The Strongest Hunter's Fall
It was invisible.
Not even a afterimage—nothing showed how or in what way the attack had come.
What the hell? A skill?
Before Nix could even form the question in his mind, Seong Jae-myeong moved.
In an instant, Nix—who had lost five heads—hurriedly pulled his body back.
I need to buy time while the others regenerate!
Seong Jae-myeong charged at the desperately retreating Nix with ruthless tenacity, swinging his sword.
Aura coalesced in an instant, sweeping across the entire area.
"Shaaah—!!!"
In the blink of an eye, the left head and the ninth head were half-severed at the neck.
If he hadn't been prepared in advance, he would have lost two more heads in that single moment.
The intact central head and seventh head hurriedly pulled back to evade Seong Jae-myeong.
Are the others' regenerations not ready yet?
[It'll take time for full recovery across the board!]
It seemed Seong Jae-myeong's previous attack wasn't just a simple strike—it had weakened their regenerative power.
Nix quietly furrowed his brow at the noticeably slowed recovery speed.
Divert most of my mana to regeneration.
Seong Jae-myeong didn't let Nix act on his decision unchallenged.
"I'll kill you."
Burning with unwavering murderous intent, he swung his sword.
Closing the distance in a flash and sticking close, Seong Jae-myeong thrust his red sword, Sun, at the central head.
The attack was a half-beat faster than anticipated.
The central head, unable to fully dodge, was about to be pierced right through the center of its skull—
—when the seventh head rushed in to block the path.
"Shaaah—!"
A brilliant white flash erupted, targeting Seong Jae-myeong.
Retracting his extended red sword, Seong Jae-myeong swung his blue sword, Moon.
The shot flash vanished like an illusion in an instant.
The blue sword cleaved straight through the seventh head.
Slash—
Beyond the gushing spray of blood, Seong Jae-myeong swung again.
His target, naturally, was the last remaining central head.
As the sword closed in relentlessly, Nix whipped his tail in a hurry.
Whish—
A sudden ambush from a perfect blind spot.
Instead of dodging, Seong Jae-myeong deployed a barrier.
Bang—
The tail struck the barrier fiercely but bounced off powerlessly.
With even his final resort failing, the central head hurriedly pulled back.
Seong Jae-myeong tenaciously pursued the retreating Nix and finally swung his sword.
Nix grimaced as the blade approached right up to his nose.
I didn't want to use this so soon...!
Before entering the labyrinth, Ichijo had taken several elixirs from Wang Feng's warehouse.
Nix had entrusted some to Jeong Soo-ah and Yu Hwa-yeong, keeping only about three for himself—just in case something went wrong.
Two were with Snow, leaving Nix with just one.
He had planned to drag things out longer and use it only at a decisive moment, but in this situation, he had no choice.
Should've grabbed more if I knew it'd come to this.
Tsking briefly in regret, Nix bit down and swallowed the elixir he had been holding somewhere in his mouth.
The iridescent rainbow liquid slid down his throat.
"Shaaah—!!"
"Kyaaah—!!!"
The heads, fully regenerated in an instant thanks to the elixir's effect, all lunged at Seong Jae-myeong at once.
Seong Jae-myeong, who had been thrusting at the central head, retracted his sword and hurriedly retreated.
Thud—
Several heads crashed into the spot where he had stood.
Soaring back into the sky to evade Nix's attack, Seong Jae-myeong gazed down at him momentarily.
Despite the prolonged battle, his condition remained pristine.
If not for the trickle of blood—not his own—dripping down, he looked as if he hadn't fought at all: utterly serene.
And thanks to the elixir, Nix's nine heads were now equally pristine, glaring ferociously at Seong Jae-myeong.
A brief standoff ensued between the two monsters.
This time, Nix moved first.
"Shaaah—!!!"
The highly excited left head charged straight at Seong Jae-myeong.
The other heads moved in support: some began casting spells, while others followed the left head's lead.
Faced with Nix barreling toward him with nothing but killing intent, Seong Jae-myeong burned with equal murderous fury.
The fierce blue glow from within his helmet blazed.
"I'll kill you—"
Blind murderous intent with no other purpose or reason—just the will to kill the opponent.
The undead swung his sword, fueled by hatred, malice, and enmity toward the living.
"Kyaaah—!"
The approaching left head burst with blood and collapsed.
The heads following behind, and even the incoming spells, vanished in an instant.
Once more, that signature ultrafast sword strike left no afterimage.
A supreme skill that skipped the process of slashing and left only the result: Seong Jae-myeong's strongest ability.
If he were still alive, the severe backlash would have limited him to one use, but as an undead, his body could withstand it.
Not indefinitely, of course, but he could manage a few more without issue.
Having cleanly dispatched all incoming attacks aimed at him, Seong Jae-myeong swiftly surged toward Nix.
Thanks to the ninth head's Magic Eye, Nix had a vague grasp of Seong Jae-myeong's skill. Inhaling deeply, he faced the oncoming assault.
He had lost three heads, including the left, but it was enough.
The breath of six heads was no slouch in power.
And moreover.
Dragon's Form SS
The status window's alert rang in Nix's mind, and mana from the surrounding area surged toward him.
The gathered mana turned red, slowly enveloping Nix's body.
It wasn't a dramatic transformation.
Apart from the faint red mana aura cloaking his body and the massive wings manifesting behind him, there were no major changes.
Yet the aura Nix exuded grew even heavier.
Flapping the large red wings—like Arde's—grandly, Nix exhaled the breath he had inhaled.
The other heads, prepared in tandem, also released their held breaths.
Six distinct breaths shot toward the charging Seong Jae-myeong.
Too much to block with just Sun and Moon.
Using that skill again was impossible.
Already mid-charge toward Nix, dodging now was no easy feat.
In this situation, Seong Jae-myeong's options were few.
Facing the onslaught of breaths, he activated his final War God's Blessing for the day.
As his armor emitted a faint glow, Seong Jae-myeong pierced through the breath barrage and charged.
As Seong Jae-myeong appeared right in front of him, Nix flapped his mana-formed wings.
They weren't physical wings, so he couldn't fly.
He could generate a strong gust if he tried, but wind magic would be more efficient.
The reason Nix flapped them anyway was simple.
Just to obscure Seong Jae-myeong's vision, even briefly.
To create even a momentary gap.
Flap—
As the massive wings moved, Seong Jae-myeong predictably pulled back.
And in that brief gap as he retreated, the three heads—including the now-regenerated left—quietly exhaled their held breaths.
The remaining three breaths engulfed Seong Jae-myeong.
Whoosh—
Facing the incoming breaths, Seong Jae-myeong hurriedly deployed a barrier.
More, more, more.
The intensifying breaths made his barrier waver perilously.
He somehow endured three, but what about more?
A fireball slammed into the barrier.
Boom—
A small crack formed on one side.
It healed quickly, but Nix's assault on Seong Jae-myeong didn't let up.
Bang—
Another fireball struck.
Boom—
Lightning crashed down.
Thud—
Multicolored flashes carved long fissures once more.
Shatter—
A highly compressed wind bullet finally shattered the barrier.
Nix's central head lunged straight at the suddenly exposed Seong Jae-myeong.
Its massive maw gaped wide.
Crunch—
* * *
Seong Jae-myeong was the strongest.
That fact left no room for the word "failure."
From the moment he awakened as a hunter, he had known only victory, never a single defeat.
His life was filled with success.
If this world had a protagonist, it had to be Seong Jae-myeong.
That gave him absolute confidence.
The confidence to silence those who called it impossible, just as always.
His life had always been one of success, so this time would be no different, he believed.
Ignoring the voices urging him to stop and entrusting everything to others, he set out on the expedition.
To uncharted lands no one had reached.
Everyone tried to dissuade him, but Seong Jae-myeong was certain.
Even those opposing him now would eventually shower him with praise.
Just like always.
All his past feats had proven it.
As always, he would bask in acclaim.
Seong Jae-myeong advanced with bold confidence.
Through dim mazes, dense forests, across deserts.
Over vast plains, past living volcanoes.
No problems arose.
Of course not.
His expedition team consisted of Korea's top hunters.
Even if some lacked current skill, their talent overflowed.
By expedition's end, they would all be exceptional hunters in their own right.
Not just conquering unexplored zones, but nurturing the next generation—a two-birds-one-stone plan.
Seong Jae-myeong brimmed with confidence.
That confidence shattered around the 70th floor, upon entering the world of pristine white snowfields.
An unforeseen harsh, extreme land.
A third of the unprepared expedition perished in the ferocious cold.
High-rank hunters endured, but rookies with insufficient ranks were at risk.
Seong Jae-myeong had no choice but to send them back.
No—he didn't want to.
Bringing them was his clear mistake.
Sending them back felt like admitting his own failure.
He couldn't accept that.
Torn by conflict, he missed the timing.
Some of the fallen hunters died.
At that point, the expedition's morale hit rock bottom.
Seong Jae-myeong's mood was no better.
He belatedly sent a few to escort them back, but it was too late.
They could no longer proceed.
Some leaders suggested retreating to regroup, but Seong Jae-myeong ignored them.
By then, he was too stubborn to listen.
I can't fail.
I'm the protagonist.
Results will erase any issues.
Push forward.
No matter how hailed as the strongest, Seong Jae-myeong was just one fallible human.
Not a protagonist—just a talented one.
Defying everyone, he pressed on.
Hunters followed tearfully, but began deserting one by one.
They saw no hope in trailing him further.
Yet Seong Jae-myeong didn't stop.
He had to advance.
Achieve something world-shaking.
Deserters multiplied.
Even his most loyal began falling.
No hunter, however skilled, could withstand the brutal cold and grueling schedule forever.
Seong Jae-myeong didn't halt for them.
A display of one man's obstinacy pushed to extremes.
If he'd stopped then, many might have survived.
But consumed by his own convictions, Seong Jae-myeong didn't.
One by one, then two more.
Sometimes three or more collapsed.
Those who remained believed in him utterly.
They followed his irrational actions to the end, even unto death.
One by one, his followers fell upon the frigid snowfields.
Finally, when the last hunter by his side breathed their last, Seong Jae-myeong halted his endless march.
Nothing remained beside him.
Only then did he admit his error, but nothing changed.
Countless hunters had died, sacrificed.
All for Seong Jae-myeong alone.
That was when he realized.
I'm not the world's protagonist.
Just a lucky upstart.
I should have listened to No Gwan-sik and the others.
I should have turned back at the very end.
Laughing hollowly at the belated truth, Seong Jae-myeong walked on.
Slaying monsters he encountered, pressing downward endlessly.
Eventually, he forgot his goal.
Did he even have one?
His body, bolstered by gear effects, held strong, but his mind grew ever hazier.
Walk, walk.
Advance, advance again.
Without destination, just descending ceaselessly.
Forgetting one by one:
The faces awaiting him outside.
His followers' faces.
Those who stayed till the end.
Even his own existence.
Ultimately, even the need to move forward.
All that remained was the body's memory of slaying monsters, as always.
Forgetting everything that made him human, Seong Jae-myeong became a true undead.
A lost soul with no path.
Crunch—
The intense pain from one arm roused the dormant undead's consciousness quietly.