Chapter 151
Chapter 151
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 151
Chapter Title: The Godslayer's Heart
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The sudden situation plunged the viewers into confusion.
But the broadcast, once cut off, did not return.
The waiting viewers were filled with questions.
This had never happened before, and there was no reason to suddenly end the stream.
No.
On the contrary, this was precisely the time when he absolutely had to keep broadcasting.
Valhalla was a place countless viewers were dying to see.
Just revealing it would boost viewer numbers, not to mention the revenue from the edited videos that would go up later.
In that short time, over 50,000 new viewers had flooded in.
Watching their anger, Unhyang shook her leg so hard the desk nearly splintered.
"Did something happen? Why did the broadcast suddenly..."
She stared piercingly at the pitch-black screen where the broadcast had gone dark.
Waiting in case Soo-hyuk turned it back on—she was no different from the viewers.
But even after several minutes, Soo-hyuk did not return.
"Looks like he didn't cut it off himself."
"Why?"
"Our money-grubbing streamer wouldn't do that. Right?"
Money-grubbing wasn't the most flattering term, but Unhyang nodded.
Soo-hyuk was definitely obsessed with points. She didn't know why yet, but it was clear that's what he wanted.
And this was a crucial time for streamer Lee Soo-hyuk.
The stream's momentum was great, and there was the massive boon of Big Mouth. He'd pay even more attention than usual—there was no reason to cut it off without cause.
So then.
"...Did something happen?"
"Nothing's changed from before."
Cheongryang shook her head at Unhyang muttering the same thing.
"Don't worry too much. He'll handle it fine. That's his character, isn't it?"
Right.
Streamer Lee Soo-hyuk was that kind of character.
The kind who would resolve anything that came his way. Perfect was the word that suited him best.
Viewers tuned in precisely because they wanted to see that side of Lee Soo-hyuk.
"Since it's come to this, let's worry about ourselves when we have time."
It might be too late, but.
This was a conversation they had to have.
"You're really going to the tournament too?"
"Yeah."
"If luck's bad, we might run into everyone. That uncle... I mean, your dad too."
Her eyes wavered for a moment, but only briefly.
Soon, she nodded, showing her resolve again.
"Yun Cheon-geuk isn't the type to cause trouble in a crowded place. It'll be fine."
"You think?"
"I'm going anyway. I can't hide forever."
While living as Baehae's manager, she'd been wrapped in constant anxiety.
The anxiety of not knowing when her location would be exposed. The tension that the Murim World, or Yun Cheon-geuk, might come for her.
All of it piled up, tightening around her throat.
"Time to breathe now. For me too."
Her chest had started opening up after meeting Soo-hyuk.
Through his streams, she felt like she was stepping back out into the world.
It really felt like Lee Soo-hyuk had reincarnated, facing a vague hope.
Avoiding the tournament now would be like choking off that hard-won breath again.
Gazing at Soo-hyuk's stream screen that wouldn't relight, Unhyang voiced the sharp resolve she'd honed for so long.
"I'm going to fight. Whoever it is. Win or lose."
His vision was overwhelmed by a rainbow of colors.
Messages flickered in his mind, and his stomach churned like he'd chugged booze.
'Why the broadcast...'
He tried restarting it, but to no avail.
The broadcast cut off before it even started.
He tried two more times after that, but the result was the same.
For the reason of "unknown force," the broadcast kept terminating.
And in the meantime.
The colorful lights faded, slowly revealing the sight of the "Sixth Asgard."
Rustle-
Grass brushed against his feet.
Flower scents stung his nose, and rainbow hues filled his vision.
Unknown flowers blanketed the surroundings. In the sky, impossibly white clouds drifted at a perfect pace.
The wind, the temperature, the visuals.
Everything was a perfect painting of paradise.
"Paradise...?"
A world so beautiful it seemed artificially crafted.
Standing still, lost in appreciation, Soo-hyuk suddenly felt his face stuffy.
It was the mask he always wore.
But today, there was no need for it.
Click-
He removed the mask from his face and stored it in his inventory.
Cool, fresh air flowed freely into his nose.
Without streaming, this felt good. It had been ages since he'd felt complete freedom.
After savoring that pleasant liberty for a moment, Soo-hyuk checked his inventory.
"Gone, as expected."
The sword fragment that had been there moments ago was missing.
As the message indicated, it seemed to have been consumed to enter this place.
'Used up way too anticlimactically.'
The sword fragment was the reward from clearing the sixth floor trial.
An item obtained after the hard-fought defeat of Baldur.
Even if it looked useless on the surface, as a reward for saving Midgard, he figured it was no ordinary item.
But its purpose turned out to be a key to this place.
"What exactly is here..."
"Me."
His muttering, increased from long hours of streaming, got a reply from someone.
Soo-hyuk whipped his head toward the voice, not even aware anyone was there.
But it was hard to pinpoint where it came from.
It felt like it echoed from the sky.
"Where are you looking? I'm right here."
Only on the second try did the voice ring clearly.
Only after fully turning around did Soo-hyuk spot the man.
A man covering one eye with an eyepatch, wearing a antique robe of thick fur.
Even hidden by the heavy clothes, his muscular build was evident. Wrinkles on his face suggested considerable age.
How long had he been behind him?
No.
Was this man the one who called him?
"Who are you?"
"It's rare for a guest to ask the host's name."
At the man's response, Soo-hyuk realized his mistake.
He was right.
After all, Soo-hyuk was just a first-time guest to Asgard—this was their world.
"I'm Lee Soo-hyuk. Sorry, but beyond my name, I have nothing else to introduce."
"Why not? You have plenty to introduce."
Glancing down, the man's gaze fell on Soo-hyuk's hand.
"Look at all you possess."
"Do you know what this is?"
"Of course. How could I not?"
He spoke as if it were obvious, yet didn't explain the "why."
Curiosity swelled. Just as Soo-hyuk was about to ask what it was, the man spoke first.
"You have many friends, it seems. Don't take it personally. Not just anyone can enter here."
Friends.
It seemed to refer to the viewers watching his stream.
It was a fresh shock.
The broadcast was a system-created device. Interfering with it meant directly tampering with the system.
'Is that even possible?'
Just who was this man?
As those thoughts chained together, the man pulled a small item from his pocket.
Swish-
"Coming with this means you have Tyr's recommendation, right?"
It was the nameless sword fragment from Soo-hyuk's inventory moments ago.
"Yes."
"Then I should welcome you. Well come."
An unexpectedly warm welcome. Because of Tyr's reaction, Soo-hyuk had assumed gods would rip into humans on sight.
"I have a story to tell. Will you follow?"
Without waiting for an answer, the man turned.
As if he'd leave Soo-hyuk behind if he refused.
Soo-hyuk had no choice.
It was obvious the trial wouldn't proceed without following.
"Yes. Let's hear it."
"Good choice."
Step-
Soo-hyuk began following the man.
His steps were curious about what he'd say, but then the world shifted.
Shrr-
The clear blue sky turned pitch black. Like a cutscene starting, a new scene emerged.
Black clouds hung low. Blood-soaked earth and corpses.
'What is this?'
As the landscape fully revealed itself, Soo-hyuk's eyes widened in horror.
How many corpses were there? Everything in sight was bodies.
A world where corpses outnumbered the ground itself.
Even knowing it wasn't real, vomit rose in his throat.
"Don't look away. See it well."
The man viewed the horrific scene with utter calm.
"It's not unrelated to you."
"To me?"
What did that mean?
Unrelated to these corpses? Him?
For some reason, the man standing elegantly in fine clothes blended perfectly with the pile of bodies.
Turning his head, Soo-hyuk spotted a few still standing amid the dead.
A one-eyed man supporting a comrade who'd lost an arm.
Eye and arm.
Two figures came to mind.
"Tyr?"
"The friend who sent you to me."
At the man's affirmation, Soo-hyuk was certain.
"Then you are him."
"Correct."
As expected.
Soo-hyuk took in the battlefield again. He'd seen and endured gruesome fields before, but nothing this chilling.
Why this feeling?
It didn't take long to realize.
"This isn't... a clash of two armies."
Terror.
The nausea from this field stemmed from bone-deep dread.
"It's a massacre by one man."
"Sharp eyes."
"What happened here?"
The standing survivors weren't just the man and Tyr.
Another man in despair, both eyes lost. A woman barely clinging to life, twitching in the corpse pile.
Gazing at the survivors, the man gave his answer.
"There was a war. Against one human."
His words obliterated every doubt Soo-hyuk had held.
Why gods hated humans so much.
This devastation made it understandable.
But now a new question arose.
"One... human?"
One.
A single human massacring all these gods? Was that possible?
Before the doubt cleared.
"Shall I add one more word? Why that friend hated you so much?"
Pointing at Soo-hyuk's heart, the man dropped the second bomb.
"The human who did this to us shares your heart."