Chapter 444
Chapter 444
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 444
Chapter Title: Interspecies War (83)
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Humanity's cabin.
The awakened warriors stood silently by the side of their god, Park Chan-woo, who was still lost in deep slumber.
They gauged the new power they had gained, reflected on the lonely path he had walked alone, and steeled their resolve for the final battle.
That was when it happened.
Knock knock.
A cautious but distinct knocking sound echoed through the cabin door.
"……!"
Lee Hyuk-soo, Adora, and everyone else's gazes snapped toward the door at once.
The air inside the cabin grew taut in an instant.
In this situation.
'Who the hell could it be?'
Lee Hyuk-soo silently gestured for the others to stay put and approached the door himself.
The hosts wouldn't knock.
It had to be a warrior from another race, here for some reason.
His hand was already gripping the hilt of the sword at his waist.
Creeeak—
"……."
As the door opened, Lee Hyuk-soo doubted his own eyes.
Standing outside the door were the leaders of races that represented the upper leagues of the Abyss—races that should never have gathered in one place.
The Giant Race, the Celestial Race, the Kirin Race, the Golden Lion Race.
And at the forefront, Urkan of the Twilight Race, who seemed to have been the one knocking.
Their faces still bore the pride and arrogance of their respective races, mingled with an unavoidable awkwardness and a subtle resignation.
The first to speak was Urkan, who had knocked.
"……Pardon the intrusion, human warrior. We've come to discuss the final battle."
His voice was stiff, but polite.
Lee Hyuk-soo asked without lowering his guard.
"Discuss? I didn't think there was anything left to talk about between us and you."
"We didn't want this either."
Hekarim of the Giant Race cut in gruffly, unable to hold back.
But he quickly shut his mouth with a cough after receiving a sharp glare from the Celestial Race.
The Celestial Sage stepped forward, speaking in a courteous but emotionless tone.
"Our personal feelings are irrelevant, human warrior. We are here solely because of the absolute command from the sovereign each of us serves."
"Your sovereign's... command?"
"Indeed. All five of our races received the same order."
The Celestial Sage took a moment to steady his breath before continuing with unbelievable words.
"To lend all our strength to ensure humanity wins this interspecies war."
His words halted the thoughts of Lee Hyuk-soo and all the human warriors in their tracks.
It was incomprehensible.
Until just recently, these were the ones who had treated them like insects, constantly lurking for a chance to snatch their tickets.
And now, they offered to help?
"What's your angle?"
Adora pierced them with a sharp glare.
She didn't believe these arrogant upper races would offer goodwill without strings attached.
At that moment, a cold voice emanated from deeper inside the cabin.
"You must want the tickets."
It was Zero, who had been guarding the sleeping Park Chan-woo.
He looked at the five race leaders as if they were insignificant and said,
"A wasted effort. We won't hand over even a single ticket."
At that firm refusal, Hekarim of the Giant Race's face twisted in fury once more.
"We're here to speak with your true master!"
"Park Chan-woo's will is my will."
As Hekarim clenched his fist to retort,
the Celestial Sage restrained him once again.
"No need to worry. We're not here for the tickets."
He bowed politely once more toward the sleeping Park Chan-woo.
"Our sovereign clearly commanded us to aid your 'victory.' It's only natural that you claim all the tickets. We will simply serve as your sword and shield to ensure you triumph in the final battle."
He glanced at the other race leaders and continued.
"We'll sort out the remaining rankings among ourselves. So, you need only focus on 'winning.'"
It was a complete concession—an offer impossible to refuse.
Practically a declaration of surrender.
Humanity had gained the unprecedented opportunity to command the Abyss's strongest races as their pieces.
As all the human warriors in the cabin fell silent, unsure how to process this unbelievable situation,
Zero was the first to speak.
"Very well. We accept the offer."
As if he had foreseen everything, he scanned the five race leaders without a hint of hesitation.
"But things won't be that simple."
Tension filled the air again at Zero's cold voice.
"If your sovereigns have moved, those on the opposing side will have as well."
He began analyzing the current state of affairs logically.
"The remaining seven races that haven't joined us. And all the upper seed races tied to their interests. We can safely assume they're all hostile."
The Celestial Sage nodded gravely at Zero's reasoning.
"That's highly likely. Especially the demons loyal to the Great Nine Lords—they're probably at the center, forming a massive alliance under the banner of 'down with humanity.'"
Humanity and the five races following them.
Versus all other forces.
The entire Abyss was destined to split into two massive factions clashing in the final battle.
"Their forces will overwhelm ours."
Zero concluded coldly.
Their military strength was undeniably inferior.
The Dragon Race and the demons—Abyss's two most powerful factions—had joined hands with the single goal of exterminating humanity.
Not to mention all the other races.
Urkan of the Twilight Race broke the heavy silence.
"...Is there a way?"
At his question, Hekarim of the Giant Race slammed his fist on the table and roared.
"The answer's simple! When those bastards come, we smash 'em head-on!"
A quintessentially Giant Race solution—simple and bold.
A sneer close to a smirk tugged at Zero's lips.
"Smash them? With what? Those dull fists of yours?"
"W-what?!"
"Their forces overwhelm ours. A reckless frontal assault would just be suicide."
Hekarim flushed red, trying to retort at Zero's cold assessment, but he couldn't find the words.
Because it was the unvarnished truth.
Zero looked around the room and murmured softly.
"But we have something they don't."
All eyes turned to him.
They racked their brains desperately.
Something they had that the massive enemy alliance lacked.
What could it be?
In that moment of collective bewilderment,
Zero quietly pointed to his own chest.
"Me."
The room filled with confusion.
Hekarim of the Giant Race openly showed his displeasure.
Then, the Celestial Sage, who had been silent, fixed Zero with a piercing, translucent gaze and asked,
"You... aren't you a fragment of Dragon God Sepiro? Part of him?"
The Celestial Race could see through essences. A sharp observation.
For the first time, a genuine smile of amusement crossed Zero's lips.
"As expected of the Celestial Race. You see through the facade nicely."
But he shook his head.
"However, you're wrong. You can glimpse the shell of the essence, but not the true meaning hidden within."
Zero's gaze swept over all the gathered leaders.
"I am a being separate from Sepiro."
He emphasized his words.
"I am the one who has surpassed him. Zero."
"Surpassed him... Zero? You named yourself?"
"Yes. Unlike Sepiro, I'm not bound by the dragon's yoke. His name carries too many curses. A kind of karma, you might say."
Zero shrugged.
Hekarim still looked skeptical.
"Changing your name doesn't change anything. How does that help us win?"
A fair question.
It wouldn't be strange for an Abyss novice to be ignorant of its rules.
Especially for the Giant Race, who weren't the sharpest.
A faint smile returned to Zero's lips.
"What happens if a demon takes the name of one of the Great Nine Lords?"
"They'd get killed."
"Why?"
"...For mimicking a great lord's name?"
"No. It's the power inherent in the name itself."
Zero continued as if instructing a foolish giant.
"In this Abyss, a unique name is the very authority of its bearer. If two beings share the same name, that power divides and weakens."
"A name... is power?"
"Exactly. A name is sacred, the surest proof of a being's stature. Take Sepiro, for example."
A mocking smile played on Zero's lips.
"He placed detection magic on the word 'Sepiro' itself to prevent anyone from usurping his name. Absolute magic, no less."
"……!"
"Names are that crucial, and for transcendent beings, their weight grows heavier, making changes nearly impossible."
Zero paused and patted his chest.
"And a great name accumulates countless curses and karma. They become shackles, imposing endless restrictions."
"……."
"But I'm different."
He declared his new name once more.
"I am 'Zero.' Free from all those shackles, a new existence. That's why I say I've surpassed him."
The reason he named himself 'Zero.'
A completely new name.
To be reborn as a new being.
In other words,
Zero had no restrictions.
Free from everything.
If he wanted, he could separate from Park Chan-woo right now and forge his own path.
Of course, he had no such intention.
Because being with Park Chan-woo was
'Fun.'
He thought he had severed himself from Sepiro and shed all emotions and irrational variables, but 'fun' was the one thing he couldn't let go.
Their only commonality, perhaps.
Anyway.
Zero's gaze returned to the five race leaders.
Words alone weren't enough.
To fully subjugate these arrogant, strength-worshipping beings, he needed proof worthy of it.
Zero quietly held out his palm.
And manifested one of the new spells he had crafted in his lucid dream.
Shrrrk...
Atop his palm, pitch-black darkness began condensing into a single point.
A perfect little black sphere that devoured all surrounding light.
"……What is that?"
"As expected, the Giant Race can't recognize it."
The Celestial Sage asked in a trembling voice.
"Could it be... a gravity field?"
"Something like that."
"But how is it so quiet?"
If it were a real black hole, the cabin, the train—no, the entire space—should have been sucked in and collapsed by now.
Yet nothing around it was being pulled.
Inside the jet-black sphere, a gravity field raged wildly, tearing everything apart, but that power was perfectly contained within.
Such immense power, yet utterly silent.
Beyond merely generating force—it was perfect 'control.'
Sepiro was weak at this kind of 'control.'
But Zero was different.
"My magic pursues perfection. Uncontrolled power isn't power at all."
"...Undeniably, a level of control and destructive potential I've never seen."
The Celestial Sage couldn't hide his awe.
With those words from Zero, the small black hole capable of erasing the world vanished from his palm without a trace.
As if it had never existed.
Silently.
A 14th-circle spell or higher manifesting and dissipating so quietly!
It was the most irrefutable proof and a silent warning to all the leaders present.
Zero proclaimed,
"Follow me, and you will win."
We will win this war.