Chapter 294: The Strongest Guild, 'Veteran Corporation'
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 294: The Strongest Guild, 'Veteran Corporation'
The ceiling shattered, revealing the face of a giant goat.
"Groooo!"
A shadow fell over the sky.
The ground cracked like a turtle's shell at the resounding roar.
It was terrifying.
So much so that they didn't dare to even lift a finger.
Tremble, tremble!
Everyone froze in place.
Though they were people who had struggled desperately to survive, even that instinct faded in the face of overwhelming terror.
[The 'Black Goat' uses 'Crushing Wave'!]
An ominous light gathered in the Black Goat's mouth.
It was the same cursed attack that had shattered the Great Wall of a Thousand Li before.
"Ah..."
A short lament escaped Kim Gi-tae's mouth.
The people hiding in the underground parking lot also screamed, hugging one another.
A mother holding her child tightly came into view.
One second. Two seconds. And three seconds.
Kaaaa-boom!
A mass of mana, compressed to its absolute limit, blasted forward in a straight line.
From where the Black Goat stood to the entrance of the parking lot, everything within the path of the light began to vaporize.
There was no way to block it.
And even less will to dodge it.
This is the end.
Just as they thought that—
Crackle!
A red pentagram appeared in front of everyone.
BOOM!
As the massive forces of mana clashed, the dust accumulated on the ground shot up into the air in an instant.
"Sigh..."
A short sigh.
Soon after, emerging from the dust was a person wearing a mask with geometric patterns.
"U-Unknown... Player?"
"Seriously, why on earth do I have to do this kind of hard work?! Honestly, I won't forgive him unless he buys me chicken for a whole month. And french fries with cheese sauce! And a cola with lots of ice! Preferably Zero Coke!"
Alice, muttering to herself, glared at the Black Goat.
"What are you staring at? I'm already pissed off, and now you're acting up too!"
[Unique Ability 'Blood Lord' is activated!]
The sky was dyed blood-red.
"Groo!"
"Cut the 'groo' crap."
Alice waved her hand toward the empty air.
Dozens of blood-red harpoons pierced straight through the Black Goat's body.
Staggering, the Black Goat took a step back.
That was just the beginning.
An anomaly occurred. Simultaneously, all over the world.
* * *
Europe.
The Black Goats moving along the devastated national highway of Southern France came to a sudden halt.
Because they saw someone blocking their path.
Step.
Dazzling blonde hair cascaded over pure white armor.
It was Teresa.
Beside her stood Cheon Yu-seong.
"Everyone should have reached their positions by now."
"Probably. They all set out before us, after all," Cheon Yu-seong nodded.
"Alice should be more than enough on her own, and with you, Yu-seong... and her here, we stand a good chance."
Teresa's gaze shifted to Yu-seong's side.
Meeting her gaze, a pure, innocent beauty with pitch-black short hair smiled brightly.
Soul-Chasing Shadow.
She was the master who created the Soul-Chasing Sword and the teacher of Cheon Yu-seong.
Originally, she should have remained in the Murim Alliance to prepare for the war against the Empire, but at Yu-seong's earnest plea, she had sacrificed her inner core to exit the Tower.
"We will act as the bait. In the meantime, Master, please deliver the finishing blow."
"Oh my. Is Young Master Cheon asking a delicate lady to do the slashing? And against such a hideous, giant demonic beast, no less?"
Soul-Chasing Shadow shook her head in mock horror.
Her wide eyes and innocent expression only added to the act.
"What is... with that tone of voice?! And since when were you delicate, Master...?"
"You're awfully prickly for someone asking for help. Come on, repeat after me: 'Please help me, my beautiful and powerful Master...' Like that."
"Are you serious?"
"Hurry up. Otherwise, the two of you might have to deal with that beast on your own."
"Cheon Yu-seong! It's coming!"
"I know. Damn it."
Cheon Yu-seong grit his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.
His face flushed red with embarrassment, but he didn't have the luxury of hesitating now.
"Please... help us. O beautiful and powerful Sword Princess."
"Fufu. Since my cute disciple is begging, of course I must help as his master."
Soul-Chasing Shadow pinched and pulled Yu-seong's cheeks with both hands.
Her initial dignified demeanor was nowhere to be found.
Only a master completely doting on her disciple remained.
Shring!
Soul-Chasing Shadow drew a sword as white as snow.
"You haven't forgotten what I taught you, have you? I can tolerate anything else, but I won't allow you to fall behind the Dark Emperor's disciple."
[Unique Ability 'Song of the Sword' is activated!]
Soul-Chasing Shadow unleashed her unique ability.
"You don't have to worry about that. Once this is over, I'll surpass even him."
Cheon Yu-seong unleashed his unique ability as well.
[Unique Ability 'Song of the Sword' is activated!]
An indescribable energy enveloped the swords of Yu-seong and Soul-Chasing Shadow.
A pure, clear light flowing along the blades shot up over ten feet high.
"I will make sure to block the first strike."
Teresa thrust her shield forward.
[Unique Ability 'Blessing of the Stars' is activated!]
And so, the Saint of Amsterdam moved once again to save Europe.
* * *
At the same time.
The area on the 5th floor where Andrea was located had also been completely transformed by the Black Goat.
The colosseum had vanished, the mines had collapsed, and the psychiatric ward was half-destroyed.
However, it wasn't completely over yet.
"Pant... pant... pant."
Andrea gasped for breath.
The bosses of the other sectors had either died or fled.
Andrea was the only one left defending her territory.
"Not yet... not yet."
Andrea bit her lip hard.
This was the precious home Jinhyuk had left her.
The place that had given meaning to her life when she was at rock bottom.
Even if I die, I will protect it.
Even if she fell in battle, she had no intention of running away.
[Andrea uses 'Fox Bead'!]
Atop her nine tails, flames containing the soul of a fox flared up fiercely.
Tap... tap. Dash!
Moving at high speed and leaving afterimages behind, Andrea arrived beneath the Black Goat's feet.
The flames moved in nine directions before converging into a single point.
Whoosh!
Blue calamity fire instantly engulfed the Black Goat's entire body.
However...
It didn't even... react.
The calamity fire had done nothing more than slightly singe its skin.
"Groooo..."
As if dealing with an annoying gnat, the Black Goat opened its mouth and formed a sphere.
Crushing Wave.
The light that had torn countless people to shreds was fired toward Andrea.
Right then—
"You did well holding it off alone."
A new voice intervened.
A handsome man with dark silver hair blocked the Crushing Wave with his bare body.
Though his face contorted slightly, the ominous aura radiating from his body grew even sharper.
"For a mere thoughtform, you're certainly strong. It almost brings back the nightmares of the past."
This was the manifestation of one of the noble Demon Kings of the Demon World.
Veliel, who bore the epithet 'Rotting Heart'.
"Still, for things of your level to bare your fangs at me is utterly absurd."
Veliel's fingertips conjured a dark red spear.
Crackle! Spark!
Sparks flew.
And at that exact moment—
"Tell Shub-Niggurath. I am on this floor."
Without any preparatory movement, the spear vanished.
With a sound that tore through the air, it triggered five sonic booms.
BOOM!
"Kwarghhh!"
Struck in the chest by the spear, the Black Goat's feet left the ground.
Its massive body was unable to withstand the absurd impact.
But the real shock was only just beginning.
Crack!
Crunch!
The spear spun repeatedly, unleashing even more powerful mana than before.
Runic words inscribed with curses and spells simultaneously enveloped the spear.
"Krrr... Groooo!"
The Black Goat's jaw stretched open as if it would tear.
Vroooom...
...BOOM!
There was no word to describe the sight of its body flying all the way to the cliff on the opposite side other than 'grotesque'.
* * *
Thanks to the thoroughly beaten Queen hiding in the sand, a brief lull occurred in the battle.
With this, the preparations for the outside seem mostly complete.
Jinhyuk nodded in satisfaction.
Thanks to properly deploying trustworthy allies, they were able to avert the worst-case scenario.
Since Master, Goguma, and the ancient soldiers including T-Bone had gone to the gate that appeared in Murim...
...they should easily be able to buy enough time.
As for the situation outside...
[Outbreak 'Beginning of the Nightmare'. Is this the end of everything?]
[Even Large Guilds Stand By Helplessly, Unable to Do a Thing]
[Black Tuesday. Leaders of Various Nations Convene Emergency Meetings]
Headlines of various articles were plastering the media and the internet.
Good.
The atmosphere was perfectly ripe.
Humanity in crisis, and the heroes who save them.
There was no better setup for an epic saga.
[Activating video chat.]
Everyone's chats were connected to a single channel.
"Everyone remembers what I said, right? Just say exactly what you memorized. Don't say anything that's not in the script."
-Alice: Hey. Do I really have to say this? Seriously?
-Cheon Yu-seong: Damn it. I am not your clown.
-Teresa: Jinhyuk. The whole world is watching right now.
-Dark Emperor: Disciple, do you happen to know the meaning of the word 'excommunication' in our sect?
-Andrea: Jinhyuk... you idiot.
-Veliel: Fufu. As expected of the apostle candidate I chose. I see the qualities of a Demon King in you.
-Goguma: Mogi!
-Spirit Special Forces: Master. This is an international embarrassment... no, an embarrassment to the entire Tower.
-T-Bone & Ancient Soldiers: Master, please go drop dead.
Complaints flooded in from all sides.
Of course, in a one-man dictatorship, it was customary to lightly trample over minor grievances.
"With everyone's eyes on us, of course we have to promote ourselves. Do you think I live on air?"
Generating additional revenue and boosting brand image through guild promotion possessed a value that could not be measured in money.
-Cheon Yu-seong: You bastard... If you want to promote it so badly, why don't you come out and do it yourself?
"I still have things left to do, so I can't," Jinhyuk drew a firm line.
He had a more important task than dealing with the Queen.
There was a place he absolutely had to go through the 'Mirror of Demarcation'.
To be precise, the reward he had to obtain there was his goal.
"Besides, you're not exactly in a position to raise your voice at me, are you?"
The maid video is in my hands.
Surely you haven't forgotten already?
If things go wrong, I can make you drop out of life, not just medical school.
-Cheon Yu-seong: You... If you keep blackmailing me with that, I won't just sit back. Do you even realize? That's a crime!
-Soul-Chasing Shadow: Oh my. There's something containing a video of my disciple? I would absolutely love to see that.
-Cheon Yu-seong: M-Master...?
"Looks like your master is on my side too. What are you going to do?"
In the end, under coercive pressure... a video that would be permanently archived on the Tower of Trials community and ViewTube began to be made.
"I-If you're curious to know who we are, it is only natural for us to answer..."
Unknown—no, Alice—spoke.
The key was placing one hand on her hip and pointing her index finger forward with the other.
"Veteran... Veter... Sigh... In the name of the Veteran Corporation."
Cheon Yu-seong took over, his voice sounding as if he were swallowing molten iron.
"From now on, these bastards..."
The rest of the people also uttered their assigned lines one by one.
And so,
"We will face them."
everyone's voices merged into one.