Chapter 92
Chapter 92
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 92
Chapter Title: Overcoming
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In the rear garden of the Emperor's quarters on the 65th floor.
Lyell and the Emperor of the Empire, Ju Won-hong, sat at a table, drinking tea.
“You’ve tended to the garden quite well. It’s a nice view.”
“I didn’t make it for you to look at, so mind your own business. Lyell, what in the world are you thinking?”
“Out of nowhere, what am I thinking?”
Lyell tilted his head, feigning ignorance, but Ju Won-hong wasn't falling for it.
“Do you think you can play dumb like that? Didn't you personally intervene and move the Martial Alliance Leader?”
“Oh, for someone who’s been confined, you’re surprisingly well-informed for an emperor, aren’t you?”
“What are you thinking? This is my empire. The Martial Alliance Leader is one of my people, so why would you act on your own accord…”
Ju Won-hong unleashed a menacing aura, pressing down on him, but the blond man, Lyell, was completely unfazed.
“Well, Uriel, if you had just listened and cooperated from the start, we wouldn't have had to get on each other's bad side, would we? I thought maybe you’d had a change of heart, but if this is an interrogation, I’m leaving.”
The emperor blocked Lyell’s path as he tried to leave.
“Where do you think you’re going!”
“A confined mutant thinks he can stop me?”
Lyell also flared his aura, causing the atmosphere to roil and a storm to erupt, turning the rear garden into a complete mess.
“You seem to be unaware of the constraints placed upon me.”
“Wh-what are you?”
Lyell was quite flustered.
He had been told that the confined Uriel was under a restriction that prevented him from using any of his powers, yet the aura Uriel was displaying now was not much different from his prime.
“When creatures like you directly interfere with my world, I, too, can draw upon all my strength. What on earth were you thinking, causing such a ruckus!”
“H-hey… how about we talk this out?”
At Ju Won-hong’s chilling roar, Lyell was the first to back down.
“Shut up and answer my questions properly. Depending on your answers, I might just kill you right here.”
“I… I explained it. That guy is a danger to us. And you know the situation, Uriel. Lower-ranking beings like me have to follow orders unconditionally. Since you wouldn't cooperate, I had to move the Martial Alliance Leader.”
He made excuses with a thoroughly defeated expression, but Ju Won-hong did not relent.
“I suppose you didn't think about the consequences? And do you think I’m doing this simply because you attacked the Martial Alliance?”
“Wh-what? First, this aura…”
“Did you not also meddle with the rules of this world that I govern?”
At Ju Won-hong’s sharp rebuke, Lyell’s expression hardened in an instant.
“Wh-what rules?”
“Don’t play innocent! Originally, a Public Enemy of the Martial World would simply be pursued, but do you think I don’t know that you interfered with the system to create various penalties?”
Lyell’s face turned deathly pale.
“I had no choice in that either. The higher-ups told me he has a terrifying companion by his side, so the Martial Alliance Leader alone wouldn't be able to handle him…”
“So you’re telling me to pay the price for you running rampant and interfering with the system as you please?”
Interfering recklessly with the system of any floor would cause a massive backlash on that floor due to causality.
And that backlash had to be borne by the floor’s manager or the one in charge.
“Don’t worry about that. The higher-ups said that once that guy is dead, they will descend and take care of everything.”
“As if they would… What if you fail?”
“There’s no way we’ll fail. I heard he only got to the 65th floor by relying on his companions. I’ll take responsibility. Right, I just have to make a Divine Vow.”
Ju Won-hong hadn’t answered yet, but terrified of being beaten to death before he could even speak, Lyell quickly made the Divine Vow.
The Divine Vow.
A unique racial trait; if the vow was not kept, the individual would lose all their power and suffer the worst agony, withering away until they died.
“There, are you happy now? Stop it.”
Ju Won-hong sighed and suppressed his aura.
“You fool, making a Divine Vow so recklessly…”
“You threatened me!”
“How have you not changed one bit in hundreds of years? Do you really believe the Martial Alliance Leader will succeed?”
“Of course. I even separated him from his companions. And actually, I gave the Martial Alliance Leader a unique trait as a gift.”
Watching Lyell speak with such confidence, Ju Won-hong shook his head.
Would that summoner really die just because of that?
Ju Won-hong had a much stronger feeling that he wouldn’t.
“You will stay here until we have the result.”
“But I made a Divine Vow, didn’t I?”
“If you choose to simply die without keeping your vow, I’ll be the one who has to bear the consequences, won’t I?”
Perhaps it was because he had taken a rare liking to the summoner and strongly wished for him not to die…
But Ju Won-hong trusted his own eyes more than Lyell.
****
If you try, you can do it.
Personally, I strongly dislike giving up on anything without even trying.
No matter how high the probability of failure, even if it’s 99.99%.
The moment you give up, the chance of success becomes zero.
But there are times when you fail despite doing your best.
Like now.
“Tsk, tsk, truly tenacious. You’re no different from a living corpse.”
The Martial Alliance Leader, Sword God Lee Gi-bong, taunted me with a relaxed tone.
I wasn’t sure exactly, but the sun had set, risen again, and was setting once more.
I had fought valiantly for at least a full day, but losing my wings, my source of mobility, was a devastating blow.
It meant I had lost the advantage of speed, which had allowed me to fight against his superior skill.
Even so, I thought of my companions and did my best without giving up.
Of course, the Martial Alliance Leader taunting me wasn't in perfect condition either.
Of the hundreds of swords he once commanded, only seven remained.
And his entire body was covered in blood from the wounds my attacks had inflicted.
But my current state was far worse than his.
Unlike the Martial Alliance Leader, who still had some unscathed parts, there wasn't a single spot on me that was whole.
My chest, which he had kicked while I was dodging a sword long ago, felt like at least three ribs were broken.
My knee was also completely wrecked; it kept making a grinding sound, and pain shot through it.
I had lost so much blood that if I let my guard down for even a moment, I felt like I would pass out.
I had used potions to heal a few times in the beginning, but now I had zero left…
With Rina and Bio around, I rarely used them, so I hadn’t bought many.
Even if I had any left, it wouldn't have made much difference.
After seeing me heal a few times, the Martial Alliance Leader hadn’t given me an opening.
Most of the items I wore were also broken.
My sword, with its indestructible option, was the only thing that was relatively intact, but in truth, it wasn't fine either.
[The Darkness of Kalishina has sustained damage exceeding its limit.]
[The indestructible option will disappear after repeated impacts beyond its limit.]
It was an expected outcome from the moment my mana was depleted.
From the instant I had not a single drop of mana left, I had been relying on the indestructible option of the Darkness of Kalishina to hold on.
I already knew from Bio that the indestructible option wasn't truly invincible…
The situation was truly desperate.
“Why don’t you just give up and offer your neck?”
Instead of answering, I used my sword as a cane to haul myself up.
“You still intend to fight? In that state?”
Damn it.
I didn’t even have the strength to reply, but judging by his long-windedness, the Martial Alliance Leader still had plenty of energy left.
“Perhaps if you had properly learned swordsmanship, our positions might have been reversed. Well then, farewell.”
As soon as the leader finished speaking, seven swords shot out at a terrifying speed.
No, they were actually quite a bit slower than at the beginning, but even this was too fast for me now.
*Whoosh— Whoosh—*
I barely dodged the two swords aimed at my head.
*Clang—*
I managed to parry one of the swords heading for my heart.
*Slice— Slice— Thud— Thud—*
But I couldn't avoid the remaining four swords, which ruthlessly grazed and embedded themselves in my arms and legs.
An indescribable pain washed over me, but I grit my teeth and endured it, pulling out the swords that were trying to dig deeper.
It seemed I still had blood left to spill, as it gushed out.
The bleeding continued, but I had no choice.
If I didn't pull them out quickly, they would continue to burrow in and take my life.
“You are truly stubborn. In my 70 years of life, I have never seen anyone like you.”
If only I had the energy to answer, I would have told him.
In my 28 years of life, this was a first for me too.
Again, instead of answering, I raised my sword and charged at him.
With the thought that this was my last chance, I squeezed out every last ounce of my strength and thrust my sword.
*Whoosh—*
Anticipating that he would dodge, I immediately switched to a slash, but unfortunately, it only grazed his waist.
*Thwack—*
A punch from the Martial Alliance Leader sent me flying.
*Thud— Thud—*
Hearing the leader’s footsteps approaching, I tried to somehow get back up, but my body wouldn't listen.
I think more of my ribs are broken.
“I acknowledge your will, at least. I will grant you a comfortable death as a sign of respect.”
I don’t need that kind of acknowledgment, so can’t you just let me live…
The sky, and the Martial Alliance Leader looking down at me with his sword raised, all appeared yellow.
Even biting my lip until it bled didn't clear my head.
I really did my best…
“Do you have any last words?”
“…”
As if I would.
It’s not like they’d be delivered anyway…
I just wanted to see my companions, Tae-soo, and Ha-young one last time, but there was no point in saying that.
“It seems not. Then let’s end this.”
Just as I thought it was truly the end, a transparent notification window appeared.
[The Genius Who Overcame Fate, Lee Ha-young, has sent a remote party invitation to the possessor of the Defying Heaven trait, Oh Hyeon-ung. Will you accept? Y/N]
A remote party?
I thought you had to be on the same floor to party up, but I mustered my last bit of strength and clicked Y.
[You have joined the party of the Genius Who Overcame Fate.]
[Due to the Defying Heaven trait, you now share the Genius Who Overcame Fate trait.]
[All stats are applied at 500% effectiveness.]
[Final physical and magical attack damage +300%]
[Immunity to all status effects]
[All elemental resistances +150%]
[Strength stat exceeds 5,000. Strength is converted to Prowess.]
[You have acquired the hidden trait Herculean Strength.]
[Magic Power stat exceeds 5,000. Magic Power is converted to Supreme Magic.]
[You have acquired the hidden trait Inexhaustible Magic.]
[Stamina stat exceeds 5,000. Stamina is converted to Vitality.]
[You have acquired the hidden trait Invincibility.]
[Agility stat exceeds 5,000. Agility is converted to Velocity.]
[You have acquired the hidden trait Celerity.]
[Luck stat exceeds 5,000. Luck is converted to Fortune.]
[You have acquired the hidden trait Bearer of Good Fortune.]
As the notification windows rapidly appeared, filling my vision, I felt vitality surging through my entire body.
A feeling that I could do anything.
I grabbed the leader’s sword, which had already reached my face, with my left hand.
“You still have energy left? Truly stubborn. I’ll make it painless, so stop struggling.”
The Martial Alliance Leader scowled and put more force into it.
He clearly intended to slice through my hand, but I also squeezed the hand holding his sword.
*Crack—*
I didn’t even feel like I squeezed that hard, but the sword snapped like brittle candy.
“What is this…”
I kicked the dumbfounded Martial Alliance Leader.
*Thwack— Crack—*
With the sound of bones breaking, I watched the Martial Alliance Leader fly through the air as I stood up.
Thanks to the effect of my new trait, the blood that had been flowing ceaselessly stopped.
The pain that had wracked my entire body also vanished.
The Martial Alliance Leader, who had been sent flying, came flying back toward me.
I felt as refreshed as if I had slept soundly for over 12 hours.
“You bastard! So you were acting exhausted!”
Acting my ass.
If I could have acted in that situation, I would have been an actor, not a YouTuber.
I would have swept all the best actor awards.
He swung his sword at me with a furious expression, but it was too slow.
*Whoosh—*
I could dodge it while yawning.
I dodged lightly and caught the sword with my hand.
I was about to break it, but the man smirked.
“Hmph! I won’t fall for the same trick twice!”
I waited to see what he would do, and a blue magical energy began to shimmer around the sword.
Of course, nothing really changed.
“What are you doing?”
“Y-you… how can you catch a sword imbued with sword ki with your bare hands…”
[Invincibility trait activated. You will not take damage from attacks that deal less damage than your defense value.]
“It doesn’t even tickle.”
I gave it a light squeeze like before, and it snapped.
“H-how is this… Ugh!”
As I broke the sword, I threw a punch at the stunned leader’s face.
*BOOM—*
I definitely hit him with my fist, but a sound like a cannon blast echoed out.
With a heavy impact, the Martial Alliance Leader’s head vanished, and a notification window appeared.
[You have defeated the Martial Alliance Leader, Sword God Lee Gi-bong.]
The guy who I fought for a full day, who pushed me to the brink of death, was taken out so anticlimactically with a single punch…
Ha-young’s trait really is broken.
Of course, my original stats being high was also a factor, but still…
[As the declarer of the Public Enemy of the Martial World, the Martial Alliance Leader, has died, the Public Enemy penalty has been lifted.]
[You have completed the 65th Floor Main Quest: Subjugate the heads of the three major factions of the Central Plains. All stats +30]
[As a reward for completing the 65th Floor Main Quest, you have acquired the right to move to the 66th floor.]