Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: Serial Murder (3)
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01.
Kim Arin's pirate ship was as fast as ever. It cleaved through the city's hard asphalt like surging waves, pressing onward toward Gwangjin-gu in Seoul without the slightest obstruction.
"Refreshing..."
If only my life could have unfolded as smoothly as this pirate ship.
How wonderful it would have been if I could have smashed through any obstacles in my path, racing freely to wherever I desired.
A peaceful daily life, soaring like birds across the blue sky. The simplest dream, yet the hardest to achieve. Only a select few, the chosen elite, could cast aside all worries and fears to ride those gentle waves of existence.
The rest of us unchosen souls merely thrashed in vain, swimming toward an unreachable horizon in a desperate bid to seize that life.
Some among them might even be tasting true freedom now, in this twisted world where everything had gone awry and all order had crumbled.
People who sensed this was their one shot at rising above, who didn't want the world to revert to its peaceful old ways. They surely existed.
"...Selverion! We're almost there!"
"Huh...?"
Snapped from my philosophical musings, I heard Kim Arin shout from the helm. Clutching the ship's wheel as she sliced through the wind, she looked every bit the real pirate.
Following her forward gaze, I spotted a massive apartment complex transformed into something straight out of a zombie movie military base.
Sandbags, iron grates, and barricades were piled high in layers. Machine guns dotted the perimeter. Armored vehicles rumbled about, but what stood out most were the people in bizarre outfits—players.
Mages with staves, archers, gunners, heavy infantry. These beings, wielding powers that defied nature, guarded the complex with ironclad security.
It was a defense worthy of the name "safe zone." And there were hundreds, maybe thousands like it across the country, serving as bases for reclaiming Korea.
Modern large apartment complexes came equipped with all sorts of amenities, and some even had makeshift gardens. They could hold out for the long haul without issue.
...But that didn't mean security was flawless in every safe zone.
At least, not in this Gwangjin-gu one. It was grappling with a horrific crime: serial murders. Four people had already been brutally slain over the past four days.
And the prime suspect? None other than October's stage boss, the Sad Clown "Perolln."
"Perolln..."
Why would a stage boss like that slaughter innocents in a safe zone? Was its soul even human? No way to know right now.
"Why, though..."
Nevakal and Perolln.
Excluding me, why were these stage bosses turning hostile, killing people despite not being attacked first?
Were they being overtaken by the savage original personalities of the stage bosses?
Or was there some special reason?
Or were they not changelings at all—just pure monsters?
"..."
I vowed to uncover the truth as I slowly rose to my feet. Kim Arin's ship was swift, and its size made balance no issue.
Next, I activated the effect of my Phantasmal Tiara, shifting my black dress to a gray hoodie. Finally, I morphed the tiara itself into a mask, fully concealing my face.
"Kim Arin."
"Yes! What is it, Selverion?"
"...I'll head in alone."
I told her I planned to sneak into the safe zone incognito. She couldn't hide her disappointment, her face twisting in shock.
"Huh?! Why?!"
"...Too much attention if we're together."
Kim Arin was the top-ranked player in the pirate world. A star like her entering the zone would draw eyes inevitably.
With so many onlookers, someone might recognize me beside her. Rumors were already flying online that Kim Arin and Selverion knew each other. People would scrutinize my every move.
Yeouido had already blown my cover wide open anyway, so recognition itself wasn't a big deal.
The real issue was Perolln, possibly lurking somewhere in the zone.
If it learned Selverion was there, it'd vanish without a trace. Even as a fellow stage boss, the gap between us was vast.
To Perolln, I'd be a threat it'd avoid at all costs—hiding or fleeing elsewhere.
Losing a pinpointed stage boss would be a huge loss, so I decided to slip in disguised and track Perolln quietly.
Its tricky invisibility was tough, but Selverion's senses should pierce through enough to detect it.
"Got it. Then I'll check in with my contacts inside for info."
"Thanks. Appreciate it."
She nodded at my words, and I gave her a quick dip of my head in return. Without hesitation, I leaped from the speeding pirate ship.
"..."
The safe zone apartment complex loomed just ahead.
There'd be some weak spot for entry. Sneaking past eyes shouldn't be hard.
"Please still be there..."
I could only pray Perolln hadn't left the complex yet.
02.
Revenge wasn't just satisfying—it was pure ecstasy. Jihoon, now October's stage boss, wandered the safe zone streets with a grotesque smile plastered across his face.
—Wonder when things'll go back to normal...
—Worse overseas, they say.
"..."
No one noticed him even as he passed by scythe in hand. They walked right past as if he weren't there, utterly oblivious.
Because Perolln was in full invisibility mode. Its passive "Clown's Prank" granted perfect stealth—no color, no scent, not even a shadow.
Unless a Scientist or Beast was around, it was undetectable. And without direct skill hits, it lasted indefinitely.
And Jihoon—Perolln—had successfully taken down those who'd driven him to hell over the past four days.
They'd bullied his friends and used him as a punching bag, boasting of their combat prowess. But before invisible Perolln, they crumpled like paper.
—W-what?! A-aaahhh!!
—Spare me!! Wh-what is this?! Kyaaah!!
"Hoo..."
Recalling the thrill of slicing their chests with his scythe, Jihoon shivered in delight. Some had become players and lived high on the hog, but they too fell without resistance, butchered pitifully.
For a fleeting moment, they'd tasted the helplessness and self-loathing he'd endured for years.
...Mere drops compared to his ocean of pain, but he hoped they'd felt even a fraction of his agony.
"Kim Hyowon..."
Today marked day five. Time to end the one who'd bullied him most aggressively.
The past four days were warnings. Slaying his closest friends one by one, signaling: you're next.
Hyowon was probably terrified by now, shaking in unease. Or, knowing his type, bluffing that he was different—stronger than his dead pals, vowing to crush the killer himself.
"Act like your usual self..."
Imagining Hyowon's cocky bravado, Perolln smirked.
The more arrogant he was, the easier—and funnier—it'd be to kill him.
"Fuck you all, you worthless shits!!"
Perolln roared at the open sky.
Invisible, his voice went unheard. So he poured every ounce of pent-up rage, hatred, triumph, and fury into that skyward howl.
It was his greeting to the new life ahead, 180 degrees from the hellish past—a farewell to the nightmares that had gnawed at him.
Today, he'd shatter years of chains and claim the ordinary daily life others took for granted.
Tonight.
Just survive tonight.
"Hoo..."
After his bellow, Jihoon calmed his excitement and resumed walking. Plenty of time till night; he'd practice skills in some underground parking corner meantime.
"Hm...?"
But someone blocked his path.
"...What the hell is this?"
Perolln tilted his head. A petite girl in a gray hoodie and strange mask—probably a player—stood boldly before him, as if she could see his invisible form.
"..."
Her gaze locked straight on his face, like she truly perceived him.
"What..."
Perolln glanced around sideways. Everyone else passed his invisible self without a flicker.
"Just my imagination."
No Scientist or Beast here. No mere human or player could pierce his stealth.
She'd probably stopped to daydream or something.
"Move."
Perolln shook his head and kept going.
But the girl's next words halted him cold.
"...Good thing I found you quicker than expected."
She turned slowly toward him, past where he'd walked. Red eyes gleamed from her mask, and her lips seemed to curl in a sneer.
"Invisibility or not, don't you think you're yelling a bit loud?"
"..."
And then, from her lips came a name she shouldn't know, couldn't know, mustn't hear now.
"Perolln."
"Wh...?"
Jihoon's face froze.