At that moment, in Philippe's embrace, Emilie's body, which had felt warm and real, now became transparent. She was like a fading shadow, her form slowly swallowed by the void until nothing remained except the scent of blood in the air.
Philippe let out a trembling sigh, looking around at the surroundings now filled with pieces of undead bodies that no longer moved, before finally storing his sword back in his inventory.
He no longer cared about them.
At that moment, the world around him spun, and black holes gaped in his memory—he couldn't remember what had happened in the last few hours, even his best friend's name momentarily vanished from his mind.
He suddenly experienced a massive disorientation hitting him!
His body moved without command; sometimes he unconsciously let out a stifled wolf howl, at other times he pulled the crown from his inventory and wore it with a king's gesture.
After a few minutes that felt like forever, the remnants of the turbulent souls within him finally subsided.
Philippe raised both his hands, turning them over under the dim light, as if confirming that the body was still his.
At that moment, without warning, a series of system notifications appeared before him, filling his vision like a digital snowstorm, announcing his continuous level ups.
After the barrage of notifications stopped, he opened the skill menu, only to find nothing had changed. Without disappointment, he switched to the Inventory menu.
At that moment, his eyes widened, his mouth slightly opened before closing tightly again. His storage space was now overflowing with items that weren't his.
These were Madeleine's items!
He immediately dismissed the screen, then looked up toward where Madeleine had floated before, his lips trembling as he whispered to the silence.
"Now... I understand what you meant."
***
Philippe dragged the heavy golden throne back to its original place, then with an arrogant motion, he sat on it, wearing the crown of the deceased king.
From his inventory, he pulled a crate emanating a dark purple aura—Mythic Crate. He opened it in an instant, letting the blinding light engulf him without blinking.
The system notification appeared, and a cold smile formed on his face as he read it.
CONGRATULATIONS YOU HAVE GAINED A SKILL: SHATTERED VERITY
CHECK THE SKILL IN THE SKILL MENU
He opened the skill menu and read its description carefully.
[ACTIVE SKILL]
- Eclipse Soul: Mythic Rarity
- Shattered Verity: Legendary Rarity
The user can weave perfect illusions, capable of hiding or completely altering the truth in everyone's eyes. This illusion will last forever as long as no observer realizes the deception. However, to create such a powerful lie, the user must 'sacrifice' one of their precious memories as the foundation. When the illusion shatters because the truth is revealed, the memory that formed its base will also shatter and be lost forever, creating a permanent hole in the user's mind and personal history.
[PASSIVE SKILL]
-
After that, he pulled The Warden's Dawnblade from his inventory.
He stared at the dull silver sword for a few seconds, then closed his eyes and activated Shattered Verity.
There was no light or vibration; the only clue was his gaze becoming slightly vacant and distant. In his mind, the image of the Excalibur sword from his old world overlapped with the real form of the sword in his hand.
Slowly, the sword changed shape, its blade becoming more radiant, the hilt adorned with gold and blue. At the same time, he felt something tearing from within his mind.
He had chosen to sacrifice his memory of who he used to be—an ordinary man from Earth thrown into this body.
The true identity of this sword must be kept secret!
He needed this sword to overcome the problem left by Madeleine!
When he opened his eyes, the sword in his hand had transformed into Excalibur.
He let out a sigh, placing the sword beside him.
At that moment, he opened his inventory only to find an item that looked like a painting and briefly read it.
Item Name: The Somatic Canvas
Description: Allows the user to seal abstract concepts they possess (pain, fear, etc.) into a painting by sacrificing one body part. Its new miracle is that this sealed entity can be "released" to possess the body of anyone who makes a blood contract with the painting, effectively transferring the user's burden to another. When the entity is released and possesses a new host, it is no longer bound to the painting. It becomes an independent being that now has its own will. Its primary will is to become "whole" again. As a result, the entity born from the user's weakness will now actively hunt the user—its creator—to destroy them and reclaim the soul fragment that is its origin.
Philippe paused for a moment then pulled an item.
It was a blank canvas framed in black wood. Its surface made of a strange material resembling pale skin felt warm to the touch.
This was Madeleine's item.
The Somatic Canvas.
"It seems this item is useful," he chuckled.
Something inside his body seemed to stir upon hearing that. Without hesitation, he cut off his pinky finger with his sword, stifling a scream as sharp pain coursed through his arm.
He placed the severed finger on the canvas. Instantly, he felt 'something' cold and foreign within him being forcibly sucked into the canvas. The pain in his hand was nothing compared to the extraordinary calm now enveloping his soul.
The canvas now displayed a constantly moving landscape painting, within which a shadowy figure writhed, trying to escape.
Philippe had successfully sealed the 'other consciousness' within him. He placed the sword and canvas beside the throne, then reopened his inventory.
She had so many items!
At that moment, he selected one item and read it:
Item Name: The Martyr's Heartbeat
Description: When the button on this device is pressed, it will absorb and synchronize itself with the user's life energy. The device will release an extraordinarily powerful energy explosion upon the user's death. The user's death is the trigger for the explosion. This item cannot be canceled once activated and has no other function besides turning the user's life sacrifice into the ultimate weapon.
After reading and understanding it, Philippe pulled the item from his inventory, manifesting it from the void into his palm.
The item was shaped like an elegant silver pocket watch, but without time hands. Its face was blank and smooth, with only one button at the top.
The Martyr's Heartbeat.
At that moment, he reopened his inventory and randomly checked an item.
Item Name: The Dirge Lure
Description: A ritual censer that, when activated with a keyword, will emit an irresistible psychic "song" to all undead, forcing them to gather at its location. When the number of summoned undead reaches one hundred, the censer will explode with tremendous power, annihilating them and the surrounding area. To activate it, the user must drip their blood onto the censer, creating a bond. While active, the user will be tormented by echoes of hunger from every undead, a mental torture that threatens sanity. After the explosion, the bond leaves a permanent "stain" on the user's soul; undead will become fearful near them, and they will forever carry a subtle aura of death.
Understanding after reading it, Philippe pulled it again from his inventory.
At that moment, in his palm appeared an object in the form of a small hanging censer made of silver blackened by age. Its surface was adorned with faint and worn carvings of bones and skulls. The object felt cold like a gravestone, and when shaken, the sound of rattling ash could be heard inside. No smoke, scent, or magical aura emanated from it.
At that moment, he dripped blood from his severed finger onto the censer, activating it.
Instantly, echoes of hunger from every undead in the palace and throughout the city assaulted his mind, a horrifying mental torture. To him, this sounded like a baby's cry rather than a side effect of Eclipse Soul!
The undead around him immediately retreated in fear.
This was the effect of The Dirge Lure!
After enduring the echoes, he put on a neutral expression, placed the censer nearby, and reopened his inventory.
Item Name: The Sommelier's Ledger
Description: A book where the user can "pour" their life memories onto its pages. Others can then read the book to relive those experiences perfectly, gaining knowledge, skills, and feelings from the memory as if they experienced it themselves. Each written memory causes the original owner to lose emotional and personal ties to their past. They still remember the facts, but their life begins to feel like a story about someone else they've read. The more they write, the more they become "ghosts" in their own life history, eroding their sense of self.
Philippe nodded in understanding then closed his inventory again.
He didn't intend to pull it out now. He just wanted to find out what the last item was like before welcoming someone's arrival.
At that moment, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed. Armand entered the throne room, his face shocked at the horrifying sight around him.
He had used The Shifting Locket to transfer the decay effect while healing himself.
After a few moments, he stared at Philippe sitting on the throne, wearing the crown.
"You came at the right time," Philippe said, his voice sounding majestic and calm.
"I don't have much time, so don't ask unnecessary things." He tossed the constantly moving canvas to Armand. "Never believe anything it says. By the way, it's alive."
Armand caught the canvas, a sense of horror coursing through him just from looking at the painting. He quickly set it down.
Philippe tossed something else, this time the silver pocket watch. "Here, take it. Put it in a secret place." He paused, as if deeply thinking. Shortly after, he smiled and nodded. "This item can return someone to their original place. If that person is from Earth, they will return to Earth."
At the moment Philippe explained this, the image on the canvas suddenly formed a strange picture.
"By the way, open your paper," Philippe said, his smile still etched.
Armand opened the parchment he had given him, without asking, and on it now was written a new warning: Do not press!
Shortly after, Armand looked back at him, and Philippe tossed the last item.
It was The Dirge Lure.
The blood on the censer was no longer useful, so when tossed, the blood splattered and hit the floor.
Armand took it and looked at the censer for a moment before shifting his gaze.
"I love you."
Upon hearing this, Armand couldn't help but feel amused. This was like hearing a direct confession from the man in front of him!
"That phrase is the trigger, never say it." Philippe then put on a smile and said, "And that statement is from me to Emilie." He paused and propped his chin with his right hand.
"You can also place it anywhere."
Armand heard this and closed his mouth. "Alright."
"That's it?" Armand asked after a brief silence.
Philippe nodded.
"Then... what about you?"
Philippe's face, which had been serious, was now adorned with a genuine, painful smile. "I have a little business to settle here."
Armand didn't ask further. He turned, carrying all the items. Before passing through the door, he stopped and looked back, his smile looking sad. "See you, buddy."
"See you."
When Armand had left, Philippe held his sword, and in an instant, he used the rifthound skill to teleport to the village.
This was his hometown.
Instantly, the villagers who had fully become undead now retreated from him in fear.
Philippe smiled and looked around.
"I'll miss this place," he whispered, before thrusting Excalibur into the center of the village.
At that moment, suddenly, the sun rose from the west, its warm rays making all the undead passive.
Philippe observed the change for a moment. Before teleporting back to the throne.
He didn't have much time left.
Philippe took something from his inventory. It was a pale blue crystal.
At that moment, the pale blue crystal suddenly formed something and slowly changed shape into a simple crown entirely made of pale blue crystal. Its surface was smooth and cold, reflecting light softly, but showing no signs of power within. On the front of the crown, there were three crystal facets slightly larger than the others, but the color was the same pale and unremarkable.
Philippe decided to make this item's appearance a crown.
While the crown he was wearing, he now stored in his inventory, swapping it.
At that moment, he leaned back on the throne. Shortly after, his mouth opened and spoke with a voice echoing throughout the world:
"One: System users are prohibited from using any abilities except Inventory in this world."
"Two: System users are prohibited from teleporting."
"Three: If I die, all System users will be returned to their original places."
After echoing this, Philippe smiled again and opened his inventory.
He took The Sommelier's Ledger.
In his palm, a thick book bound in luxurious burgundy leather appeared. No title on the cover, only a small intricate silver lock that was always locked. The pages inside appeared blank and clean. The book felt heavy and emanated a faint aura of nostalgia.
At that moment, he touched a blank page and concentrated on a memory, and instantly the lock opened. The next second, handwriting appeared on the page in liquid gold ink, recounting his personal experiences so far. During this process, the entire book emanated a warm and soothing golden light.
After finishing, he closed the book and used dimensional shift to go to the library he usually visited.
Placing the book there, he then returned to the throne.
For the last time, he looked around.
The queen, now a zombie, stared at him from the corner, feeling very afraid of him.
Philippe felt his body was extremely tired. It was time to sleep... he murmured.
At that moment, his body leaning on the throne suddenly froze, his skin slowly hardening and paling like marble. Shortly after, he closed his eyes.
Rest well, Nameless King.
***
A/N: Yup, this arc ends here and we'll return to the future. A long story, honestly!
By the way, I'm still expecting comments!
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