Godlike Player in a Game-Like World - Chapter 298: Fools

“Hm? About what?” Dan asked, not comprehending Belicia’s point.

“He probably wasn’t restricting his stats as you assumed at the time, but rather his stats were never as high as you believed. Furthermore, the reason he didn’t use any skills might be because he didn’t possess an item at that time,” Belicia stated with seriousness.

“What do you mean?” This time, not only Dan but everyone else voiced their confusion simultaneously.

Despite all of them being item holders now, Raydon remained an enigmatic figure, a god-like presence whose true strength they could never accurately gauge. Raydon must have been even stronger than a high-rank in their estimation, and the items and stats he possessed were also of a higher quality than they could have conceived of at the time.

Due to this ingrained belief, when Belicia claimed that Raydon possessed low stats and perhaps no items at all, they were hesitant to accept her words.

“I still don’t understand how he possesses such high-tier techniques, but one thing I’m certain of is that he awakened as an item holder at most one month ago. Forget reaching high-rank in such a short time, he might still be at the F-Rank,” Belicia confidently asserted.

By calculating the elapsed time, even if Raydon had emerged victorious in every match, he could only have achieved an E-Rank at most.

Belicia had also observed the gray ‘1’ tattoo on Raydon’s hand on numerous occasions, making it implausible for him to be a high-ranked item holder or god, as Dan and the others believed, unless there was a supernatural power at play that she couldn’t comprehend at the moment.

“How do you know he awakened only one month ago?” Dan found it difficult to accept Belicia’s claim without any concrete proof, though he didn’t doubt her sincerity or truthfulness like he did with Sami.

“As I mentioned earlier, he is my young master, a member of the Demugen family. I served him since he was a child, even after he was expelled from the mansion for his disability. I’ve been with him throughout his life, which is why I’m certain,” Belicia explained with a faint smile.

“What?” Dan exclaimed in disbelief.

“Wait a minute. It’s not hard to believe that he is a young master of the family you serve. But what do you mean by ‘disability’?” Karan interjected, shocked and yet perplexed.

Belicia took a deep breath, locking eyes with each person around her, their expressions filled with confusion. “Well, I suppose it’s my turn to tell his story.”

Then, Belicia proceeded to disclose everything she knew about Raydon, delving into his ordinary yet dramatic life in this world.

Firstly, she revealed that Raydon had been crippled since infancy and had lived in a vegetative state. She explained that his family had expelled him from the mansion, considering him an embarrassment due to his condition. Raydon’s grandfather, the leader of the Demugen family, had entrusted Belicia with the responsibility of caring for Raydon outside the mansion, ensuring he wouldn’t perish in the slums.

Lastly, she recounted Raydon’s recent miraculous awakening as an item holder and his subsequent recovery from his vegetative state.

As Dan and the others absorbed Belicia’s revelations, they grew increasingly astonished with each passing moment. The realization that the person they regarded as limitless in power, almost godlike, had actually lived a life of helplessness and disability was an incredible shock.

“I never would have imagined that Master lived such a life,” Rayn expressed, his eyes welling up with tears and his lips trembling.

Rayn considered Belicia to be the person on whom he could most heavily rely in this world, and as a result, he had given her his utmost trust. As a consequence of this, he took everything that she said at face value and did not have the slightest bit of doubt about whether or not what she was saying was true.

In addition, Rayn had firsthand knowledge of the struggles associated with living with a disability, although his condition was confined to his legs. In contrast to Raydon, he was able to count on the unwavering support and attentive care of his older sister as well as a number of other people. Consequently, when Rayn learned that Raydon, the man who had completely changed his life, had previously lived a much more difficult existence, regardless of who Raydon actually was, his respect for him increased even more.

Dan and Karan shared similar sentiments. In fact, learning Raydon’s true story only intensified their admiration for him. They began to perceive him as even more extraordinary.

They had believed that Raydon was on their side against Herman because he felt sorry for them, particularly because they believed that Raydon had previously lived in a slum and lived a life that was either identical to or very similar to their own. It came as a relief to find out that these beliefs were not too far from the truth now.

“If what you are saying is true, and our master’s recovery has only occurred recently, I can not fathom his genius anymore,” Dan exclaimed in amazement, his mind brimming with all that Raydon had accomplished for them and the numerous techniques he had imparted.

Belicia’s voice carried a weight of profundity as she redirected her gaze towards the individuals engrossed in their training exercises on the training ground. “I don’t believe we can simply explain it by labeling him as a genius.”

Belicia, being more knowledgeable about techniques than Dan and the others, couldn’t comprehend how Raydon possessed such an extensive repertoire of techniques. It seemed inconceivable that despite living as a cripple his entire life, he had not only mastered them all but also possessed a profound understanding of their fundamentals, allowing him to teach others in a remarkably short time.

“So, Raydon really became an item holder just a month ago? Just as I predicted,” Sami said calmly, his tone in stark contrast to the astonishment felt by the others.

“What do you mean, predicted? What are you talking about?” Karan questioned, puzzled as to what this moron was considering yet again.

Sami responded with unwavering confidence, “You might be too ignorant to see it, but I knew it all along.”

“Fine, enlighten us,” Dan said, raising an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued.

Before this moment, Raydon had been shrouded in secrecy for them, but after discovering the truth about him, he had transformed into an even more perplexing enigma for them. They did, however, wait for Sami’s words to come out of his mouth in the hope that perhaps there was some logic in what he was going to say, even if he was going to be full of bullshit.

“You seem to have forgotten why we started calling him ‘God’ in the first place,” Sami said, his eyes gleaming mysteriously and his voice filled with unwavering devotion.

Dan and Karan looked at each other in frustration as they silently cursed at Sami’s assertions. ‘We called him ‘God’ because you brainwashed us into doing so,’ they thought to themselves.

“We always knew he was a god, but we lacked proof. Until now,” Sami continued, turning his gaze to the sky and speaking with an inexplicably serene expression. “Now, we have all the evidence we need to confirm that Master Raydon is undoubtedly a god.”

“Enough with the suspense, Fatty. Start explaining,” Karan urged, growing impatient with Sami’s penchant for exaggeration.

“Alright. Let me enlighten you, fools. Have you ever wondered why our master lived as a vegetable for so long?” Sami said, his eyes scanning the captivated audience before continuing. “It’s because he is the reincarnation of a god. His soul likely belonged to a god in the past, and for reasons we cannot fathom, his soul departed from its previous vessel and entered his current body. Until he awakened as an item holder, he was in a dormant state because his current body couldn’t contain his immensely powerful soul.”

“I can’t believe it. Master was always a true god?” Rayn exclaimed, succumbing to Sami’s persuasive tone and logical-sounding words, awe evident in his voice.

In the past, he, like Dan and Karan, had the misconception that Raydon was nothing more than a very powerful item holder. However, after hearing what Sami had to say, he now has no such reservations.

“In fact, as unbelievable as it is, what he says does make sense,” Belicia interjected, surprising everyone with her agreement with Sami.

“I can’t say for certain if he’s truly a god or something akin to one, but if that’s the case, it would explain his vast knowledge of techniques,” Belicia continued, her expression calm but her voice and body betraying her inner excitement like waves crashing within her.

Belicia had already recognized that Raydon was a remarkable individual, and now, with Sami’s theory, her previous respect and gratitude for him paled in comparison to the newfound reverence she felt for his enigmatic power and identity.

In the end, in a world teeming with powerful item holders, the admiration for strength and power was unrivaled and could never be replaced by mere respect.