Chapter 301 - 66: An Overly Realistic Game

"We’ve detected the presence of a special Power, confirmed to be the Power of Magic."

"Are there any signs of Divine Art?"

"None. Although this instance indicates that gods exist, there are no Divine Art fluctuations. Our preliminary assessment is that the so-called thirty-one gods are actually just thirty-one natural concepts. There are no actual deities here."

"Can you reverse-track the type of Magic?"

"Players skilled in cryptography are deciphering their actions and have already obtained some intel. A moment ago, they frequently used a code signal representing the number three. After that signal, Magic fluctuations appeared, so we deduce ’three’ refers to the third Magic. Its effect is lie detection. So, Duan Someone, be careful—don’t lie."

"Understood," Duan Fei replied in the livestream. "Do you know which one is the Mage?"

"The woman."

"Got it."

Leaving the bar, Duan Fei lightly patted the female spy’s shoulder, using his Talent to copy her Mage effect and instantly maxing it out.

At this point, his Talent had already recorded the effects of three Professions: Alchemist, Actor, and Mage. Among these three, the Mage Profession effect was by far the most bizarre.

The entire world instantly lost its color before him. The people and things around him transformed into flat concepts, unfolding before his eyes like a book.

The world was like a book, and every person was just a passage of text within it. The three spies around him also became part of the book, allowing Duan Fei to clearly read their characteristics and their histories.

Although he couldn’t see the future, the pasts of these people were laid bare before his eyes. With just a little probing, he could see their entire life stories.

This, then, was the Power of a pinnacle Mage.

The female spy in front of him had yet to figure out why Duan Fei had suddenly touched her when she felt a deep and ancient aura wash over her.

The feeling was like diving into the deep sea. With every meter she descended, the surrounding light vanished bit by bit, until only a vast, boundless darkness and a terrifying depth remained.

Gritting her teeth, the female spy looked at Duan Fei in terror. Sweat poured from her body, soaking through her Leather Armor and even drenching her cape, leaving a clear, damp mark on her back.

Kate and Doug immediately noticed something was wrong with the female spy. They weren’t Mages, however, so they could only sense that Duan Fei’s eyes had suddenly become as deep as the galaxy, and his every breath seemed to carry a boundless mystery.

Drawing her dagger, Kate shouted, "What did you do to my subordinate!"

"Captain, stand down!" Maos said, wiping the cold sweat from her brow. She looked exhausted but resolute. "We misjudged him. He’s no ordinary being—he’s a Great Mage."

"Him? A Demon? A Great Mage?" Doug asked in disbelief. "How is that possible?"

"Believe it or not, that’s what my intuition is telling me. Captain, there’s no need to test him further. If he wanted to, he could easily rewrite our minds and make us his slaves. The fact that we can still think clearly proves he truly means us no harm."

Captain Kate looked at Duan Fei with a solemn expression and finally nodded. "I understand."

The significance of a Great Mage was extraordinary. The Pope of the Church was a Great Mage, which was why the Church had always been able to contend with the Duchy.

Now, a Great Mage of Demon origin had appeared here. His background was no longer important.

After all, he now possessed the power to flip the table. The spies’ duty thus shifted from finding his weaknesses to figuring out how to meet his demands.

Having changed her mindset, the captain also bowed. "Please forgive my earlier rudeness," she said. "Do you have any instructions for me?"

"That’s quite an attitude change. I have to say, I preferred it when you were being wild and unruly."

"If you prefer, I can go back to how I was."

"No, don’t. That would be weird."

Duan Fei looked at the three of them, knowing their change in attitude stemmed from his own display of power.

’Even though I don’t know a single spell and am just bluffing, I can use this to get some things done.’

So, taking this opportunity, Duan Fei could finally ask the question he’d been wanting to ask: "Why is the Dungeon entrance sealed?"

"It was the will of the local nobles. We are consulting the court nobles for their opinion, but we have yet to receive a response. According to protocol for non-responsiveness, we are temporarily deferring to the local nobles’ command."

"What’s the difference between local nobles and court nobles?"

"Court nobles are half a rank higher than local nobles. Moreover, court nobles serve the King and are his confidants. Most local nobles have very little military authority and must pay taxes to the King."

Afterward, Kate explained the differences between the two types of nobles in detail, which allowed Duan Fei to understand the distinction.

The two types of nobility were originally created by the King to divide the noble class. Various systems were set up to ensure the two factions had strong, inherent conflicts of interest, making it nearly impossible for them to unite.

As long as they weren’t united, the King could play them against each other to maintain balance, thereby ensuring the supremacy of the crown.

This sealing of the Dungeon entrance was the local nobles’ doing.

After all, the commotion caused by the Slimes was too great and had started to affect the local nobles’ interests.

Seeing that Duan Fei didn’t understand why, Kate continued to explain in detail, "A portion of the local nobles’ income comes from money lending, and their targets are the peasants. Right now is the beginning of the Demon King’s cycle. The drought has arrived, and the local nobles were all prepared to lend money and annex more land. But then you all arrived."

It was only then that it dawned on Duan Fei.

The players’ efforts in repairing the town had drastically improved the livelihood of the people near the Dungeon entrance. The emergence of various "dungeon economies" allowed the surrounding people to have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear.

’No wonder NPCs have been coming to worship the Slimes recently. I thought it was just a local custom, but it seems they see the Slimes as Angels.’

But if the peasants were doing well, the local nobles were in a bad spot.

If the peasants didn’t need to borrow money, the nobles’ income would decrease, and they would acquire less land later on. But the state’s taxes wouldn’t decrease, so the final result was that after one cycle, not only would they have failed to increase their wealth, they would have lost a great deal.

Therefore, sealing the Dungeon entrance to prevent players from entering was their best option.

Having understood the situation, the players in the livestream also started discussing it.

"No way, are there really Lords that bad? They’d make their own people suffer just to make money?"

"It’s simple. They don’t want their subjects to get comfortable. ’If you’re all comfortable, who’s going to farm my land? Who’s going to pay my taxes?’"

"The Middle Ages were so dark!"

"The Industrial Age was even darker. Ever heard of the triangular slave trade?"

Watching his audience’s heated discussion, Duan Fei felt this game was truly realistic. Even a random Lord was designed with such detail.