Chapter 105
Chapter 105
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: Slaying the Southern Leviathan
-----------------------------------------------------------------
In the five years I was unaware of, the great demons of this place had grown tremendously.
The bastard Satan, whom I'd thought no match for Leviathan, had pinned us both down, unable to move a muscle.
I hadn't let my guard down.
I just hadn't known the guy possessed such abilities.
We kept walking toward the World Tree, but we weren't getting anywhere. It felt like we'd been marching nonstop for at least an hour.
Yet the scenery before our eyes remained the same.
As if we were walking in place.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!!!"
I let out a roar laced with frustration.
According to plan, Leviathan and I should have reached the sanctuary by now at the latest.
That clown Satan—I had a hunch he'd caught on to my scheme to some extent.
His final soliloquy before vanishing:
[The sanctuary isn't for just anyone. A human and an angel... How amusing. Heh heh.]
'Damn it all.'
If that idiot Leviathan hadn't blabbed about the sanctuary, I wouldn't be this on edge.
Ding!
Suddenly, a golden light circled above my head.
['Player Kim Cheonjae' has become the first in the Asia server to reach level 80!]
[You have reached Advanced Player status and acquired the Necromancer-exclusive skill 'Recall.']
[*Recall - Forcibly summons all of the player's summons to the owner's side.]
'...Recall.'
"Heh heh...."
A hollow laugh escaped me.
Eighty levels in a game where ninety-nine was the cap—solo.
Leviathan, back in human form, struck the ground with his staff and spoke to me.
Thwack! Thwack!
"That damn Satan bastard!"
"...Leviathan. I've never heard you mention Satan having abilities like this. What the hell is going on?"
He replied in a low, bitter tone.
"Spatial distortion. It's the power he received from Lucifer to keep me contained."
"Spatial distortion?"
"Yeah. He said he got it just in case I went berserk."
"...So this place has a different space from the outside?"
"Probably—"
Oh ho.
"How do we get out?"
"No idea. If I knew, I'd have busted out ages ago."
If what he said was true, this was a new space created by Satan.
I touched the flames rising from the ground.
They felt hot.
"...I see."
Unlike what Leviathan knew, this place wasn't a space created by Satan.
No such ability existed in this game, and if it were a new skill, no one could beat the guy.
The devs weren't the type to create cheat-level skills like that.
Which left only one reason why the space we walked kept looping.
'The Mirror Room.'
One of the skills used by the hidden job, Dancer.
I picked up a stone and tossed it far ahead.
Sure enough.
The stone I'd thrown forward came flying at me from behind.
I tilted my head aside to dodge it.
"...Just as I thought."
Leviathan asked me.
"What? Why'd the stone come from behind—"
"Leviathan. What's your relationship with Satan?"
"Relationship?"
I shrugged.
"Enemies? Allies?"
"...If I had to say, closer to enemies. For now."
"I see."
"Why do you ask?"
"..."
Leviathan saw Satan as an enemy. His subordinates likely thought the same.
The ones who'd left ahead of Leviathan hadn't heard our conversation.
Meaning, even if I killed this guy now, the other demon soldiers would suspect Satan.
As I stood silent, Leviathan continued.
"Do you know how to get out of here?"
"I do."
"Oh! How?"
"Can't tell you that."
"...What?"
"I said I'm not telling."
I swung my scythe wide, putting distance between us.
Whoosh—.
Leviathan flipped backward through the air.
"You bastard! What the hell are you doing?"
"What do you think? This."
[Recall]
[All summons are forcibly summoned at 'Player Kim Cheonjae's' command.]
A flash lit up before my eyes, and all my summons gathered.
I saw Park Gyuhwan and Gawain, both even stronger now.
A title floated above Park Gyuhwan's head: [Goblin Ghost]. You got it after killing ten thousand monsters.
Gawain beside him had one too.
[Sword Emperor's Reincarnation]
Even I, a game veteran, had never seen that title. No clue how he got it, but one thing was clear.
'...They're insanely strong now.'
Light poured from Gawain's body.
In contrast, darkness flowed from Park Gyuhwan's.
As if good and evil coexisted.
Leviathan eyed my summons and stepped back hesitantly.
"Wh-where did these guys come from?"
I grinned.
"Not your concern. Time to play with me now."
An ominous aura erupted from Leviathan. Blue, but murky. Like black and blue paint crudely mixed.
"...You wanna fight me?"
Leviathan snorted, then enlarged his body again.
The white-haired old man's form turned into a dragon in an instant. A far cry from the shrunken elder body he'd used to recover his aura—pure intimidation.
"That's right."
Rain poured down once more.
I looked up at him. With his tail raised, his head towered higher than a Titan.
"Brat—."
Leviathan's tail swept across the ground toward me, kicking up a dust storm in its wake.
Gawain stepped forward.
"Leave this to me."
I nodded.
I knew Leviathan's power well. Strongest of the seven great demons. No one denied it.
But he had one massive weakness.
"...Now."
Flash!
Park Gyuhwan leaped high.
Bang! Bang bang!
He aimed his pistol at Leviathan's head. No major damage. But it hit the eyes precisely, blinding him.
Rumble rumble rumble—!
Leviathan's tail sliced toward the ground, closing in fast.
As the distance shrank, Gawain raised his greatsword overhead.
"Pyre Execution."
Flames burst from Gawain's blade.
The Gawain I knew had attack power on par with Leviathan.
He couldn't sever it, but he could halt it briefly.
Boom!
Leviathan's tail met Gawain's sword. Thunder cracked from the sky, and a spatial rupture boomed.
Resonance occurred.
Kraroom!
"Go!"
As the tail stalled, dozens of skeleton soldiers climbed his body, like ants devouring a mantis.
He thrashed wildly, but the skeletons clung fast.
Park Gyuhwan holstered his gun and drew his sword.
"Wind Slash."
He swung wide, sending an aura blade slicing through the air. It struck Leviathan's neck, drawing blood.
Not deep.
Just a paper cut on skin.
Enough for pain. All I needed was to halt his gaze briefly.
"Go!"
"Graaaargh!"
Park Gyuhwan scaled Leviathan's back. Skeleton soldiers curled into stairs ahead of him.
Thud thud thud thud—!
He reached the head in seconds and swung at the crown.
"One Stroke Two Cuts."
Whoosh—
Crack!
The blade sank into the sapphire gem embedded in Leviathan's forehead.
"Graaaargh!"
Among the seven demons, excluding Lucifer, Leviathan boasted the strongest power.
But proportional to that strength was a fatal flaw.
Destroy the sapphire on his forehead, and his vaunted thunder abilities became unusable.
Without it, Leviathan was a fangless tiger.
From strongest great demon to weakest.
"...It's over."
He thrashed violently. The ground around whipped into a sandstorm.
['Third Eye' is stunned watching Player Kim Cheonjae's play.]
[The devs say too much info has been shared with the author and suggest sanctions.]
I snorted.
'Sanctions? I'm not using hacks....'
[One dev calls it nonsense.]
[Moving with prior knowledge is part of his skill.]
Spot on.
Prior info was a player skill too.
I gestured to Gawain.
"Cut it off."
Gawain swung his flaming sword at Leviathan's tail.
Screeeeech—!
Scales shattered as the blade embedded.
"Kyaaaaak!"
Crack. Crack. Craaaack!
The tail severed.
Even detached, it writhed.
No more ground-slicing tail attacks.
A smile crept across my lips.
I watched his health bar while widening the distance.
"Gather at the head."
At my command, skeleton soldiers swarmed toward Leviathan's head.
Off-balance, his head slowly tilted toward the ground.
He looked skyward, as if to say something.
['Leviathan' wears a bewildered expression.]
'Stupid bastard.'
His powerful tail attack was blocked by Gawain—his only weapons now were sharp fangs.
But he couldn't lunge at me.
Skeletons pinned his head.
Thud!
Skeletons wrapped his neck like a dog collar.
Park Gyuhwan gripped the sword hilt in Leviathan's forehead and poured in aura.
Gawain aimed his flaming sword at the neck.
Perfect encirclement.
I walked up to Leviathan's head, planted in the dirt.
Step. Step. Step. Step.
I tapped it with my scythe, and he opened his eyes.
"Any last words?"
"Why me..."
"All lies."
"...What?"
"Everything I told you was bullshit. The Titan alliance, angels in the sanctuary."
His pupils shook.
"Th-that..."
"A great demon with a brain like yours. Stuck in that village too long?"
"...Damn. Damn it! Goddamn it!!"
A snake—no, dragon—without its tail couldn't resist much. His will was already broken.
My minions' attacks drained his health to zero.
As the bar emptied, I swung my scythe and severed the dragon's head.
"Thanks. I learned about Satan's abilities thanks to you."
Slash—.
Thud.
[You have successfully defeated 'Southern Leviathan,' one of the great demons guarding the Seventh Round.]
['Book of the Lion' records Player Kim Cheonjae's feat, granting the title 'Southern Great Demon Slayer!']
[Special ability 'Demon's Orb' granted via title acquisition.]
[*Demon's Orb: An orb containing evil power, customizable for use per job class.]
"...Good."
Leviathan's body crumbled to white ash, scattering in the wind. My skeleton soldiers assembled in ranks.
I took a deep breath and headed for the World Tree again.
As if nothing happened.
[Viewers of the game can't close their gaping mouths in shock.]
['Third Eye' sends praise to Player Kim Cheonjae.]
Cheers from unseen spectators rang in my ears.
Shivers ran through my body.
Yet I pressed on with an impassive face.
"...Let's go."
Whoosh—
Crackle crackle crackle!!!
Flames sparked where I swung my scythe. Space tore like ripping paper.
I gripped the handle with all my might and pulled.
"Hraaaagh!"
Sizzle sizzle—Boom!
The mirror wall blocking the space crumbled and poured down.
I passed through the collapsing space and swallowed the Demon's Orb.
Gulp.
[Dark power begins to seep in.]
[*Acquired 'Corpse Explosion (Supreme)' skill!]
▶Corpse Explosion (Mana Cost: 10)
-Explodes nearby corpses to deal massive damage to enemies. (Damage amplifies exponentially with corpse count.)