The Villain has Perished



A small smile cracked on Sol's cold visage. 

"Take revenge? Are you stupid?"

Secondth glared at him. His breathing turned ragged.

"All of you are liars! Even you, you are also betraying me!"

At his unbridled hate, Sol didn't react. 

He stood in front of Secondth and spoke with hollow eyes.

"Kill her? What will that achieve?" He gripped Secondth to stop him from retreating. "Nothing. It won't quench my thirst for revenge. A simple death isn't enough for what I have gone through."

Sol's eyes which always excluded arrogance and pride became empty. His expressionless face held a small smile that sent a shiver down Secondth's spine.

"I won't give her an easy way out by killing her. Instead, I'll break her internally without her realizing.

"I'll have her walk through a hell worse than mine."

Sol's forehead almost touched Secondth and he spoke in a chilly voice.

"If you can't have patience for us then give up on revenge."

…

..

.

Leaving Secondth, I retreated to the center of the empty area. 

"Why are you grinning?"

A monotonous tone left my lips. As this place wasn't being watched by anyone, I didn't bother acting anymore.

There was no need to emulate emotions, I didn't have.

"Nothing. It's refreshing to see your, no, our true self." spoke Thirdth.

Despite his mocking tone, there wasn't a ripple in my psyche.

I didn't know if my emotions were tampered again in this life, or if this was my true self. However, I rarely felt anything.

Joy, sadness, excitement, rage, disgust, fear, anxiety. 

I had nothing. No, that was an incorrect way to phrase it. I did have emotions. However, they were greatly suppressed.

Or maybe this was a normal intensity of emotions. But I couldn't judge it accurately as the Gods messed with my mind in my 2nd life?

"I have a question. Why do you act weirdly?" Fifth spoke.

"Do I have to answer?"

"Think of it as repaying a portion of the favor I did."

The more I watched Fifth the more I realized he had a hint of playfulness which Solomon didn't have.

"First of all, you know that I'm always acting?"

"I do."

"However, my outward actions exhibit my real personality. That isn't acting.

"What I'm doing is acting internally. I have created a fake persona. Most of the time my thoughts are lies."

My arrogant actions were never out of my control. In fact, it was what I did knowingly. 

Yet, in my thoughts I made it seem as if my body was acting out of my control.

"And why would you do that?"

"Two reasons. Champions and Gods."

Champions were the rankers of Tower of Babel. They were responsible for a lot of events involving the Tower.

As a matter of fact, the Champions were the cause of Coalescence. The multiverse was being merged by them.

"Why? Champions won't be able to interfere until Coalescence begins. Even then, they aren't capable of mind reading, barring special circumstances."

I simply shrugged. 

There was no guarantee those special circumstances wouldn't apply to me. 

As for the condition of Champions unable to interfere until Coalescence, it was hinted at in the novel to be true. 

However, that assumption was incorrect. I had proof of that. It was the profession 'Sword God' I was offered.

Professions are offered by Champions. 

If you choose a profession you become the 'Orator' of a Champion outside the Tower. 

Champions can't leave the Tower.  In exchange for skills, stats, equipment and other benefits the Orators – the profession holders – are needed to carry out Champions' orders.

Orators are the will carriers of Champions in the multiverse.

I had a chance to choose 'Sword God'. Meaning a Champion was watching me, or at least aware of me, before the Coalescence arrived.

"What about Gods?" asked Fifth again.

"I can't let them know I want my revenge. Thus, I made it seem like I gave up on it."

Until now, I had been essentially controlling my thoughts. In normal circumstances, it was impossible.

What made the impossible turn possible was my reader attribute.

<Reader> allows me to gain a larger amount of information than all my other five senses combined. 

The attribute analyzes everything I can 'see' and lets me 'read' it. If I had to explain it in simpler terms, <Reader> turns the things I 'see' in simplified data.

Now a question. How much amount of information can a human brain handle at once?

A hint. It's a lot less than you might think. 

The human brain can process 11 million bits of information every second. But our conscious minds can handle only 40 to 50 bits of information a second.

However, <Reader> essentially increases the amount of data I receive by hundreds of times. 

The decibel of footsteps, the intensity of clothes scraping against skin, the number of leaves on a tree, the blades of grass. 

Even if I don't want to, I collect all kinds of information indiscriminately. 

I won't remember everything I get to 'read'.

However, I still collect them thanks to my <Reader> attribute.

…It is enough to drive anyone insane.

My senses are always being bombarded with an overdose of information.

If I hadn't learned selective retention during my childhood I would've become crazy ages ago. It was my mother who taught me this. 

Thanks to her I could live normally. It was one of the reasons I respected and admired her deeply, even though I have barely any memories with her left.

'Selective Retention'

It was a method of focusing on only a small amount of information and blocking everything else. Naturally, I had to practice a lot during my childhood.

In Lionel mansion others thought I had given up on learning swordsmanship and chose to hide in my room. In truth, however, I was always training in selective retention.

'And I'm now using Selective Retention to always block my thoughts.'

If I'm thinking: I'm bored, let's beat someone to pass the time.

With selective retention, I can change my thoughts to: I'm bored.

I can't alter my thoughts with selective retention. 

'I'm bored' can't become 'I'm happy'

It only helps me not think about what I don't want to think.

By overloading my mind with other information, I can bury the 'unnecessary' thoughts like my revenge deep inside my mind.

This way even if someone were to use mind reading on me they would never find out about my intentions of revenge or thoughts I don't want them to know.

<Reader> was undoubtedly useful. 

I was always using selective retention to stop myself from thinking of anything related to <Reader>. Call me paranoid, but I wanted to hide its speciality as much as possible.

Thus, I went to the extent of not even thinking of selective retention or anything that could hint at it in normal circumstances.

Why did I pretend to be a goofy idiot in my mind?

To lower the guards of my enemies.

If the Gods were watching me, I didn't want them to know of my true intentions. It was best to lay low until I could retaliate.

'I would never give up on my revenge. Even if it takes a year, a decade or even a century.'

I was aware my plan was full of holes. But it was one step at a time toward a greater goal.

"Did you fall asleep standing?" 

Fifth's words shook me out of my thoughts.

Shaking my head, I added a question of my own.

"When can you come out again? Since you are here that means you live inside me now, don't you?"

Suddenly, an eerie pressure blew from Fifth and struck me. It came with great force as if a dam had burst and almost flung my body into the air.

"I helped you once. Did that make you think I was your manservant?" His voice rattled my brain. "Make no mistake, mortal. It was the first and last time. Think of it as a miracle I bestowed upon you for arising me."

My muscles spasmed and twitched uncontrollably. 

However, I was calm internally. My mind was like a still lake without any ripples. 

Analyzing Fifth's behavior until now, I had no doubts he held ulterior motives for helping me. Solomon was prideful but he was just as sly too.

If Fifth didn't want to answer, I could only let go of the issue.

I stopped resisting and Fifth retreated his pressure. 

'If I can't get Fifth's help, that means I need to deal with the issue in reality myself.'

I hadn't forgotten about the spear of light Fifth blocked. 

Fourth won't be of any help either. I doubted he could maintain his existence in reality like Fifth.

'As soon as I return, I'll need to face a being capable of launching attacks from hundreds of miles with the strength of obliterating a city.'

The Spear of Light. 

It had to be Dragon King of Light, Baxtiel.

'From fire to frying pan. Great.'

Abruptly as if a light bulb went over my head, I returned my gaze to Fifth.

"What about the Illusive Gem and Dragon Heart of Qantal?"

Illusive Gem was the gemstone embedded in the center of Qantal's neck. It was capable of blocking all kinds of mental attacks up to Saint rank.

Dragon Heart was the mana stone of a Dragon. Absorbing it gives one dragon bloodline, a few of their skills, stats and various abilities. It's quality depends greatly on the original dragon's bloodline.

In Jae-sung words, Dragon Heart and Illusive Gem were legendary grade loots.

Thirdth looked at me exasperatedly.

"Tsk, you are back to your idiotic self."

What?

Loot was important!

So what if Fifth can blast me with pressure? I won't give up on SSR grade loot no matter what!

"You will get them."

Nodding in satisfaction at Fifth's words, I finally faced Thirdth.

"Oh, that reminds me, didn't you bring me here for something important?"

"We did."

He tapped his index finger on the table.

"We are going to vote for the ownership of the main body. The ego with the highest votes will get the control."