Chapter 186
Chapter 186
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 186
Chapter Title: Loose Ends and New Beginnings
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Standing atop a bus-sized armored vehicle, Rios gazed at the collapsing clubhouse.
As he watched the residence he had lived in for over a decade disappear in flames, Rios spoke.
“Is he dead?”
A circular hatch on the roof of the large armored vehicle opened, and a club member popped his head out like a mole.
“Saying things like that will make even a dead man rise from his grave, Master.”
Rios scoffed.
“I don’t believe in such superstitions. If he’s dead, he’s dead. If he’s not, he’s not. What does talking have to do with it?”
“Still, it’s better to be safe than sorry. More importantly… if you’re anxious, why not go and confirm the kill yourself?”
At his club member’s words, Rios sighed as if he too found it regrettable.
“I’d love to, but the problem is, with my gear in the Chapter Zone, I don’t have the confidence to handle him if he somehow survived that explosion.”
“True, your suit and main weapon are in the Chapter Zone. Still… even if he did survive that inferno, I doubt he’d be in any condition to fight… Why not take this chance to see for yourself?”
The club member’s point was valid, and Rios was tempted, but he quickly shook his head as if to cast off the lingering thought.
“No, it’s better not to. The more I think about it, there’s no middle ground with him. If he were insignificant, he would have definitely died in those flames. But if he’s the kind of man who could overcome a trap like that on his own… then he’s someone I can’t possibly handle right now without my equipment.”
The club member, having known Rios for a long time, knew his instincts were usually sharp, so he acquiesced.
“Hmm, that could be true. Well, I don’t think you need to worry too much. I doubt anyone could survive that sea of flames.”
Watching the clubhouse collapse like a rotten, ancient tree, Rios spoke.
“If he’s alive, he’ll come looking for me to repay the favor. Now, shall we get going? To Chapter 7.”
As Rios entered through the hatch on the roof, the armored vehicle roared to life, its engine growling as it pushed forward, grinding and flinging off the clinging white monsters.
A short while after the Dawn armored vehicle departed, the rubble, which had become a grim tomb of concrete after all the building’s supports had collapsed, began to stir.
*CRASH!*
Lee Si-woo burst out, sending debris flying in all directions, enveloped in a blue shield.
Having used an ‘Absolute Shield’ purchased from the Shop to escape the explosion without a scratch, Si-woo carefully held the unconscious Ha-yun in his arms and scanned his surroundings.
‘There’s no way he died so easily.’
The Ancestor Demon, wearing Adrian’s shell, had tried to steal his body using an unknown technique.
There was no guarantee that a being with such a trick up its sleeve wouldn’t have another ace to survive an explosion like this.
He had to check. Meticulously and thoroughly.
‘To think that crimson snake was its true form… Dammit, the back of my neck still feels cold just thinking about it.’
He didn’t know for sure, but if it hadn’t been for the black remote Kinis had given him, he would have been completely blindsided.
Gently laying the unconscious Ha-yun on the ground, Si-woo walked over the debris, clutching the black remote.
‘Come out. I know you’re not the type to go down like this.’
Si-woo walked over the wreckage for a long time, but the remote didn’t react.
A normal person would have assumed by now that the Ancestor Demon had died in the explosion, but Si-woo was different.
He was persistent. And relentless.
And in the end, he found it.
*Beep.*
The moment the black remote chirped, a crimson smoke began to rise from the debris.
The smoke coalesced before Si-woo’s eyes, transforming into the same blood snake he had seen before the explosion.
Was it because it had lost Adrian’s shell?
The blood snake conveyed its thoughts to Si-woo via telepathy.
-To think you’d still be here. I’m impressed. Just as I’d expect from myself.
“Don’t call me you. I’m nothing like you.”
The blood snake spoke in a mocking tone.
-Then what? Are you Lee Si-woo?
“…I’m not Lee Si-woo either.”
-Yes, don’t deny it. You know it too, don’t you? That I am you. And you are me.
“I won’t deny it. As you say, I’m closer to an Ancestor Demon than Lee Si-woo. But… that doesn’t mean I’m you. You’re just a fake.”
-Me… a fake?
“Whatever you think you are, your essence is nothing more than a programmed AI. The real you has become a part of me, living and breathing within me.”
At Si-woo’s words, the blood snake’s red eyes flickered violently like a raging fire.
-I think for myself, I decide, and I judge. I am by no means an AI. I am your past, the Ancestor Demon. Lee Si-woo. Show some respect.
Si-woo twisted his lips into a sneer, mocking the blood snake.
“Respect? Don’t give me that crap. You’re nothing but an artificial intelligence my past self created for fun. This world is just a virtual space modeled after a game.”
Si-woo took a Psionic Grenade from his inventory.
It was a fantastic item, costing over 5,000 points, capable of blowing away spiritual or mental entities in one shot.
“So, if you’re an extra, act like an extra. Stop being an eyesore and get lost.”
-I am not… a fake! Nor am I an artificial intelligence---! Lee Si-woo--!
As if struck by the truth, the blood snake shot a bizarre, static-filled telepathic message and surged toward him. Si-woo threw the Psionic Grenade at it.
*ZZZZIIIIING!*
The Psionic Grenade detonated with an ear-splitting wave of energy.
Caught in the flow of energy emanating from the grenade, the blood snake let out a final, death-like scream and scattered into pieces.
As the blood snake completely vanished, Si-woo tucked the now-silent black remote into his pocket and muttered.
“Thanks, though. For getting rid of that eyesore Adrian for me. Without you, dealing with that cumbersome bastard would have been quite a hassle.”
Having easily disposed of Adrian thanks to the fake Ancestor Demon, Si-woo felt a weight lift from his shoulders as he went to get Ha-yun.
‘So, is it time to repay my debt to Rios? I suppose it would be a shame to let it slide after the grand reception I received today. Alright, then. In that case, maybe it’s not a bad idea to just skip Chapter 6 and go straight to Chapter 7.’
Originally, he was supposed to stop by Chapter 6, but the situation had changed with the appearance of the Shop, which was basically a cheat code for the game.
He didn’t know what the Ancestor Demon had been thinking, but it had registered unbelievable weapons and items in the Shop, enough to let one conquer this world with ease if they just abandoned their humanity.
It was as if it was saying, ‘No matter how much you pretend to be human now, don’t forget that your true nature is me.’
‘Whatever its intentions are, it doesn’t matter. As unsettling and dirty as it may be, there’s no doubt that this choice is the most beneficial for me. So first, I’ll devour this city. After that, I’ll clear Chapter 7 and get out of this godforsaken world. With Ha-yun.’
Still, not everything that had happened since coming to this world was bad.
One way or another, he had managed to rescue Ha-yun from Adrian’s grasp.
For that, Si-woo was satisfied.
And at the same time, his stomach churned as if he had swallowed bile.
He was disgusted with himself for feeling pleased just by saving Ha-yun, even after driving tens of thousands of people to their deaths.
But paradoxically, Si-woo found this disgusted version of himself the most loathsome of all.
Feeling guilt while driving others to misfortune without a second thought for his own gain felt like self-deception.
‘Lee Si-woo. Stop the deceit. And just admit it. You’re different from them. That’s right, you’re not Lee Si-woo, nor are you human. You’re just an unidentifiable mixture of human and demon. So… let’s just drop the pretense of righteousness. There’s nothing… surprising about a demonic piece of waste committing evil deeds.’
Even as he consoled himself with such thoughts, Si-woo’s feet were carrying him toward District 3, where Luktator had gone to provide support with the vaccine.
***
Luktator was holding back the white monsters alongside the vigilantes.
Standing firm like a dam against the white monsters that surged forward like a white wave, Luktator shouted.
“Everyone, fall back! I’ll handle this!”
Taking a deep breath, Luktator performed his Hard Body Technique.
“I am the blade; there is nothing before me that does not split.”
[4th Stage Hard Body Technique - One-Strike Style: Sever in a Single Stroke]
Luktator’s hand-blade moved lightly from left to right.
A current of wind extended from his hand and swept over the white monsters.
Like a blade of wind parting a wave, the bodies of the white monsters were split in two, top from bottom.
Just as Luktator was about to catch his breath amidst the slaughtered white monsters, his eyes widened.
He had gone through the trouble of dealing with hundreds at once, only to see over a thousand more swarming in from beyond.
At this point, Luktator couldn’t help but realize firsthand that most of the users in the base city had been infected by the white monsters. He yelled.
“Plenitas! Refuel!”
At Luktator’s call, Plenitas came running, out of breath.
“Coming! I’m coming!”
Plenitas threw the chocolate and ice cream she was holding to Luktator.
His eyes flashing like a dog seeing a treat, Luktator leaped and devoured the chocolate and ice cream in one bite.
Thanks to this, Luktator, able to maintain his massive physique, green skin, and skill, once again performed his Hard Body Technique.
“I am invincible; above the heavens and below, I alone am the victor.”
[7th Stage Hard Body Technique - Word Command Style: Path of the Victor]
As the Path of the Victor, also known as the Dominator’s Step in the Main Dimension, was unleashed, the movements of over a thousand white monsters came to a dead halt.
It wasn’t just the white monsters in front of him.
As if time had stopped, not only all the white monsters in the city but also the survivors struggling for their lives were overwhelmed by the aura emanating from Luktator and froze on the spot.
Yes, even Rios, who was just about to leave the city.
‘This is insane… The city has stopped?’
Engulfed by the flow of aura emanating from the city’s center, unable to even lift a finger inside the armored vehicle, Rios swallowed dryly.
‘What is this? This absurd presence? Where is it? In the city?’
With Lee Si-woo already being a headache, the appearance of an extraordinary being like Luktator made Rios let out a hollow laugh.
He had never imagined that someone existed who could single-handedly bring an army of white monsters to their knees.
‘…No, wait. I think I’ve heard of this kind of technique before. A being in the Empire who can bring a legion to its knees with just the Hard Body Technique… Who was it?’
Next to Rios, a club member managed to speak.
His body was immobile, but being inside the armored vehicle, he was less affected by the aura’s flow, which seemed to allow him to talk.
“It’s Luktator.”
“Luktator?”
“Yes. Luktator, the Empire’s Strongest. The greatest warrior in the Empire.”
“He’s in this world? Why?”
“He’s probably… after the Red Butterfly.”
“The Empire’s Strongest is after the Red Butterfly… huh.”
Clenching his teeth at the hard-to-believe and unwelcome topic, Rios’s eyes flew open as he let out a sharp cry.
Mana erupted from his dantian like a volcano, and the resulting wave of mana from his body swept through the armored vehicle.
Thanks to this, the Dawn club’s armored vehicle, now freed from the grasp of the Path of the Victor, slowly began to move.
“Full speed ahead! Get out of the city as fast as possible!”
At Rios’s shout, the armored vehicle accelerated further, quickly exiting the city.
Finally catching his breath, Rios leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.
Luktator’s appearance had put him on high alert, and Rios made a decision.
He decided he could no longer wait for Chapter 6 to collapse and for Chapter 7’s secret chapter to open.
‘I need to return to Chapter 7 as soon as possible and mess up the chapter as quickly as I can. To the point where it’s beyond recovery, no matter who comes—Luktator or Lee Si-woo.’
Meanwhile, in a corner of the city, Luktator sensed the presence of a powerful individual, Rios, who had broken through his Path of the Victor, and raised an eyebrow.
“He broke my Path of the Victor? Hmm, quite impressive.”
Just then, Lee Si-woo, who had teleported behind Luktator in a flash of blue light, overheard his monologue and spoke in a calm tone.
“That would be Rios.”
“Rios? Who is that?”
“The club master of Dawn… probably one of the Solo Numbers.”
“Hoh, so he must have a lower number than my disciple. That makes sense. According to him, that secret society, Dawn or whatever, has quite a few powerhouses on par with himself. More importantly… you. You’ve become quite peculiar. Are those items you bought from that Shop or whatever?”
Covered in a blue shield and thus unaffected by the Path of the Victor, Si-woo replied with a slight smile.
“Yes. It’s called an Absolute Shield. It’s a one-time use item, but it’s been very useful.”
“One-time use? So you can’t use it anymore?”
“No. It has a time limit, so I can’t, but that’s fine. I have another one.”
“Hmph, always so clever with your little tricks. You’re good at finding strange items from who knows where. So, what’s the plan now? I’ve vaccinated and saved about a thousand people as you said… but we can’t possibly take all of them with us, can we?”
At Luktator’s words, Si-woo smirked.
“Why can’t we? We can take all of them.”
Si-woo took out several palm-sized toy armored vehicles from his inventory.
When Si-woo threw the toys, which resembled the armored vehicle Rios and his club members had ridden in, onto the ground, they miraculously grew into several bus-sized armored vehicles.
“Hoh, quite interesting. Did you buy these from the Shop too?”
“Yes. I bought them just in case something like this happened. For now, Luktator, you should take these and head to Chapter 7 first.”
“Chapter 7? Not 6?”
“Yes. Rios is the club master of Dawn, and their target for conquest is Chapter 7. Based on my experience with him this time… it seems he’s trying to induce a failure in the conquest. Otherwise, his attempt to assassinate me out of the blue makes no sense.”
“…So you’re going straight to Chapter 7 because you don’t know what tricks he might pull? Can you handle it? You’re the one who said our skills were still lacking to conquer the final chapter.”
“That’s right. We were lacking. But things are different now. In that short time… I’ve accumulated an enormous amount of Kill Points.”
With most of the city’s inhabitants now dead at the hands of the white monsters, Si-woo’s Kill Points had multiplied several times over from before he left the Shop.
“With this, I can buy that suit. So, you go on ahead. I’ll enjoy one last shopping spree and join you right after.”
With those words, Si-woo used his Teleport Ring to head to the second floor of the Testament.
As Si-woo vanished like the wind, Luktator smacked his lips and looked around, scratching the back of his head.
He had only just realized that Si-woo had dumped all the tedious work on him and left.
“Seriously, how am I supposed to get all these people onto the armored vehicles? And my Path of the Victor is about to wear off. Ah, this is driving me crazy…”