Joker's Surrender and the Endless Night
html, body { margin:0; padding:0; } Summoner: Gold Sun 14
"Kikikik! What a shame~! Looks like I win after all~!"
The Joker spat out those words with a mad grin plastered across his face. His clown makeup was nearly wiped clean from the countless wounds covering his body.
Red blood dripped steadily onto the ground, a testament to the battle's ferocity. The gashes on his face even resembled grotesque clown markings. But Ishagal's body was in far worse shape.
Winding scars snaked across his flesh like the trails of slithering serpents. Kneeling on the ground, Ishagal had collapsed, his eyes already glassy and unfocused from utter exhaustion. His summoner, Du-sik Go, fell back on his ass in retreat.
"Hiiik! M-Monster! S-Stay back!"
"Summoner. Let's kill that one first."
"Permission denied."
The Joker raised his massive scythe high overhead. Terror-stricken Du-sik Go couldn't even flee properly.
Crackle!
The scythe cleaved Du-sik Go's body perfectly in half. He became a limp hunk of meat and breathed his last.
Yet neither the Joker, who had sliced through Du-sik Go, nor his summoner, Baek Mu-sim, showed the slightest emotional flicker. Baek Mu-sim was a psychopath and a sociopath rolled into one.
As the summoner died, Ishagal's body dissolved into light and vanished. Even then, the Joker drove his scythe into what remained of Ishagal's form before it fully faded.
"Kikikik! At least give me one more second of your suffering before you go!"
The Joker and Baek Mu-sim made a perfect pair. The Joker didn't stop swinging until Ishagal's body was completely gone. Ishagal didn't even have the strength left to scream.
"Easy. That's one retirement. Five summoners left, right?"
"And it's not even been a week yet! At this rate, this Summoner Survival might end faster than any in history."
"That'd be a shame."
'Agreed, kikikik!'
The Joker laughed like that as he swung his scythe to the left. A light projectile flying toward him bounced off the blade.
"You're the one who invited us here, aren't you?"
The Joker turned his upper body, scythe still raised, and said that. The man approaching from afar was deeply tanned a rich brown all over.
"Joker and Ishagal. Taking out two of the biggest headaches in this survival at once. I really am a genius."
As he spoke, the Joker spun his scythe and replied.
"You talk like you know me well."
"Why wouldn't I? I even know you haven't shown your real power yet."
"......Who the hell are you? A champion from a previous survival? I've never met a champion like you...."
"Doesn't matter. If you don't wanna get one-shotted, use it already. Heart's recovery ability."
At Gold Sun's words, the Joker grinned.
"Summoner. My instincts are screaming. That guy's dangerous. I'll kill him now."
"Yeah. He seems more dangerous than me. First time I've seen one like that. Are all champions like this?"
"Who knows?"
The Joker pulled a card from his pocket. The Ace of Hearts. It dissolved into pink light and absorbed into his body. The scars and wounds riddling his flesh vanished as if washed away.
"You knew about it and just let it happen? You've got some guts."
The Joker sneered.
"No need for Spades?"
"......That reaction means I do."
The Joker drew the Ace of Spades from his pocket. Its power temporarily amplified his abilities. Only for five minutes, but it more than tripled his normal strength.
"I was saving this for the final fight.... But killing you feels like it would end this survival right here."
The Spade card turned to black light and merged with the Joker.
"Good instincts."
Gold Sun answered and moved. Like a bolt of lightning, he closed the gap in the blink of an eye. But the amplified Joker reacted. Not just reacted—he swung faster than Gold Sun.
"Time Acceleration."
So Gold Sun accelerated even more. He tilted his shoulder at an angle, effortlessly dodging the Joker's scythe. The Joker pulled back the moment he realized his attack had missed.
His instincts were blaring warnings. Give that man even 0.1 seconds in his space, and he'd lose.
"It's been ages since I had a fight this thrilling!"
But the Joker wasn't intimidated by Gold Sun's power. If anything, his battle lust surged higher. Fights like this against such a powerhouse enriched his life like fine entertainment.
"Closing distance puts me at a disadvantage."
The Joker hurled the scythe he held. It spun rapidly toward Gold Sun like a circular saw blade.
Suddenly, a round portal like a hula hoop appeared in front of the straight-flying scythe. And behind Gold Sun, the other end of the portal materialized. The frontal assault turned into a rear attack in an instant.
It was the special ability of the Joker's scythe, Tears of the Mad Clown: space penetration. With this, the Joker had felled countless foes through unpredictable strikes. Of course, it wouldn't work on Gold Sun, who knew all about it.
Vmmm!
Gold Sun casually deflected Tears of the Mad Clown targeting his back with his Light Saber.
"Tch!"
The Joker made a rare comical grimace and clicked his tongue in regret.
"You think these parlor tricks can beat me?"
"Hmm...."
The Joker judged carefully. That guy reacted keenly even to this. He knew all of Joker's hidden cards. And even without that, physical victory seemed impossible. Continuing the fight here was pointless.
The Joker cleanly raised both hands.
"I surrender."
"What? For real?"
"I don't fight battles with zero chance of winning."
As the Joker replied, cracks appeared on his summoner Baek Mu-sim's face.
"Joker. That's not what we agreed."
"Ahh. Summoner. Know your place. The gap between him and me is too vast. With a monster like that around, we should forfeit this Summoner Survival."
"Tch. Is that so...?"
Gold Sun, displeased by their exchange, openly scowled.
"Hey. Who said you could decide that on your own?"
"Huh? You won't accept my surrender? Whatever. Your summoner will declare retirement himself. You'll win this survival anyway, so we won't meet again."
"That's not it. Hey, you creepy bastard over there."
Gold Sun looked at Baek Mu-sim and said.
"If you retire and that guy vanishes, you'll die in his place."
"......What does that mean?"
"Comprehension issues? Exactly what I said. If that bastard croaks, you take the fall instead."
Gold Sun smirked and continued.
"So, if you wanna live, don't retire until that bastard drops dead. Got it?"
The moment Gold Sun spoke, the Joker's body lunged toward Baek Mu-sim. To kill the summoner. Champions who slew their summoners faced heavy penalties, but it beat being humiliated by the enemy. However, Gold Sun blocked the Joker's attack himself.
"I command Gears Counter! Joker! Stop!"
Quick-witted Baek Mu-sim realized how to survive. Luckily, he'd only used one Gears Counter so far.
"Fuck! Summoner! This ain't right!"
"Weren't you just trying to kill me?"
"Tch! You gonna trust that summoner's words? If I vanish, he'll definitely kill you too!"
"Better to die later than now. I command Gears Counter! Joker! Self-harm until you die!"
"Fuuuuck!"
The Joker mustered all his mental strength to resist the Gears Counter. But defying a Gears Counter command was systemically impossible for a champion.
The hand gripping the scythe slammed mercilessly into his own body.
"Gaaahhh!"
The Joker's screams echoed across the clearing.
The Joker's body was utterly mangled. Yet thanks to his upper-tier champion stamina, he didn't die. Until the Gears Counter's power faded, he smashed his own body with the scythe over 300 times.
"Kukuku! Those two retarded fucks are putting on a damn good sitcom."
Gold Sun laughed heartily at the sight. Baek Mu-sim, with a fawning expression, pleaded toward Gold Sun.
"I did as you said.... You'll let me live, right?"
"Of course. I won't kill you."
Gold Sun turned away without looking back and added.
"But who knows what that guy thinks."
At Gold Sun's words, Baek Mu-sim replied in a trembling voice, tilting his head.
"That guy?"
Vmmm!
The Ace of Hearts card in the Joker's pocket glowed. Seeing it, Baek Mu-sim felt the terror of death.
"Guhhh.... You did well....! Summoner, tonight's gonna be a long night. Lucky you. You get to savor your last night at length...."
Unconcealed madness flickered in the Joker's eyes. Even the psychopath Baek Mu-sim instinctively backed away.
"W-Wait...! This is...!"
Moments later, a grotesque voice like the barking of hell's guard dog reverberated through the clearing.