Chapter 120
Chapter 120
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: Mammon Approaches
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Having returned to the west, I fended off the swarming golems while waiting for Mammon.
They were monsters of enormous size, even among demons—hulking brutes as massive as beholders.
“Gawain, stack all the imp corpses in one place.”
“Understood.”
It would take Mammon at least an hour to show himself in person. Confirming there were no issues with the battle, I turned toward the temple interior.
After passing through the dark, elongated tunnel to the temple’s depths, I reached the room where Mikael was.
She was still in the process of pulling the sword from Raphael’s chest.
Eighty percent of the blade was already extracted.
Spotting me, Yoo Sora waved her hand and shouted.
“Cheonjae!”
At her cry, Michael and Kim Yeonhee’s attention snapped to me. I gathered them and explained the situation to prepare for any contingencies.
“You all know about the Japanese betrayal by now, right?”
Everyone nodded.
“Attacking Mikael is impossible anyway, so the odds of Japanese players coming all the way here are low.”
Michael tilted his head.
“Cheonjae Kim?”
“Yeah? Speak.”
“If what Cheonjae Kim says is true, the Japanese could come here.”
“……Why?”
“Isn’t what they’re doing a double-cross tactic?”
“Exactly.”
“So they fooled the other players, then planned to hold out here and block the demons, right?”
“……”
“This game ends once that seal is broken. The key to a double-cross is perfect timing and swiftly taking out the main target.”
My eyes widened in shock.
It was astonishing.
“Mi…. Michael.”
“Yessir?”
“Since when did you speak Korean this well?”
What surprised me wasn’t Michael’s tactical insight. It was that the guy, who’d always spoken haltingly and slowly until now, was delivering precise pronunciation with utterly serious eyes.
Michael scratched his head sheepishly.
“Military ops? I’m a pro.”
“Oh…. Alright. I don’t know if they’re as clever as you think, but let’s keep all possibilities open and move accordingly.”
“Yessir. What should we do now?”
I glanced at Mikael, then whispered softly.
“The Japanese don’t know we’re aware of their western moves.”
“So?”
“……Let’s turn their plan against them. If you’re right, they’ll definitely come here. When they do, we’ll—”
* * * * *
Arriving at the east side, Ma Jeongwoo couldn’t hide his shock. Before he could even warn them of the Japanese betrayal, the Chinese had been wiped out.
Demons had already reached the stairs and were howling as they tried to push inside.
Fortunately, the barrier hadn’t been breached yet.
With no other choice given the dire situation, Ma Jeongwoo played his hidden card.
“Angels’ Call!”
[‘Angels’ Call’ cast (1/3).]
[A white gate opens, summoning a host of holy-powered angels.]
Space warped as a gate tore open. Angels with pristine white wings poured out.
Without question or hesitation, they clashed with the demons. There were as many of them as there were enemies.
“Phew.”
Ma Jeongwoo let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness for Angels’ Call. A little later, and the demons would’ve breached the temple.
Scanning the surroundings, Ma Jeongwoo began flipping over the Chinese bodies.
He checked each one’s health bar to see if anyone was still alive.
“……None.”
Not a single survivor. Examining their wounds, he saw deep cuts from sharp blades.
The cuts were deeper at the top and shallower at the bottom—clear signs of a pulling slash from a sword expert.
“Definitely the Japanese.”
Unlike Kim Cheonjae, Ma Jeongwoo deduced it through his weapon expertise.
“……Where’s that guy?”
Frowning, Ma Jeongwoo had checked every body, but key members like the druid player and Wang Cheonma were missing.
Before he could puzzle it out, a golem’s roar echoed.
-Kuwaaaah!
The angels were numerous, but nowhere near enough to hold back every demon surging from one direction.
Ma Jeongwoo stopped thinking and focused on dropping the enemies right in front of him.
It was the best he could do.
Infusing his axe with red aura, Ma Jeongwoo charged into the fray.
“Hraaah!”
Soaring high, he slammed his axe down on a steel golem’s head.
Boom!
The golem’s head crumpled exactly along the axe blade’s mark.
“Take this, you damned golems!”
From afar, someone watched Ma Jeongwoo battling the monsters. A player in samurai garb, hidden behind a tall temple pillar in the shadows.
He drew a shuriken from his sleeve and dipped its tip into a vial of green liquid. He handled the vial like it contained something extremely hazardous.
Once prepared, the samurai took aim at Ma Jeongwoo’s back. His eyes locked on the neck.
Gathering aura in his hand, he drew it back, then hurled it forward.
Swoosh!
The shuriken sliced through the air toward Ma Jeongwoo’s throat.
The samurai smirked, certain of his hit—until
Clang!
An iron rod flew in, batting the shuriken away.
“Where do you think you’re throwing that!”
A man in a blue robe with long flowing hair charged in.
“……Wang Cheonma?”
Ma Jeongwoo tilted his head at the sight. Wang Cheonma yanked the rod from the ground, fuming.
“A friend of Kim Cheonjae?”
“Yeah. You’re alive?”
“Yep.”
Wang Cheonma turned toward where the shuriken had come from. The samurai had ducked behind the pillar.
“Hey, what the hell happened?”
Ma Jeongwoo asked, even though he knew.
“What happened? Those damn Japanese bastards attacked us.”
Wang Cheonma focused aura into the iron rod and flung it at the samurai’s hiding pillar.
The force made the air resonate, denting the surroundings.
Boom!
The rod punched through the pillar and impaled the samurai.
Confirming the kill, Wang Cheonma hissed through clenched teeth.
Tch.
“Didn’t they attack you guys too?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh ho…. So they’re hitting us in sequence.”
“……”
“But why’d you come here?”
Slinging his axe over his shoulder, Ma Jeongwoo replied.
“Came to warn you about the Japanese betrayal, but you’d already been hit.”
“What?”
“Vietnam got jumped first.”
“……Those crazy bastards. Heavy losses on the Vietnam side?”
“Wiped out. All dead. You guys nearly were too.”
Wang Cheonma glared at the scattered bodies, rage building.
“Why the hell? What’s their motive for turning on us now?”
Ma Jeongwoo picked his nose and shrugged.
“Dunno. I’m just the messenger for what Cheonjae said.”
“What Cheonjae said?”
“Yeah. Watch out, Japan betrayed us.”
“……You’re warning us awful early.”
“We moved as fast as we could. One more thing: after we take down this boss, we’re hunting Japanese players.”
“……The final boss?”
“Leviathan’s done, so no worries there. Once the first story arc ends, the angels handle the rest.”
Wang Cheonma’s expression turned resolute as he listened.
“Hold on. Mind if we join that fight?”
“We?”
No sooner had he spoken than the druid player emerged. He’d been hiding in tree form amid the surroundings—thought to be hellish landscaping from the flames.
Just a druid with his head on fire.
“Ack, hot hot!”
Patting out the flames on his head, he addressed Ma Jeongwoo.
“Please let us join the Japanese player hunt. We beg you.”
Unlike Wang Cheonma, this one was polite.
Ma Jeongwoo eyed them both, looking dubious.
“……I’ll check with Cheonjae and come back. Okay?”
* * * * *
[You have arrived near the temple with ‘Mammon’.]
[Players, please prepare to face ‘Mammon,’ the Demon of Greed, one of the Archdemons.]
Mammon came into view. Unlike the other archdemons, his body was strikingly different.
Small.
Tiny.
Bigger than a human, sure, but minuscule compared to the previous archdemons.
Like a basketball center’s height? Roughly three meters, I’d say.
A black-skinned humanoid with six eyes, Mammon slowly approached the temple.
Each shake of his branch-like wings scattered ash everywhere.
The undead Vietnamese players charged him all at once.
-Uwoooooh!
Spotting them, the golems pressed together into a wall. Just one step sideways each, and they’d formed a defensive fortress tall enough to call a city wall.
Thud!
“Everyone halt. Fall back.”
At my command, the Vietnamese undead crept backward.
If there’d been even one mage among them, we could’ve tried a frontal push—but no dice. All close-range types.
Makes sense. Mages surviving the game’s early stages is rare; it’s an ultra-low-pop job.
‘If only Jo Youngki were here….’
An evil chuckle echoed from behind the wall.
“Kekekeke!”
Chills ran down my spine.
My body tingled.
But that didn’t mean he was stronger than the other archdemons. I knew without fighting.
Even if he’d powered up over the five years I didn’t know about, his core abilities remained the same.
I waited until they reached the temple. The moving golem wall advanced.
Thud-. Thud-. Thud-.
The skeleton soldiers hugged the stairs tight, shields raised.
Gawain waited before them for my order.
“My liege.”
“……Wait.”
Not yet.
Everything has its moment.
“If they get any closer, deploying our formation will be tough. If the fight happens in their territory—”
“Gawain.”
“Yes.”
“Shut up and wait.”
Gawain bowed his head.
[‘Knight of the Sun, Gawain’s’ loyalty slightly decreases.]
In this situation, a loyalty dip didn’t matter.
I’d handle what was coming perfectly and prove it with results.
I kept waiting for the golems’ advance. Until they reached right in front of the temple.
Upon reaching the barrier, Mammon took to the air.
“You humans who recaptured the temple alongside Mikael.”
The archdemon wielding six elements, mage Mammon.
Looking up at him, I replied.
“Corpse Explosion.”
[‘Corpse Explosion’ cast.]
[Explosion on 100 imps.]
[High corpse count means extreme power. Please evacuate the vicinity.]
[Countdown begins: ‘5 seconds’]
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