This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist-Chapter 1225 Divine Game: Divine Instruction 39

Remaining players: 97.

Autumn Deer and JE had both been eliminated, yet Uncharted Star Sea granted them the treatment of victors.

Players began whispering among themselves. They discussed Autumn Deer’s execution strike and JE’s "Oasis," the long history between the Mountainbound and the wind whales. Everyone could see that Autumn Deer had helped JE at the end.

A system announcement echoed through the sky.

"Player Among Antlers Autumn Deer and Tingo JE have both declined the victory reward."

Rita frowned.

"If it’s a draw, shouldn’t the victory reward be canceled automatically?"

The only reason this hadn’t caused chaos was because Autumn Deer and JE had such a complicated relationship, enemies and friends at once. Otherwise both the Mountainbound and the wind whales might have been executed.

Maple Syrup said coolly, "This is Uncharted Star Sea. I’m sure it has some touching justification for doing it this way."

The sarcasm in her tone was unmistakable.

But no one argued.

Because most of them thought the same thing.

Amid the murmurs, fragments of starlight gathered again overhead, forming a new symbol.

A pair of bear ears.

And an acorn.

Autumn Deer and the oak owls.

Rita and Mistblade both turned to look at Maple Syrup.

The only oak owl with a grudge against Autumn Deer was her.

Players from Lania Kaia and Black Spring grew alert as the symbols transformed into two glowing names.

Dummy Mud Bears.

Forest Sea Maple Syrup.

A coffee colored Autumn Deer and a figure with blazing crimson wings appeared on the clock arena.

The first thing Mud Bears said when he saw Maple Syrup was,

"After turning so many Autumn Deer into cookies and reducing them to tools... did you ever feel guilty?"

Rita frowned thoughtfully.

She asked Mistblade beside her, "How many bear cookies did she make?"

"Conservatively? Over ten million."

"And she carried all of them into Lania Kaia without an Invasion Sequence established? And those Autumn Deer were still alive?"

Mistblade froze.

Then she suddenly turned to Rita.

Both of them saw the same spark in each other’s eyes.

Meanwhile, the conversation on the arena continued.

Maple Syrup held her spear loosely, its tip angled toward the ground. She tilted her head slightly.

Her tone was casual.

"This is the sixty eighth time you’ve asked that question."

"No."

"Honestly, I find it strange. My answer has been the same every time. Why do you keep asking the same thing?"

She began walking slowly clockwise along the arena.

Her boots clicked against the metal surface.

The relaxed posture made her seem domineering, as if she were looking down on the accusing bear from above.

Like a villain, Rita thought.

Everyone knew what she had done.

Yet she had no tragic justification. No helpless excuses. No remorse.

She spoke with absolute confidence, as if she were the righteous one.

"I know the answer," Mud Bears said.

"I just worry that you don’t."

He seemed tired of anger now. There was no fury in his voice, no shouting.

He spoke seriously.

"Taking the rage from your own failure and venting it on innocent lives is something only the weak do."

This was the conclusion he had reached after countless nights consumed by hatred.

"You didn’t do it to honor your daughter."

"You didn’t do it to protect those oak owl chicks."

"Those are just beautiful excuses. Logical ones. Reasonable ones."

"You only did it to vent the pain of Forest Sea’s destruction."

"So you still don’t understand."

Maple Syrup stopped walking.

Her gaze settled heavily on the Autumn Deer leader.

She curled her lips slightly.

"This is the rule of Uncharted Star Sea."

"As long as you have a beautiful reason. A logical reason. A reasonable reason."

"The strong can commit any cruelty."

She spread her arms wide, holding the spear horizontally as if embracing the players watching from the platforms.

Her voice rose.

"Who here isn’t the same?"

"If we don’t invade other worlds, they invade us. So suddenly every war has a noble excuse."

"As if you’ve suffered such injustice."

"And now that you know the purpose of Invasion Sequences and world skills..."

"Don’t you all sleep better at night?"

"Every time The Bell Tolls, don’t you feel your sins lighten a little?"

"Look."

"Even without me, those worlds and their people would still be destroyed."

"Everyone is guilty."

"Uncharted Star Sea is a terrible place."

Maple Syrup looked at Mud Bears and smiled.

"Judge me however you want. I won’t deny a single word."

"But no matter how many times you ask..."

"My answer will always be the same."

"I feel no guilt."

The Autumn Deer let out a furious roar.

No one could tell whether he was angry because he couldn’t refute her words, or because she refused to repent.

A massive bear paw slammed toward the oak owl.

Maple Syrup blocked it with her spear.

For years Mud Bears had failed to take revenge.

That alone showed the gap between them.

Even at equal combat rank, he was far weaker than Maple Syrup.

And now her instructor was Foolishness.

With mana restricted, she condensed two A class skill runes, dismantling and recombining them repeatedly to unleash multiple attacks at minimal cost.

Yet Mud Bears had reached this stage as a fifteenth rank player. He had his own strength.

Perhaps his obsession and pain were simply too clear.

He was one of the fifty two players who had already discovered their divine talent word.

Light appeared on his forehead.

Mud Bears asked,

"Do you know my divine talent word?"

Maple Syrup’s expression turned slightly strange.

But she did not mock him.

Instead she layered her defenses and formed a thunder chalice while replying with surprising patience.

"Oh? What is it?"

Several spectators covered their foreheads.

Some players had heard rumors that Autumn Deer were simple minded.

Now they finally understood.

He was fighting his mortal enemy and still talking this much. And he was still talking before unleashing his ultimate move.

"Worthless."

That was the divine talent word he had chosen for himself.

The murmurs across the arena died instantly when the Autumn Deer choked out those words.

Even Maple Syrup froze for a moment.

The clumsy looking Autumn Deer spoke through tears, explaining the ability.

"What can worthless do?"

"It can make enemies look down on me and stop attacking."

"And besides that..."

He roared and charged toward Maple Syrup, his furry body dissolving into light.

"It can also let me die with my enemy in my rage!"

After seeing Tingo JE and Among Antlers Autumn Deer trigger the execution reward through mutual destruction, he had sworn to himself that if he ever fought Maple Syrup, he would die together with her.

No one knew if Black Spring could survive the next Bell.

He had never asked whether the Autumn Deer would agree.

But...

What a rare chance.

What a sweet Moment of Vengeance.

Just this once.

Let him be selfish.

Twenty percent of the Autumn Deer in exchange for twenty percent of the oak owls.

Revenge for the little bears who had been turned into cookies and could not even cry.

The explosion shook the clock arena.

A massive shockwave lifted the fur and feathers of the players watching from the platforms.

But when the smoke and skill light faded...

A single wing slowly unfolded.

Maple Syrup was still alive.

She stood alone on the arena with only one wing remaining.

Countless leaves fell like rain around her.

She lowered her eyes and looked at the motionless clump of Autumn Deer tail lying on the ground.

A system prompt appeared.

"Player Forest Sea Maple Syrup, do you wish to execute twenty percent of the Autumn Deer race?"

She remained silent.

The spectators remained silent.

So Uncharted Star Sea asked again.

"Player Forest Sea Maple Syrup, do you wish to execute twenty percent of the Autumn Deer race and convert them into nourishment, gaining experience and attributes?"

This time Maple Syrup finally answered.

She did not sound like someone who had just survived a life and death battle.

Instead she sounded like someone who had just finished a pleasant drink.

Her voice carried its usual husky laziness.

"I refuse."

"I still prefer bear cookies."