Chapter 57
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: S-Rank Gate (4)
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Seo Do-kyung gritted his teeth as he watched the Destroyer roar as if venting its rage upon the entire world.
The special mana bomb hadn't killed it as expected, but fortunately, it seemed to have inflicted considerable damage.
'If we're going to take it down, it has to be now.'
If they failed to capture the Destroyer here, the worst villain in history might be born.
At that moment, Na Seo-ha, who had kept pace with her flight skill, gazed at the Destroyer with an expression of admiration and spoke up.
"To survive even a special mana bomb... what kind of body is that?"
"We have to deal with it somehow now."
"I know. The Destroyer has caught on to our betrayal, so we have to see this through to the end."
With that, the Destroyer's wrathful gaze turned toward them.
Seo Do-kyung felt a chill the instant their eyes met, but he didn't halt his advance.
'I hope the Destroyer's abilities have dropped by at least half.'
If not, charging in now would be as good as suicide.
But hesitation was just as dangerous, so Seo Do-kyung steeled his resolve.
"More than that, Seo Do-kyung. You need to strike first."
At Na Seo-ha's continued words, Seo Do-kyung nodded silently.
The four S-rank heroes here knew each other's abilities to a certain degree.
The issue was that Seo Do-kyung was the only one among them who could clash at full power from the outset, so Na Seo-ha was confirming it.
"Buy as much time as you can."
Seo Do-kyung grasped her meaning and promised to hold it off as long as possible.
The other three needed a brief moment to prepare, so he had to take the lead until then.
"It's coming!"
In the midst of their short exchange, an A-rank hero shouted.
With that cry, the Destroyer hurtled forward at a speed that defied belief.
'No, it's not just running...'
It was practically launched like a missile.
Despite the distance of at least 2 or 3 kilometers, it closed in to point-blank range in mere seconds.
"Grab its legs!"
Seo Do-kyung ordered the A-rank hero to intercept as he summoned all his mana.
Thunder God Spear
Lightning mana assimilation | Supersonic projectile | Overload risk
Pachichik!—
Seo Do-kyung, having awakened his lightning attribute, drew forth powerful electricity merely by manifesting his mana.
He poured all his mana into the new spear he'd borrowed from the Hero Association, then unleashed his ultimate technique.
"Thunder God Spear."
He temporarily formed mana veins within the spear, assimilating it with his body.
Once fused, he spun the twelve mana veins in opposing directions.
Wooong!—
The spear became cloaked in lightning mana, glowing yellow.
Its form vanished in a flash, and Seo Do-kyung seized the light—no, the lightning—and hurled it straight at the Destroyer.
Paaat!—
The spear didn't quite match the speed of light, but it far exceeded the sound barrier.
But.
Kwaaang!—
The Destroyer swatted aside Seo Do-kyung's spear, hurled at tremendous velocity, as if brushing off a fly.
Seo Do-kyung's eyes widened at the sight of his ultimate technique so casually deflected.
"Seo Do-kyung!"
An A-rank hero swiftly moved to block his path, deploying a barrier to protect him.
"Don't block it!"
Having already felt the Destroyer's power, Seo Do-kyung shouted at the hero raising the shield, but it was too late.
Kukwaaaang!!—
A-Rank Hero obliterated
The Destroyer's unrelenting fist pulverized the A-rank hero's barrier along with his upper body.
At the same time, Seo Do-kyung leaped aside just as blood, flesh, bones, and organs erupted, narrowly avoiding the blast.
'Kuh.'
Even though he'd dodged the moment the Destroyer swung, a ferocious wind still battered his entire body.
'Are the others not ready yet?'
Only a few seconds had passed since he'd engaged the Destroyer.
Yet under extreme tension and after expending full power, it felt like minutes.
"...Thus, I desire it. The ultimate chill that can freeze even the mightiest foe!"
⟨ Absolute Freeze ⟩
In the meantime, the grand mage Na Seo-ha completed her spell.
As she pointed at the Destroyer, an icy aura enveloped its body.
Using a targeted spell rather than a projectile already showcased her skill, but her opponent was unfortunate this time.
Kwaaaang!!—
Ignoring its frozen body, the Destroyer charged and dispatched the rushing A-rank hero.
Na Seo-ha's magic was impressive, but it wasn't enough to fully freeze the transcendent Destroyer's physique.
"It's useless?"
Na Seo-ha muttered in disbelief, but nothing changed.
The A-rank heroes charging to block it merely perished like moths to a flame.
"Th-this is insane!"
"I don't want to die yet!"
"They didn't say it'd be like this!"
As 7 or 8 A-rank heroes fell in an instant, the survivors' morale crumbled.
Their bodies shattered the moment they approached, without even a chance to defend—naturally so.
"Don't run! You're members of the Hero Association!"
"Screw the Hero Association—this is just dying like dogs!"
With those words, the A-rank heroes scattered in all directions.
Seo Do-kyung couldn't move amid the chaos because the Destroyer was coming for him.
'Damn it.'
Resigned to death, Seo Do-kyung decided to at least attempt something daring.
Wooong!—
He applied Thunder God Spear not to his spear, but directly to his right arm.
Normally, this would cause his body to explode from overload, but he ignored the risk.
'Death.'
The Destroyer's fist—that is, death itself—approached.
In that split second, Seo Do-kyung stared at the incoming fist and thrust out his own.
'Huh...?'
His arm burst from the spinning mana veins, but the compressed lightning mana shot forth like the spear he'd thrown earlier.
The moment he confirmed the result of this untested overload attack, improvements flashed through his mind.
Kwaaaang!!—
Direct hit landed | Head decapitated
Of course, that thought was his last as the Destroyer's fist severed his consciousness.
His counterattack succeeded in landing a blow, but at the cost of his head.
"Seo Do-kyung!"
Im Yeo-sol cried out to the headless Seo Do-kyung and unleashed her prepared attack.
"Ghost Gate: Open."
Physical attacks had already proven useless against the Destroyer.
Thus, Im Yeo-sol manipulated the ghost soldier summoned behind her to open the Ghost Gate.
Kwang!—
The 3-meter ghost soldier in black armor slammed its massive cleaver into the ground.
The earth turned black, and a sinister energy rapidly permeated the surroundings.
"Evil Spirits: Liberate."
⟨ Curse Swarm ⟩
With simple preparations complete, Im Yeo-sol summoned the evil spirits.
From the blackened ground, grotesque, twisted spirits emerged and swarmed the Destroyer.
Each one latched on, unleashing various curses to weaken it.
But Im Yeo-sol's assault fared no better than Na Seo-ha's freeze.
Kwaaang!—
Upper body vaporized | Summons dispelled
Ignoring the spirits, the Destroyer punched, obliterating Im Yeo-sol's upper body.
With her instant death, the ghost soldier, evil spirits, and blackened earth all reverted to normal.
"...I shouldn't have stepped up."
Na Seo-ha, sensing her own fate, muttered as much.
Of course, she had no intention of dying quietly, so she drew all the dagger artifacts from her possession and hurled them.
"Awaken. Power of the artifacts."
Semitransparent humanoid figures emerged from the flung daggers, grasping them as weapons.
This was Na Seo-ha's unique technique, blending her innate ability, skill stone, and magic.
"Go."
It drew out the artifacts' inherent power—the stronger the artifact, the greater the force.
Thus, she carried only A-rank or higher for such moments.
Kwang!— Kwa-kwang!—
Even so, it fell short of stopping the Destroyer.
And since it channeled the artifacts' power, striking the figures destroyed the items themselves.
'Can't even buy time.'
Na Seo-ha thought as she watched her summon, which freely wielded the artifacts' abilities, vanish futilely.
"Kang Ju-young! How much longer?"
She turned and yelled at Kang Ju-young, the last S-rank hero remaining besides herself.
Kang Ju-young had witnessed the A-rank heroes, Seo Do-kyung, and Im Yeo-sol fall, yet hadn't intervened lightly.
"It's only at five layers now. This won't be enough to win."
Thanks to her innate ability, Kang Ju-young could stack mana within her body.
Her Qi Accumulation technique dramatically boosted her physical prowess with each layer.
"Isn't five layers sufficient?"
But Kang Ju-young shook her head.
She usually capped at 2 or 3 layers, but against the Destroyer, it seemed futile.
"I need at least eight."
For reference, she'd severed a dragon's wing joint at eight layers.
She figured the Destroyer wouldn't take so much as a nick without it.
But the Destroyer charged next at Na Seo-ha and Kang Ju-young.
"......"
With no choice, Kang Ju-young confronted it at five layers.
Pat—
Her enhanced physical abilities at five layers granted over double her normal speed.
Yet the Destroyer followed effortlessly, as if it weren't enough.
Kwang!—
Kang Ju-young swung her sword in haste, but the Destroyer blocked with one arm and counterattacked with the other.
"Kuh."
Even without blinking, she saw the fist close in instantly.
She arched her waist back to dodge the head-sized fist, but the Destroyer spread its hand and seized her head.
'I'm done...'
Kwaaang!—
Head smashed into ground
The Destroyer slammed Kang Ju-young's head into the ground, bursting it open.
Na Seo-ha let out a hollow laugh upon seeing three S-rank heroes fall in succession.
"Ha."
A torrent of thoughts raced through Na Seo-ha's mind.
I shouldn't have come.
We weren't prepared.
I should have run too.
I knew too little about the Destroyer.
Regrets from the past flooded in.
What would become of the Hero Association now?
Was there anyone left who could stop the Destroyer?
Would my Compass Guild suffer as well?
Kwaaang!—
Final S-Rank Hero falls
Amid those thoughts, Na Seo-ha's consciousness faded under the Destroyer's fist, just like the others.