novelnext Chapter 1012: Three Theories
Chapter 1012: Three Theories
jake couldn’t help but stumble back as the projection was broken, and he was forcibly returned to his own body fully. after taking a few steps back, he stabilized himself, breathing heavily. in part because of the shock from getting his consciousness flung back into his real body and in part because he was still mentally processing everything that had just gone down while he was projected.
he had no idea how well things had gone, and he wasn’t good enough at reading people to understand if he had properly tricked yip of yore. nor was he entirely sure if villy was satisfied with his performance.
things hadn’t gone entirely to plan, and jake had veered from the script more than he probably should have. sure, he had covered the most important parts, but he felt like he’d definitely said a bit too much at times, and he also had the nagging feeling that he’d forgotten some important things he had to say.
after breathing heavily for a bit, jake took a final deep breath and sighed. none of it mattered anymore. he’d done what he’d done, and things couldn’t be changed anymore. all he could do now was trust in the malefic viper to handle everything on his end.
having calmed himself down, jake finally addressed the flood of notifications he’d gained. he’d expected to get levels, but not that many, considering he’d already gotten a steady influx of experience over the last many weeks while the rumors of jake’s betrayal of the viper had been spreading. that made him assume the reward would be lesser... and maybe it was, but jake was still pretty darn satisfied seeing six whole levels gained.
’ding!’ profession: [heretic-chosen alchemist of the malefic viper] has reached level 290 - stat points allocated, +35 free points
...
’ding!’ profession: [heretic-chosen alchemist of the malefic viper] has reached level 295 - stat points allocated, +35 free points
’ding!’ race: [human (c)] has reached level 293 - stat points allocated, +45 free points
’ding!’ race: [human (c)] has reached level 295 - stat points allocated, +45 free points
this leveling pace felt like he was back in d-grade again, but he knew it was only because so much was happening. he also suspected ell’hakan was experiencing a similar level of growth in the meantime, but that would only make him more worth it to kill once all this was over. and hopefully, a little something that could help make that kill even easier had also arrived...
because he’d also gotten another message after reaching level 290 in his profession:
heretic-chosen alchemist of the malefic viper profession skills available
he already knew what skill he would pick as-
“lord thayne, we need to move!” bobby yelled from outside of the now-broken magic circle after whatever villy had done proved powerful enough to actually destroy the formation on their end through his will alone.
jake was thrown out of his thoughts as he heard what the man said, and for a moment, he looked confused at the world leader. then, he realized what bobby was getting at.
right... the usurper ritual...
admittedly, jake had kind of forgotten about that thing. or maybe he’d just not wanted to remember its existence due to what using it would imply, but nevertheless, he knew he had to go there even if he never planned on using it.
“coming,” jake said as he ran out of the broken magic circle and followed bobby as they flew to the other circle. he noticed carmen was nowhere to be seen, and he couldn’t help but ask while flying:
“where’s carmen at?”
“i apologize for not telling you before, but i didn’t wish to distract you in any way. however, shortly before you were summoned, a man from your planet arrived, and carmen went to greet him,” bobby answered apologetically.
“a man? who?” jake asked, unsure who it could be.
“true, true, but let’s be honest, we both know my intent back then wasn’t actually to fight you,” yip smiled while shaking his head. “also, you can stop with the acting already; it’s just the two of us now. the setting has been established, and the build-up is complete. what happens from here on out will be naught but a tale told by the victor.”
“me? acting? aren’t you the one acting weird, not being in a rush despite working so hard to build up momentum?” vilastromoz responded, tilting his head.
“you know, it’s weird; you don’t seem as angry now as you did less than a minute ago,” yip shot back, still smiling. “i must admit, you are a better performer than i first expected. then again, you are a notorious schemer. everyone’s been telling me that anyway. the thing is, i can’t figure out what the goal of your scheme is this time around.”
“what’s so hard to understand?” the viper asked in a relaxed tone.
“you. what you want,” yip said with genuine puzzlement. “i dare call myself an expert in the art of spinning tales and telling stories, and what i witnessed today was quite the drama. brilliantly performed by everyone involved, your chosen and yourself included. i have a lot of questions about how you pulled it all off, especially the heretic aura... though perhaps that part was genuine. the best lies need a foundation of truth, after all, and i know it is true that valdemar has an interest in your chosen and that his faith isn’t exactly strong. alas, i don’t believe any of the words he uttered today.”
the malefic viper wasn’t surprised at what yip of yore said. honestly, he’d never expected to fool the god with all his schemes. he walked a path that revolved around false legends and lies, and could read the flow of such things at a deep conceptual level. it was pretty obvious he would realize something was up at some point... not that it mattered. why would it?
everything that happened was to yip of yore’s benefit. even if he realized that the viper and jake were actively helping him get stronger, why would he say no to that? why would he point out that the chosen and patreon were actually super tight buddies and that there was no conflict between them? what good would that have possibly done him? it wasn’t even as if he could prove the two of them were lying to make himself look smart, and his objections to them having a falling out would just seem odd and out of place.
no, he pretty much only had the choice of leaning into their lies, even if he realized they were lies. from the beginning, the objective had never been to fool yip of yore, just the average uncritical observer.
“as you said, this is our own little world, cut off from the speculation of outsiders... so you tell me. why do you think i did as i did, assuming you are correct?” the viper asked with raised eyebrows.
“now that’s the big question,” yip spoke, wagging his finger in the air. “i’ve been trying to figure that one out for a while and come up with a few theories. three, to be exact. theory number one, you believe you can beat me no matter how much stronger i get and that killing me at my apex will reap you the most benefits. needless to say, i find myself forced to write this option off as if this was the case, i was doomed from the start, so there’s no need to even consider it.”
“fair,” the viper smirked.
“number two, you’re just a moron. you’re truly arrogant and overconfident to the point of being an idiot, believing yourself infallible. this one is quite similar to the first one, except with the built-in assumption you are far more idiotic than i have come to believe. still, not entirely one to write off, as you are indeed quite the arrogant god, and i do believe you fail to fully grasp my abilities,” yip of yore continued. “though, of course, this theory being proved true is partly my own fault for keeping certain things hidden.”
“got any more fun theories?” the viper asked in a mocking tone.
“there is the third one, but before that, i want to talk a bit more about a certain someone... your dear chosen and fellow schemer in this entire matter. i will not lie; i’ve found myself a bit jealous at times when hearing about your chosen. jealousy many other gods, including valdemar seem to share. you got incredibly lucky with that one, catching him in a tutorial like that. i can only suspect you saw the latent powers of his bloodline, including his abilities to affect primeval origins, and jumped to quickly bring him under your banner,” yip of yore spoke as he began to pace back and forth in mid-air.
“truly something that happens only once in a lifetime. don’t get me wrong, my own chosen isn’t bad at all either and quite a lucky find, but as i said, i find myself filled with envy at times. i’m also not blind to the odd relationship you seem to share with your chosen. one far more equal than one would expect any god would allow their faithful to have with him. yet you are clearly fine with it and even invite it. you set your chosen up to be independent right from the day you revealed him as your chosen, not trying to take even partial credit for his powers... which made me wonder... why would the selfish malefic viper do something like that?”
vilastromoz frowned as he wasn’t entirely certain where yip of yore was going with all this.
“however, then it struck me one day. see, i also wondered what made you leave your divine realm in the first place. what was the impetus for your return? many speculated it was because of your chosen, while others said he was merely one element... but i do believe it was due to him appearing before you,” yip said with a high level of confidence, not incorrect with his assessment so far.
“i think you were waiting all that time. waiting for someone like him to come along... someone you deemed worthy,” yip spoke as he sighed. “so this is my third theory: you willingly helped set all this up, not because you were fattening me up for the slaughter, but because you were setting the scene for something even grander: the birth of the first primordial usurper. a grand exit for a god who’s not felt alive for so many eras and an opportunity to once more reunite with those you’ve lost.”
the viper’s demeanor changed as he looked at yip with cold eyes.
“valhal already made the circle for him, i heard. everything is ready on their end. in fact, i’m sure everyone is ready all across the multiverse to see the conclusion of this tale,” yip of yore said, his words calm as he spoke. “so tell me, oh malefic one... which theory do you subscribe to?”
the viper’s aura flared as his cold eyes didn’t leave yip of yore for a single moment. “i guess you’ll have to find out.”