Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: Pursuers and Fugitives
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"...It's here again."
A hospital room thick with the scent of disinfectant.
Lee Hyuk-soo gazed out the window and murmured softly.
On the night of the full moon, 'Night' began without fail.
But for this day, Lee Hyuk-soo had honed himself relentlessly.
'Mom.'
Lee Hyuk-soo turned to look at the hospital bed.
Snore... Snore...
A woman deep in innocent slumber like a child.
Ten years ago, she had collapsed from a cerebral hemorrhage and become a vegetable—Lee Hyuk-soo's mother, Kim Ji-yeon.
Her frame had once been so gaunt her bones protruded, but now her health was remarkably improved.
Flesh had filled her out, and her skin glowed with vitality.
Full recovery was still distant, but she was undoubtedly getting better fast.
And that wasn't all.
In the past month or so, they could even hold proper conversations for about two hours a day.
—It's a miracle! A miracle has happened!
As the doctor had said, it was nothing short of a miracle.
Everyone who knew her condition was stunned.
They had all thought there was no hope.
The doctors, and even Lee Hyuk-soo himself.
Even if she awoke, they said, she wouldn't be the same as before.
Parts of her brain might not function properly.
Yet the awakened Kim Ji-yeon was exactly as she had been.
She treated Lee Hyuk-soo no differently.
How could they not call it a miracle?
All of this had happened after the 'First Night'.
'The Prophet.'
If he hadn't met him, Lee Hyuk-soo never would have witnessed such a miracle.
If he hadn't administered the elixir to her that day...
Kim Ji-yeon wouldn't be here now.
Lee Hyuk-soo would have been left utterly alone in the world.
The lights and shadows of his world would never have brightened again.
But that day.
From the day his mother, Kim Ji-yeon, awoke.
Lee Hyuk-soo's world had clearly changed.
'You'll challenge the Second Night too.'
And for today, Lee Hyuk-soo had given his all.
He hadn't even climbed the Tower of Pride, instead endlessly raiding Abysses.
While everyone's attention was fixed on the 'Tower of Pride', Lee Hyuk-soo had practically monopolized every Abyss in Korea by himself.
He'd amassed heaps of coins, acquired better gear, and leveled up steeply.
The Prophet had told him to become a savior, but Lee Hyuk-soo had no intention of anything so grand.
His goal was singular.
To become strong enough to protect his mother no matter the situation.
'I'll catch up. And surpass you.'
To do that, he had to surpass even the Prophet.
In Lee Hyuk-soo's mind, the Prophet was the strongest, an untouchable existence.
The one who had hunted the Water God alone.
The unique monster who could toy with and mock demons!
Lee Hyuk-soo wanted to catch up to him.
No, surpass him.
Stand shoulder to shoulder and ask his true identity, his real name.
...If his guess was right, the Prophet would participate in this night too.
He had no intention of just receiving help like before.
The him now was worlds apart from then.
"......"
Clink!
Lee Hyuk-soo pulled a leather pouch from his pocket, enchanted with 'security magic'.
A treasure pouch containing no less than five coins.
Layered with spells including 'invisibility magic' visible only to him and his mother.
A safeguard for any contingency, to protect his mother.
Even if the Creators opened an Abyss here at the hospital, she would be safe.
At least her.
Smirk!
Lee Hyuk-soo smiled faintly.
And then.
"I'll be back, Mom."
He looked out the window.
Up at the 'full moon'.
Lee Hyuk-soo tilted his head at the sudden flood of messages.
Pursuers and fugitives.
'Like tag or cops and robbers?'
It gave off a similar vibe.
Participants competing against each other based on their assigned roles.
Different from the 'Twelve Divine Generals' hunt in the First Night.
Back then, the focus had been on uniting forces to tackle it together.
'The role I get will be key.'
Chasing or being chased.
Lee Hyuk-soo stroked his chin.
Soon, more related messages appeared.
Han Shin slowly read the floating text.
In a game of hunter and hunted, he'd become the hunter.
Considering his personality, catching rather than fleeing suited him better.
But.
'For a simple game of tag, that survival rate is absurdly low.'
Just 11.1%.
Proof that the game would be brutally intense.
A deathmatch where everyone kills each other.
But that couldn't be all.
'Aheta wouldn't prepare something this basic.'
He'd gotten some advice from Aheta, the Moon's Lord after completing the 'Avatar Contract', but even Han Shin didn't know the full details.
That was the rule, apparently.
It meant even the mighty Aheta wasn't free from the Abyss's rules and regulations.
...Anyway.
'They're all rivals.'
Pursuers competed against each other too.
Not just raw power, but completing quests to boost 'pursuer abilities' was noteworthy.
Meaning those abilities could overturn power gaps.
Han Shin clenched and unclenched his fist.
Truth be told, it didn't matter.
No human could surpass him anyway.
The most concerning piece of Aheta's advice was one thing.
【Numerous Creators are watching this night's Abyss.】
Creators are watching...
Not nobodies, but 'Creators' even Aheta had to mind were interested in this night's Abyss.
'There must be quite a few Creators of higher rank than Aheta.'
From his experience so far, he'd encountered no Creator superior to Aheta.
Yet the way Aheta spoke implied greater beings existed.
'Not bad to have all the Creators' attention.'
Han Shin smiled faintly.
This field, the 'Second Night', was his domain alone.
The Seoul Alliance leader, Im Chang-yeol, looked up.
The alliance members with him began to gleam with excitement in their eyes.
"No matter the roles, we're one."
Im Chang-yeol rallied his members.
Pursuer or fugitive, their bond came first.
And at that moment.
Kim Byung-han also secured a role in the Abyss of the Second Night.
'I'll turn them all into prisoners.'
Just what he wanted.
A chance to correct his previous blunder.
How embarrassing it had been.
The tower collapsed, and he got nothing.
—lololol what the hell is Kim Byung-han?
—This guy's hilarious. Terminal delusion patient?
—Isn't it Ripley syndrome?
—Trying to play hero, huh?
—History changed my ass
—The legendary weapon 'Why Is Embarrassment Always Mine'?
—lolololol just fucking funny
He'd become an instant superstar, as desired.
Eating every insult imaginable as a delusional liar.
Internet, newspapers, broadcasts—cursed everywhere, nearly driven mad.
But Kim Byung-han wasn't delusional.
He'd prove it this night.
No matter what!
...Meanwhile, at the same time, elsewhere.
"Hm......"
Park Chan-woo swallowed a groan.
This night seemed to be veering off from his memories a bit.
Pursuers and fugitives.
In a normal game of tag, there should be more fugitives than pursuers.
But this was the 'Abyss'.
Moreover, the Second Night's Abyss, prepared by Aheta, the Moon's Lord, grinding his teeth after the First Night's failure.
"What the hell? Why are they all pursuers?"
"Are there even any fugitives?"
Everyone's expectations shattered.
It went against common sense.
No matter how hard they looked, no one bore the 'fugitive' role.
There hadn't been a word about the ratio of pursuers to fugitives to begin with.
Only then did it hit them.
'Isn't the fugitive ratio ridiculously low?'
'No captures means death!'
'Is that why the survival rate was only 11%...'
Fail to hit 100 Contribution, and you die.
Not by ranking, but absolute score.
No fugitives caught, no quests cleared—death certain.
Two survival paths existed, but the real issue was elsewhere.
"Quests give only 1 point even when cleared?"
"They want us all dead or what?!"
Even major quests awarded just 1 Contribution point.
To reach 100, you'd need 100 quests—but time was less than half a day.
Far too short.
People grew frantic.
An endless competition where only a tiny few could survive had begun.
Fortunately, finding 'fugitives' was easier than thought.
About an hour after the 'Second Night' started.
"Those red dots on the map—they're all fugitives, right?"
"Seems so!"
"Th-there's one nearby!"
"Everyone charge!"
"First to grab wins!"
A map had appeared.
The red dots marked on it were unmistakably 'fugitives'.
People rushed toward the red dots en masse.
Instinct told them capturing fugitives and swelling prisoner ranks was key to surviving this trial.
Soon, reaching a 'red dot'.
"Wh-what the hell is that?"
"Insane......!"
"That's... a fugitive?"
The true nature of the revealed 'fugitive' left everyone aghast.