Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Bed of Distrust (9)
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Unknown.
A powerful error-like existence that appears in gates.
It always showed up out of nowhere, without even a proper name, the kind of monster that even two S-rank Awakeners couldn't kill.
Sa-yoon had encountered it a few times himself, but he'd failed to kill it every single one. No, it was more accurate to say it was impossible.
Unknown was a being that came back to life even after being killed.
Just like him.
It revived as if time had been rewound.
Every time they met, he had to stall it out until the gate closed. But this time, there was an extra complication tagging along. Even for him, protecting Geon-ju perfectly while fighting Unknown was impossible.
So the options left were to run like hell from the bastard until the gate closed. Or leave Geon-ju in a safe spot and buy time facing Unknown himself.
With no other choices, Sa-yoon grabbed the arm of Geon-ju, who was faithfully running despite his confusion at the order to bolt.
He yanked him close, and Geon-ju raised his voice.
"Not like this again!"
"No time for arguing. You wanna run, or wait it out?"
Sa-yoon lowered his voice as he spoke, and Geon-ju picked up on the gravity of the situation, swallowing his complaints.
"...Tell me more details."
"Easier to run from that thing, or wait while I fight? Which one feels more survivable?"
"...You can't fight because of me, right?"
"......"
"I'll hole up somewhere safe, so don't waste energy on me. Go do what you gotta do. I don't look weak to the Guild Leader, do I? I'm not usually this weak."
It was all stuff he already knew. Among B-ranks, Geon-ju was probably the strongest. Still, Sa-yoon gave the guy—who looked like the toughest baby chihuahua in his eyes—a quick once-over, swallowed hard, and bolted over ten kilometers away from Unknown in one go.
He could feel his mana draining away. And he hadn't even brought mana potions. What a shitty situation.
"Wait here. If things get dicey, run or call for me."
Facing Unknown half-assed wasn't an option. Treating it like an S-rank gate boss made things easier, so Sa-yoon pulled out the SS-rank sword he'd gotten as a reward from clearing that last unsolved gate, instead of his usual dagger.
'Dawn of Spring'.
It was hilariously mismatched with his True Evil of Humanity trait, but the effect was undeniable.
Attack power increased by 150% against non-human entities.
That was it. Nothing else. Just that one effect, and it fully justified the SS-rank.
Last time he'd faced Unknown, he hadn't had Dawn of Spring. Even then, he'd fought tooth and nail, died once, and won. That fact was his only consolation as Sa-yoon charged straight at Unknown and activated his Frost skill.
A cold wind whipped around his body. The gale froze anyone who entered its range, allowing simultaneous defense and offense.
Thud, crackle!
But against an opponent on the same level as the caster, it didn't last long. Unknown shattered the ice encasing its body in an instant and moved. It was the expected outcome, so there was no disappointment. His goal was that fleeting opening where he could threaten it.
In the split second its movements stiffened, Sa-yoon closed in on Unknown's face and swung his arm wide.
Screeech!
A black line slashed across its face. The wound heated up like it was burning, then rotted away. The effect of the Curse skill used in tandem.
With the perk activation alert, Unknown reached out toward Sa-yoon. Pressure surged. It felt like a massive hand pressing down on his body directly.
Sa-yoon resisted the pressure and gravity, spinning his body mid-fall to land a strike.
Sizzle!
The sound of flesh searing announced the hit's success. The Dirty Play perk added extra damage on top.
It was decent damage, but Unknown wasn't called a threat for nothing. Even after two hits, it was still going strong. And fast.
It was the blink of an eye. In that instant, Unknown teleported behind Sa-yoon and summoned a massive hammer to smash him.
"Gahk!"
No time to dodge. What good was SS Agility when the bastard had similar stats?
Sa-yoon, sent flying by the hammer, wobbled in midair before regaining his balance. He used Shrink Space to close the gap. Cough—blood trickled from his mouth.
Confirming heat gathering at his eyes, Sa-yoon raised his sword and sliced his own palm.
Drip, drip.
Thick blood poured out.
Two skills activated simultaneously. Both drastically lowered defense while maxing out attack and agility.
In this state, two hits from Unknown would be the end.
But if he didn't allow any attacks, he could hold out until the gate closed.
A reckless fight, but doable.
Sa-yoon wasn't one for boring challenges anyway. He bit his lip, gripped his ringing head, and moved. A faint afterimage was all that remained where he'd stood.
While Unknown was distracted by it, he circled behind and swung. The sword traced a triangle, leaving scars on its white back. Unknown threw its head back in agony and folded its body to glare at Sa-yoon.
A scythe from above.
Unknown's terror lay in never knowing when or what weapon it'd pull to strike. But to Sa-yoon now, every move was crystal clear.
Capturing the subtlest muscle twitches and hesitations, he reacted instantly to the tiniest cues, dodging as if he'd predicted it.
He evaded the scythe slashing down from above, the curse spewed from its open maw, and the stomp from its spinning body.
Unknown's brow furrowed at Sa-yoon's seamless dodges.
Then, two wings sprouted from its back.
First wing.
Sa-yoon had seen six wings total in past fights with Unknown. Each pair boosted its speed and power further.
With flight now possible, Unknown moved at a pace just a beat slower than Sa-yoon. Considering his two agility-boosting skills, it was astonishing.
Fucking strong.
If it were a proper gate boss, at least there'd be rewards after winning. But Unknown was just a glitch, offering nothing but combat XP even if killed.
"Had enough? Don't you wanna go home?"
Sa-yoon growled, swinging his sword. Slash! The sharp tip half-severed Unknown's wrist. Brutal. Even with his attack power maxed, fully lopping it off was tough.
Scythe from the right.
Sa-yoon tilted his head back to dodge, then raised his arm against the follow-up.
Boom!
Sa-yoon's sword clashed with Unknown's scythe. Sparks flew, blinding him. Then Unknown twisted its body suddenly.
Flap!
The second wing unfurled. Too early for another, Sa-yoon thought—until he realized his lapse let it rocket toward somewhere else.
"Geon-ju!"
That cowardly bastard!
Too tough to handle him, so it targeted the other guy instead.
His thoughts turned vicious. Gritting his teeth, Sa-yoon scraped together his mana and used Shrink Space. With 200% agility applied, it barely caught up to Unknown's head start.
It crossed the 10km in a flash, spotted Geon-ju in the trees, and raised its scythe. The silver lining: the pretty boy wasn't frozen dumb or terrified stiff.
But a B-rank was just a flea before Unknown. Sensing the shift, Geon-ju leaped to another tree like he was fleeing, but Unknown altered its scythe's arc and brought it down.
Geon-ju's black eyes widened round.
The white bastard's pitch-black scythe was about to cleave his face.
Clang—!
The grinding of metal on metal rang out.
"Fuck, I swear..."
Sa-yoon barely blocked Unknown's strike, then infused Dawn of Spring with Frost energy and swung.
A blizzard raged, staggering Unknown. He'd practically sacrificed his left shoulder to prioritize protecting Geon-ju, so red blood poured from it.
Any more blood loss was dangerous.
If Berserk Transformation kept going unchecked, he'd lose reason and slaughter indiscriminately. He needed healing before it went south.
Clinging to his sanity, Sa-yoon poured his remaining mana into the Frost energy.
Letting Unknown close in while he was like this would mean Geon-ju's head rolls off easy.
He could die fine.
He'd died by Unknown's hand before and confirmed he revived. But Geon-ju couldn't. One death and he was gone.
Why'd it have to show up now, of all times.
Alone, he could've handled it anytime. Even if it were another guild member with him, he'd have more freedom.
But it was Geon-ju. The situation sucked.
To avoid this mess in the future, the only answer was getting him to S-rank ASAP. Sa-yoon pressed his shoulder to staunch the bleeding and activated Formless Dagger, grappling Unknown amid the blizzard.
When the Frost energy depleted from mana exhaustion, death awaited.
This was a gamble.
Whose end came first—his mana, or the gate closing.
Leaving it to luck, he clutched his shoulder, but something pried his hand away and wrapped the wound tightly.
He turned to see Geon-ju tearing his own clothes to bandage it. The guy handled it expertly, easing the pain. Sa-yoon sheathed Dawn of Spring.
Gripping the sword with his good hand, he squeezed out the last of his mana, leaped off Unknown. Right then, Frost energy vanished from mana depletion.
Swoosh!
In the cleared blizzard space, Unknown revealed itself and drew a sword toward Geon-ju. Sa-yoon spun, targeting the wrist he'd half-sliced earlier.
The two strikes landed simultaneously.
Slash!
A chilling slice like severing flesh, and for the first time, a welcome system voice rang out.