Chapter 289
Chapter 289
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 289
Chapter Title: The Fourth Night (8)
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I think I've seen a name I shouldn't have.
He tried not to show it, but deep down, even Park Chan-woo couldn't help but grimace.
'Aheta is alive.'
He had definitely bankrupted him.
In the Third Night, Demon God Gremory had declared bankruptcy, and Aheta's body had been handed over at auction.
He'd heard that the Demon King of Karmic Flames had bought Aheta at a special auction afterward...
But it couldn't be someone with the same name.
In other words...
'Did the Demon King of Karmic Flames keep Aheta alive?'
Logically speaking, yes, he must have.
But there was still something that didn't make sense.
'The authority of a Night Manager is something that resides in both body and soul. It's impossible to strip away all of Aheta's authority while keeping him alive.'
There were limits.
The Demon King of Karmic Flames had seized every bit of Aheta's authority.
Just looking at this Fourth Night alone showed how much 'administrator' authority the Demon King of Karmic Flames wielded.
Moreover... according to Adora, most of Aheta's territory had been annexed by the Demon King of Karmic Flames.
That was impossible without killing him.
Yet, here he was, alive.
And being used as a 'dealer' no less.
《All-Area Announcement.》 《The 'Hidden Game' has begun.》 《All casino guests may participate in the 'Hidden Game' as opportunities arise.》 《The first game is 'Pick the Winner.'》 《From now on, 'Hidden Game' participants may recruit 'five' guests from the casino using coins.》
《If the guest accepts, they receive coins and serve as one-time 'mercenaries.'》 《The 'mercenaries' must battle predetermined monsters.》 《Round 1. 'Enhanced Fallen Ghosts x100' VS Five Mercenaries.》 《Victory grants the employer 50 coins.》
A notice about the game appeared.
The people gathered in the VIP room began to murmur.
"We're not fighting ourselves?"
"Looks that way."
"It says we have to hire 'five' guests from the casino as 'mercenaries.'"
Srrrring!
At the same time, another window appeared before their eyes.
A list with participant numbers and faces.
No other information was provided.
Naturally, complaints arose.
"Hold on. They expect us to pick five just from this?"
"We have to cover the coins for hiring them?"
"Gotta choose carefully."
"No guarantee the ones we pick will even accept."
"Win and get 50 coins. We have to make our bets within that."
To avoid losses, they had to hire mercenaries within 50 coins.
The more strong people you knew, the better, but since they were just acting as simple mercenaries, they probably wouldn't budge for pocket change.
That line about 'the employer acquiring 50 coins' had gone out to everyone in the casino, after all.
"......"
Suddenly, several gazes turned to Park Chan-woo.
To them, he was clearly a 'hidden card' in this hidden game.
Over 10,000 coins.
A few dozen coins in loss wouldn't matter to him.
It was blatantly to his advantage.
But Park Chan-woo's thoughts were different.
'The core of the Fourth Night is beating the dealer. We absolutely can't take losses.'
It might look like guests competing against each other, but to claim true victory, they needed to overwhelm the dealer.
Just like how he'd utterly crushed Lucar and Diamante.
This 'Hidden Game' was the same.
Minimum investment for maximum victory.
The difficulty would rise exponentially as the game progressed.
And the rewards would scale accordingly.
He was confident.
Because...
'I know almost every powerhouse in the world.'
Park Chan-woo was a regressor.
Having returned from the future of ruin, he knew virtually all the major players.
The game was overwhelmingly in his favor.
The problem was the other factors.
Shwoong!
Shwoooong!
People began vanishing one by one.
Warps were generating, forcibly teleporting them.
Soon, one appeared beneath his feet as well.
Shwoong!
Fallen Ghost.
A level 10 monster, a scout.
It was also the first monster to appear when Earth was infested by the Abyss.
One hundred of them—monsters that had instilled terror in countless people—now appeared in enhanced form.
The mercenaries had no way of knowing just how much stronger they were.
Judging the monsters that appeared was solely the employer's responsibility.
Without a good eye, only the poor mercenaries would end up dying.
"This place is to test your judgment."
The moment they arrived in the VVIP room, everyone froze.
A demon lord radiating overwhelming presence swept his gaze over the room.
It was Aheta, the dealer overseeing the Hidden Game.
"...You're supposed to be dead."
Han Shin spoke in a hostile tone.
A being who shouldn't be alive stood there plain as day.
The Incarnation Contract ended only when Aheta vanished.
It had ended, allowing a new contract to proceed.
"The Demon King of Karmic Flames bestowed his grace upon me. I died, but my 'memories' remain intact, allowing me to participate in this new game."
Insane.
Han Shin's face twisted even more fiercely.
So Aheta had died.
That thing was a doll containing Aheta's memories.
If it was just a doll, there'd be no issue.
But...
"Han Shin, my incarnation."
"......!"
"......!!!"
The listeners were stunned.
Their eyes widened like saucers, mouths agape as they stared at Han Shin.
"Aheta's incarnation?"
"That bastard...!"
The reactions were unanimous.
The Moon Lord Aheta had run the Three Nights.
His incarnation would have reaped massive gains and committed heinous acts in the process.
"...Just as I suspected."
Lee Hyuk-soo glared coldly at Han Shin as well.
He'd had his suspicions.
There was no other way to explain Han Shin's power.
Amid everyone's hostile glares, Han Shin drew his sword.
Aiming it straight at Aheta's neck.
"Our contract is over. I'm no longer your incarnation."
"I know."
"One more word of nonsense, and I'll take your head."
"...You've certainly grown stronger. You could probably handle a high-rank demon now. But you're still far from being able to cut me down."
Aheta hadn't reached demon king level, but he was beyond a mere demon lord.
Han Shin, who had just surpassed high-rank demon level, couldn't face him yet.
Aheta continued with an expressionless face.
"And Han Shin, you weren't my only incarnation."
"What is this, confession time?"
"Another of my incarnations is here. More capable and promising than you."
"...Not interested."
"Really? You might change your mind when you hear the name."
Han Shin didn't respond.
Aheta turned his head regardless.
When their eyes met, Aheta spoke.
"Lee Hyuk-soo."
"...What?"
"Humanity's savior, Lee Hyuk-soo, is Aheta's incarnation?"
Everyone was thrown into confusion by the completely unexpected name.
Lee Hyuk-soo scowled.
"You're talking nonsense. I've never contracted with a Creator. You can check with this 'Incarnation Detector' if you want."
"True. You haven't contracted with a 'Creator.'"
"...Then how am I your 'incarnation'?"
"The ancient being you contracted with, the 'Lion King,' is my apostle."
"...What?"
"The Lion King's power over shadows originates from the 'Moon.' As the Moon Lord, it stands to reason there's a connection, no?"
"No way... "
Lee Hyuk-soo shook his head.
It was absurd.
Just sophistry.
But he couldn't deny it strongly.
The Moon Lord Aheta.
And the shadow-manipulating Lion King's powers seemed to align perfectly.
Besides, if not, how would Aheta know about his contract with the Lion King?
"So Lee Hyuk-soo really is an incarnation?"
"Both of them..."
"Hah, unbelievable."
"They've been deceiving us all this time!"
The crowd's anger swelled uncontrollably.
Perhaps from the sense of betrayal.
Killing intent even seeped into the air.
Emotions churned so wildly that rational judgment became impossible.
Aheta was toying with their feelings right now.
The reason was simple.
'To cloud their judgment.'
To impair their decisions in the upcoming Hidden Game.
But the emotional turbulence was too intense for mere insinuations.
Probably Aheta's ability or some device at play.
Aheta took it further.
"I don't understand why you're angry when more than half of you are incarnations."
"Wh-what?!"
"Don't speculate wildly!"
Those hit by the remark grew even more heated.
But Aheta merely scanned their faces with an unchanging blank expression.
In response, they averted their eyes like thieves with guilty consciences.
...It didn't seem to be just about shaking the participants.
There was more.
Some hidden mechanism here.
He looked around, but saw no broadcasting equipment.
No particular mana fluctuations either.
If it was hidden from his eyes, it was probably no major magic tool.
'If our conversation here is being broadcast to everyone in the casino.'
At most, sound only.
Projecting images across the entire casino would take enormous mana.
Sound alone could be done with minimal mana.
Intent on sowing doubt and plunging humanity into chaos.
One clear result: hiring mercenaries just got harder.
No one would side with incarnations lightly.
But there was a more pressing issue than that.
Everything else could wait.
Even Aheta knowing the Lion King's identity, or weaving truth and lies cunningly—it didn't matter right now.
Park Chan-woo watched Aheta intently, inwardly tense.
Because right now, Aheta...
"......"
...was looking at him.