With the decision having been made by Arthur, the goddess moved quickly.
>Player Arzhur has been Blessed by the Mistress of the Beasts!<
>Player Arzhur has obtained the Blessing of Understanding!<
As soon as Arthur obtained the blessing, he felt the change. It was a strange feeling for him, as he felt like there was a direct link extending from his thoughts to another being.
This was none other than the Dragon Horn Beetle Brambles.
'Can you hear me?' Arthur tried to test it out.
~KRRR
A low sound was heard coming from Bramble, while Arthur felt his thoughts being reciprocated.
'Bramble's isn't exactly 'talking' but can communicate still… it's like a direct understanding of thoughts.' Arthur could surprisingly tell what the beast was thinking.
He even tested out by giving some commands, and Brambles responded appropriately. Arthur wished to test out the blessing more, but knew now was not the time to do that. There were still two deities watching him after all.
"I thank the Mistress of the Beasts for her blessing." Arthur said with gratitude.
<The Mistress of the Beasts smiles upon the player before looking at the Trickster who likes Plays with a smug expression>
<The Trickster who likes Plays ignores the Mistress of the Beasts' look and instead says, he'll look forward to the player's future actions>
>The presence of the Trickster who likes Plays is gone<
Seeing the notification, Arthur was a bit unnerved as he knew that Loki wouldn't be leaving him alone easily.
<The Mistress of the Beasts says she'll take her leave for now, but will watch over the player from time to time>
>The presence of the Mistress of the Beasts is gone<
"Phew~ Finally they're gone." Arthur let out a breath of relief.
Dealing with troublesome deities like Loki along with another deity was not a simple task and had tired him out mentally.
"Guess I can continue—" but before Arthur could do much, he was interrupted by a change. "What the…" The space in front of him swirled and an object materialized.
The object was a square sheet that seemed to be made out of some kind of leather.
'No, it's not just leather… it's skin.' Arthur recognized what the item was. 'Why is it here? Didn't the Trickster who likes Plays leave?' he was confused.
>The Trickster who likes Plays reveals his presence again<
Seeing the notification, Arthur knew that Loki had played both him and Artemis.
'He was probably waiting for her to leave and had only pretended to do the same.' Arthur guessed.
<The Trickster who likes Plays says he's offering the Player the Veil of Thousand Skins>
"But didn't I reject your offer in favor of the Mistress of Beasts?" Arthur replied, still wary of the deity.
<The Trickster who likes Plays says he's offering it regardless>
"But why? What do you wish for in exchange?" Arthur knew it wouldn't be something simple.
<The Trickster who likes Plays smiles and says he wishes for the player to have 'fun'>
"Fun?" Arthur could tell that the deity was hinting at something and also had an idea about what it might be.
He went silent for a minute and thought about it, before giving a reply.
"So I just need to do whatever I want to, and as long as you find it to be fun, you'll let me use it?" Arthur questioned.
<The Trickster who likes Plays like that the player can understand his mind. The Trickster who likes Plays also says that if the player doesn't do something that's not fun for a while, he would stop the Veil of Thousand Skins from working>
"Hmm… alright." While it was still risky, Arthur reckoned he may as well take it. 'There might actually be more trouble if I deny Loki after all this. He won't be pleased and might just cause trouble for me without me even knowing it.' He thought.
Arthur finally extended his hand and touched the square sheet of skin that was floating in front of him.
>Player Arzhur has obtained the unique item 'Veil of Thousand Skins'<
Holding it in his hand, Arthur felt the texture of the veil. It was just like that of skin and was actually rather smooth.
'As if it were made from the skin of a beauty or that of a newborn infant…' Arthur couldn't help but think.
<The Trickster who likes Plays hopes that the player would have a lot of fun with the Veil of Thousand skins. He also wonders what side the player would take>
>The presence of the Trickster who likes Plays has disappeared<
Despite there being a notification, Arthur didn't trust that the god had really left.
'Just the fact that he can sense whether or not I'm having 'fun' means he's watching me.' Arthur could read between the lines.
~Sigh~
"Things only keep on getting complicated…" Arthur shook his head.
Still, there was another thing he needed to do.
'Wonder if Dragon's Insight can still work on it…' Arthur questioned.
The item had been given not by any deity, but the god Loki himself. Even with a legendary skill like Dragon's Insight, there were no guarantees.
>Dragon's insight has been activated!<
>Dragon's Insight is being restrained!<
>Dragon's insight has partially succeeded!<
'Just as I thought… still it can show some information.' Arthur thought.
~DING~
——
Target: Veil of Thousand Skins
[Durability: Unbreakable]
[Equipping Requirement: 1. One's chosen by the Trickster who likes Plays. 2. The item can be restrained if the Trickster who likes Plays wishes to do so.]
Info: A veil created from the skins of all those that had tried to trick the trickster. A reminder that all trickery is useless in front of him.
<Active Skills>
1. Masquerade of the Trickster
Info: Allows the user to change their being.
Effects: 1. Player can change their appearance
2. Player can change their name
3. Players can disguise their class
Cost: None
Cooldown: Once per day.
(Additional information is hidden due to lack of proficiency.)
——
"This…" As soon as Arthur saw the information, he was utterly shocked.
While there was some information shown when Loki was presenting the veil to Arthur, it was not showing the details. There was only a vague description of what the veil could do.
But now that the exact effects of it were shown, Arthur almost couldn't believe it.
"This… this isn't even at the level of a legendary item!" Arthur was absolutely sure of it.
Items that could change the appearance of a player were uncommon right now, but many would appear as the game progressed. Not just that, but there were also skills and magic that could do the same.
But items that could change the player's name were quite rare even back then.
As for an item that could disguise the class of a player?
There were simply none.
Class was something that was absolute for the most part. Once a player got a class, they could only switch to a new better class or advance their class into a stronger version.
Then there was the information about the Veil of thousand skins itself.
'This is a warning isn't it?' Arthur was sure that Loki had placed it there.
It was a warning for what could happen to those that tried to go against the chaotic god.
Players would experience that themselves in the future. After all, there was no lack of people who would want to try their hands at fighting a god. Of course, a direct fight might be impossible, but making them lose out was still possible.
Then there were players that wanted revenge against the various deities. Whether it be due to their past actions or some quest, they would eventually do it.
Loki was one of the bigger targets since he liked to mess things up for the players from time to time.
'Even one of the top 10 guilds from back then collapsed because Loki targeted them.' Arthur recalled.
It was a huge incident back then and had shaken up all the other guilds too. It had made them wary about the god and most had decided to simply stay away from it.
It led to a reshuffling and allowed another guild to take the place of the guild that had fallen to the whims of Loki.
'I just… have to make sure I don't piss him off.' Arthur thought to himself. "But then again… it's not like our goals don't align." Considering his plans for the future, Arthur realized there will be chaos created by his actions eventually.
"Guess the trickster will really get to see some fun things…" Arthur muttered while staring at the veil.
He brought the veil closer to his face, prompting it to move on its own.
~SMACK~
The veil stuck to Arthur's face automatically, covering it entirely.
'Ugh! This…' Arthur's eyes, nose, and face were all covered by the veil making it hard for him to see or breathe.
But this was merely the start, as the veil started to grow!
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