Chapter 138
Chapter 138
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: Swarming Competitors
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“What the hell are you thinking right now?”
I had to smack my head a few times to snap out of it.
My Mask Obsession was getting worse by the minute. This place was just too stimulating for me.
Enraged mutants and cultists gunning for the free ride were charging straight at me.
But not yet. Just a few seconds of brief respite.
“Phew…”
A short deep breath. Ha, stamina my ass.
This was where things got truly chaotic. Rest when you can, as much as you can.
“Grrraaawr!!”
Ugh, break time over already? Two mutants closed in.
I pulled the shrunken skateboard from my pocket—thanks to miniaturization magic—and tossed it to the floor.
“Looks like it’s time to ride the board again.”
[Leap]
Ignoring the treasure chest I’d barely knocked down, I shot into the air. Aiming right over the heads of the mutants charging at me.
“Bzztbzztbzzt!!”
The two mutants leaped up, extending hundreds of tentacles toward me. Popularity’s a bitch. At the peak of my leap, I cast the spell.
[Fireball]
[Spell Enhancement: Deadly Poison]
Fwoosh!! Boom!!
The fireball, transformed into lethal toxic flames by spell enhancement, erupted in pitch-black fire.
Sizzle… fizzle…
“Keeaaargh! Keeaaargh!!”
The monster thrashed to shake off the clinging poison flames, but it couldn’t. The toxic fire writhed like a living thing, searing with demonic fury.
Oh, and…
“Outta my way, asshole!”
[Hardening]
[Protection Circle]
Crack!
I stomped on the head of a mutant in an awkward spot with my skateboard.
“Kraang!”
The monster shot out tentacles to wrap around me, but my spell fired first.
[Inferno Blaze]
Kabuuum!!
A vivid shockwave ripped through the air, followed by a blinding pillar of flame.
Thoroughness is the virtue of the veteran. I pulled that shockwave toward me to launch myself further.
Leaping again, I spread out my detection sense to scan everywhere.
The double fireball barrage had stirred up the mutants inside the hall with its roar and flashy lights, but what could they do?
More importantly, the poison-laced flames were starting to produce the side effect I wanted.
Fwoosh!
The dozens of curtains I’d dropped earlier.
Now they caught the toxic black flames, spreading across the entire venue. They looked expensive at a glance, but cheap crap after all? They burned fiercer than I’d hoped, belching toxic smoke.
“Tsk tsk tsk. Sloppy prep means ignoring fire safety regs.”
By fire safety law, curtains in cultural venues, assembly halls, religious sites, and sports facilities must be flame-retardant.
“Argh! The fire’s too intense!”
“Cough cough! Can’t see shit!”
Yeah, that’s it. Good job.
The raging blaze naturally isolated the stragglers in the back—most of the mutants and cultists.
Sure, some had gotten close already, and the fire wouldn’t stop the determined ones. But the key was I didn’t have to tangle with hundreds at once anymore.
“Alright, sticking to the plan so far.”
Marked the spots, collapsed the pillar, dropped the treasure chest, drew the cultists’ attention, set the fire.
Next up…
‘Check the treasure chest’s status.’
Right on cue, a few eager cultists had circled the edge of the hall and reached the chest.
Nimble bastards. Mobility powers?
“Got it! It’s mine!”
“No, mine!”
Can’t let that happen.
[Grasp of the Dead]
Grroowl!
Dozens of gray arms erupted from the floor, lifting the fallen treasure chest.
“Whaaat!?”
One cultist who’d gotten too close screamed and staggered back.
‘Would love to pop the lid and grab the mask right now.’
But more cultists were clinging on.
To shake them off—and confirm the chest’s status as planned—I cast the spell.
[Spectral Explosion]
[Spell Reinforcement: Maximization]
Booom!!
A flashy blast.
The shockwave alone blew away every cultist clustered around the chest.
“But as expected, not a scratch on the chest.”
Just moments ago, the same spell had toppled that massive pillar in one go. Even maxed out with reinforcement.
‘The chest’s settings are intact, huh.’
No idea how they implemented it here, but that thing was an indestructible object.
No HP or durability stats at all.
Not targetable, so no matter what you do, it won’t break.
“We cannot open it yet! And such crude methods won’t destroy it! This is all part of the ritual! To awaken the perfect artifact that will evolve you all! We need more sacrifices! More blood!”
Dokgo Gyeom spat the exact same lines from the game.
Right, sacrifices. The mask was sealed.
That’s probably why all these sects agreed to sacrifice their own disciples—to unseal that chest.
“Your sacrifices are not in vain. Spill more blood! Through that blood, the mask shall open its eyes!”
‘Worst case, just grab the whole chest and run.’
Considering the other crap I’ve pulled in this world, there’s probably a magical way to unseal it.
But no time now.
“What’re you mumbling about!!”
An unknown cultist with a massive scythe charged in. God, I’m exhausted. Oh, right. Time you felt the pain of low stamina too.
[Exhausting Shackles]
Clank! Grind!
Glowing crimson runes and mana lines formed ornate shackles that wrapped his limbs.
“Uuuugh…”
The cultist collapsed, too drained to even hold his scythe. Ten minutes of attack immunity—my mental power times ten.
Good, chest check done.
What’s next on the schedule?
“Surround him!”
“Block his paths!”
Dozens of masks encircled me. Masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks, masks.
Everywhere I looked was masks.
Unexpected thrill surging.
My body shuddered convulsively. Left hand twitching, nape prickling, jaw clenching, eyes twitching, heart racing.
Sudden adrenaline and dopamine spike. Vision expanding, senses sharpening.
At this point, I could die happy—no, what am I thinking! Snap out of it!
Plans be damned, one hit and I’m dead!
My body’s loaded with brutal penalty traits.
[Reduced Stamina], [Increased Damage Taken], [Higher Injury Chance], [Weak in Close Combat].
Shaking off the daze, I addressed the masks—no, the cultists—surrounding me.
“Ungrateful bastards. I bust the pillar, clear out a bunch of mutants, and now you surround me?”
“Looks like nobody here can take you one-on-one.”
“Hehehe, if there’s an overwhelming frontrunner, you take them out first. Basic strategy, right?”
Forget the nameless scrubs. They had fancy titles like direct disciples, heirs, geniuses, whatever, but mass-produced cultists at best.
Most sects sent them out with grand labels just to use as ritual fodder today.
Of course, some sects sent real contenders gunning for first place—and the prize.
“You, y-y-you, you!”
Yeah, guys like that one.
“You little shit, you’re pretty tough, huh?”
Crescent Moon Society’s beak mask.
I ignored him, enchanting my skateboard and leaping sideways.
Craaack!!
A massive ice pillar erupted where I’d stood. Wolf mask with water buffalo horns on his drum, dancing weirdly.
“You dodged that?!”
If I hadn’t jumped, it would’ve skewered me.
“Didn’t expect someone this strong from Paju!”
Lace mask.
“Must have some ultimate secret technique passed down the generations?”
“Told you, never underestimate the Judge of the Hungry Manor.”
Slipping in under Heo Ju’s name had skyrocketed Heo Ju’s rep.
“Nothing like that, idiots.”
Vrooom!
Crap, a siege ram—no, a massive spear—hurtling toward my landing spot.
Re-leap! No, not enough time.
[Hardening]
[Fireball]
Boom!!
Used the fireball’s blast to forcibly redirect in midair.
Pulling off physics-defying maneuvers like this needs solid core muscles. Which I lack.
“Urgh… damn, my spine’s gonna snap.”
“Wonder what he ate to get that strong. Think I’d power up if I ate him?”
“I’ll cook up those thighs nice and proper for you.”
Monster hunter in boar mask craving my meat, and iron mask cannibal chef.
Looks like the hunter threw that spear. The chef, dual-wielding cleavers, clung to the hunter’s shoulder.
“No wonder I keep getting forced into penalty matches lately.”
How many is that? Damn, over thirty already.
“Take this!”
“Uwaaah!”
Low-level cultists charging fearlessly. Scram!
[Gale Wind]
Whoooosh!!!
“Uwaaaah!”
“Guh, can’t get close!”
Flicked a few away, and the scrubs now just encircled me at a distance, not approaching.
“Amateurs! Outta the way!”
Another ram-like spear incoming.
Boom!!
I’d sensed the mana flow ahead of time, so I moved a beat faster than the spear.
[Leap]
‘Hmm, what level should I cap at to seem impressively skilled without overdoing it like a top-tier Heo Sanghyeon?’
Wanna blast them all, but restraint is key.
Go all-out, and I’d have to fight those judges in the gallery above. No escaping unscathed then.
So, fight only at “capable Heo Sanghyeon” level. Threats right now are that big lug and…
“You let your guard down!”
Ta!
The cannibal chef hidden behind the three-meter-tall monster hunter’s back sprang out. Twin cleavers spinning stylishly.
“Who’s letting their guard down?”
Right hand gathered the grudge of today’s dead and smashed him.
[Spirit Strike]
Rumble!!
“Kaaargh!”
Left hand…
[Magnetism Control]
Second-circle magnetism manipulation spell. Artificially generated magnetic force yanked a metal object.
Vroooom!
Beyond the wall of cultists, I spotted someone prepping a big spell. Water buffalo horn drum, bizarre dance. Wolf mask shaman.
“Wanderer of the Winds! Bestow upon my foe the trial of bitter cold with your breath!”
Busy drumming and dancing solo, that guy.
“Hey, don’t cast that!”
“Hahaha! Think a shout stops the coming winter—aaagh!”
Boom!
My magnetism spell dragged a metal object from afar—the treasure chest containing the mask—smashing into the wolf mask.
Wolf mask spewing blood as he flew. Nice.
“Wh-what!?”
“What? You wanted this, right?”
I pumped more mana into the magnetism, swinging the chest around wildly.
Boom boom boom! Crash crash!
Cultists flying like bowling pins. How do people fly like that? Physics engine glitched.
Vrooooom!!
Treasure chest orbiting me at insane speed.
One dumb cultist punched it with mana-charged fist, but bounced back with equal force. Ridiculous.
World as half-assed as the game it came from.
Anyway, bought some breathing room.
[Heavenly Eye]
Sent part of my vision and mind outside the hall. Two completely different scenes appeared. One was obviously here with my body, the other…
“Huh? Where are we? What the hell, how far did they drag us? Ah, because of the fixer? Damn, unavoidable. Can you move? Alright. Good. That’s manageable.”
No, this has nothing to do with madness symptoms. Just chatting with my teammate outside via Heavenly Eye.
But to the cultists around me, it looked like…
“Th-that guy, hearing voices?”
“Shit, no wonder he’s strong—he’s totally fucking insane!”
Yeah, yap away. Verbal insults are fleeting shame. Ignoring their bullshit, I kept talking.
“I’ll buy more time, so hustle as fast as you can. Got it. Signal detected?”
Good. Plan’s a bit off-schedule, but now it’s the final phase.