YM778.TV Chapter 162: You Can’t Lose
Chapter 162: You Can’t Lose
Reconstruction of Bloodline? What in the world is that? Also, what’s the Crown’s Stone...
Roel was dumbfounded by the sudden barrage of notifications coming from the System. Never would he have thought that a calamity that concerned the survival of all human civilization would actually be related to his bloodline.
【Ding!】
【Initialization of ‘Reconstruction of Bloodline’ successful.】
【Inspecting the mutation of the Crown’s Stone. Conducting preliminary assessment of its tier.】
【System Evaluation: Can be assimilated】
【Recommended Assimilation Level: A】
【Reassessing the rate of growth of the mutated Crown’s Stone according to the user’s condition.】
【Recommended Assimilation Level: B+】
【Warning!】
【Warning!】
【Warning!】
【The user hasn’t reached the recommended assimilation level. Assimilation of the mutated Crown’s Stone will be risky. Activating Assimilation Support System.】
【Estimated cost of the Assimilation Support System: 300,000 gold coins】
【User doesn’t have sufficient balance at the moment. Activating Loan Function】
【In view that this is not the first loan, an interest rate of 10% per month will be charged on the principal sum.】
【You are borrowing 300,000 gold coins at an interest rate of 10% per month.】
【Yes/No】
The huge wave of incoming notifications left Roel’s eyes in a blur, but there were two words that caught his attention right away: Loan Function.
That darned Loan Function again!
When Roel saw that he didn’t have enough money to support the activation of the Assimilation Support System, he knew that he had fallen into a pit. Without disappointing him, the System offered a loan once again, and this time around, it was even charging an exorbitant interest rate!
At an interest rate of 10% a month, Roel would have to pay a whopping 30,000 gold coins just to offset the interest! Even robbing a bank wouldn’t be as efficient as this!
What in the world is this? Is this like an adaptation of payday loans? Is the System trying to rip me off here?
“Don’t you think that your interest rate is too high? Even the finances of the Ascart Fiefdom won’t be able to manage the upkeep on the loan with this sort of interest rate!”
【Risk and reward come hand in hand. The chances of a Crown’s Stone appearing is extremely low, and the successful assimilation of it can enhance the user’s abilities. However, strong abilities tend to come with side effects. The user should make the decision himself.】
“...”
Roel fell silent after hearing the words and warning from the System. Without a doubt, he was paying a huge price for the loan this time around, but just as what the System said, this was also an opportunity for him—a fortuitous encounter, some might call it.
While he had no idea how the Glacier Creator was related to the Crown Origin Attribute, it was obvious that the strength of this civilization destroyer was bound to be amazing.
In fact, thinking back on it, even though this darned System often triggered him, so far, it had only offered its Loan Function once before, and that was for the awakening of his bloodline. So far, he hadn’t regretted his decision yet; the awakening of his bloodline had really changed the trajectory of this life. So, this time...
With a conflicted look on his face, Roel turned to look at the auburn-haired girl chatting with Isabella, and he couldn’t help but feel deeply uneasy on the inside.
Even though Charlotte had assured him that it was not his fault, he still felt guilty having implicated Charlotte into the Witness State. That being said, he was still fairly confident in his ability to protect her from danger. However, after hearing all the talk about the Glacier Creator and all sorts of powerful monsters lurking in the world, he started to lose confidence in himself.
For one, he knew that Twohorn Port ended up freezing over, becoming known as the Cursed Bay instead, a region where many adventurers would end up losing their lives.
The bizarre climate around Twohorn Port had always been a topic of much speculation, but Roel finally understood the cause of it.
It was simply because the egg was there.
But, how did the egg end up there?
Roel took some time to carefully think over this question as his face turned incredibly solemn. If this matter wasn’t the intentional doing of Isabella and the Golden Fleet, there could only be one possibility.
This voyage was going to be the Golden Fleet’s last.
“...”
The thought of it made Roel clench his fists tightly.
He was honestly tempted to devour the Glacier Creator, but he knew that it wasn’t as easy as it seemed. There were many implications at play here, the most direct one being the ‘side effects’ mentioned by the System even after the activation of the Assimilation Support System. He knew just how terrifying some ‘side effects’ of transcendent abilities could be, but the danger that was lurking right before him this very moment was not something he could turn a blind eye to.
It took a very long moment of consideration before he finally made up his mind.
“I choose ‘Yes’.”
So what if it won’t be easy? So what if there are side effects? It’s no longer about just me anymore. I brought Charlotte into this, so I’m obliged to see her out safely. I can’t just turn a blind eye to the obvious threats lying ahead.
Not to mention, she’s also my...
Roel shot a glance at Charlotte before swiftly averting his eyes once more.
Even if their engagement was only in name, it was a fact that Roel was indeed Charlotte’s fiancé at the moment. As long as he bore this title, he felt responsible for ensuring her safety.
【Assimilation Support System activated.】
【Adaptation System activated.】
The System notifications echoed in Roel’s ears, and he began sensing certain changes occurring to his body. Meanwhile, Isabella began explaining their current circumstances.
“We have two enemies right now. One of them is the Seafolk, who thrive in the cold. They hope to obtain the Glacier Creator and use it to create a favorable habitat for themselves. The other one is the Saints Convocation. They are a group of lunatics who believe that the Mother Goddess is Sia, and that the Six Calamities are a trial and retribution from the gods for humankind.
“The news regarding the egg leaked somehow, resulting in this bunch of lunatics rushing to the Sofya Kingdom. They rallied the conservative faction within the kingdom and managed to earn significant support. Right now, they and their supporters are pursuing us from behind with our own ships.”
With a deep sigh, Isabella revealed the reason behind the internal strife within the Golden Fleet. In the end, it could all be traced back to the Sofya House’s Loyal Origin Attribute.
All this while, Roel and Charlotte had been wondering how the Sofyas knew so much about the Six Calamities when everyone else in the world, including renowned scholars, knew nothing much about it at all. As it turned out, back in ancient times, the high elves used to serve the Mother Goddess.
From such a perspective, the Six Calamities could actually be considered as comrades of the Sofya House. This resulted in two diverging points of view amongst those who had inherited the High Elf Bloodline.
) To choose their High Elf Bloodline and be loyal to the Mother Goddess whom they had once served.
) To choose their Human Bloodline and be loyal to the faith worshiped by most of humankind, Sia.
The former became known as the conservative faction, whereas the latter became known as the pro-human revolutionary faction. Isabella had already faced great resistance from her kin when she tried to reach out to other human countries to earn their acceptance. The emergence of this egg only served as the trigger that led to a complete fallout.
In the view of the believers of the Mother Goddess, the Glacier Creator was a God’s Envoy, but Isabella and the others regarded it as a malicious catastrophe. Such a radical divergence in beliefs couldn’t possibly be reconciled. Along with the Saints Convocation fanning the flames by the side, the occurrence of internal strife within the Golden Fleet was inevitable.
Gordon Sofya, an Origin Level 2 transcendent, one of the esteemed elders of the Sofya House, was the leader of this rebellion. He was joined by one of the executives of the Saints Convocation, whom Isabella didn’t have much information on.
“The flagship under my control should have the advantage in terms of speed, but due to the egg requiring the concentration of the Golden Soul to keep it sealed, the functionality of my ship is greatly reduced. As a result, my side has ended up at a disadvantage. If things go on like this, it’s only a matter of time before they catch up. A battle would be inevitable then.”
Isabella gestured toward the golden fluid, which formed a complicated formation around the egg, as she explained. This made Charlotte’s heart sink. However, before she could descend into pessimism, Roel suddenly spoke up.
“In other words, if we can curb this ice fragment, we should be able to speed up and avoid the ships from the conservative faction, right?”
“Yes, you can say so. Wait a moment, what are you planning to do?”
To Isabella’s horror, Roel suddenly leaped down the stairs to head for the egg.
“Roel, come back! It’s too cold down there!”
Panicked, she quickly shouted a warning to Roel. Even though Roel was sent here by the Twilight Sages Assembly to help her, there was no way she could allow any harm to come upon Winstor’s younger brother. Otherwise, there was no way she could explain it to Winstor.
However, to Isabella’s surprise, as Roel approached the golden fluid formation, the egg suddenly began trembling in response. The Glacier Creator was a legendary existence known to have destroyed civilizations before, but Isabella could actually sense fear coming from it!
“H-how is this possible?”
Isabella could hardly believe her eyes. She couldn’t imagine why the monster would fear Roel, who was so much weaker than her. Behind her, Charlotte, who had also sensed the same thing, had a tense look on her face, but she chose to hold her tongue.
Was she worried? Of course she was!
However, for some reason, when she saw the determined look on Roel’s face, her heart began thumping frenziedly. She found herself unable to voice out the words to stop him.
While the two ladies were worried out of their minds, Roel was currently feeling very cool at the moment. The biting chill of the egg felt oddly comfortable to his skin.
Under the support of the System, Roel’s mana had begun racing swiftly, as if someone had ignited his inner nitro. It made him feel unbearably hot, which prompted him to instinctively head toward the cooling egg.
It was like opening a fridge in the heat of summer. It was that comfy.
【Origin Attribute has been activated. Starting assimilation.
Countdown: 180 seconds
Success rate: 73%】
【Counting down. 180, 179, 178...】
The notifications from the System snapped Roel out of his daze. He could vaguely sense the Crown Origin Attribute producing a force of attraction toward the egg. As if a mother beckoning its child home, he began to absorb the frost mana in the vicinity.
【120, 119, 118...】
A minute passed quickly. Roel no longer felt as irritably hot as he did a moment ago, but at the same time, he didn’t feel any stronger despite having absorbed the frost mana.
【61, 60, 59...】
Two minutes passed. Roel was starting to sense that his plight was getting worse and worse. His body had been as hot as a furnace a moment ago, but at this moment, he felt as if someone had robbed him of his charcoal, causing him to swiftly lose heat. Despite so, he still hadn’t grown any stronger at all.
【31, 30, 29...】
Another half a minute passed. Roel’s body had already turned ice cold. He stared blankly ahead as he felt that time was slowly being stretched out into eternity. He was in great pain, but he knew that he mustn’t give up at this critical moment.
He stared at the 73% success rate evaluated by the System with a helpless look on his face. He had no idea how the System managed to tabulate this number, but he felt like his fate had been left completely up to luck.
It was then that he felt a figure lightly hugging his glacial body.
“I got your back. You mustn’t lose here!”
Charlotte shouted as she aimed her gun at Roel and pulled the trigger.