Time rewound.
Enbillick decisively disappeared in front of Teest, slightly reversing time as he rushed with the crowd seeking refuge into the church. Should he worry about the teleportation raising suspicions? That was now the least of his concerns.
His true body was exposed.
At this point, he must completely eliminate Nol and Teest. Once he gained full system permissions, he would immediately destroy all Players and then erase Bissus City from the map.
Later, he would just package the incident as a disaster brought by the Demon King.
Now his greatest advantage was the power of his avatar—
Enbillick once again checked the panels of Teest and Nol. His control over the system wasn't complete, so he was only able to access the most basic information, but it sufficed.
[Doom Knight[?] – Lv.200]
[Demon King[?] – Lv.200]
Enbillick had verified with the system. The power level of these two professions was roughly equivalent to the third advancement of the rarest class. The "[?]" was concerning. He tentatively applied the standards of a top-level boss to his enemies' stats.
Currently, Nol and Teest couldn't modify the system. Even if they were strong, they remained within the system's analytical capabilities.
Enbillick looks at his own panel.
[Enbillick Alva [Avatar] – System Temporary Administrator]
[HP: 35,634,799/35,634,800 | MP: 1,215,654/1,218,500]
[Strength: 341,167 | Agility: 192,673 | Intelligence: 86,750 | Physical Defense: 976,632 | Magical Defense: 850,070]
[Status: Using Avatar]
[Star Stealer Sol – System Temporary Administrator]
[HP: 635,843,910/999,999,999 | MP: 727,839,800/999,999,999]
[Strength: 9,999,999 | Agility: 9,999,999 | Intelligence: 9,999,999 | Physical Defense: 9,999,999 | Magical Defense: 9,999,999]
[Status: Using Avatar; Unknown Error]
This was the greatest power he could obtain under the system's rules—his true body wasn't this powerful, relying entirely on manipulating the system's authority. What a wonderful power.
Pity. If he could fully control the system, he wouldn't need such hassle and could simply grant himself the highest authority of [Indestructible].
Enbillick was pushed towards the church's main hall by the crowd, cautiously observing his surroundings.
Judging by the panel, his avatar's power was roughly comparable to Nol and Teest, but his true form was more than ten times stronger. The problem was, his true form was too large, attracting unnecessary attention, and it was difficult to carry out precise attacks—
He flattened Joy Garden with his true form, yet a large group survived. He "eliminated" Xu Yue with his true form yet left a significant aftermath.
Values didn't represent everything. He shouldn't underestimate his enemies based on numbers alone.
Thinking this, Enbillick quickly stabilized his breathing.
Yes, he shouldn't fall at the same hurdle for the third time. This time, he must crush his enemies by hand, seeing them disappear with his own eyes.
Right now, others posed no threat. Those two had finally separated. It was the perfect opportunity to kill Teest.
He purposely acted as if fleeing, shaking off Drake with his tricky spatial skills. Now, Teest had no idea of his avatar's power level. If Teest approached first, he could take him by surprise and cleanly kill him.
As for the God of Creation with system permissions… Enbillick preferred not to face him personally, but he still had the "Players" up his sleeve. That group of Players could be used as weapons or held as hostages. Once he killed the Mad Monk, dealing with Nol would be much easier.
Bring it on.
Underneath his cloak, Enbillick prepared his spellcasting gestures.
The crowd surged, yet there was no sign of the White Knight. Not Teest, not even Eugene followed inside. Closest to him was an Investigation Knight trying to bring order.
The knight was pushed around by the crowd, ending up next to Enbillick. Enbillick frowned. Just as he was about to dodge, his vision suddenly darkened.
The crowded church vanished, replaced by the empty ruins of the church. The ruins float slowly and weightlessly, surrounded only by deep darkness.
[Mercy Countdown], a unique skill of a "Saint".
"Utterly foolish," Enbillick remarked.
Behind him, the "Investigation Knight" removed his helmet, revealing sweat-drenched red hair. Painter casually discarded the helmet, the metal clanged against the ground, producing a series of crisp sounds.
"Reducing witnesses when facing me is the dumbest act." Enbillick turned around. "Not to mention this lockdown is pointless—my old friend, you couldn't possibly think you could last thirty minutes against me?"
"I know, I know. If my actions were truly threatening, you'd have rewound time already instead of talking to me," Painter gestured with a pen-shaped magic wand. "I just wanted to talk to you alone, sir."
Enbillick raised an eyebrow.
What could his former pope possibly have to say?
Painter took a deep breath, and his expression became earnest. "You know, you really are a terrible god—I've wanted to say this to your face for a long time. It feels great!"
Enbillick: "..."
Enbillick raised his hand, and black-red light arrows rained down towards Painter. Painter stood still, suddenly unfolding a circle of blue fire in front of him. At the same moment, a similar fire circle opened behind Enbillick, and the arrows shot straight towards Enbillick's back.
"That's why I don't believe in gods," a cold voice interjected. "I'll add, you're also a lousy trading partner."
Drake emerged from the shadows, his long sword glowing with blue light. A ring of blue fire burned behind his head, reflecting his blue eyes that looked like the sea beneath a glacier.
The aura of death and dragons spread.
Enbillick flashed his figure, dodging the black-red light arrows. He gritted his teeth. "I see. At least three opponents… I didn't expect the Mad Monk to give up even his dignity."
With Drake's ability, it was a bit troublesome, but the situation was still under his control.
"Is this [Mercy Countdown]?"
A female voice appeared. She seemed to have just been pulled into the space, so her movements were a bit stiff. "Wow, cooler than I imagined."
Anakin fiddled with her magic wand. She was dressed in top-level healing gear. By her side, cowering, was Solo.
Wait. Enbillick suddenly realized something.
A magic swordsman with spatial abilities, a holy mage "Saint", a high-level healing profession "Flawless", a rare support "Night Ranger". This was a standard battle team. Could it be—
"Teest said he's busy and got other stuff to do." Anakin waved at Enbillick. "By the way, don't bother with rewinding—I've already greeted all the Players present before coming in. They know the important NPC Enbillick entered [Mercy Countdown]."
She was surprisingly relaxed now.
What god's avatar? If it had a health bar, it could be beaten, and she confirmed with Nol. Enbillick couldn't yet revoke Players' permissions—even if the Mercy Countdown exploded, she wouldn't die. She would just lose some levels!
Drake silently stepped to the front of the four, firmly grasping his long sword. "Let's begin."
Before the team of four, Enbillick laughed furiously.
Too arrogant—just too arrogant. First that damned woman, now these mere mortals. Nol and Teest must be crazy, actually leaving a god's avatar to be handled by humans.
Around him, black-red magic continually overflowed.
So what if he can't get out? There was no need to flee from mortals. He would destroy these four blasphemous defilers.
...
Knight Eugene had an uneasy intuition that something was amiss.
He quickly received an update for the main quest, preparing to pursue the impostor Drake at once. However, in just a moment, that Drake vanished without a trace.
The Players in the square were equally bewildered. Not only could they not find Drake, but they also couldn't locate Avra and the two children. Eugene had specifically confirmed that no one recognized the Investigation Knight who had taken Avra away—the knight's face was completely obscured by a helmet with not even a single strand of hair showing.
Recalling someone who had been lurking near Bissus and hadn't yet appeared, Eugene had an uncomfortable suspicion. Upon hearing that Golden Sword had been captured in [Mercy Countdown], his suspicion turned into certainty.
Painter had made his move.
Damn it, with the dimensional isolation of [Mercy Countdown], he was completely unable to intervene. Eugene gritted his teeth in frustration.
Forget it. The priority now was to guide the Players who had lost their objective. Now that the protective barrier was broken, most of the Players were concentrated within the city, and monsters from the outskirts were soon going to invade…
"Tower!"
On the city walls, a guard player shouted using a sound amplification spell. "The Lost Tower has appeared! Paradise monsters are fighting the monsters outside the city!"
The Players immediately exploded into confusion—
"Wait, aren't they on the same side?"
"Hard to say. Maybe the monsters just aren't sentient."
"Should we attack while it's chaotic?"
"Let it go, Azu. It's crowded with bosses outside. We won't be able to retrieve our gear if it bursts."
"The quest requires us to kill the target NPC. We need to get it done by sunrise. It's better to stick with the quest…"
"Quiet!"
Seeing the Players falling into chaos, Hot Ash hurriedly stood on the statue's pedestal. "No one is allowed to leave the city. Prioritize the time-limited main quest!"
Sure enough, Eugene wasn't surprised by a fairly wise judgment.
"Fifth Brigade, assist in searching for people. Target Avra Alva!" Eugene made a decisive decision.
That guy Drake had considerable combat power and was very likely teamed up with Painter. Even if he was acting alone, ordinary knights were no match for him. Avra was different—Eugene knew Painter's personality; that guy would never bring a mother with low combat capability into danger.
Avra had taken the children with her. They must be hidden somewhere by Painter.
"Boss, I have an objection!" After the noise subsided, a loud voice suddenly rang out.
Eugene quickly turned his head. He recognized the loudmouthed Player, who seemed to be called Abaddon.
"We can't just blindly follow the quest. It's too passive." Abaddon specially used a sound amplification spell, his voice booming. "Didn't we just follow the rules before, only focusing on city defense, and then we were infiltrated by the Demon King's scouts?"
"We are veteran players. We need to analyze the quest properly—there's more than one way to solve a quest."
Around the square, Players buzzed with discussions, many voices in agreement.
"Continue," Hot Ash responded gruffly.
"The core of the quest is to kill the scouts, protect Bissus, and prevent it from being destroyed by the Demon King's army."
Abaddon climbed onto the stone platform, standing beside Hot Ash, and continued theatrically, "But now the Demon King's army is here, fighting the common monsters outside. Even if we kill the scouts during this time, we'll still have to face that army afterward."
Hot Ash: "Interesting."
The Lost Tower had already stopped outside the city, and the Demon King's scouts probably had a grasp on the situation inside. Even if they killed the scouts, the Demon King's army would just attack a bit later.
The quests in "Tahe" were relatively intelligent, with causal relationships between them, and indeed, the solutions weren't strictly limited.
Seizing the moment, Abaddon stretched out his arm, pointing to the sky. "We could take a step ahead and stealthily attack their general."
"What did you say—"
Hot Ash looked up, nearly biting his tongue.
Above in the sky, a lone figure hovered. It was a rather handsome young man, with crown-like curled horns on his head. His black hair was gently fluttering in the wind. The man spread his wings, quietly suspended in the night.
His body was entwined with numerous twisted flesh limbs, which connected to the four moons like umbilical cords.
It was as if he was waiting for something.
The author has something to say:
Answering possible questions:
Why didn't Star Stealer Sol go all out against the young couple from the beginning?
His thought process is roughly:
Wow, two cockroaches appeared at home → buy cockroach killer overnight and place it around the house.
The two cockroaches have surprising combat power, waking him up at midnight → start calling professionals to poison.
The cockroaches suddenly became the size of a palm → no choice, just have to burn the house down.
He wouldn't just burn the house down upon discovering two cockroaches… Hard to get a house. He still has a mortgage to settle from the system (???
Sorry, young couple (.........
You guys are a cute dragon and cat! Star Stealer Sol is the real cockroach.