Chapter 49
I’m translating the chapter into polished HTML now, preserving all system messages in styled blocks and keeping the title line exact.CHAPTER_TITLE: Chapter 49
Jin Cheon.
The current chairman of the Taesung Group, and a former superhuman.
He had once worked under the Taesung Group as an A-class superhuman, and after that, he had inherited the family business and taken the chairman’s seat.
Maybe because he had spent time active as a superhuman, he was a man who pushed the company forward with a notably aggressive edge in commercial ventures involving superhumans, advertising, and the like.
And if you listed the things he had accomplished, they all led to one conclusion.
A man without defeat.
Golden hands. Everything he touched succeeded without exception.
A remarkable figure whose charisma and ability could seize a room the moment he entered it.
That was Jin Cheon in the public eye.
“...It’s been a while.”
And he was no different in my eyes.
“Ten years, was it?”
“Yes.”
“I heard you became a superhuman. Congratulations.”
“...Thank you.”
Ten years. Yes, that sounded about right. I hadn’t seen Chairman Jin since the day my parents died. Before that, I supposed I had seen him from time to time.
The only thing I was curious about right then was this.
“Chairman, how did you...?”
How had he come here?
As soon as I asked it, he answered,
“I was concerned about the Rift, and my daughter happened to say she was coming, so I came along.”
“...”
At that, I glanced to the side. Jin Yeonhui was wearing an expression so blank it was hard to tell what she was thinking. No—blank wasn’t quite right.
She looks a little angry.
Judging by her eyes, that seemed to be the case.
“Ahem...”
And perhaps because of that, Jin Cheon let out a dry cough.
“The first reason is more significant than the second.”
It sounded a little like an excuse. I didn’t point that out.
“Anyway... thanks for coming. It must have been a long trip.”
“Not at all. I’m just grateful that Jinyeon... no, Yeonhui asked me to come.”
I’d deliberately said it naturally so he wouldn’t think we were too distant if I used her surname.
“Yeonhui...?”
At that, Jin Cheon reacted with visible discomfort. What was that? Had I done something wrong?
“No. Jin Yeon-”
“Where do we go?”
Jin Yeonhui cut me off and stepped in.
“The Rift. Where is it?”
“...Inside.”
“Let’s go.”
She passed Jin Cheon and prepared to head in. Then she seized my wrist and pulled me along.
“Oh.”
“Hurry up.”
As if I needed to be kept away from Jin Cheon, she strode ahead of me.
“...Well, now.”
Seeing that, Jin Cheon let out a low sigh.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“The mana transference rate is...!”
“Watch the pressure...! Check the power properly, I said...!”
Once I entered the interior through Jin Yeonhui, there were even more people around. Researchers crowded the area, hurrying about with unknown machines they’d brought in.
...This is interesting.
It was my first time seeing a Rift, but was this how companies dealt with them?
“Ah.”
The researchers, who had been moving briskly, noticed us and reacted.
“The superhumans are here.”
At that, all eyes turned our way.
“The Rift,”
Jin Yeonhui said as though it were all perfectly familiar to her. At her words, one of the researchers brought over several documents.
“The entry preparations are complete. We can’t determine the internal conditions, but they say it isn’t much different from the information we obtained last time.”
“...Hmm.”
While looking through the papers, Jin Yeonhui suddenly tore off one page and handed it to me.
“What’s this?”
“A contract.”
“A contract?”
“It’s better to sign it before going in.”
At her words, I looked over the page. There were more unfamiliar words than I could count. The only part that was at least understandable was this:
...I’m the second party, and Taesung Group is the first. I’m being hired to resolve the Rift.
The compensation from inside would be split eighty-twenty, with the second party taking eight and the first party taking two.
Eighty-twenty, huh.
I had no idea if that was a fair ratio.
“Eighty-twenty is actually pretty generous. If you’re new, they sometimes drag it down to fifty-fifty.”
“...Oh, really?”
“There are examples of other contracts right next to it, so take a look.”
“Uh... thanks.”
Sure enough, the other contracts showed splits like fifty-fifty and even forty-sixty.
“If you get injured while clearing it, the company will cover the medical costs. The same goes for other issues.”
“...”
The mention of treatment brought a subtle tension into the air.
This is the biggest difference.
If someone asked what the difference was between a normal gate and a Rift, it was precisely this.
If you fail a gate, the contamination rate just goes up.
Unless it was a death penalty gate, dying inside a gate wasn’t all that different from ordinary death.
But Rifts are different.
Rifts required direct entry into another space to resolve them, and here...
You really get hurt, and you really die.
This was not something to take lightly.
That thought stirred up a knot of tension in my chest, but before I could say anything, Jin Yeonhui spoke first.
“...If you think it’s going to be a problem, you can still reconsider.”
Before her words had even fully settled, I signed the contract with the pen.
“It’s fine.”
I should at least try this.
If I was going to live as a superhuman...
I needed experience.
“...”
Jin Yeonhui fell silent. She took the contract, then handed it quietly to the researcher.
“Here.”
“Understood. Will you be entering immediately?”
“I’ll go in.”
Jin Yeonhui walked forward. I followed her.
As we entered the interior, something came into view beyond the machinery.
There it is.
There was a clear distortion in the air, a warped trace hanging in empty space. That was the Rift. I knew it the moment I saw it.
[■ The Rift has been detected.]
[■ Rift (S): Do-seong’s Victory Wall.]
[■ This is a cursed Rift.]
[■ You cannot use Authority.]
[■ The entry limit is two people.]
The Rift’s description appeared before my eyes. Reading it, I frowned.
“An S-class Rift?”
I’d already guessed I needed Jin Yeonhui’s help to break the wall, but even so—
“Isn’t the rank too high...?”
I knew minor Rifts usually weren’t that hard. But S-class? At that point, it was a national-level Rift.
Two people can enter?
There was something off about this.
A cursed Rift. Authority disabled. The listed problems were annoying enough on their own.
It’s an S-class gate... but I can’t use Authority.
At that point, I thought I understood why Jin Yeonhui had come looking for me.
An S-class where Authority can’t be used.
Among the superhumans employed by the company, there wasn’t anyone especially suited to a single decisive strike.
So that was why they had called me.
That makes sense, more or less.
It was understandable.
“Let’s go.”
Jin Yeonhui reached for the Rift. At that moment, she seized my wrist again.
[■ Entering the Rift.]
The System appeared, and my vision changed at once.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
A white light poured down. I shielded my eyes for a moment from the intense glare.
“We’re here.”
At Jin Yeonhui’s words, I opened my eyes again.
There it was.
Rrrrrrrrummble.
A massive wall stood before us.
“...This is.”
A real wall. And unbelievably tall, too?
“This is...?”
“We have to break it.”
“This?”
“Yes.”
[■ You have entered the Rift (S): Do-seong’s Victory Wall.]
[■ Entry count: 1/3]
[■ Break the Victory Wall and then defeat the boss inside.]
[■ This is a cursed Rift.]
[■ You cannot use Authority.]
[■ Maximum entry count reached.]
[■ The gate may be abandoned prematurely.]
Premature abandonment.
I focused on that last line.
First, break the wall. Then...
There’s a boss inside this wall.
So that was the clear condition of the Rift.
I carefully reached out and touched the wall.
Wooooooong.
“...”
The sensation was strange.
“If we just need to break it, wouldn’t it be enough to just break it?”
Did they really need me at all? Just as that thought rose—and fast—
KURURURUNG--!!!
A thunderous roar rolled out from Jin Yeonhui’s body. At some point, she had drawn a sword made of lightning.
“Move.”
At her warning, I stepped back.
KWADDDDDDDDEUK---!!!!!
Lightning poured down from the sky. Blinding light flashed as it bored through the wall in its entirety.
KWAGAGAK. KWAGAGAGAK--!!!!
For an instant, it looked as if the wall would collapse completely.
But then—
Patapatak.
“...What?”
The wall regenerated itself. The fragments that had fallen to the ground vanished as if they had been nothing more than an illusion.
The wall that had almost collapsed returned to its original form, as though nothing had ever happened.
“This...”
“If the wall isn’t destroyed in one blow, it has no meaning.”
“You mean it regenerates?”
Jin Yeonhui nodded and continued her explanation.
“The vanguard who entered first gathered information. It looks like the wall regenerates, so it has to be destroyed all at once.”
“...The vanguard, huh.”
I’d seen earlier that the Rift’s entry count only had one remaining.
So the people who had gone in first were the ones gathering information.
“Hmm...”
Smashing that wall in one shot, huh.
Can I really do it?
“You can.”
“Why are you so sure?”
“Because not even most A-class superhumans, much less S-class ones, can use a single-strike technique as powerfully as you, Jinwoo.”
“...That’s an uncomfortably confident answer.”
Was the Heavenly Demon’s First Slash really that strong? Well, it probably was. One shot had left my body in that kind of state, after all.
“I’ll try it first.”
I tightened my grip on my wrist.
Whoooong. My bracelet transformed, and the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword appeared.
Jin Yeonhui reacted oddly when she saw it, but...
[The Heavenly Demon Divine Sword has activated.]
I ignored it and prepared my attack first. If I just broke the wall like this, wouldn’t that be enough? On the surface, it looked simple.
Even if the Rift’s difficulty was absurd, that still worried me a little.
I felt this in the labyrinth too...
If I put the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword aside, I should be able to use the Martial God’s power. If I used that, maybe I wouldn’t die?
That thought gave me a little relief, as if some contingency had been built in.
[■ Duration is 15 seconds.]
Fwoosh. The navy flames I had grown familiar with seeped into the blade.
Whatever the situation was, I needed to do what I came here to do.
Here goes.
Using the strength surging through my body, I swung the sword.
[Heavenly Demon’s First Slash]
The single-strike technique unleashed through the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword slammed straight into the wall.
KWAaaaaaaaaaang---!!!!!
An ear-splitting roar exploded. Fragments scattered in every direction, and the ground shook violently beneath us.
The wall caved in. The ruined surface opened into a thick, vertical hole.
Did it work?
Just as the question surfaced—
[■ Victory Wall has collapsed.]
The notification appeared. It seemed I had successfully brought the wall down.
...Oh.
So it did work. Just as I was thinking how incredible the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword’s power was—
[■ Understanding of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword has increased.]
[■ Duration has increased.]
[■ Duration: 15 seconds → 30 seconds.]
[■ Use of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword has ended.]
[■ Remaining duration: 19 seconds.]
[■ A new Heavenly Demon Divine Sword skill has appeared.]
[■ Heavenly Demon Divine Art (SS) has been strengthened.]
[■ Heavenly Demon Divine Steps has been created.]
[■ Heavenly Demon Divine Steps have fused with Presence Manifestation (S).]
[■ Heavenly Demon Divine Steps have evolved into Heavenly Demon Ruling Steps.]
“Oh...”
I paused.
Not only had a new skill appeared, but the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword’s duration had also increased. Was that why?
[■ Heavenly Demon Divine Art has been strengthened, reducing the recoil on the body.]
Tingling.
The muscle pain that had felt like it might tear my whole body apart had softened to a bearable level. No—it still hurt, but at this point it was manageable.
And Heavenly Demon Ruling Steps, too.
What kind of skill was that? I was just about to sneak a look at the explanation when—
“...Jinwoo.”
Jin Yeonhui’s voice reached me.
“Hm?”
“In front of you.”
At her words, I turned my head. The shattered Victory Wall was slowly disappearing. That much made sense for a wall.
But far beyond it...
That is...
Something was there.
[■ The Victory Wall is disappearing.]
[■ Greet Do-seong, who has been sealed inside the wall.]
Gugugugugu.
Nothing could be seen beyond the wall. It looked like ordinary ground at first glance, but if you looked closely, it was filled with water.
Drip.
A shallow lake. Something began to rise from its surface.
[■ Do-seong (S)]
It took the shape of a human.
Hair tied tightly back, eyes gleaming wetly.
And the blunt object it held was...
A sword?
Not quite a sword. More like a knife.
The figure gripping it looked straight at us, and then—
[Ah...]
With a dry, withered voice,
[...You were truly slow.]
[■ You have encountered Do-seong, a martial man who has cast off his lingering regret.]
[Survive.]