r18novel Page 38
Page 38
...
No way? This brothel is really a spy hideout?
Yang Hao was stunned: So, there really are people who are sexually attracted to centaurs?!
Even he, he just wanted to verify if centaurs really looked like that! And then again, it's true I wanted to flatter him, but I really just wanted to give him a light slap with the whip from a distance, nothing more...
...Thinking about it this way, weren't those two gentlemen who just passed by...?
The Ursus people are indeed powerful. There are even quite a few people interested in centaurs. I admit, I've lost. When it comes to sexual fetishes, I concede that you gentlemen are far more formidable.
For some reason, Yang Hao suddenly felt a surge of resentment, a sense of "I've lost." But then he thought that he might soon be destroying the morale of those gentlemen, and that made him feel much better.
"Monica," he called out excitedly to Monica behind him, gesturing for her to come over.
"exist..."
Monica looked at Yang Hao with disdain, who was excited about the Kazimierz knight-style brothel in front of her. She silently took two steps back, then four steps forward. Standing beside Yang Hao, listening intently, she couldn't understand what was so great about the Kazimierz people…were they just better physically and more lively because they were Kuranta?
"We can do that too, can't we?!" Just as Monica was muttering to herself about Yang Hao's incurable sexual fetish in her imagination, she heard Yang Hao say these words:
"Have the Serpent Scales prepare for a search tonight. This brothel is the stronghold of the [Elegant Ursus Swearing] Kazimir spy organization!"
"I understand."
Monica was stunned for a while, then finally nodded and gestured to the snake scales disguised as pedestrians around her to prepare for a surprise attack that night.
Did Lord Koschei... mention this to him? No, even Lord Koschei only identified the building as a possible spy hideout...
"Sir, have you noticed anything?" Monica hesitated, ultimately setting aside her usual disdain. She knew that work and daily life needed to be separated, so—
"Sir, do you need the army's help?"
“Yes. But don’t alert them. I need them to block all possible escape routes, including the sewers, and if possible, have them wear civilian clothes and carry lethal weapons.”
“I understand. I will inform Lord Kosiché and the Minister of War now—but sir, if this brothel is indeed a spy base, then tonight, under no circumstances can you…”
“I have to go in. Monica, my abilities are only effective when I'm physically present, so please don't stop me, okay?”
Therefore, Monica would become the best maid standing behind the adults. But even so, Monica seemed unable to stop Yang Hao's ability to waltz on the edge of danger.
She had no choice but to decide to send more snake scales with him inside to protect him. That was all she could do.
......
After deciding to search the Kazimierz spy hideout that night, Yang Hao returned to his bedroom in the Duke's mansion and immediately began preparing everything that might be useful in the upcoming search. Naturally, Monica had to serve him as well.
"—My lord, this sword..."
“Ah, just leave Joan of Arc’s sword there. It can come in handy once the Gauls become our allies.” Yang Hao waved his hand, indicating that Monica didn’t need to worry about the Joan of Arc’s sword lying in the corner for now. “Now, Monica—can you help me think of what clothes I should wear, how I should dress so that those Casimir spies won’t discover my true identity?”
"Get dressed? Dress up?"
Monica blinked, almost blurting out, "You can just wear Victoria's clothes now."
Fortunately, she stopped herself. She frowned, thought for a while, and then gave Yang Hao the following suggestions:
1. The attire of lower-ranking nobles. There's not much to say about this; lower-ranking nobles are still nobles after all. If those Kazimirians were truly spies, they certainly wouldn't let go of any possible information from the lower-ranking Ursus nobles.
“You need a set of clothing for a lower-ranking noble, but even clothing for a lower-ranking noble needs to be tailored... It’s not too late to send a court tailor now.”
"I understand, you can make the arrangements—anything else?" Yang Hao sat on the bed and nodded thoughtfully.
2. Prepare a pair of fake bear ears for Lord Yang Hao.
“My lord, you need something to disguise yourself as an Ursus—I mean racially. You might need a pair of noble Ursus ears as a disguise, and I can find them for you anytime.”
“Oh, that’s great—anything else?” Yang Hao thought for a while and agreed with Monica’s suggestion—after all, besides Margarita and Koschche, only Monica knew that he currently had no racial characteristics.
3. These are weapons for self-defense, and eavesdropping devices that store audio.
"Although Serpent Scales will accompany you into that building, it's a narrow space. My lord, you need concealed weapons for self-defense, listening devices to store evidence, and some security measures. I can't offer you advice on this, so..."
“Monica, you’ve done a great job; this is beyond your job description. But do you have any suggestions?”
"...Perhaps we should wait for Lady Kosiché to arrive; she should know more about these things...right?"
As Monica said this, she was utterly ashamed: as a maid, she had failed to handle most of her master's affairs. She felt it was a dereliction of duty.
However, Yang Hao didn't blame her. While comforting Monica and telling her not to worry about it, he also started to think about the various events that had popped up in front of him...
At Monica's suggestion, a list of events related to the Kazimierz spy outpost popped up in front of Yang Hao. He needed to take a closer look at these events, because there seemed to be a lot of strange things written on them...
[Event: Disguised Identity!]
Your maid has offered you many helpful suggestions, but they are of little use to the spies in Kazimierz—they have special Originium Arts at their disposal, the kind that can make you reveal all your secrets without your knowledge and even have wonderful aftereffects.
You won't remember what happened after that Originium Arts was unleashed on you. You might need to find a way to block Originium Arts that could potentially be used against you.
'Isn't this just hypnosis from a pornographic novel?'
...This is the first one. Those filthy Kazimierz people actually have hypnotic abilities? How lewd—Yang Hao meant, what an enviable ability! Although it can't compare to his [Puppet Stage], it was still an ability he had dreamed of when he was young.
After all, with hypnosis, the teacher can hypnotize him to stop the class from dragging on for another half hour and let him go home quickly.
“Monica, the Kazimierz seem to possess Originium Arts such as hypnosis—do you have any good ideas on how to deal with it?”
"We'll have to wait for Lady Kosiché to return. She knows these things best."
[Event: Self-defense weapons—perhaps this will only excite those knights even more. The literal meaning.]
Your maid suggests that you prepare concealed weapons before going in, just in case. However, considering that those stationed there are likely all Kazimierz's conquerors—or at least former conquerors—the weapons you prepare are probably not as useful as the few snake scales outside, and might even arouse other interests in the lively Kuranta people.
What you need isn't weapons, but preparations to prevent the Kurantas from taking you hostage afterward. Prepare your Serpentscale with all sorts of lethal weapons—the stronghold has no more than 50 people; prepare two hundred Serpentscale. Those Kazimir spies will surrender honorably once things are exposed.
'Where am I supposed to find 200 Serpent Scales? And is that weapon meant for me or for those Kuranta people? Aren't they centaurs?'
...This is the second incident. Are there no more than 50 Kurantas? Well, that's good news. After all, even the strongest can't fight against overwhelming numbers; with such a numerical advantage, the Kurantas will have nowhere to escape from the Duchy of Kosiché.
But the problem is, where is Yang Hao going to find so many snake scales? How many snake scales does the Duchy of Koschche have?
Yang Hao looked helplessly at the troop interface of the [Puppet Stage]. He then saw that the total number of Serpent Scales within the duchy was exactly 200—but the problem was, 150 of them had their own affairs to attend to... Let alone getting them to come and catch spies, whether they could even handle their own jobs was a question...
Therefore, Yang Hao has no way to find more snake scales. But as compensation, could he seek help from the army?
"--I'm back."
Just as Yang Hao was pondering this, he heard Koschke's voice. Looking up, he saw Koschke dressed in casual clothes. She had just returned from outside, and it seemed she had just come back from the courtyard.
“Koschei, welcome back.” Yang Hao greeted him first, and after Monica hurriedly explained the situation to Koschei, he continued, “Koschei, I need the army’s help—”
“Of course, you also have the highest level of military authority. You can order the military to assist you in most things at any time, my husband,” Kosiché replied with a smile. She took the towel Monica offered to wipe her sweat, then walked over to Yang Hao and sat down, wiping the sweat from her face. “Besides that, what else do you need?”
"Hmm... I still need to resist—it should be hypnosis, or suggestion, or some kind of mind-based Originium Arts. I suspect those spies in Kazimierz have similar abilities."
"Are you sure?" She looked intrigued. "When my serpent scales went to search, nothing interesting happened... Now that I think about it, it might be because they were influenced by these Originium Arts. And I haven't had much energy to take care of those ponies lately, neglecting their existence is my dereliction of duty."
"I'm sure, and whether or not it was negligence can be discussed later—so what's your suggestion?"
“I do have a way, but doing so will leave a mark on your soul.” Kosiché nodded, gesturing for Monica to leave temporarily. “The best way to prevent the effects of mind-based Originium Arts is to cover your mind with a stronger Originium Arts until then—but wouldn’t that make you uncomfortable, my husband?”
How should I put it? Kosch's suggestion was to fight poison with poison—no, it should be to defend against poison with poison?
The specific principle is that mind-based Originium Arts will not affect those already affected by similar, but more advanced, Originium Arts. Koschei claims to possess the highest-level mind-based Originium Arts, and that she can remove them for Yang Hao afterward... but what she's more concerned about is whether Yang Hao will truly feel even a temporary discomfort from this.
"Well, it's necessary, isn't it?" Yang Hao sighed helplessly and put his arm around his wife's shoulder. "I trust you, go ahead—ah, I'm a little afraid of pain, so could you warn me if it hurts?"
...
Her husband's trust brought a smile to the black snake's face that defied description.
“No, it won’t hurt.” She gently stroked her husband’s chin. “Then, please close your eyes and wait a little while.”
Chapter Ninety-Two
...
The implantation of Kosichear's Originium Arts was a novel experience for Yang Hao.
It's like—a monk who has been vegetarian for 30 years eating meat for the first time.
It was Yang Hao's first time eating meat, and the rich, meaty smell made him want to vomit—in fact, he almost threw up. If his breakfast from that morning hadn't already been digested, he would have definitely vomited everything up.
But after overcoming the initial discomfort and the meat, a strange, spiritual joy made Yang Hao feel somewhat lost. He felt as if his consciousness was merging with his wife's, and he could see fragments of things she had experienced in her thousand-year life.
This was a pleasure even more profound than mere sexual intercourse... a pleasure that penetrated to the very soul. In his dazed state, Yang Hao suddenly realized something. The scene before him shifted, eventually transforming into a stage. A stage filled with marionettes.
[Event: Night of the Puppet Stage - Puppet]
You've realized your true calling. Your origins are that of a puppeteer; everything is a puppet, or a puppet in the making, and you can become something higher—not just controlling puppets, but creating them yourself. No matter the materials.
...However, the path to becoming a puppeteer is destined to be arduous. You need to first gather all the materials needed to create a puppet, and only after creating your first puppet can you ascend higher and higher in your ascension, eventually reaching the realm of the Wanderer.
(String), ("Wood"), (Blood of God), (Will to Survive), (Initial Molten Fire), and (Food) given to the newborn puppet.
(Strings) can be obtained from powerful beasts. If a (string) is obtained from the deep sea or from the body of a deity, it will grant the puppet additional talents.
The "wood" can be obtained from all living beings. The more and better the quality of the sacrificial beings, the tougher the "wood" will be, eventually forming an indestructible yet incredibly flexible body, just like flesh and blood.
(Divine Blood) can only be obtained from the body of a deity. Different types of divine blood will bring different effects to the body.
(The will to survive)...
(Initial Molten Core) can be obtained from the House of Elegy or from the vicinity of a certain Yan Kingdom deity.
(Food) Newborn golems need to eat. You can feed them anything you can find: life, territory, concepts...
Result after completion:
By obtaining a divine puppet with at least "divinity," you will complete the first stage of ascension.
{Night of the Puppet Stage} will appear on the ground, with a maximum duration of 1 minute in the first phase—during which the entire Terra will become your puppet for that one minute. After use, there is a one-year cooldown period.
'So what exactly are you talking about...?'
Yang Hao stared at the equally blurry event interface through a hazy vision. Just as he was racking his brains trying to figure out what was going on, the world in front of him vanished.
He returned to the real world, leaving only the lingering pleasure in his mind.
"...My husband, it's all over. Are you alright?"
Looking back in a daze, Yang Hao saw Kosichella's concerned gaze fixed on him.
“No, I’m fine… Koschei, just now, I saw—” He first answered Koschei’s concerns, and then he recalled that he had just seen what seemed to be a fragment of Koschei’s long life.
“Perhaps it’s because we are very compatible,” she smiled. “I can also see some of your memories…something I’ve never seen before when I was choosing my successors. Generally, I can only see their memories after inheriting their bodies.”
"So this is the Originium Arts you use to choose your next body? Hmm? That's strange... But then again, what memories are you seeing?"
"When you were bathing with that Miss Margarita? Heh, you had to hold back at times like that, you must have had a hard time, my husband."
Why did Kosiche have to see my most embarrassing memories? Looking at Kosiche who was laughing so happily, Yang Hao covered his face, and for a moment, all he could do was laugh awkwardly.
...After a while, Yang Hao recalled the incident that had just occurred and realized that he might have found the most suitable method for achieving immortality.
But how do we gather all those things together?
He hadn't made any progress yet. The beast's string, the wood obtained from sacrificing lives, the initial molten metal... those three things seemed relatively easy to gather. So what about the rest?
[Will to Survive]? It sounds easy to understand, but how do you acquire it?
[Food]? The event description just mentioned that anything is fine... but should it be prepared in advance, or should it be collected only after the puppet is completed?
And only after completing a puppet will his ascension enter the first stage? The power of {Night of the Puppet Stage} after ascension is incredibly strong. If Yang Hao understands correctly, in less than a minute, he can completely control everyone and every country on this entire land? Even the beasts and gods? Although he has to wait ten months after using it, but...
Hmm...that's really powerful. This ability...
"Honey?"
"Eh?"
As Yang Hao was deep in thought, he felt himself being embraced. Looking up, he saw that Koschche was now holding him tightly.
Her tail too. Sometime during the day, that smooth tail had climbed up his neck... the fur there tickled him.
"What important thing are you thinking about?" Koschche patted Yang Hao on the back and chuckled. "You look troubled."
"...Yes. After all, I'm really troubled by that matter..."
"Hehe. Although I don't know what you're thinking right now, I must remind you, my husband."
Kosichrie gently pulled Yang Hao's face towards her with her tail.
“You are no longer alone. I will come to you to discuss the future affairs of our territory. Similarly, you can come to me to discuss the troubles that have been plaguing you. You no longer need to keep those things to yourself. I am right here, understand?”
"...I'm sorry to have worried you."
Yeah... I don't think I need to rack my brains all by myself to figure out how to find those materials for ascension.