Chapter 1344 - City of the Decisive Battle (1) (2/2)

“Of course, Master. Although this is my subconscious mind, I unify everything I know to ensure that my mind isn’t disturbed in any way, both externally and internally. Thus, even my subconscious self possesses the same knowledge as my true self, so it isn’t surprising that I would know of your existence.”

“Alright then, what’s my next challenge?”

In response to her words, Rhode spread his arms apart and shrugged helplessly, before looking left and right at the surroundings. According to information he received from the previous mental worlds, generally speaking, when a subconscious personality recognized him, it meant that they had already made a connection with their core personality. That was how Rhode was able to determine whether it was ‘Game Clear’ or ‘Game Over’ for him. But now, he didn’t expect Karin to be so powerful as to share the memories and personality of her main consciousness with her mental self. But this also fit the impression that Karin left on him: a human-computer.

In that case, the rules of the ‘game’ were changed. And since Karin’s subconscious mind knew of his existence, there would be some issues if they weren’t able to match perfectly. Now, Rhode didn’t know how to solve that problem, but it didn’t mean that Karin was entirely helpless about it. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be here in the first place. Just as Rhode expected, after hearing his question, Karin gave her answer without any hesitation.

“Of course, Master, given the unique circumstances, we must correct the error at hand. In the meantime, after a discussion with my other two selves, we have made certain arrangements for the immediate situation as well as…”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

However, before Karin finished her sentence, a deafening explosion rang out from nearby. The next things Rhode saw were rushing flames and dazzling energy beams that burst skyward. In the blink of an eye, several towers crashed down, raising huge clouds of dust and smoke. But it was a planned attack because soon, he heard the cries of battle echoing from within. Soon after, more energy beams and the brilliance of magical power ripped through the smoke and bombarded the back. Upon witnessing this scene, Rhode didn’t react immediately, but stared at the odd smoke for a moment before puckering his brows, turning back to Karin, and speaking with some hesitation.

“If I’m not mistaken…”

“I was about to state my conclusion, Master. After a discussion between the three of us… We believe that the reason we can’t have trust in you is because of your attitude toward all the holy sword card spirits. Although the feedback we’ve received from Celia, Celestina, and the rest was quite reassuring, we can’t confirm whether you have a certain degree of prejudice against other card spirits. That is why we don’t feel comfortable resonating with you, and that may be the main reason.”

Karin came to a pause. After a moment, she continued to speak.

“Thus, after our discussion, we thought it would be best for us to confirm with our own eyes your attitude towards all the other card spirits.”

“And?”

Upon hearing her words, for some reason, Rhode suddenly had a bad feeling. And as expected, at that moment, Karin looked at him quietly before speaking without changing her expression.

“Hence, we have transformed our own mental world and incorporated all the mental projections of the remaining four card spirits into this realm. I think you are also well aware, Master, that this is their subconscious selves, and themselves have no knowledge of strangers as we do. To them, this is an entirely unfamiliar place, while the rest are also unfamiliar beings. I think you understand what this means… And after experiencing the previous few mental worlds, Master, you should know very well that in the mental world, not every mental projection has the same fighting ability as their true selves…”

“Yes, I’m aware, but by doing so… Will everything turn out fine?”

After hearing her words, Rhode turned pale instantly. Of course, he understood how things would turn out. It was true that not every projection in the mental world possessed the same combat power as their original self. Not only that, but also based on his experience in the previous mental worlds, the personalities of the mental projections were even more difficult to handle than the person herself because they were ‘purer’ and wouldn’t ‘compromise’ or ‘consider’ further.

Each and every one of their personalities and tendencies was extremely distinct. In that case, all three personalities in one were likely to be problematic. According to what Karin said, she would be pulling in all personalities from the previous four mental worlds to fight one another. It was imaginable just how chaotic and fierce the situation would become as soon as they got into a fight!

Furthermore, he never expected Karin to bring in all the other mental projections and leave it to him to handle.

Come to think of it, how exactly should I deal with them? What will happen to the mental projections if they are hurt in the battle?

Mental projections were incredibly fragile. Of course, Rhode was clearly aware of that. As a matter of fact, even Karin was risking her life. By bringing in all the mental projections into her mental world, it would cause relatively huge damage to her as well. That was why Rhode was cautious when it came to using his own mental world to connect with Gracier and Madaras before. But now, looking at Karin, it seemed like she was planning to play a big game and didn’t even care about her own safety.

“Of course, we are well aware of the consequences, Master. But if we are unable to complete the task given to us by Mother, neither our lives nor ourselves matter to us anymore. That is why we can only ask for your help, Master…”

Karin spoke and held out her hand. Shortly after, along with her movement, the disc beneath Rhode’s feet descended and landed on the ground shortly after.

“I hope you can stop the battle between them with your power and gain their acknowledgment.”

“…”

Upon hearing her words, Rhode’s expression changed slightly.

I’ve been to too many PvE dungeons in the past. Seems like this is forcing me to go full PvP!

[1] A series of life simulation video games developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts.

[2] A 1959 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney.