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Chapter 115 The Dice of Fate (Misfortune)

The scorching air currents from the crater swirled, making the previously blurred patterns on the plaque shine even brighter, reflecting Roland's slightly surprised expression.

The achievement of becoming a demigod, a feat that only exists in legends, was actually the king's ambition, and the root cause of all the disasters.

"Your newly enthroned king is not interested in politics," Emma slowly recounted the story. "He believes that the extraordinary is the foundation, and great power is the true authority."

"Long, long ago, he obtained a forbidden ritual to sacrifice souls to achieve demigod status. This war was nothing more than a carefully planned scheme."

She pointed to the plaque in her hand, her tone indifferent: "This thing steals a fragment of a soldier's soul after he dies, offering it as a sacrifice to the sleeping god of death in exchange for His grace."

"Although each soldier is just a tiny thread of soul, as long as there are enough of them, they are enough to weave a ladder to the path of demigods."

As the words fell, they dissipated into the air along with the rising steam.

Roland stared at the plaque, speechless for a long time.

In that instant, countless clues flashed through his mind.

Expanding the army was not for the sake of future plans; persisting in war was not for the sake of the kingdom's succession; killing off his son was not because of any rift between father and son.

The madman sitting on the throne never intended to win from the start; he just needed enough corpses and enough souls.

The soldiers fought bloody battles on the battlefield, but what they paved was not the peace of the rear territories, but the ladder that allowed this king to become a demigod.

With the blood of a nation, one man is elevated to the pinnacle.

With the lives of countless, the path to demigodhood is forged.

Roland gazed into the distance, feeling a surge of inexplicable emotions welling up inside him.

Meanwhile, the empire's iron hooves had already reached the capital, and the fleeing soldiers were fighting for their lives, while His Majesty the King hid in the shadows, counting the number of souls he had accumulated.

He suddenly thought of the story title of Casper.

The weight of the crown.

Who is truly worthy of this crown?

And who is bearing its weight?

Roland didn't know the answer, and there would never be an answer to this question. He simply asked, "Will this succeed?"

"Nobody knows," Emma replied calmly. "Nobody has ever performed such a taboo ritual, nor would anyone dare to."

"All I can tell you is that even if he succeeds, he will face the siege of all the orthodox churches, and may even trigger the descent of the incarnation of God."

Roland fell silent and asked no more questions.

Emma lost the desire to continue the story and simply took out a fine pen to trace the patterns on the nameplate bit by bit.

The intricate patterns gradually faded as the pen moved across the paper, the bloodstains began to recede, and the ripples subsided.

A few minutes later, Emma stopped writing and casually tossed the plaque to Roland: "It's solved. From now on, it's just a piece of scrap metal. Even if the king really becomes a demigod, he won't be able to draw your power from this thing."

Roland caught the nameplate, put it into his dimensional bag as a souvenir, and looked up again.

"Besides what you've mentioned, what other gifts has the organization given me?"

Emma didn't answer immediately, but turned around and looked again at the lurking translucent crystals. A wave of heat surged up from below, blowing her curly brown hair.

The silence lasted for a long time.

Just when Roland thought she wouldn't answer, Emma took out a small box from her bosom.

Upon opening, inside was a jet-black 26-sided die, devoid of numbers, with only fine, spiderweb-like silver patterns clinging to each face.

Roland stared at it for two seconds, then suddenly felt a tremor in his heart, as if something was peering into the dice.

"These are dice tainted by the goddess of misfortune," Emma said calmly. "I got them from a fortune teller who supposedly gambled his whole life and ultimately lost his soul to this item."

She glanced at Roland, a hint of mockery in her voice: "Now, it's your turn to gamble."

He released his grip, and the die sank beneath the volcano.

The dice fell rapidly, passing through the suspended crystal and plummeting into the surging magma hundreds of feet below. The silver patterns shimmered slightly, as if they were opening their eyes.

next second.

boom-!!!

The volcano trembled violently, and dark red light suddenly rose from the surrounding cracks, then gradually receded downwards.

The crystals suspended in the crater simultaneously stopped rotating, then emitted a blinding white light, transforming into beams of light that chased after the falling trajectory.

The magma began to boil.

Streams of fire erupted, striking the rock face and scattering countless sparks. Drawn by an invisible force, they swirled and twisted, all heading toward the same target.

The die hovered in the center of the crater.

At this moment, its silver patterns lit up completely, transforming into countless tiny threads that spread outwards, connecting within the rock wall to form a huge net.

Waves of heat washed over Roland, making his skin feel tight, but he didn't back down. Instead, he took a step forward and stared intently at the die.

He saw the magma being extracted, and thousands upon thousands of golden-red torrents emerging from within, continuously rushing towards the die.

With a snap, the suspended crystal shattered, emitting a sharp screech that sounded like a cheer or a wail, turning into countless points of light that surged into the inside of the dice.

The cracks on the rock face began to spread, and the dark red light flickered wildly, but gradually faded, as the energy accumulated by the volcano over thousands of years was being devoured.

The scorching sea of ​​lava began to sink, revealing dark, solidified rocks. The tremors of the mountain intensified, and amidst the violent roar, debris slid down toward the extinct volcano.

Time seemed to stand still.

After an unknown amount of time, everything returned to deathly silence.

The magnificent lava is now completely gone, the dark red in the cracks has all faded, leaving only black smoke drifting into the distance, and a dragon egg quietly curled up in the deepest part.

The dice remained suspended in mid-air.

It remained the same, except that each rotation emitted a faint silver light, as if it were digesting the energy it had just absorbed.

Snapped-

Emma snapped her fingers lightly, and the dice and dragon egg soared into the air and landed in front of Roland.

"The gift has arrived."

She turned around and walked down the mountain step by step, her voice drifting through the silent volcano: "We'll probably never see each other again, but I still want to say it—"

"goodbye."

Roland did not respond; he was completely absorbed in the description of the item that the die had rolled.

This is the most valuable thing about this trial.

【The Dice of Fate (Misfortune)】

Type: Rare Item/Consumable Rarity: ? ? ? (Black)

Description: When the goddess of misfortune descended to earth, she engaged in a gamble with the goddess of fortune. These are the dice she used.

Description: Roll this die and you may begin an unknown "gamble of fate," the specific effects of which will depend on what happens (2/3 rolls remaining).

Note: 1. Congratulations! After making the entire volcano "wither" again, you have earned the right to enter the betting game.

2. You should feel honored, for sitting opposite you is not the goddess of misfortune, but her dice.

Extraction Requirements: Epic Story x3

Extractable Ability: "Touch of Misfortune"