Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Persona
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“...How in the world did this happen?”
The flustered Obor looked around.
Gone.
No matter how hard they searched, there wasn’t even a trace.
“How is this even possible?”
To capture him for certain, they’d taken the time to erect a barrier and successfully trap him inside.
As a True Blood vampire, he had formed the core, with dozens of vampires forming the framework.
And even then, to prepare for any contingencies, he’d personally kept the target in check...
“Yet he escaped the barrier using spatial movement?”
Did that mean the enemy was on that level?
High enough to toy with all of them?
“There’s nothing wrong with the barrier. We found no traces whatsoever of how he escaped.”
A Pureblood vampire, specialized in blood magic, approached and reported once more.
They had already checked several times.
He could have pretended to vanish and hidden, waiting for the barrier to drop.
So they’d maintained the barrier to the end while he personally inspected the interior multiple times.
And if he’d truly broken through, they’d investigated for traces...
‘He vanished without a single trace.’
They’d been thoroughly played.
He’d raided their hideout to steal the Fragment, then annihilated the vampires in this branch.
And he’d even leisurely waited in the city until they arrived, ultimately mocking them before slipping away.
Kwachijik—!
The ground near Obor exploded.
Cracks spread out as his surroundings shattered.
“How dare you... toy with me? Hans... Hans—!”
After venting his rage for a while, Obor steadied his breathing and turned to his subordinates waiting nearby.
Five Purebloods and more than twenty Lesser Bloods.
“Search the city and its surroundings thoroughly. Don’t miss even the smallest trace—investigate everything!”
““Yes!””
At his command, the vampires scattered in all directions.
Obor scanned the spot where Hans had last been.
Grind—
As he ground his teeth, vowing to repay this humiliation, it happened.
“O... Obor-nim! This is bad!”
Subordinates who had just left rushed back in a panic.
“What is it? Did that bastard do something?”
The first thought was that Hans had pulled some trick before vanishing.
But the problem was far graver.
“The Church of the Main God’s Holy Knights and combat priests, along with a contingent of forces, have surrounded the area!”
“...Why are they here all of a sudden? No, how did we not notice them approaching?”
The Church of the Main God’s special combat unit, dispatched to prevent the Immortal King’s resurrection.
To stop their target from detecting them and fleeing, even an archbishop had joined to conceal their presence with large-scale holy spells.
They’d approached stealthily, and the moment they could no longer track the Immortal King’s aura, they swiftly sealed off the surroundings and closed in from the center.
“...We fell into his trap. Staying in the city to lure us—it was all planned from the start!”
He didn’t know how he’d drawn in the Church of the Main God and set this trap.
But it was clear they’d been dancing to his tune until the very end.
“Everyone, gather up and break through in one direction! We have to escape before dawn. Hurry!”
Powerful holy powers rapidly approaching were palpable.
The symbols of the Church’s military might: Holy Knights.
And among them, one particularly overwhelming aura.
‘Damn it! They even mobilized a Paladin!’
The pinnacle among Holy Knights who had reached Master level.
A powerhouse he couldn’t ignore.
“You bastard, Hans! And those Oath of Reverse Heaven scum too! I’ll make you pay—!”
And so, the Church of the Main God’s Immortal King subjugation force clashed head-on with the Brocoslak Clan vampires.
It was around the time Han Seonghyeon was kicking off his blanket.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ “Hoo... I’m hungry.”
I set aside the tattered blanket and picked up my phone to order some chicken.
After kicking the blanket around for a while to vent my inner demons, a sense of peace settled in my heart.
The quick calming was probably thanks to Clear Mirror Still Water as well.
‘Thanks to the skill, I’ve built up some resistance too. Now I could probably deliver lines even more shamelessly!’
Not that I planned to actually go around doing that.
“Still, Hans got reverse-summoned again. Sigh.”
He probably couldn’t roam freely in that world anyway, but I’d intended to let him go as far as possible...
‘I didn’t expect a True Blood to show up. Should I have just bolted from the city right away?’
Having absorbed another Fragment and evolved into an Archlich, I’d been brimming with confidence.
So I figured I could shake them off easily enough.
‘He was stronger than expected. I could win in a proper fight, but...’
There was no particular merit in battling right then, so slipping away was the better choice.
Hans had only obtained Forbidden Knowledge a few days ago, so given time, he’d grow even stronger.
There would be plenty of opportunities to settle things later.
‘Extracting the origin of Immortality is a bit tricky to use right away, though.’
By absorbing the second Fragment, he’d evolved from an incomplete Demi-Lich, skipping the intermediate Lich stage entirely, into an Archlich.
That was the skill he’d gained, but it seemed hard to put to proper use.
For Hans, the “origin” likely referred to the heart formed by fusing with the Fragment.
It would be ideal if he could store it safely on Earth and draw from it, but he doubted the black magic power from a heart in another dimension would transmit properly to Hans.
‘Can’t directly transfer energy through the Avatar skill either.’
Without the heart’s black magic support, Hans would just be an empty tin-can skeleton.
It was better for Hans to keep it—immense power that made him hard to defeat, with reverse summon always as a fallback.
Still, it wasn’t entirely useless.
As long as the heart was protected, even if his limbs were reduced to dust, near-infinite black magic power would restore him in an instant.
‘I can research that part later. Training in Outerica saves time comparatively. If Heinz 2nd gets farther from Azantu, I’ll resummon him there.’
Right now, Heinz 2nd had arrived in Tilrak City with his group for resupply and intel gathering.
Lingering too long near vampire territory as a vampire wasn’t wise, so they planned to head farther out.
Fortunately, becoming a Pureblood allowed him to conceal his presence well, and killing his direct bloodline, Wirak, made tracking harder.
‘No, they probably think he’s already dead anyway. Especially after the chaos Hans caused.’
Still, better to avoid drawing attention.
“All in all, we gained a lot. Heinz 2nd got some solid combat power, and Hans absorbed another Fragment.”
Plus all sorts of wealth and magic tools.
A highly satisfying outcome.
“He performed pretty well, so I must’ve racked up decent Karma. Let’s see how much is left until the next unique skill enhancement... Huh?”
I opened the Karma Shop to check the numbers and froze for a moment.
⚔ KARMA SHOP ⚔ 💰 Unique Skill Enhancement: (700,000) ⭐ Held Karma: 731,002 “...Is it normally this generous?”
I’d recently spent most of it evenly boosting my physical abilities, so there shouldn’t have been much left.
Yet somehow, it was full again.
The Brocoslak Clan was among the top three in the vampire world, but vampires were a minority in Outerica, and Azantu was just a small frontier city.
‘Does that mean the Fragment of the Immortal King holds that much value? Or maybe sowing discord between the vampires and Oath of Reverse Heaven played a part.’
After pondering briefly, I settled on that conclusion.
More Karma was always better, and what mattered now was I could enhance my unique skill once more.
‘Nothing in particular feels necessary, so I wonder how it’ll evolve? Another Avatar slot?’
With anticipation, I immediately selected enhancement, and a throbbing headache hit.
A brief moment passed, and I realized I could now create one more Avatar.
But it didn’t end there.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Your unique skill has grown, unlocking new potential. You have acquired the special skill 「Persona」.
“Oh?”
I even got the related skill I’d secretly hoped for.
Mind Hub had been helping out plenty so far, so I eagerly checked the details with glee.
But...
“Ha...”
My expression hardened involuntarily, a hollow laugh escaping.
Unique skill growth aligns with the user’s needs.
Meaning the system deemed 「Persona」 necessary for me.
The skill’s effect was simple.
A skill that uses an Avatar as a vessel to contain one’s emotions.
“......”
Silence stretched on endlessly.
As I sat there dazed, I realized one of my legs had been trembling unconsciously.
...The leg from ‘that day,’ which had only recently healed, bearing the scars.
Now smooth, without even a mark.
I closed my eyes and sank into quiet thought.
I understood why this skill had appeared.
Slowly, I reflected on the past.
I’d mingled cheerfully with the first people I met in that world, building friendships.
I’d become undead, dealt with black mages, and on Earth, subdued Villains.
I’d sacrificed myself to help struggling siblings and repelled the city’s vampires.
‘Me, who’d spent two years holed up in my room.’
Me, who feared the outside world and had only one friend left.
Yeah, truthfully, everything after gaining Avatar was just like playing a game.
Vivid and immersive, letting me experience it all directly, but it wasn’t reality to me.
Like talking to NPCs without shame, punishing villains and aiding the weak felt like clearing quests.
My Avatar adventured brightly and energetically through that world, but in reality, I remained shut in my room.
The physical scars had faded, but my mind was still stuck back then.
“Hoo—”
I let out a sigh and opened my eyes.
The quiet house.
The faint hum of the fridge grated on my nerves more than usual today.
The once lively, bustling home now felt devoid of any spark.
The space I’d considered a sanctuary now seemed like a coffin trapping me in dust-filled silence.
Facing the reality I’d been avoiding, the disconnect choked me.
“Hans.”
As I murmured softly, darkness pooled on the floor, and Hans slowly rose.
He suppressed his aura through every method, yet it still instilled fear in any who beheld him.
Far more terrifying than when he was a Demi-Lich—several times over.
“Transfer the stagnant, rotting emotions into a vessel...”
Focusing on Hans, I activated 「Persona」.
Loneliness, sorrow, anger... all the accumulated negative emotions flowed in naturally.
As an undead, Hans absorbed them like a sponge, a perfect match.
“Hoo... Is it done?”
Facing the piled-up negativity and transferring it left my mind fresher than ever.
It wasn’t discarding emotions entirely.
More like neatly packing them in a box for retrieval anytime.
After all, Avatars were still part of me.
“Great for me, but is Hans okay?”
Undead already leaned negative; amplifying that could be bad...
I focused my consciousness on Hans and peered into his inner self.
No anomalies.
If anything, devouring the negativity made wielding black magic power even smoother.
[...Pain and despair are life’s companions. At this point, it hardly bothers me.] I muttered it without realizing, then didn’t notice at first.
It just felt natural.
“Huh—?!”
Then the incongruity hit, and I jolted.
No, it was definitely my voice...
[Kuhuhu... I see. Avatars infused with emotions develop corresponding personalities? Logical, when you think about it.] Hans let out a cynical chuckle.
It was so natural it gave me chills.
‘Projecting part of my inner personality? No standing in front of people with this guy, then.’
I could control it if I tried, but without focus, his speech naturally shifted.
Was this a side effect...?
“Whatever. Fine. No need for Hans to deal with people anyway. As long as it helps me.”
As I nodded, settling on that...
Kung—!
A distant impact rang out.
Aeeeaeng—!
Then sirens began blaring.
Far off, but faint—I had a good idea what was happening.
‘Villain terrorism.’
Lately, Villains were rampant, incidents spiking.
News and the net were flooded with it.
‘Not like I can jump in proactively...’
If it were right under my nose like last time, maybe, but I wasn’t about to hunt them down.
No gains, and it wasn’t harming me directly.
I ignored it, waiting for my chicken.
Geiiing~
Sometime later, my phone buzzed with a text.
-Delivery Clan has sent a message.
-The store for your order, ‘Cerberus Three Chicken,’ has ceased operations due to an accident.
-Your order has been refunded. We apologize for the inconvenience.
I stared at the message, then glanced out the window.
Gauging the commotion’s direction against the store’s location...
“...Ah.”
It was the best spot I’d found after trying various chicken places.
Fresh meat, crispy outside, juicy inside, with generous portions and diverse flavors—always satisfying.
For nearly a year, it was my go-to for chicken.
The kind-hearted owner even loaded on extras for a regular like me...
“...Looks like ignoring it came back to bite me.”
Truthfully, I might’ve been looking for an excuse.
A way to justify myself.
Grounds for an irrational choice.
[Does purging evil need a reason? No. With the world’s order shaken and chaos descending, lawless ones rampage everywhere... Now, I shall become their law.] Hans beside me melted into the shadows.
Yeah, all the excuses boiled down to one thing.
I hate Villains.