I Reincarnated into a Game Filled with Mods – Chapter 114

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“We meet again, child.”

It was Minerva.

The first thing that caught my eye was her hair, white as the snow-covered peaks of a mountain bathed in sunlight.

Perhaps due to the surrounding light, it seemed to shimmer faintly silver.

Her silver hair flowed straight down, reaching her ankles.

Her bangs were parted down the middle of her forehead, framing her face where her eyes, a silvery-white like her hair, shone.

She wore what appeared to be a bathrobe.

It felt like it was made of luxurious fur, dyed a deep black.

To be honest, even I wasn’t entirely sure what kind of clothing it was.

It just resembled a bathrobe.

The garment’s neckline was pulled open, revealing most of her breasts, which were surprisingly ample for her small frame.

The robe was so loosely fastened that it seemed her nipples were just a breath away from being exposed.

Beneath the hem of the robe, her alluring thighs peeked out, a stark contrast to the black fabric.

They were soft and plump, the kind that would yield easily to a touch, leaving an imprint of one’s fingers.

A glimpse of black lingerie peeked out from between her legs.

Given that there was no sign of anything covering her chest, it seemed this was all she wore underneath.

As if to adjust her attire, her right hand moved to the edge of the robe and gathered the fabric, revealing a black string tied around her waist.

It wasn’t hard to imagine what that string was.

Only after taking in her appearance and attire did I realize that the strange magic that prevented me from perceiving her features, despite her being right in front of me, had finally been lifted.

“…Lady Minerva?”

As I muttered in surprise at this unexpected visit, I heard the mages behind Minerva whispering amongst themselves.

—Did you hear that? Lady Minerva, he said.

—Oh my god, he’s already calling Lady Scientia by her first name?

—Lady Scientia didn’t say anything, so she must have allowed it, right?

—But honestly, wouldn’t we benefit if he called her by her first name? I would want that too.

—On the first meeting? Well, if it’s a man like him…

They were trying to lower their voices, but I could hear everything clearly.

It seemed they either weren’t serious about hiding their conversation or didn’t realize I could hear them.

At least I learned something useful.

Minerva’s last name was Scientia.

In the game, she was only referred to as Arcana, the Eternal Mage, so I had assumed she didn’t have a last name.

“Quiet down.”

Tap.

Minerva lightly tapped the floor with her staff.

The chattering mages immediately fell silent and stood at attention.

After silencing her entourage, Minerva smiled sweetly.

“How have you been?”

“I’ve been well. Thank you for your concern, Lady Minerva.”

“Cecilia summoned you, didn’t she?”

“Yes. What brings you here?”

Minerva stepped aside in response to my question, revealing the rest of her group.

There were exactly ten of them.

“They’re here to help. Aren’t you, girls?”

“Yes, Lady Scientia!”

The mages behind Minerva rushed into the room.

Aurora and the Knight Commanders looked at them with bewildered expressions.

There were two mages per Knight Commander.

Eight of them crowded around the Knight Commanders, and the remaining two clung to Aurora’s side.

Aurora brushed off the hands that were fiddling with her uniform with a displeased look.

“What’s going on, Lady Minerva? These are mages from the Mage Tower.”

“You’re not planning to meet Cecilia looking like that, are you, Aurora? You need more preparation. These children will help you get ready.”

Aurora seemed to have more to say, but she closed her mouth, perhaps thinking it wasn’t necessary to question the Eternal Mage’s offer to help with her appearance.

“It won’t take long. Just a few minutes, so don’t worry. They said they’ve already prepared everything, and I can’t deny their efforts, can I?”

“Don’t worry! We’re the best at this!”

“You know how fiercely we fought to be chosen as the ten best when Lady Scientia asked for help with this? We’re confident in our skills!”

The mages chattered incessantly while drawing magic circles with their staffs.

It seemed like being chatty was a passive skill for people involved with clothing and styling, just like the nuns who helped us choose dresses in the Holy Kingdom.

Thankfully, I was spared from that hell, so I kept my mouth shut.

Minerva tapped me on the shoulder.

“Come with me for a moment, child.”

I followed Minerva out of the drawing-room without a word.

Click.

The door closed automatically.

I followed Minerva to a secluded corner of the Imperial Palace hallway.

Her silver staff, infused with mana, glowed faintly.

A translucent barrier enveloped us.

I flinched reflexively at the familiar sight.

It was a pattern I had seen countless times during the Arcana boss fight.

“I’ve temporarily isolated this space. No one can see or hear us.”

“Why use such magic now…?”

“Just know that what I’m about to tell you is that important.”

If she was going this far, there had to be a reason.

I tensed up.

“I’ve analyzed your body based on the data you provided. And I found something very interesting. There are two spells cast on your body, child. One has almost completely faded, but the other is still active.”

I already knew that there was a spell cast on my body.

My character, “The Forsaken,” was cursed by a witch, causing all his stats to be reduced to 1.

Since curses were just another form of Dark Magic, it was still magic and “witch” was just another term for Dark Mage.

I already knew that—

‘Wait a minute.’

What did Minerva just say?

I felt like I had missed something crucial.

“Hold on, Lady Minerva. Did you say there are two spells on my body?”

“Yes, there are. One that has almost completely faded, and one that is still active. What’s wrong?”

“…Do you know why there are two?”

Minerva’s expression changed slightly.

“You thought there was only one spell on your body this whole time, child? Which one were you aware of?”

“The one that affects my physical abilities.”

I answered, my voice filled with shock.

Two spells on my body?

I had never imagined such a thing.

“I was able to figure out three things. First, there are two spells on your body. Second, both spells were most likely cast by the same person. And third…”

Minerva paused for a moment, then continued with a light laugh.

“It’s magic that can only benefit you, not harm you.”

“…You say it can’t harm me?”

“To be precise, I’ve speculated that it wouldn’t harm you, although it might be harmful to others.”

I was even more confused now.

Harmful to others, but not to me?

I couldn’t understand what kind of magic could possibly have such an effect, and she wasn’t even sure.

It was just speculation, which made the truth even more elusive.

As far as I knew, there was no such magic among the active skills in BD4.

“…”

I racked my brain, my face blank with confusion.

The witch’s curse that had reduced all my stats to 1 was definitely a negative effect, but the other spell, cast by the same person, was beneficial to me?

How was that possible?

Even if it was true, I needed to know why.

There was a sub-quest where you could meet the witch who cursed the player, but she wasn’t initially fond of the protagonist.

“Did she really…?”

I tilted my head in confusion.

The witch would only remember after the player brought up a few more options, saying “Ah! That’s right, there was that time,” as if it was nothing significant.

The witch had just picked someone at random and used them as a test subject for her Dark Magic, and that someone happened to be the protagonist.

It was no wonder she didn’t remember.

It was possible to build a friendly relationship with her through certain choices, but it required the player to be extremely submissive, so most players just fought her as a boss.

The bottom line was that there was absolutely no reason for that witch to do something positive for me, at least not at this point in time.

“…Could you please elaborate?”

In the end, I resorted to asking.

I couldn’t figure it out on my own.

“I can tell you what I know, but what’s on your body isn’t just magic, it’s Dark Magic. Even I can’t completely analyze it, keep that in mind.”

“It’s enough if you can just tell me what kind of magic it is.”

Right.

I didn’t necessarily need to get the answer from Minerva.

“I can just ask her myself.”

“Delta!”

I snapped out of my thoughts at the sound of my name.

Lize, her face even brighter than before, was looking at me with concern.

“Why have you been spacing out like that? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Just thinking about something.”

“You don’t look fine at all.”

“That’s because you’re so beautiful, Lize.”

“…Smooth talker.”

Lize gave me a playful glare and turned her head back to the front.

Even though she said that, I could see her lips curving into a smile.

The door leading to the Imperial Palace’s central hall stood before us.

It was at least four or five times my height, and according to the Knight Commanders, the entire thing was made of gold.

As if that wasn’t enough, it was also protected by powerful magic that could withstand even a direct hit from Minerva’s highest-level Destruction magic.

‘…’

But I couldn’t focus on that.

Minerva’s words were stuck in my mind.

‘So that’s why I…’

The reason I hadn’t been afraid of the hideous monsters since I was transported into this world, the reason I could fight them without hesitation…

It was all because of the Dark Magic cast on me.

I finally understood what Minerva meant when she said it was magic that could only benefit me, not harm me.

If it hadn’t been for that Dark Magic, I would have been paralyzed by fear the moment I met the Human Butcher.

I would have been captured and killed without being able to do anything.

‘I need to change my priorities.’

Finding a weapon to replace the Bloodstained Sword? Obtaining the rune to ignore the Battle Fatigue debuff? Progressing the main story?

None of that mattered anymore.

Finding the witch who had cursed me was my top priority.

Minerva had said she would help me because she was personally interested.

I already knew her location.

If we could teleport, it would take less than a few minutes to get there.

I had so many questions for her.

—Rumble…

“Alright, get ready. No mistakes if you don’t want to lose your heads, understood?”

As the massive golden doors slowly began to open, Aurora spoke in a tense voice, completely different from her usual carefree tone.

The Knight Commanders straightened their shoulders, checked their outfits once again, and stood at attention, facing forward.

I also pushed my thoughts aside and focused on the moment.

First, we had to get through this audience with Cecilia.

I couldn’t afford to be distracted by other thoughts in front of the Empress.

The doors were so massive that it took a long time for them to open fully.

It was only after more than a minute had passed that we finally saw Cecilia.

The massive marble pillars supporting the central hall, the chandeliers illuminating them, the red carpet running through the center of the hall…

And at the end of the red carpet, opposite us, stood a towering staircase with a majestic throne placed upon it.

Cecilia was sitting on that throne.

With her holy sword leaning against the left side of the throne, one leg crossed over the other.

The composition naturally placed us in a position where we were looking up at Cecilia.

This place was designed for that purpose.

To instill awe towards the Empress.

—Enter.

As soon as Cecilia granted permission, Aurora was the first to slowly walk into the hall.

Her pace was neither too fast nor too slow.

We were the only people in the vast central hall, large enough to accommodate thousands.

As I stepped inside, the doors began to close again.

Aurora stopped at an appropriate distance from the stairs, knelt on her left knee, bent her right knee at a right angle, and placed her palms on the floor on either side of her.

The Knight Commanders followed suit, the only difference being that they bent their right arms and held them horizontally in front of their chests.

I hurriedly imitated them.

After a moment of silence, Aurora bowed deeply.

“We greet the Sun of the Empire.”

“We greet the Sun of the Empire!”

Aurora’s quiet voice was followed by the Knight Commanders’ resounding shouts.

We bowed our heads, waiting for Cecilia’s next command.

“Last one. Raise your head.”

“…”

I raised my head, thinking,

‘This isn’t right.’

Aurora and the other Knight Commanders kept their heads bowed.

They hadn’t been granted permission to raise them yet.

The heels of Cecilia’s boots tapped the red carpet in front of the throne.

It was a sign for me to approach her.

I rose from my position and walked towards Cecilia as ordered.

I climbed the stairs one step at a time.

Arriving in front of Cecilia, I knelt on one knee and bowed my head, just like I had done below.

“I told you to raise your head.”

Startled, I quickly raised my head.

Cecilia was slowly scrutinizing me from head to toe.

I tried to hide my unease and waited for her next words.

After examining me with her chillingly bright golden eyes, Cecilia spoke nonchalantly.

“Did you enjoy your time with the Popes?”

It was a question that sent my heart plummeting to my stomach.

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