Chapter 144
Chapter 144
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 144
Chapter Title: Hell (2)
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Shin So-hee writhed in long, agonizing pain, paying a portion of the price for her sins.
She died.
'Lucky her.'
Kang Hyun-soo gazed at the single skill book before his eyes.
[Marionette–SSS-Rank]
Contrary to what the dead Shin So-hee had wished for, the Marionette skill book had emerged through an incredibly slim probability.
'I didn't have high expectations.'
He had even prepared a Replica skill version just in case.
'F-Rank is no match for SSS-Rank.'
Moreover, the Marionette skill.
'It falls short in many ways to occupy a slot in Replica.'
If there hadn't been the One-Man Army class?
He would have kept it as a regular skill and in Replica.
'No need to hold two copies.'
Kang Hyun-soo deleted Marionette from the Replica list.
Then, he acquired the SSS-Rank Marionette skill book.
'The penalty is hefty.'
That was for other players.
Kang Hyun-soo's situation was different.
'Cumulative stats might drop, but Stat Fixation should mitigate that to some extent.'
The F-Rank Stat Fixation skill had reached S-Rank through frequent use.
'Marionette is perfect for use on enemies, not allies.'
It had the restriction of only usable on players.
'Works fine on the Demon King's minions or players passively avoiding Earth return.'
It also seemed useful for easily recruiting potential allies.
'Shin So-hee's done for.'
Now it was time to decide Hwang So-wook's punishment.
* * *
'I'm finished.'
Hwang So-wook stared blankly at the scenery beyond the iron bars.
Eternal Domination had lifted with Shin So-hee's death.
But he wasn't even aware of that fact.
Creeeak!
Then the iron door opened.
"Come out."
The guards dragged Hwang So-wook out.
"I-is this execution?"
Hwang So-wook asked with a terrified expression.
The investigation was already over.
All that remained was carrying out his death sentence.
"Shut your mouth and follow quietly."
"Please spare me! I don't want to die yet! I don't want to die!"
Hwang So-wook begged the guards.
Thwack!
But all he got in return was brutal violence.
"Want more beating? Keep yapping."
"......"
Faced with the guard's violence, Hwang So-wook shut his mouth quietly.
'Am I dying like this?'
Tears welled up involuntarily.
Fortunately, though.
The place Hwang So-wook arrived at was not the execution ground.
It was before a player clad head to toe in jet-black armor.
"Leave us."
"Yes."
The guards dropped off Hwang So-wook and withdrew.
'Blood God Demon-Slayer?'
Hwang So-wook's eyes widened.
He had thought he was being taken inexorably to the execution ground.
Instead of Balhae Guild Master Sword King Jang Seok-won, he ended up before the Dark Knight leader, Blood God Demon-Slayer.
'This is my chance.'
He didn't know why he was brought before Blood God Demon-Slayer.
But.
'They must need me.'
To Hwang So-wook, the man before him was his one lifeline.
"What's the rank of Skill Enhancement?"
At Blood God Demon-Slayer's question, Hwang So-wook's face hardened like stone.
'How does he know?'
Skill Enhancement was a secret known only to him and Shin So-hee.
'Did So-hee tell him?'
As Hwang So-wook racked his brain.
"You don't plan to answer, I see."
Blood God Demon-Slayer's hand moved toward his sword.
"EX-Rank!"
Startled, Hwang So-wook quickly answered.
Right now, preserving his life mattered more than satisfying curiosity.
"Level?"
"900."
"Not bad. You've leveled up quite a bit."
"Yes! I haven't had a chance to shine, but given the opportunity, I could have been a named player."
"Reveal your status window fully."
"Understood."
At Blood God Demon-Slayer's command, Hwang So-wook opened his status window.
He hadn't fully revealed it even when joining Balhae Guild.
But with his life on the line now, he had no choice.
"You've stacked quite a few achievements? Plenty of high-rank skills too."
"Thank you. As you can see from my status window, I'm too valuable a talent to just discard."
Hwang So-wook pitched himself aggressively.
"Sign this."
Blood God Demon-Slayer held out a soul contract.
"Yes!"
Realizing his pitch had worked, Hwang So-wook smiled brightly and took the soul contract.
'I'm saved now.'
But as he took the soul contract in joy, his face twisted in horror.
'This is a full slave contract.'
To be precise, it was even worse.
If he signed this?
Even eating, sleeping, or using the bathroom required Blood God Demon-Slayer's permission.
"What, don't like it?"
As Blood God Demon-Slayer moved to take the soul contract back.
"No!"
Hwang So-wook quickly replied, pricked his finger, and stamped the contract.
Whoosh!
A bright glow seeped into Hwang So-wook and Blood God Demon-Slayer's bodies.
'For now, just focus on surviving. Soul contracts can be voided if one dies or by mutual agreement.'
Hwang So-wook clung to hope.
Then, before his eyes.
[Player Kang Hyun-soo has used Commander Appointment. Accept?]
[Yes] [No]
A system message appeared.
"Choose Yes."
At Blood God Demon-Slayer's words.
'Didn't the soul contract end it? What's this?'
Hwang So-wook hesitated briefly.
In that instant, excruciating pain like his soul shattering hit him.
The soul contract deemed his hesitation a violation.
"Argh!"
Screaming, Hwang So-wook quickly selected Yes.
At that moment.
[Appointed as Squad Leader.]
[All stats increased by 10%.]
He gained a buff boosting all stats by 10%.
Hwang So-wook's eyes gleamed.
'They must value me highly.'
10% was huge.
A top-tier buff increasing all stats.
But.
"Commander's Blessing."
It didn't end there.
[Received Commander's Blessing.]
[All stats increased by 25%.]
"Gasp!"
He couldn't help gasping.
All stats had risen by a whopping 35%.
"Thank you! I pledge my utmost loyalty to you, Blood God Demon-Slayer!"
Hwang So-wook prostrated himself flat before Blood God Demon-Slayer and swore fealty.
"Then, first order."
"Yes, give me any command!"
[Replica – SS-Rank]
"Use all your experience on this visible skill to cast Skill Enhancement."
"Yes? What do you—"
Hwang So-wook reflexively questioned.
But in that instant.
"Uwaaaagh!"
Pain like his soul shattering and ants gnawing his body engulfed him.
"Sk-Skill Enhancement!"
Unable to endure, Hwang So-wook hastily used Skill Enhancement on the hovering Replica skill.
[Consuming all held experience to raise Replica – SS-Rank's rank.]
[Level dropped to 0.]
At the same time, a utterly deflating message appeared before him.
'Level 0?'
The cost of hastily casting amid pain was immense.
Hwang So-wook's level plummeted from 900 to 0 in an instant.
'This was possible?'
He had just learned Skill Enhancement could be used on others.
He had assumed it only worked on his own skills.
But thinking back.
'There's no restriction against using on others.'
It was just his misconception.
"Don't breathe a word of today's events to anyone."
"Yes!"
Hwang So-wook hurriedly replied to Blood God Demon-Slayer.
It was a conditioned reflex to avoid the ensuing agony of noncompliance.
"Come in."
At Blood God Demon-Slayer's call, a native player entered.
"Shall I start the procedure right away?"
"Yes."
"Procedure? What's that?"
Bewildered, Hwang So-wook asked.
But neither Blood God Demon-Slayer nor the native player answered.
Then the native player sprinkled an unknown chemical on the seal on Hwang So-wook's hand.
"N-no way?"
Startled, Hwang So-wook tried to pull his hand back.
"Stay still."
Blood God Demon-Slayer's word forced him to comply.
Via the native player, the Terra Kingdom free citizen seal on Hwang So-wook's hand.
Turned into a slave seal.
"This can't be."
Hwang So-wook's face filled with despair.
Hot tears streamed endlessly from his eyes.
'Me, a slave?'
Not content with ruining him, his status had plummeted too.
"Procedure complete."
After changing Hwang So-wook's free citizen seal to slave seal, the native player left.
"From now on, you're a slave soldier."
At Blood God Demon-Slayer's words, Hwang So-wook gritted his teeth and replied.
"Yes, but I have one question."
"What?"
"If you're using me as a slave soldier, wouldn't higher level be better? Why make me
?"
He wanted to grab the collar and demand why.
But he couldn't.
Acting on that thought would bring excruciating pain.
"Levels can be raised again. You've steadily stacked achievements, so even at level 0 your base stats are around the 25
level."
"That's true, but."
"Plus my buffs, so actual stats are about 33
level. And with your high-rank skills, combat power should be around 40
level."
"So you're saying start leveling from scratch?"
"Yes."
"Understood."
Hwang So-wook clenched his fist until his nails dug into flesh.
He wanted to ask.
After leveling up, would he call him again for Skill Enhancement?
Make him level 0 again?
But he couldn't.
Blood God Demon-Slayer confirming it would shatter his last hope.
"Then go hunt right now. I spoke to Sword King Jang Seok-won, so you can keep staying at Balhae Guild as before."
"Yes."
Hwang So-wook rose with a half-dazed expression, staggering out.
* * *
'Works like a charm.'
A bright smile bloomed on Kang Hyun-soo's lips.
For one reason.
[Unique skill Replica has grown from SS-Rank to SSS-Rank.]
His unique skill Replica had jumped straight from SS-Rank to SSS-Rank.
'My hypothesis was right.'
Kang Hyun-soo had used Skill Enhancement whenever cooldown allowed.
Each use dropped his level.
'From 500~600 to 0.'
Despite the massive experience consumed.
'Replica's growth was painfully slow.'
Using on cooldown seemed to raise Skill Enhancement's rank faster than expected.
'Insane speed compared to pre-regression, but.'
Relative to experience devoured?
'Felt insignificant.'
So he formed this hypothesis.
'The rank increase depends on total experience consumed in Skill Enhancement.'
Experience from 0~100 levels differs from 100~200 in total amount.
Higher levels make gaining experience exponentially harder.
Especially the infamous 400~500 stretch.
'Experience needed skyrockets.'
Total experience grows harsher with levels.
'0~100 vs. 800~900 is worlds apart.'
Not just sky and earth—Earth and Sun level gap.
Thus.
'Same for experience Skill Enhancement consumes.'
Kang Hyun-soo wanted to test it himself.
But.
'Doing it myself is a loss.'
Skipping cooldowns slows Skill Enhancement growth.
'And hurts cumulative stats.'
Cascades to One-Man Army proficiency issues.
500~600 levels yield more experience than 0~500, but undistributed stats: 1,000 vs. 5,000.
'No contest on cost-efficiency.'
Couldn't test until now.
Thanks to Hwang So-wook, he could.
And confirmed his hypothesis.
Half a day civil war
'Thanks, Hwang So-wook.'
Hwang So-wook's steady leveling in Atlantis dimension.
Let Replica leap from SS-Rank to SSS-Rank.
'Keep it up.'
Have him grind levels and experience.
Then call back for Skill Enhancement on Replica.
'Good call changing plans.'
Kang Hyun-soo originally planned Shin So-hee fate for Hwang So-wook too.
But changed midway.
'No guarantee killing him drops EX-Rank Skill Enhancement book.'
Even if so.
'Just shortens cooldown.'
Absolute experience consumed stays same.
Meaning.
'Frequent use doesn't speed Replica growth.'
But sparing him to hunt?
'Increases absolute experience for Skill Enhancement.'
Speeds Replica growth.
Decisively.
Gifting hellish life over peaceful death.
'More tormenting for Hwang So-wook.'
Soul contract bound tight.
'All freedom lost.'
Even suicide denied.
Henceforth, barring minimal sleep and meals for survival.
'He'll hunt like a machine.'
Levels, money, items gained—all Kang Hyun-soo's.
Living hell.
Kang Hyun-soo's punishment for Hwang So-wook.
'Now SSS-Rank.'
Replica, grown SS to SSS via Hwang So-wook, could hold 13 skills total.
Amplification from 200%.
'To 240%.'
40% power boost to all main Replica skills Kang Hyun-soo used.
'Back to form.'
Pre-regression Replica was SSS-Rank.
Finally caught up.
'Next, EX-Rank.'
Uncharted territory even for him.
'But possible now.'
Kang Hyun-soo would grind hard.
Slave Hwang So-wook for skill rank-ups would too.
Kang Hyun-soo stood.
'Time to fill summons.'
To max 18,800 summon slots?
Time to hustle.
* * *
Kang Hyun-soo mechanically went through his routine.
Hunted with Song Ha-na and Fist Emperor to level up and increase summons.
Used Skill Enhancement on cooldowns.
Occasionally summoned Hwang So-wook from his hellish reality for Skill Enhancement.
Hwang So-wook's crimes were public.
Shunned and bullied by all.
Slave status meant no human treatment—sleeping in pigsties, eating dog food, beastly life.
In wretched conditions, cutting sleep and meals, nonstop hunting to level diligently?
Kang Hyun-soo would summon him again