Game’s Dogma

Oda Nobunaga received the glass of wine Lady Noh poured for him and faced Drako Yau’s group and Ichor Hon. He said, ‘Everyone, thank you for rescuing me from a dire situation.’

Ichor Hon only smiled before downing his entire drink.

‘Akechi Mitsuhide, that traitor. I shall take my revenge and make him pay. However, my loyal Oda Clan retainers have yet to realise that I survived. Akechi Mitsuhide has established himself in Empyreon as well. A war, I’m sure it will happen.’

Drako Yau had a headache just hearing that. The battle had broken free from the encounter quest to the main game.

Ichor Hon lightly laughed before saying, ‘Revenge’s for certain, but do consider your moves thoroughly before acting.’

Oda Nobunaga nodded. ‘I’ve learnt my lesson at Honno-ji. I know at least that much.’

Ichor Hon then glanced at Drako Yau and his companions and said, ‘Brother Nobunaga, Brother Mask and his comrades risked their lives to save you. As the mighty leader of the Oda Clan, perhaps you might want to show them your generosity.’

Everyone hyped up upon hearing what Ichor Hon said; any player would be excited when given rewards. They didn’t know much about the somewhat messed up game mechanics, so they weren’t bothered by it like Drako Yau was. 

‘That is for certain.’ Oda Nobunaga looked at Windstrider and continued, ‘This little fella paid us a visit yesterday, I’m sure you’ve spoken with my wife, right?’

Lady Noh covered her mouth and chuckled. ‘This young man is talented and very compatible with the unique inheritance of the Noh Clan.’

Windstrider brightened up; obtaining Lady Noh’s skill had indeed given him a great boost in combat prowess.

‘Young man, you seem to have inherited your swordsmanship from someone, and it looks rather familiar. If I’m not mistaken, it is the Tsubame Gaeshi style wielded by the once famous swordsman, Sasaki Kojirou.’

Sasaki nodded at Oda Nobunaga’s words.

‘Then I have nothing to teach you regarding swordsmanship. I shall give you a secret skill instead. It has its origins from the Mori Clan, I’m sure it will be of help to your growth,’ Oda Nobunaga said. He appeared low in spirits since the skill reminded him of the young Mori Ranmaru who sacrificed himself as rear guard. He then handed a skill book with an orange glow to Sasaki.

‘You received the epic skill book, One With The Sword.

One With The Sword: A special skill. The wielder becomes one with his sword’s vitality, chi, and essence, increasing critical hit chance passively.

Active effect: When activated, trigger Sword Ascendancy—Shadow Katana once every five attacks for 15 minutes. Cooldown: 30 minutes. Passive effect is nullified during cooldown.

Sword Ascendancy—Shadow Katana: Attack deals double the damage.’

Sasaki fell in love with it and immediately learnt the skill. After that, Oda Nobunaga turned his attention to Idyllic Power.

‘Girl, I know barely anything about your foreign sorcery, so there isn’t much I can offer. Your sorcery revolves around flames, right? If it’s about flames, there might be something of interest.’ Oda Nobunaga expanded his hand, and a fist-sized purple ball of fire levitated above his palm, burning silently like a ghostly flame. ‘This is one of the sources of my powers, the Devil King’s Flame. It is much more powerful than ordinary flames, but it will take a long time to nurture your sorcery to utilise such flames.’

Idyllic Poet wasn’t particularly interested in it. She plainly said, ‘Thanks.’

Oda Nobunaga shook his head. He had rewarded her already, so it was up to her on how to use it. Moving on, he spoke to Greenstone.

‘You mainly support from the rear, am I correct? Then this skill should help you survive intense battles.’

The skill turned out to be the ordinary Enhanced Vitality. While every warrior had the skill, it was no short of a godsend to mages and clerics who had subpar Health and Defence. As long as the cleric remained alive, he could heal everyone up indefinitely.

At last, Oda Nobunaga turned towards Drako Yau and said, ‘Brother Mask, you’re improving too quickly. What I own will not aid you greatly. If that’s the case, I want you to take this.’

He gave Lady Noh a signal, to which she nodded and entered the inner chamber. Moments later, she returned with a lump of red cloth.

A cloak.

Even Ichor Hon was caught off guard and looked rather stunned. Oda Nobunaga received the cloak and gently caressed it as he said, ‘This cloak has followed me through countless battles for many years. I know, it is no longer my era. When my final battle with that traitor is over… Back to the point, I trust that it will be better off with you than remaining in my possession.’

Oda Nobunaga handed the cloak to Drako Yau. He tried to refuse the offer, but he found himself short of words. He knew it was a pact of entrusting him with something precious from Oda Nobunaga’s eyes.

My dream, my dream of dominating the world, you shall make it come true in my stead!

‘I shall treat it dearly,’ Drako Yau said sternly as he received the cloak.

‘Congratulations, you have obtained the legendary equipment, Devil King’s Cloak.’

‘Devil King’s Cloak (Level 1): Once possessed by Oda Nobunaga, Devil of the Sixth Heaven. Legends have it that the cloak was originally as pure as snow, but was dyed red by the blood of his enemies. A dreadful item.

Passive skill: Reduces all damage received from the rear by 30 per cent.

Active skill: Descent of the Devil King. Increases all attributes by 30 per cent for 1 hour. Cooldown: 3 days.

Leeches the owner’s experience to level up.’

Drako Yau gasped. The effects were beyond powerful. Just the damage reduction effect from the rear spelt doom for all assassins, not to mention the other effects.

What made assassins formidable enemies wasn’t only about their great burst damage potential. Their ‘Lurk’ abilities and ‘Backstab’ both scaled up their damage when backstabbing an enemy. With the Devil King’s Cloak, Drako Yau could be less worried about sneak attacks from behind. As for Descent of the Devil King, it was a god-tier skill in large-scale battles which didn’t give a single negative debuff afterwards.

As expected of a legendary item. The only downside is… I’ve got another leecher.

Tattered Armour was already leeching his experience, and now the Devil King’s Cloak joined the free ride. His levelling speed was decreased once again…

‘Alright, that is all for today. We, the Oda Clan, also have matters to discuss. After we decide on when to wage war on the traitor, I hope that everyone will send me their aid once more. Please.’

Oda Nobunaga and Lady Noh bowed deeply at everyone. The Honno-ji Incident had dealt a massive blow to Oda Nobunaga it seemed.

‘Received preliminary encounter quest: Final Vengeance.

The Oda Clan is currently recruiting an army in preparation for a final battle with the Akechi Clan. Players will be notified when the Oda Clan decides on when to strike. Players will be automatically teleported to the battlefield once the final battle begins.’

For every 1000, then 2000, then another 2000 Likes on all chapters (1000 -> 3000 -> 5000), there will be bonus chapters! Register a Penana account and start Liking now for more chapters!