Super Righteous Player
Chapter 495 - 36 The Man Who Gambles with God_1

Chapter 495: Chapter 36 The Man Who Gambles with God_1

——Giralda David Buonarro.

Yes, Dmitry had heard this name before.

From Maria’s lips.

It was several years ago, not long after Dmitry’s incident...

In that gamble against a god, the losing Dmitry was forced to lose his ability to father offspring... He also lost his right to inherit the Duchy of Winter.

Although this matter was kept strictly confidential, the official statement was that he was cursed "due to the Rotman’s scheme."

Of course, this was not considered deception, as even decree spells could only determine that this was a truth. The reason for Dmitry’s failure was indeed the Rotman’s scheme—his "wager" was also taken away by the Rotman in the end.

Others might wonder why the Rotman dared to act directly against the direct descendant of a True God.

But they could only keep these doubts to themselves.

After all... that’s the Rotman!

Although everyone knows to be more reverent towards the gods, it is clear that even among gods, there are disparities...

For the Rotman, it wouldn’t be strange for him to do anything.

They only saw Dmitry as a poor victim of an attack. No one knew of the great deeds he’d done when he was young—

But he ultimately failed.

The result was the responsibility that was originally on his own shoulders was now forcibly passed on to his younger brother, who was still youthful.

Of course, he didn’t blame Annan.

Dmitry was very well aware that Annan’s plan was indeed correct and effective—

His abilities were simply no match for his own father.

Even the precocious Annan could not compare with Ivan Rime.

Even with the interference of the "Heart of Winter," he was still able to show compassion towards others. He exercised his power rationally and cautiously, never misjudging any crime—he was a king who was clear with rewards and punishments, considerate of his citizens, and always rational, earning the love and trust of commoners as well as the recognition and awe of the nobility. This was also why, during this Winter of the Duchy, only one-third of the young people left.

Even with only one and a half legions able to fight, they were able to rely on the geographical advantage and commanding superiority to fend off Noah’s invasions multiple times... Although Dmitry wasn’t clear about why the king of Noah wanted to invade Winter in the first place and why they suddenly made peace afterwards.

In the end, aside from Frostwater Harbor, they signed a peace treaty without any other cost—even with Frostwater Harbor, the people of Noah seemed somewhat tentative about it... It was like driving a nail in reverse.

On the side of Winter, almost no cost was paid, yet the Kingdom of Noah was heavily troubled.

Even when taking over the Duchy of Winter during the "Winter Years," Ivan had no complaints. He even governed the country so well that he created the lowest death rate of all the Winter Years, and for the first time, there were immigrants who returned to the country before the end of the "Winter Years."

But perhaps Ivan was too excellent and thus envied by heaven...

He contracted an incurable terminal illness.

The reason it’s said to be incurable is that this "disease" itself was contracted because Ivan was too outstanding... Rather than a disease, it was more like a blessing.

His innate talent, the "Heart of Winter," had evolved early on to the final form, "Blood of the Frigid Winter," at the same level as his grandmother.

This was a mystery of the core gods from the inception of the world.

It was the ultimate truth carried in his grandmother’s bloodline.

If Ivan had been a Gold Rank Transcendent, perhaps he could have used this power to turn himself into a dragon.

——But the problem was, Ivan was not even a Transcendent.

Because he understood himself very clearly and knew that he did not have such strong desires and obsessions, he could never reach Gold Rank; knowing his own limits, Duke Ivan had never embarked on that path from the very beginning.

But it was a power that a mortal body simply could not bear.

The result was Ivan suffering from illness, suddenly losing body heat every few days. And this was the relatively mild Blood of the Frigid Winter within Ivan... If someone were splashed with Ivan’s blood, it would cause a severe frostbite akin to washing one’s face with liquid nitrogen.

The Winter Clan can withstand nearly all types of damage, except for "frost" attribute damage, which can be lethal to them.

... However, if only Grandmother could wake up from her dragon’s sleep, maybe Ivan could be saved.

The dragon’s sleep of the Grandmother is a sacred covenant she made at the time of Her ascension, inviolable.

But each dragon’s sleep could not last more than eighty years.

If Ivan can survive another thirty years, perhaps there’s a chance for salvation.

But evidently, he could not hold on any longer.

Grand Duke Ivan’s mobility became worse and worse, occasionally vomiting blood with pieces of ice in it; on average, he would suffer hypothermia once every two days—becoming incoherent, severely trembling, and suddenly confused, as if afflicted with dementia.

Only with the constant care and emergency treatment of the accompanying ritualist could he recover.

But the Grand Duke who could boldly supervise the frontline had gone beyond return.

Annan surmised that this was because Ivan possessed a Truth Rank Transcendent power, but only had a mortal body that couldn’t contain it...

Among the many gods, the Goddess of the Cup could preserve memory and revert people back to newborn infants; the Pale Princess could transform people into sentient ghosts; the Moth Mother could let another person inherit all the memories of someone; the Rotting Husband could grant mortals "undying bodies"... These were all possible solutions.

They set their first target on the Rotting Husband.

This was also the most thorough solution—as long as they could win the bet.

The Rotting Husband, to formally complete his ritual, had to find seven offerings. He dared not touch the people of the Winter Principality, and the underground federation had no king; the "king" of The Holy Nation was the Pope of the seven True Gods.

Even if the Rotting Husband completed the rituals in the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Noah, the numbers were far from enough.

Dmitry’s wager was something the Rotting Husband had to accept:

He summoned the god of eternal life and barrenness, the Rotting Husband, with his own "Blood of Royalty," betting against Him.

If Dmitry won, then the Rotting Husband had to grant "Ivan the Third," the most outstanding Grand Duke of Winter in history, the power of immortality, using an equally Truth Rank undying force to neutralize this power;

But if Dmitry lost, then the Rotting Husband would take away Dmitry’s fertility.

If the bet was lost, it would only add another undead. This would essentially be adding another undead of his own rank—the final step of the Rotting Husband’s sublimation ritual is to kill all other undead except himself, but for now, each additional undead also adds a portion of power to him. So it could be considered a win-win.

Moreover, if they won the bet, they could help the Rotting Husband make up for a sublimation ritual directly.

Either way, it wasn’t a loss.

But Dmitry himself did not have enough ability and hesitated at the last moment... losing to the Rotting Husband.

Initially, Dmitry had to consider other methods.

Whether he could negotiate with other True Gods for this miraculous power.

Although he wasn’t adept at rituals, his younger brother Annan was.

Annan always knew everything.

He just had to pay the price.

Be it fertility or lifespan, kidneys, hair, or even skin... If it needed to be taken, all could be given freely.

Why so carefree?

Simply because Dmitry Winter never feared "paying the price."

He was not a Transcendent... nor a ritualist.

—He was the archbishop of Grandmother. He would be the Cardinal Archbishop in the future, and if the bishops believed him, he might even become the Pope of Grandmother.

Since Dmitry was a child, he had sworn to dedicate his entire soul to all living beings.

In the destined path that Dmitry was to walk, his body of flesh and blood... there was no room for it to fit.

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