Chapter 494
Chapter 494
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 494
Chapter Title: Secret (3)
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"Then I'm off. Take good care of Grandma while I'm gone."
"Don't worry about it. You take care of yourself."
That brief exchange was their last.
They'd already said everything that needed saying during training, so there was no need to drag it out.
Woooong—
Dawn was about to break.
With that, Kang Taesan stepped onto the Otherworld Teleportation Circle forming beneath his feet and vanished from Earth.
"...Phew, he's gone."
Left alone, I stared at the spot where he'd been for a moment before letting out a small sigh.
My one and only friend's awakening and his jump to another world.
I'd been pouring all my focus into handling that sudden event, and now fatigue was starting to crash over me. But I couldn't rest yet.
There was still work to do.
I rubbed the back of my neck, then closed my eyes right there and regulated my breathing.
Sinking deep into my inner self, I focused on the divinity in my mindscape.
I wanted to observe the dimension Kang Taesan had crossed into, via the channel forged by contract and faith.
'Just in case. Better to prepare for emergencies.'
The divine power granted to him was a force derived from me, after all.
Naturally, I held ultimate authority over it, and I could impose all sorts of conditions through it.
For example... having that 'believer' who wielded the divine power actively report back to me if they encountered a crisis beyond their abilities.
'And if I want, I can summon an Otherworld Teleportation Circle to those coordinates anytime.'
A true god wouldn't micromanage every single follower like this, but I was just an aspiring god who hadn't even claimed a proper divine seat yet.
That was how I located the link to my very first—and only—believer, Kang Taesan.
But then.
Amid all that, I uncovered one unexpected fact...
'Huh? What's this?'
It turned out I had more than one believer tied to me.
Sure, Kang Taesan was the only one with a formal contract sealed by divine power.
But there was another connection, just as thick... no, objectively even thicker, binding me solidly.
'Wait, this is Diana?'
Figuring out who it was wasn't hard.
The moment I focused on it, info about the connected party etched itself clearly into my mind.
And I immediately understood why this had happened.
'...I knew she trusted me.'
A faith bordering on fanaticism, absolute beyond mere blind devotion.
Even before I'd sprouted my divinity, Diana had already held something indistinguishable from true worship in her heart.
The instant I met the minimum qualifications, she'd been incorporated as a believer.
'And that's not all. There are plenty of candidates who could become formal believers with the right trigger—not quite at Diana's level, but still.'
Like Princess Riley of the Empire and Ramu from the Sabaten dimension, bound by contract like Kang Taesan. And countless other connections I'd built over time—even the officers under Hans in his undead army.
Spanning nations, races, alignments, and dimensions alike, my influence was shockingly widespread.
"Ha, what a trip. Looks like I'm about to found an interdimensional religion."
A mix of embarrassment and pride welled up.
These bonds were assets I'd piled up through all sorts of twists and turns.
Feeling them so directly like this? It was bound to hit home.
'...Guess I need to talk to Diana first.'
Arranging a chat with her, Hubert's secretary, wouldn't be tough.
Eyes still closed, I retraced each thread of connection I'd woven.
Recalling the events of the past four-plus years.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A strange sense of buoyancy enveloped his body.
The odd sensation of crossing dimensions—something ordinary people might never feel in a lifetime.
But the discomfort didn't last long.
'Already over? That was a letdown.'
The dimensional transfer complete in an instant, Kang Taesan opened his tightly shut eyes and looked around.
Messages popping up right after the transfer had already told him the name of this world.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Transfer to the Nocternia Dimension complete. You may return to Earth via the 'Return' option in the Karma Shop. Current Karma: 0. Check the Karma Shop later for details. Tall, jagged trees soared high, with glimpses of blue sky between them.
No matter where he looked, it was just an endlessly peaceful mountain scene.
"Nocternia...?"
But he knew better.
This dimension he'd entered wasn't as peaceful as it appeared.
'Misfortune or luck? Hard to say.'
He already had some grasp of this world—Nocternia.
It was one of the worlds he'd been forced to study for work.
"...No immediate danger, at least."
Scanning his surroundings sharply, he cautiously unslung the bag on his back.
He rummaged inside briefly and pulled out a booklet, checking the cover.
-No.102 Nocternia
The World Returner Association's official manual, compiling info gathered from countless returners.
This was the latest edition, covering maps, shifting power dynamics, and recent events.
"Space expansion really is convenient. No one else could dream of hauling this."
Electronics couldn't be brought to other worlds.
Even if this volume was slim, with hundreds of dimensions possible, the full series' bulk and weight were no joke.
And when you were already packing survival gear and rations? No room for extras.
'All thanks to Seonghyeon.'
Patting his spatial expansion backpack, Kang Taesan thanked his friend once more and stowed the booklet separately.
He wanted to sit and read it cover to cover, but securing a safe spot came first.
Night in the forest would be far deadlier than broad daylight.
'Hope there's a village nearby. Even just knowing the local name would help plan ahead. Or some landmark or regional feature...'
But then.
Tatata-tang—
Bang—!
Gunfire erupted from somewhere in the forest, echoing relentlessly.
Countless birds burst into the sky all at once.
The nonstop racket shattered the forest's silence—some skirmish with multiple players, no doubt.
'Not too close. But not far either.'
He could tell just from the sound.
If he pushed it, reaching the source wouldn't be hard.
Two options in this situation.
Risk some danger to approach, make contact with locals, and gather intel.
Or prioritize safety, head the opposite way, and scout elsewhere.
'...Play it safe for now.'
He chose the latter.
He hadn't pinpointed his drop location or figured out what was going on.
No desperate need, and he'd come prepared—no reason to court danger.
'Might catch a stray bullet.'
But things didn't go his way.
As he packed up, suppressing his presence and taking a step forward.
Rustle—
A figure burst from the underbrush, locking eyes with him head-on.
"Damn...! Thought I'd shaken them clean. Ambush here too? These hunter cockroaches are stubborn as hell!"
The man, clothes torn from a fierce fight, glared at Kang Taesan and gnashed his teeth.
Bloody light gleamed in his eyes as a thick bloody aura spread everywhere.
He looked ready to attack any second.
No time for talk to clear the misunderstanding.
'Damn! Worst timing ever!'
Thought and action synced.
Kang Taesan threw himself backward on instinct, drawing his Black Star from its holster and aiming.
His body felt stiff from the unknown energy, but his pre-transfer training let him move smoothly enough.
Ka-clang—!
But before he could pull the trigger.
A flying blade from nowhere knocked the pistol from his hand.
"Ha! Not some average joe after all. I went for the throat, but you faced my Blood Curse Eyes head-on and still moved. But this ends now!"
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Unyielding Spirit The aura of Unyielding Spirit swirled through his body, resisting the suppressive force.
But that was it.
His current physical abilities, barely beyond a normal human's, couldn't properly react to the foe's speed.
'High-rank vampire! Right on arrival...!'
No time to curse the heavens.
His mind accelerated amid the sudden crisis.
At the same time, the divine power writhing inside him surged toward his brain.
"Blame your ignorance for challenging Bishop Pruve alone!"
The vampire charged head-on.
A pair of eyes gleaming with cursed red blood-mist, fangs jutting from a gaping maw, countless blood-red blades flying from all directions.
No intent to drag this out—overwhelming pressure crushed down everywhere.
'Talk about rotten luck!'
A 'Bishop' equated to level 5-6 on Earth.
Just one step below the pinnacle level 7 'Rook'.
No rookie Awakened fresh off the boat could handle that.
'No choice.'
In that do-or-die moment.
Click—
A switch flipped in Kang Taesan's mindscape.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ An Awakened transferred to another world has their growth halt the moment they return to Earth.
Unique Skills and all others stop gaining proficiency. System buffs vanish, stats can't rise, and there's no ambient mystery on Earth to build more energy.
"But here's a question."
What if we trained on Earth right before leaving?
Supplying energy in real-time with divine power, and setting up an optimal growth environment?
I'd tested that question while training Kang Taesan.
'Results were very encouraging. The Growth Elixir helped a ton, of course.'
I'd especially hammered Unyielding Spirit during practical drills.
Using special energies or raw physics, I pushed him to extremes relentlessly, forcing him to overcome.
And I didn't forget to forcibly activate the divine power dwelling in him.
About two days like that.
No sleep except the last few hours before transfer—I beat on him nonstop.
Forcing extreme situations to evolve his Unique Skill.
"Phew, gotta say—friends like me don't come around twice."
And the payoff?
Kang Taesan evolved his Unique Skill before even transferring.
Plus, he unlocked a derivative skill from it and some minor ones.
'Add the divine power traits to the gear I gave him...'
As long as he didn't run into anything beyond Rook-level, he could win.
A bit iffy to call it purely his own power.
"Eh, whatever. Isn't that what connections are for?"
Having a capable friend like me was a skill in itself.
I shrugged nonchalantly and sank into my chair.
Everything had gone smoothly so far.
Including Kang Taesan's trip to the other world.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Nocternia Dimension.
It had one nickname known worldwide.
The otherworld's biggest vampire hotspot.
Earth was the hub where vampires from various dimensions gathered, but about 30% hailed from Nocternia—their dominance was overwhelming.
Only two intelligent races existed: humans and vampires.
And conflict between them never ceased.
Unlike Sabaten, no mediator could stop it.
This was a struggle for survival.
"Grrgh... What... what is this...? Not holy bullets, so why won't it regenerate...?"
In Nocternia, Bishop-rank vampires were objects of real terror.
Transcendent Kings and Queens were outliers, and local boss Rooks rarely showed personally.
So the most immediate threat to humanity was inevitably the field-commander Bishops.
They weren't meant to end up sprawled in such pathetic shape.
"What are you?! What the hell are you?! Why won't—?!"
Holes riddling his body, limbs blasted off, the vampire spewed blood and raved.
Desperate, he flung curses via his bloodline ability 'Blood Curse Eyes' every which way, but his foe showed no reaction no matter how long.
"Whew."
Kang Taesan looked down at him calmly, finally calming the divine power that had surged to its peak via Unyielding Spirit, and sighed.
Truth be told, he wasn't unscathed either.
Caked in dirt, armor scratched up, wounds aplenty.
'Considering the opponent, walking away this light is lucky. No Hundred Battles Unscathed, and it'd have been impossible.'
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Hundred Battles Unscathed (Derived Skill) Forcibly elevates all abilities to overcome crisis. Post-usage backlash incoming.
The ability to analyze enemy and self, then forcibly max out all capabilities to carve a path—Hundred Battles Unscathed.
It was the derivative skill born from two days of nonstop beatings by his friend Han Seonghyeon.
Of course, forcibly exceeding limits meant serious backlash later.
'Damn... What the hell does that guy live like? Even with Unyielding Spirit filtering most shocks, my head feels like it's splitting.'
Maxing out divine power brought more than body buffs.
Combat experience, knowledge, instincts from who-knows-where flooded in, granting Bishop-surpassing prowess in the moment.
He knew his friend had many secrets, but this power felt especially alien.
"Let's end this. I've pushed myself—need a break."
Kang Taesan glanced at his wounds, knitting shut then vanishing completely, and raised his Black Star.
The vampire stared blankly at the barrel aimed his way, eyes widening as realization dawned.
"You...! That gun...! No way!"
Bang—! Bang—!
But his final words scattered unfinished into the wind.
Without regen even for lost limbs, he had no hope of reviving sans heart and head.
'Choice made for me, unwillingly.'
Lowering the gun, Kang Taesan sighed again and turned.
He'd planned to slip away quietly and assess first...
'No helping it. Saves a trip back—maybe for the best.'
Swish—
Rustling bushes revealed a group from the direction he'd looked.
Five or six men and women clad in protective gear, armed with bizarre, inefficient-looking firearms of all shapes.
The moment Earth Awakened Kang Taesan came face-to-face with Nocternia's vampire hunters—the Slayers.