Chapter 66: A System Older Than Magic

She spoke no more. The heaviness contained in those words pressed on her chest, making it hard to breathe.

[ Inner Voice ] [ This is also why I have always wanted to break this order. ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ I originally thought that as long as I became the King of the entire continent, bringing all living beings and races under my rule, I could reform from the top down and make the world brand new... ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ But later I discovered it was useless. As long as the Gods don't die, this order is eternal. Whether you are a Tyrant or a Benevolent King, you cannot change the structure of this world. ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ Because only the cruelty of reality can breed fanatical faith. The Gods will not allow anyone to break this pattern. And there are only two paths before you... ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ Either become a dog of the Gods, or they take your life. ]

Lynn smiled faintly and comforted her: "Master, don't think too much. Our urgent task is to investigate the cause of the curse here and find a way to solve it. This is our job."

Nanako was silent for a while. Then she shook her head vigorously and whispered: "En! Disciple, you are right. No matter what, solving the curse problem first is what we should do now!"

Nanako wiped the moisture from the corner of her eyes forcefully. But perhaps even she didn't know. A certain seed had been planted in her heart. Perhaps out of kindness... Perhaps out of pity... But...

Just then, a guard ran in hurriedly from outside. Looking at Nanako (disguised as Saint Anna), he said urgently: "Lady Saint Anna, all the pigs have run out! You..."

Nanako turned her head and stared at him coldly.

The guard was instantly terrified, cold sweat drenching his body. He knelt on the ground in panic.

Nanako looked down at him and said: "No one will be locked here again. Your mission is complete. I have reached an agreement with the Winterspring Mages. From now on, the Winterspring Mages will take full charge of the curse matter. You may withdraw!"

The guard immediately said, "Yes! Your Highness!" He paused, then asked in confusion, "Then Your Highness, you..."

Nanako said coldly, "I still have to hunt down those fleeing Origin Mages. I won't stay in town for now. If anything happens, you can find Mage Lynn beside me. Is that clear?"

The guard immediately hammered his chest with one hand. "Yes! Your Highness, we will obey your orders!" "Dismissed!"

[ Inner Voice ] [ Nice! Nice! Seems like Loli Master is getting serious! ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ Saint Anna's group has been turned into pigs. Now we have the insignia Saint Anna left behind. As long as the real Saint Anna doesn't appear, we can temporarily control this town. ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ Take this time to figure out how to solve the curse. That's the way to go. ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ As for that Saint Anna... Heh. If she dies, she dies. No one will care. ]

Watching the guards leave. The mage girl paused, looking at Nanako with worry. "Deacon Nanako, where should we start now?"

Nanako thought for a moment. "Tell me the specific situation here. When did these residents start being affected by the curse? And what happened when they were cursed?"

The mage girl thought, then told Nanako everything she had experienced during this period.

Her name was Elena. She was an Intermediate Mage responsible for intelligence work in this area for Winterspring. Just a few days ago. They received intelligence that anomalies appeared near Lakeside Town.

South of Lakeside Town. Bordering a Dormant Volcano. A few days ago, that dormant volcano suddenly showed signs of activity, spewing a large amount of volcanic ash. And near the volcano, many monsters living on fire elements appeared.

Elena said seriously, "After signs of activity appeared in the southern volcano, we went deep into it immediately to investigate the anomaly, but..."

Her expression became a bit dispirited. "I think you already know the specific situation. We went deep into the dormant volcano and found some ancient architectural ruins exposed by volcanic activity..."

Among them were several mages who specialized in ancient knowledge. Based on the symbols on the buildings. They discovered that these ruins all pointed to an ancient existence.

The King of Origin Source.

But they didn't go deeper. Instead, they planned to report the situation to Winterspring first. But they didn't expect it. They just camped nearby for one night. When they woke up the next day. Several of their companions had turned into Pigs.

Elena said dejectedly, "That's how it happened. Because of the anomaly, we were forced to return to Lakeside Town. But in the past two days, the curse began to spread."

"The night before yesterday and last night, many residents woke up and turned into the pigs we saw just now!"

Nanako pondered. "So, this curse only appears at night?"

Elena nodded, then suddenly thought of something. She stared wide-eyed and shook her head quickly. "No, I think the curse has intensified! Didn't those guys from the Church suddenly turn into pigs right in front of us just now?"

[ Inner Voice ] [ No no no. That was me. Hahaha. I just imitated some Origin Arts. Doesn't count! Doesn't count! ]

Decisively ignoring her disciple's carefree inner voice. Nanako asked doubtfully, "Since the curse appears regularly, didn't you have any vigilance at night?"

Elena suddenly shuddered and whispered: "We did notice the anomaly. But for some reason, as soon as it passes 12:00 AM, we suddenly become very sleepy and fall asleep inexplicably..."

"If we were ordinary people, maybe we wouldn't feel anything. But as Mages, our mental strength is far stronger than ordinary people. Yet as soon as it hits twelve o'clock, it's like we are possessed. We can't stay awake no matter what..."

Hearing this, Nanako couldn't help but ponder. Unable to stay awake? Is it interference from some abnormal factor...

It seems we can investigate the town properly tonight. Maybe we can find some clues.

Elena turned around, looking at her companions turned into pigs, worried. "Deacon Nanako, actually what I'm most worried about now is their condition!"

"We have tried many ways to lift the curse, but none worked. If they stay in this state forever, then... then..."

The mages-turned-pigs all shed tears.

Nanako frowned. "Are Dispel Magic spells useless?"

Elena wiped the moisture from her eyes. "No, Lady Nanako. Neither magic nor potions have any effect. We tried everything."

[ Inner Voice ] [ Of course it won't have any effect. Because this is Origin Law. It's a system older than Magic. ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ You are using the sword of the current dynasty to slay the official of the previous dynasty. This is obviously nonsense. ]

[ Inner Voice ] [ To lift the curse of the Origin Source, you can only start from the Origin Source aspect. The systems must match first. Otherwise, even if a Mage God comes, it's useless. ]

Abandoned

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