Half a day later, in the Netherworld.
"Pandora, I want to ask you a question."
Ryuga suddenly spoke.
"What question? Ask mommy anything you want to know—mommy will tell you everything!"
Hearing Ryuga speak, Pandora, who had been listlessly bullying Guinevere while waiting for Ryuga's research time, immediately ran over excitedly.
"What's the difference between the gods in the divine realm and the Heretic Gods who descend to the world?"
Ryuga asked.
"Difference?"
Pandora tilted her head, thought for a moment, and answered.
"Aside from slight differences in divine cores and authorities, there's no major difference, right?"
"Heretic Gods are originally avatars used by divine realm gods when going out. If I had to say, avatars can be countless, but divine realm gods are unique."
Divine realm gods could descend countless times, generating countless Heretic Gods, but their main bodies were singular.
"Then why does this difference exist?"
Ryuga asked again.
"Both being divine cores, why can divine realm gods' divine cores manifest countless Heretic God divine cores, but the reverse is impossible?"
"I don't know about that."
Pandora shook her head—this wasn't within her knowledge scope.
"Is little Ryuga researching this?"
"Yes."
Ryuga nodded slightly.
"If I'm not mistaken, the divine cores possessed by divine realm gods are original divine cores different from ordinary divine cores."
"Just as ordinary divine cores can be used as templates to mass-produce simulated divine cores, original divine cores as templates can likewise mass-produce ordinary divine cores."
Through this research, Ryuga had basically confirmed this point.
There were superior and inferior distinctions among divine cores.
Gods in the divine realm possessed original divine cores.
When descending to the world, these divine cores would degrade in the present world into avatars—namely, the ordinary divine cores possessed by Heretic Gods.
If curse techniques were used to simulate these ordinary divine cores, the result would be simulated divine cores.
"And from a structural perspective, what determines divine core forms are precisely stellar particles."
The differences between original divine cores, divine cores, and simulated divine cores were categorized by external manifestations.
The differences in their internal structures lay in the stellar particles they contained.
Through this research, Ryuga roughly determined the properties of stellar particles.
This was a substance that could replicate and proliferate, with degradation phenomena accompanying the replication process.
If original divine cores contained stellar particle originals, then mass-produced ordinary divine cores had degraded true texts at their core. If further degraded into simulated divine cores, they became false texts.
When Heretic Gods returned to mythology, divine cores made from false texts would either dissipate or, accompanying Pandora's Dark Ritual, flow into Campiones' bodies.
The gods' core—the stellar particle originals that initially descended—would return to the Immortal Divine Realm with the gods' will.
This was the complete process of Heretic Gods' descent and return.
"Mm, sounds very reasonable. Little Ryuga's meaning is that you're very interested in original divine cores?"
Though Pandora didn't quite understand stellar particle structures, she keenly captured Ryuga's thoughts.
"Exactly."
Ryuga nodded.
The core of divine power lay in divine cores, and the source of divine cores lay in mythology.
If his speculation was correct, original divine cores were the key to packaging mythological power for gods, and also key to stellar particles exerting their effects.
If he could master original divine cores, he could not only master stellar particle originals by studying internal structures, but also mass-replicate divine core power.
At that time, he would directly surpass the gods.
Of course, this was limited to the gods of the Campione world.
"So, is there a way to enter the divine realm?"
After determining his goal, Ryuga casually asked.
He'd been interested in the divine realm for a long time and wanted to take a look.
If he remembered correctly, he still had an agreement with Verethragna—an agreement to meet again in the divine realm.
"Divine realm? My dear child, do you not want to live?!"
Hearing Ryuga's words, Pandora's eyes widened.
"You're a Campione—what do you want to do going to the gods' territory? You'll be ganged up on by those shameless god-kings! Though divine realm gods also have conflicts, even the current you couldn't possibly fight an entire pantheon, right?"
She thought Ryuga's decision was too dangerous and instinctively worried.
"Fight an entire pantheon alone?"
Hearing this, Ryuga pondered for two seconds.
"Though somewhat troublesome, it's not impossible."
This wasn't an exaggeration.
Just as ordinary divine cores' power scale wasn't superior to simulated divine cores, from the original work's perspective, original divine cores' output also wasn't superior to ordinary divine cores—divine realm gods weren't significantly stronger than Heretic Gods.
If opponents were only at this level, Ryuga didn't lack confidence in single-handedly overthrowing a pantheon.
"Ah?"
Hearing Ryuga say this, Pandora was completely dumbfounded.
She knew Ryuga wouldn't boast, which made her even more shocked.
Though she knew Ryuga was strong, it had only been less than three days since he became a Campione.
Growing to a level rivaling pantheons in three days? Wasn't this a bit too exaggerated?
"Worthy of being our lord—truly makes us retainers ashamed."
Lancelot also couldn't help but show a bitter smile.
Originally she'd thought about establishing military achievements under the new lord, but now it seemed unlikely.
Having too strong a master wasn't necessarily good—it left them retainers unable to help at all.
"No, impossible! This isn't real!"
Guinevere covered her ears, not daring to listen. If Ryuga truly had this kind of strength, wouldn't that mean even the Last King wasn't his match?
In that case, she'd never be able to break free!
After the shock, seeing Ryuga's firm will, Pandora sighed.
"Fine, fine! I can't dissuade you anyway, so I won't waste words. If you really have this plan, you must be careful. If you can't win, just run—it's not shameful!"
After worrying a few sentences, Pandora scratched her cheek somewhat embarrassedly.
"However, if you want to know how to return to the divine realm, you're asking the wrong person... I've been expelled from the divine realm. Even if I wanted to go back, there's no way."
As the mother of Campiones, she naturally wasn't tolerated by the gods.
"That's fine. I was just asking if there were other methods."
Hearing this news, Ryuga wasn't disappointed.
"Even without that, I have ways to get there."
Ryuga's method was simple—since Heretic Gods must ultimately return to mythology, wouldn't following the gods' cores allow him to break through this world and reach the divine realm?
This inspiration came from the Holy Grail War ritual. Since magi could reach the world's exterior through heroic spirits' return paths, there was no reason Ryuga couldn't achieve this.
The Campione world didn't have Counter Force—paths to the world's exterior were much more lenient than in the Type-Moon world.
However, according to Ryuga's conception, he needed some Heretic Gods as materials.
Fortunately, he didn't lack such materials.
In the underground prison beneath Copper Black Cross headquarters that Erica had been ordered to supervise.
"So that guy's special authority has its key judgment in divine speed? As long as you have divine speed authority, you can avoid the fate of first-round defeat?"
In the dark prison, an old man dressed as a white-haired gentleman sat on a stone bed, his emerald eyes glowing like a wolf's in the darkness.
Though already defeated and reduced to a prisoner, with all authorities and curse power sealed, Marquis Voban still hadn't given up, constantly thinking of methods to counter-kill Ryuga.
He seemed misled by Ryuga not immediately instant-killing Lancelot, not knowing Ryuga just wanted to test the Salvation Knife. He thought Ryuga was unable to instant-kill Lancelot.
If so, this new king wasn't invincible. As long as he figured out the authority rules, there was possibility of counter-attack.
Carefully recalling everything on the previous battlefield, he keenly discovered Lancelot's key authority—divine speed reaching near light-speed levels.
As expected of a Campione's powerful intuition.
Though the reasoning process was wrong and conditions were wrong, he'd actually hit upon the correct direction by accident.
Not possessing divine speed authority was the ultimate reason for his and Dony's defeat.
If he could solve this problem...
"Sword brat, does that guy's authority have any other special rules?"
After hesitating several seconds, Marquis Voban still took the initiative to speak with the Sword King Dony, whom he'd always looked down upon.
Compared to the prideful him, Dony had a much better temper and wouldn't deliberately ignore even Marquis Voban, this old enemy.
However—
"Give up. You can't beat him!"
This lazy attitude and deep contempt for Marquis Voban could still make the Northern European Wolf King's blood pressure rise and rage.
"Despairing after just one defeat? As a Campione, is this all you amount to?"
Marquis Voban was very dissatisfied with Dony's defeatist attitude.
"The new king's authority only looks invincible. Don't be scared by those surface appearances. As long as we can figure out the corresponding rules and avoid stepping on those strange defeat conditions, we still have a chance to win."
"As fellow Campiones, he can't possibly be in a completely different dimension from us—he's just relying on his authority's strangeness."
"So, as long as we can crack his strange authority, we can—"
"We can—know what despair is!"
Dony interrupted.
"You!"
Marquis Voban's brows shot up. If they weren't in separate cells, he'd have gone over to beat Dony up already.
"You what? Can you even reach me? Even if you came over, do you think the current you could beat me?"
Both being prisoners, Dony's attitude was unusually relaxed. When you're completely defeated, you become cheerful. Anyway, Marquis Voban couldn't reach him.
He'd even actively applied to Erica earlier, wanting to share a cell with Marquis Voban.
Normally he couldn't beat Marquis Voban, but now he held absolute advantage.
After losing authority and curse power enhancement, he was still a young man and powerful swordsman, while Marquis Voban was just a slightly muscular old man.
Age fears youth. If current Marquis Voban dared fight him, Dony could casually beat the old man to broken bones.
Unfortunately, Erica refused his request, making him lose a good revenge opportunity.
However, though physical attacks couldn't reach him, verbal attacks still could.
"Rather than thinking about those useless counter-attack methods here, old man, you should think—do you really believe your defeat was due to lacking divine speed authority?"
Dony asked mockingly.
"Wasn't it?"
Marquis Voban didn't understand Dony's meaning.
"Heh~ Mortal wisdom!"
Dony didn't answer his question, his mouth curving into a seemingly profound smile, as if mocking his ignorance.
"#!"
Being scorned for intelligence by the notorious "Sword Idiot," Marquis Voban immediately had veins bulging on his forehead.
Before he could counter-attack, suddenly the sound of metal door locks and chain friction rang out.
Soon, Copper Black Cross knight Erica walked in.
"Marquis Voban, my lord invites you to participate in a magical ritual."
"Magical ritual?"
Marquis Voban was slightly stunned, not understanding what the other party meant.
Upon inquiry, Erica kept her mouth shut, saying she couldn't reveal anything.
Dony across from him, hearing this, showed sympathetic eyes.
"Old man, you'll understand soon... both the reason for your defeat and the truth of the magical ritual."
"..."
Riddlers get out of prison!
Marquis Voban suppressed his dissatisfaction and didn't choose an undignified refusal, following Erica out of the cell.
Half an hour later, he finally understood Dony's meaning.
"I see."
Lying on the ground, looking at the lightning overhead and Heretic Gods falling like rain, losing their lives and returning to mythology.
Marquis Voban finally understood why Dony was so defeatist, why he said his thinking was wrong.
Indeed, Sword Idiot was right.
The reason for his defeat wasn't lacking divine speed authority.
The reason for his defeat was his own lamentable weakness.
"This dimensional-level gap... how could it be crossed?"
Even with his tenacious character, he was now completely bewildered.
To be continued…