Chapter 102
Chapter 102
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 102
Chapter Title: Supreme Treasure
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BOOOOOM-!
It was as if a bomb made of pure light had detonated.
Every participant turned simultaneously toward the source of the deafening roar.
"What the hell is that?"
"The Goddess of Light?"
"It's a goddess!"
The crimson sky.
In that once murky expanse, a holy goddess now stood.
A halo of light so beautiful it inspired instant reverence.
Everyone was entranced.
Those who barely regained their senses moved toward her as if compelled, like moths to a flame.
And then they spotted him.
"Lee Hyuk-soo, right?"
"You mean that dragon hunter guy?"
"Yeah, it's really him!"
There stood a man in a majestic pose, as if cradled in the goddess's embrace.
It was Lee Hyuk-soo.
And Lee Hyuk-soo was already a world-famous figure.
"The guy who hunted the Dragon God General during the 'First Night'?"
"He stepped up alone when everyone else had given up."
"Did it right in front of hundreds of thousands of watchers."
"They say he cleared the most dungeons when the Abyss dungeons first appeared..."
The First Night.
The trial that emerged across the world, demanding the death of the Twelve Divine Generals.
Among them, the final and most powerful—the absolute worst—was the Dragon God General. Lee Hyuk-soo had hunted it alone.
Those who witnessed that scene all agreed.
Lee Hyuk-soo was the strongest.
The true hero of these chaotic times!
People hailed him as the "Dragon Hunter."
After that, more eyes turned to follow his exploits.
But now...
He stood alone at the epicenter where the light had exploded and the roar had thundered.
Everyone in the Second Night's domain had heard it.
They had seen the goddess. They had witnessed the "Unique Achievement" message.
This couldn't be coincidence.
He was at the center of it all.
The Dragon Hunter, Lee Hyuk-soo, must have pulled it off single-handedly.
"No way... the one who got the 'Unique Achievement' this time is...!"
"Didn't he clear the 'Legendary Quest' too?"
"Ah, if it's the Dragon Hunter Lee Hyuk-soo, yeah, he could."
"He saved us all!"
"He's the 'Savior'! A messiah!"
The people clasped their hands together.
They bowed their heads repeatedly, expressing genuine gratitude.
They were utterly convinced that Lee Hyuk-soo had cleared both the Legendary Quest and the Unique Achievement.
The goddess at his side was proof.
Without him, those short on contribution points would have died in droves due to insufficient scores.
But 1,000 contribution points was more than enough—overflowing, even—for everyone to survive.
The rule was that at the end of the Second Night, anyone without 100 points would die.
And most hadn't managed even that.
In fact, more than half the participants fell short.
The rich got richer, the poor poorer—it was extreme.
Hunting deserters was the domain of the strong.
Yet with just a bow of the head, he had saved everyone lacking points.
That made him the savior.
Not just some dragon hunter, but a messiah who saved the world.
Of course, Lee Hyuk-soo shook his head as he listened to the crowd.
He hadn't done any of it. The prophet had.
If thanks were due, they should go to the prophet, not him.
"...It wasn't me."
"And he's humble too!"
"Thank you! Thank you!"
But the people, fully lovestruck, refused to believe Lee Hyuk-soo.
They wouldn't even listen.
Lee Hyuk-soo pondered.
Should he let this misunderstanding stand?
The prophet doesn't want to reveal himself.
He considered the prophet's nature.
The prophet wanted him, not himself, to be the savior.
He acted without stepping forward, staying hidden, operating in the shadows.
He seemed to despise the spotlight.
Lee Hyuk-soo wanted to help the prophet.
To repay the favor, even a little.
...Savior, huh.
As the prophet said, should he become the savior, just as desired?
Claim credit for deeds he didn't do, draw the people's attention in the prophet's stead—was that his role?
If he didn't play it, people would grow suspicious.
They'd hunt for whoever caused these miracles.
Con artists could swarm, false saviors could sow chaos across the world.
In the end, someone had to steady the center.
I don't have the power to be a savior yet.
But Lee Hyuk-soo was only human, frail at heart.
Full of weaknesses, lacking the leadership to guide others.
A loner who savored solitude—leading people?
Becoming a hero, a savior under the spotlight?
No way.
That was impossible.
It didn't fit his self-image, the future he'd envisioned.
His everyday self could never do it.
But...
...The path-maker.
Was it right to avoid it just because he hadn't tried, because he thought he couldn't?
There were no right answers in this world.
The prophet had shown him that. Proven it.
In other words...
He could forge a path to become a savior first, then grow the power to match.
If Lee Hyuk-soo willed it, it was entirely possible.
I want to make a path.
A new path.
His own path.
Even if it started with lies.
Even if it wasn't real at first.
Situations shape people. Qualifications prove them.
He just had to strive to become that person.
Faster.
Higher.
More!
As long as he pressed on without giving up.
"Lee Hyuk-soo!"
"We lived thanks to you!"
"You're our hero!"
"We'll never forget this debt!"
Cheers echoed across the entire Second Night domain.
The prophet must have foreseen this chaos and slipped away without looking back.
It felt like a festival.
"......"
Lee Hyuk-soo gazed up at the sky.
The goddess of the battlefield.
As if sensing his resolve, she almost seemed to smile.
...And it was then.
Not just the participants were staring at where 'Khan's Palace' had stood.
Moon Lord Aheta.
His eyes brimmed with doubt.
Nothing had gone according to plan from start to finish.
A 'Legendary Quest' popped up out of nowhere, and an intruder appeared.
He'd assumed the mage cornering Han Shin was the same one constantly interfering with him. But as time passed, he grew certain that was wrong.
And that was just the beginning.
His attempt to clone Han Shin failed. Worse, the revived Han Shin now harbored hostility toward him.
Even the 'Legendary Quest' he'd deemed impossible to clear... got cleared.
How?
Doubt crept in.
Intruders couldn't undertake the 'Legendary Quest' here.
Only humans running the 'Second Night'—only participants—could.
Even if one triggered it, clearing it was a pipe dream.
At humanity's current level, waking that bastard 'Khan' was impossible.
Yet they did it.
And didn't stop there—they advanced one step further.
...They killed 'Khan'.
Even Aheta couldn't kill the Conqueror Khan.
He'd slain him over and over, but he wouldn't stay dead.
An immortal body.
A power akin to infinite regeneration.
That's why he could only seal him.
But now he was dead.
Killed by the human who cleared the Legendary Quest.
Was the palace his weakness?
The palace itself was Khan's 'Life Vessel'.
Who could've guessed a brute like 'Conqueror Khan' had pulled a lich's trick?
He'd just been bluffing confidence, feigning fearlessness of death.
Khan was nothing but a coward terrified of dying above all else.
So Aheta hadn't considered it.
He couldn't imagine setting up a separate 'Life Vessel'.
It was far from a warrior's style.
Yet... humans had found the weakness even Aheta overlooked.
The only thought filling his mind was a relentless How?
...Even broke the Unique Achievement.
It was a first.
Long ago, when he became 'Moon Lord' and first oversaw the 'Nights,' the Unique Achievement he'd set was now shattered.
Countless races—even the Twelve Races—had failed to reach it.
Humans had done it.
Just like with the Tower of Arrogance.
Achieving the unachievable.
Breaking 10 billion points.
Even scouring every 'Hidden Piece' and completing all quests fell short.
The quests Aheta himself set couldn't breach that threshold.
He never imagined it'd be cleared via the sealed 'Legendary Quest.'
Who could've pictured mere humans slaying a Khan even the Moon Lord couldn't?
But... if they were truly human, it was incomprehensible.
A world the Abyss touched only recently. Human awakenings are new too.
Humans were weak.
No matter how powerful an individual, they couldn't match even the lowliest demon.
Without the Abyss expanding the world and awakening lifeforms, humans could never surpass their limits.
Even geniuses needed time to grow.
These were humans facing only their Second Night.
Yet they killed Khan.
That fact gnawed at him relentlessly.
Especially...
A being I can't detect. Getting help from someone, huh.
He couldn't find them.
Couldn't see them.
In other words...
Protected by something akin to Absolute Magic—or beyond.
Operating under an absolute being's aegis.
Who?
What entity dared interfere with him?
Not the mage who pulped Han Shin, at least.
Mysterious, sure, but not skilled enough to kill Khan.
Far from worthy of an absolute being's protection.
Moving this stealthily and meticulously implied intervention from an entity even above Aheta.
Demon King. Demon God. Or one of the Great Nine Lords. Is it you?
Or perhaps the masters of the 'Twelve Race Lords.'
Only that level explained it all.
The suspects narrowed.
One of them was meddling on Earth.
On a level beyond Aheta using Han Shin as an avatar—treating a single human like a 'reincarnation,' nurturing them meticulously.
...Had they, like him, foreseen humanity's potential?
But Aheta's thoughts didn't linger.
Because...
...25 billion points?
The final contribution tally was absurd.
By Abyss rules, the 'Hidden Treasure Vault' forcibly unlocked.
No greater humiliation existed.
But beyond that searing shame, another emotion began enveloping Aheta.
How dare they touch my supreme treasure...!!
The Hidden Treasure Vault.
Among all he'd gained waging countless 'Nights' against myriad races...
It was the secret trove hiding his three greatest, most magnificent treasures—known to none!
...They'll never find it anyway.
Aheta forced himself to calm.
The vault opening didn't mean the treasures were looted.
Especially those three—no one could find them, no matter what.
He'd rigged every safeguard imaginable.
Even with aid from absolute beings—or if they came themselves.
They'd never succeed.
If they did, that 'human' wouldn't be human—they'd be a god.