Chapter 100
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 100
Chapter Title: World Point (1)
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The slime bubbled and boiled until it turned red.
Feisty little thing.
[Idiot.]
“Hey, that slime just called you an idiot.”
“What are you talking about? How can a slime talk?”
[Not her, you.]
Why me? How absurd! Seriously.
It was a baffling situation, but this was no ordinary slime.
‘A descent? A demigod?’
One thing was for sure, it wasn't a vessel for possession.
What kind of foolish god would descend into a slime?
And how did that god even communicate with the slime in the first place?
“Do not interfere!”
The enraged Duke Failia planted both hands on the ground.
Liz had transformed into a giant cocoon, her original form barely recognizable.
A black tree grew behind the cocoon.
The endlessly growing tree took on a shape as if protecting Liz.
“This is dangerous. More importantly, no matter how you look at it, this isn't the difficulty level of the 11th floor.”
I scratched my head, which was a mess of blood.
Normally, the 11th floor should have been cleared the moment Liz was defeated.
Lee Eun-hee looked at the large cocoon at the base of the tree and asked.
“You know something about that, don't you?”
“I do.”
“What is that? If it revives, is a monster going to pop out?”
“Nope.”
I tore a piece of my clothing and tied it tightly around the hilt of my sword.
A monster popping out? No, it's not like that.
“It summons a monster.”
“Summons a monster?”
“Yeah. I don't know what kind of monster it will summon. It's like a lottery ticket, I guess? Ah, but I can tell you one thing.”
“What is it?”
“It's a lottery ticket with no losing draws. A pretty great lottery, right?”
“So that means…”
“Whatever comes out, once it's here, you'll die.”
Lee Eun-hee gripped her bow, her expression soon turning to one of incomprehension.
“Why only me?”
“If I'm alone, I might be able to escape if I'm lucky.”
[Trash.]
Being called trash by a slime… that’s a new feeling.
Lee Eun-hee stared at the sword in my hand.
“Idiot.”
There was no way I wouldn't know how contradictory my own words were.
“I said I can only escape alone if I'm lucky. If we're even luckier, we can destroy that thing before it summons a monster, and we can both survive.”
“Give up.”
Duke Failia had already transformed into a giant tree.
Rotten from its roots to its trunk, it looked like a cursed tree.
“I'm out of mana and potions. You said you could escape alone if you're lucky, right? Then run away by yourself! It's better than being reckless without a plan!”
“Who said I don't have a plan?”
“Then what do you want me to do! I, I…”
Lee Eun-hee's eyes welled up.
She looked like she would burst into tears the moment she let her guard down.
“I just told you, this isn't the difficulty of the 11th floor.”
“So what!”
“Like I said, they cheated. So they can't complain if we cheat a little too, right?”
The slime, which had approached me at some point, returned to its original color and bounced.
“What help can a slime be?”
“Kukuk, she's right. You useless slime.”
I pointed at the slime and burst out laughing.
It started to boil inside again.
Such a hot-headed slime, wearing its heart on its sleeve.
[Your fault.]
“How absurd. I'm just doing what needs to be done. Why is it my fault?”
[You know.]
“I don't.”
[This is a World Point.]
There was something I'd been curious about ever since I took over the Tower.
The Tower, in the end, was a process.
No matter how similar the purpose, the process could never be entirely the same.
Take Liz, for example. If another challenger entered, wouldn't an identical being be created again?
I thought I might have found a piece of the answer.
Different stories existing on the same timeline—that was a World Point.
[That's definitely cheating.]
“Right?”
“Hey, can you talk to slimes?”
Lee Eun-hee looked at me with curiosity.
“This one can talk.”
“What? Why can't I hear it?”
“Is it because you think you can't? Have you ever tried?”
[I have no desire to talk to her. Stop it.]
“Alright, alright.”
[Just this once.]
The slime began to grow in size.
It swelled up as if it would burst at any moment.
A large mouth opened and swallowed me and Lee Eun-hee in one gulp.
“Hey! What are you doing, eating us!”
“Agh! Mooooom! I can't swi—huh? My wounds…”
[Idiots.]
The slime that had swallowed us popped.
I landed on the ground, coming down.
The splattered liquids of the slime flew onto the tree.
The spots hit by the liquid burned away as if doused with holy water.
“Kuaaaargh! Do not interfere! You—you do not have the right to do this!!”
[The energy of the god Soter blesses you.]
[A 7th-tier blessing has been activated.]
Seems like we skipped a few steps.
Is this how it's supposed to work?
But that wasn't important right now.
A tree root shot up at my feet.
“Cover the rear!”
“W-Wait!! What am I supposed to do alone!”
“I did it once, I helped you twice, so the third time, do it yourself!”
I executed the forms of the Baekgeum Sword and sliced through the roots flying at me from all directions.
To attack Gross, I first had to take down this tree completely.
‘Can I do it?’
[Pfft, with that?]
The slime, now shrunk to the size of a finger, popped out of my pocket.
When did this little bastard get in here?
“Then what am I supposed to do! I have no other choice!”
I'd lost all my strength running from Lachesis.
Right now, I was at less than a quarter of my power. Still, all I could do was my best.
[You won't make it.]
Way to rain on my parade.
[Yup.]
“Hey!!”
[You, move.]
“Wait…”
The slime that had climbed onto my shoulder vanished, seeping into me.
‘What kind of power is this…!!’
I tried to push out the creature invading my body, but it was useless.
It felt like facing the ocean, an endless sky.
The fortunate thing was that the sky was incredibly clear and blue.
Warm sunlight poured down, as if the vast sky had no intention of harming me.
‘Damn it.’
I understood the intention, but it didn't feel good.
And aside from that, it felt incredibly familiar.
I felt like I had experienced this sensation before.
I gently clenched my fist and looked up at the vast sky.
* * *
[Just a little. You bastard.]
“I said I know.”
Kang Han-gyeol, holding the Sky Sword, ran through the tangled mess of tree roots.
Kang Han-gyeol raised his sword.
Baekgeum Sword.
He landed on a swaying root and took his stance.
Thousands of blades poured down on the giant tree.
Each and every attack had its own distinct form.
If there were a hundred attacks, all hundred were different.
Kang Han-gyeol walked forward step by step, sword in hand.
“No way.”
Lee Eun-hee couldn't believe her eyes.
She knew that Han-gyeol's aura had changed strangely.
He was just walking with his sword, yet the approaching roots were being cut down by something unseen, falling in droves.
Kang Han-gyeol was clearly cutting down the incoming attacks.
Her eyes and mind couldn't keep up, and all she could do was stare blankly.
“Are you interfering! O, Librarian!!”
“I'm just doing what needs to be done.”
“You are not the true master of this world!!”
“I am for now.”
“How long do you think you can hold that position!”
A black roar erupted from the tree and engulfed Han-gyeol.
The remaining castles from the earlier attack all crumbled.
Kang Han-gyeol emerged.
He seemed a little taller, and his face and aura had changed.
“Is that really him?”
Lee Eun-hee had good eyes.
Her eyesight had been excellent even before entering the Tower, and after obtaining a bow, she'd acquired skills and awakened traits related to it, making it a natural development.
Lee Eun-hee knew Han-gyeol's name as Yoo Ji-han.
The Kang Han-gyeol before her had a completely different face from the one she knew.
He turned, and their eyes met.
An ordinary person would find it difficult to even sense they were being watched from this distance, let alone make eye contact.
But he was looking directly at her.
He brought a finger to his lips.
‘Shh.’
It was a gesture asking someone to keep a secret.
As for who that someone was, Lee Eun-hee had no way of knowing.
The finger that left his lips pointed toward Lee Eun-hee's bow.
— The third time, do it yourself!
How strange.
The being before her was clearly completely different from the person she knew, yet strangely, she couldn't shake the feeling that it was still him.
The Librarian, who had taken over the body of Kang Han-gyeol—Cha Seong-jin, raised the Sky Sword high.
Mana flowed from the sword, shimmering.
She instinctively knew this was no simple attack.
The cursed tree desperately consolidated itself to block the attack.
Kang Han-gyeol swung the sword from low to high.
It was just one swing.
The power of that single strike was immense.
In one blow, all the thick trees protecting Gross were severed.
Lee Eun-hee gripped the [Bow of Unknown Name] tightly.
It had been like this ever since the slime had brought her the bow.
‘It’s strange.’
There are many weapons she could use.
She had never shot a bow before entering the Tower, nor had she ever thought of trying.
At first, she just swung it like an efficient club.
Just one shot, even though it caused an accident.
Since then, she had practiced archery like a woman possessed.
If she hadn't made a mistake that day.
If only she had practiced a little more, that accident wouldn't have happened. Such thoughts dominated her mind.
‘I could have just switched weapons.’
It was her first weapon, and if she had to give a reason, there wasn't one.
It was just in her hands.
That was all.
Lee Eun-hee drew the bowstring.
“When we get to the lobby, I’ll ask your name.”
There was no reply.
She let out an empty laugh, wondering who she was even talking to.
Kang Han-gyeol slowly swung his sword.
It was a sword so slow that anyone could see he was attacking.
It was as if time was flowing slowly only around Kang Han-gyeol.
After finishing his attack, Kang Han-gyeol sheathed his sword.
Creeaak.
The giant tree, which had seemed impossible to topple, fell backward.
“Damn it…!! Dammit all!”
Gross, who had been hidden by the tree, was revealed.
The tip of Lee Eun-hee's arrow was aimed at the fully formed Gross.
‘This won't be enough.’
Meteor Shower, the skill she had used with Kang Han-gyeol's help, was certainly powerful and explosive, but it wasn't right for this situation.
‘Even if he told me to handle the third one somehow.’
This was a skill she hadn't used once since injuring her comrade.
But now was not the time to worry about that.
— Why are you blaming others for getting hurt? What kind of psycho does that?
He really was a self-centered guy.
Lee Eun-hee released the bowstring.
Explosive Infinite Arrow.
KABOOOM.
The arrow flew in a straight line, embedding itself in Gross's head before exploding.
Kieeeeeeeek.
Struck by the arrow, Gross burst into red flames.
It screamed like a living creature.
Listening to it made her stomach churn.
“The sound…”
A hand appeared from behind and covered Lee Eun-hee's ears.
The hand was only placed lightly, but the nauseating sound vanished.
It wasn't just the scream. It was as if all sound in the world had disappeared.
Silence.
A world of silence she would likely never experience again.
She turned her head and looked behind her.
‘He’s different.’
This person was not the guy she knew.
And yet, there was a different kind of familiarity to him.
Gross turned into a handful of ash and disappeared.
The Librarian and Lee Eun-hee's eyes met.
His lips moved silently.
— I. missed. you. Stay strong.
If Lee Eun-hee's guess was correct, the being inside him now was the mysterious slime.
Lee Eun-hee had first met the slime on the 1st floor.
But he missed her?
Why?
It had taken her a year to get from the 1st to the 11th floor, but for him, it seemed like it had been longer than a year.
The eyes of the man smiling so joyfully looked sadder than anything else in the world.
As Gross completely vanished, the hand covering her ears was lowered.
“Who are you…”
“Bleeeeargh!”
A mouthful of blood splattered onto Lee Eun-hee's clothes.
“Aaaaargh! Hey, you son of a bitch! Your body is a wreck!”