Sometimes, certain people live truly miserable lives.
Because while they expend all their energy scheming against others, the other party… well, don't even take them seriously.
For Renjiro, recently, there was only one thing that truly concerned him:
To eliminate all potential threats as quickly as possible.
For that reason…
Aether and Lumine had already gone to the Deep Layer to grind experience.
Renjiro himself abandoned the idea of further accumulating Base Ability stats, quickly advancing to Lv.3.
On top of that, he had already recruited Bell and Lili into his own Frigg familia ahead of schedule.
That night…
"Let's chat again sometime, Solomon."
"Mm, no problem."
"And Rabbit-kun too."
"Ra… Rabbit-kun?"
After several rounds of drinks, the Loki familia's small gathering had wrapped up.
Before everyone parted ways, Tiona had stayed to chat with Renjiro throughout the banquet.
Once Bell regained full awareness, the three of them, sharing mutual interests, began discussing the Heroic Tales of the Magic King.
Ais sat not far away, sipping water in tiny sips, looking adorably attentive.
Taking advantage of this moment, Renjiro thoroughly understood the full details of the story.
As expected…
"The versions circulating in the market—no telling how many times they've been modified—differ greatly from the 'original text' that Bell knows."
Yes, the book Renjiro had borrowed from the city's Goblin Library was filled with exaggerated descriptions.
Things like "The Magic King ultimately ascended to the heavens to become a new god" or "the world was once destroyed by the enraged Magic King"…
The most absurd claim even included "the Magic King formed a timeless love with a certain goddess", an abrupt tonal shift.
Really, those over-the-top fan-modified versions almost screamed: "King Solomon, Omnipotent" in giant gilded letters on the cover.
Anyone could see that the truthfulness of such records was highly dubious.
Meanwhile, Bell's account was precise:
"The Magic King, Solomon, was the earliest and strongest summoner in ancient times."
"It is said his eyes could see both past and future… thus he correctly foretold the start of the Heroic Era and the Age of Gods."
"It is said he wore ten golden rings, collectively called the 'Rings of a Thousand Spells,' granting him mastery over all magic and insight into the nature of all things."
"It is said he could summon seventy-two spiritual deities. Two thousand years ago, in the westernmost lands of the continent, he established the Maria Wall to completely isolate threats from the dungeons of the city of Orario…"
"Hold up—what?!"
Over half an hour earlier, Renjiro had been quietly listening to Bell recount the original story.
It was fine at first… but when the Maria Wall came up, he could no longer contain himself.
"Where did this horse-harder plotline even come from?"
He muttered internally, then asked Bell openly: "I don't remember this part being in the Magic King Chronicles circulated on the continent."
"And if Solomon had the power to construct an impossibly long wall across the continent's far west, why not just build a Orario like Orario now?"
Bell explained:
"Uh~ My grandfather said the Magic King, Solomon, built the Maria Wall by connecting seventy-two 'Demon God Pillars,' forming a semi-permanent massive barrier."
"It is said he named it 'Maria' in memory of an old friend from a distant land."
"As for why he didn't build a Orario…"
"…That's because, back then, the Lower World didn't have Ouranos."
Before he could finish, Loki, who had been sipping his drink and trying to sneakily slip over to Ais, interjected:
"Whether Orario or Babel, relying solely on these constructions cannot truly suppress the dungeons."
"The truth is: over the past thousand years, if Ouranos hadn't offered his 'Divine Prayers' at the Guild Headquarters altar, a full dungeon uprising could easily break through a city's defenses."
"So three thousand years ago, the Magic King had no choice but to build a high-walled barrier across the westernmost continent."
"This created a vast buffer zone, significantly reducing defensive pressure."
"With that foundation, since he was a powerful summoner, he could send strong adventurers periodically to clear monster nests and prevent beast surges."
After hearing this…
"Right."
Bell nodded and continued: "The Magic King Solomon, using seventy-two Demon God Pillars, built the Maria Wall. In ancient times, it protected humans, elves, dwarves, and other intelligent races for decades."
"He was revered, respected, and thanked by countless people, honored as their king."
"The kingdom he personally established and governed was the predecessor of the contemporary magical nation—Altena."
"I think the name was…"
"Stralaris."
=======
Traveling Orario's streets at night was never easy.
Unlike modern cities, there were no surveillance networks, so once darkness fell, mischief and danger ran rampant.
When Renjiro first arrived and hadn't yet received the God's Falna, he considered that if he failed to join a familia that day, he might have to sleep on the streets and be stripped of all possessions.
As for Syr… she could walk alone at night partly because of her allure power, which most Lower World beings could hardly resist.
And partly because the Lv.6 Vana Freya stayed hidden nearby for protection.
To be honest, just to avoid Syr being bothered, Allen—the Freya familia's vice-captain—had in the past chased away, crippled, or even killed countless fools lacking discretion.
And tonight…
"Uh heh heh~"
"I'm telling you, Syr… if you hang on my arm like that, I can't walk properly."
On a small path toward Daedalus Street, Renjiro felt uneasy in every way.
First, the odd sensation from Syr's arm made him strangely distracted.
Second, because of Syr's overtly intimate gesture… Bell and Lili were fine. The former marveled at the close relationship between the familia captain and the goddess; the latter was long accustomed to human-god interactions.
The more intense moments, she had glimpsed once or twice before.
Just holding an arm—pfft, child's play.
In short, what truly unnerved Renjiro was a faint, chilling gaze coming from the surroundings.
Let's just say…
Cats can throw shade too.
…..
Completed version available on [P]atreon.[c]om/Veltoria [remove brackets]