s supply of Nocturnum was virtually cut off, and naturally, the price was skyrocketing.

The potential profits from this price difference were clear in his mind.

‘The problem is that now that two guilds have moved, the other four won’t just stand still.’

The delicate balance of War Lord was crumbling.

Just by Ail completing the world quest, all sorts of chain reactions were erupting, and he couldn’t imagine what was happening elsewhere.

It felt like a return to the early days of War Lord, when constant warfare was the norm due to fierce competition.

‘Still, I hope they take care of the world quest.’

The royal family’s world quest had significant implications.

Of course, even though he had provided them with potentially devastating information, the six major guilds were not foolish enough to ignore it. He assumed they would handle it, but he still wanted to be sure.

‘Well, for now, I only need to do one thing.’

That was to quickly escape this chaotic conflict zone.

Although he had a successful transaction with Nightmare, it was just a business deal where compensation was exchanged. There was no reason to take sides.

Instead, he had to be careful not to get caught in the middle and swept away.

Ail slipped out of the crowd of refugees and headed into the deep forest that he had scouted in advance.

It was a forest so dense that there were no paths, let alone people.

Thud!

The ground suddenly erupted in front of Ail, who had stopped.

Letter suddenly poked his head out of a hole in the ground.

“Squeak! I came to greet you, human!”

“Good timing? Thanks.”

“I don’t need thanks from the benefactor of the race! Squeak!”

Letter gestured for him to hurry, and Ail entered the tunnel that the Letters had dug in advance, hidden from view.

This incredibly deep tunnel led straight to the underground world of Eltriss.

As expected, Eltriss’s hunting grounds were the best choice for now.

Even though it was a highly efficient hunting ground, there was no competition from other players, and there were plenty of unresolved quests.

Loden and Lia, who had initially been terrified and wanted to leave quickly, eventually stayed in Eltriss and were party hunting.

No matter how crazy the outside world was, the efficiency was too good to resist.

‘I guess I’ll just level up in Eltriss for now…….’

The underground world was unaffected by the chaos above.

After all, having exclusive access to this kind of information was a huge advantage.

But it wasn’t just the world of players that was in turmoil.

* * *

Kuwowaaaa!

A huge monster roared, swinging its arms.

An undead monster with pieces of flesh falling off its body like rags.

As it stomped its feet and rampaged, the surrounding ground cracked and shattered, sending fragments flying in all directions towards Ail.

The boss was unleashing a desperate attack.

But its current actions were just its last struggle.

Swish!

Ail, who had circled behind the monster, swung his longsword and slashed its back.

The blade flashed, instantly piercing the monster’s body, and it was engulfed in intense sacred fire.

[You have executed an apostate!]

[The stat bonus is doubled due to the effect of Executing Punishment.]

[You have leveled up!]

“Hoo.”

A message popped up as he beheaded the fallen monster.

Ail, having successfully completed the raid, took a deep breath.

After cleanly wiping the sticky blood off his longsword with sacred fire, he sheathed his weapon.

Then, he knelt down and offered a prayer to the goddess.

[You feel your faith deepen even further.]

[Faith stat +0.1]

[Madness stat +0.1]

[‘Light’s Judge, Ru’ expresses respect for your wonderful battle.]

[Light Order Contribution +50]

Ru’s message, which had become a daily occurrence, appeared.

Then, a strange playfulness took over Ail, and he subtly raised his thumb towards Ru, who must be watching from somewhere.

[‘Light’s Judge, Ru’ demands that you not be cheeky.]

[Her cold gaze reaches you.]

“Ah, sorry…….”

[‘Light’s Judge, Ru’ sponsors you.]

[Light Order Contribution +120]

‘…….’

He had been feeling it all along, but the goddess’s fickleness was beyond comprehension.

‘Well, whatever…….’

Ail, after looting the item, pulled out a dismantling knife and began to carve up the corpse of the fallen monster.

Alisa and the other party members had been staying in Eltriss since he was doing the world quest on the surface.

But there was a reason why Ail was hunting alone in a place like this.

‘The other party members are clearing an instance dungeon. I have no choice but to level up alone for the time being.’

As originally planned, they were going to join forces and hunt together, but the group had stumbled upon an instance dungeon and couldn’t leave during the clearing process.

They said that they had unexpectedly discovered such a huge dungeon that it would take quite a while to get out.

Of course, solo play was definitely not bad.

He was progressing steadily, completing quests and hunting bosses.

Clang!

The dismantling of the boss’s corpse was finished as he carved the last bone.

Ail picked up the dropped byproducts and rose to his feet.

‘I’ve finished a quest too. Shall we go back now?’

Just as he was about to move.

[Divinity, ‘Mother of Life’ has noticed your existence.]

“What……?”

Ail, startled, froze in place.

What appeared in front of him was just a short message, but for a moment, he couldn’t believe his eyes.

But with the modifier Divinity attached, there was no room for doubt.

One of the seven divinities of War Lord, equal to Ru.

‘Mother of Life. This title is…….’

Goddess of abundance, earth, and death. Freya.

That was who it referred to.

[‘Light’s Judge, Ru’ is wary of the appearance of divinity!]

Even Ru showed a strong reaction and was wary of the new divinity.

‘Another divinity is sending a direct message……. Could it be that Freya has also fully awakened?’

Ail suddenly remembered what Karin had told him.

That other orders were showing signs of making big moves.

The guild leaders of the six major guilds wouldn’t have said that without proper evidence or conviction, and Ail had considered it in many ways.

But the really important point was what came after.

That the intervention of the divinities would soon become 본격화 [full-scale].

‘I didn’t expect it to be so soon.’

[Divinity, ‘Ruler of the Volcano’ roars, breaking the silence.]

[Divinity, ‘Secret Explorer’s cunning gaze is watching you.]

“…I didn’t expect this.”