Chapter 337: Liberation (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 337: Liberation (2)
Slash!
With a sickening sound of tearing flesh, Hyacinth's body slowly collapsed.
"Ah..."
There was no pain.
The strike had been far too swift and sharp for her to feel anything.
Thud!
Her body hitting the ground signaled the end of the battle.
"..."
Alice stared down at Hyacinth with dry, emotionless eyes.
That made three.
The third family head on her path to revenge was gone.
As Hyacinth died, another gust of wind swept across the battlefield.
Boom!
With a single punch from Thor, the bodies of three charging demonic beasts exploded like firecrackers.
"Graaaah!"
"Keeek!"
One strike.
It was a level of destructive power that could only be described as absurd.
Drenched in blood from head to toe, Thor cracked his knuckles, looking genuinely excited for once.
"Not bad, probably because they're from the Demon World. But they picked the wrong opponent."
He wasn't tiring as the fight dragged on.
Instead, as if he was only now warming up, his aura grew even more ferocious.
And at that terrifying presence...
...even the fearless demonic beasts whimpered and tucked their tails.
"Stop showing off by killing small fry and let's wrap this up quickly. That side is already done."
Loki tapped Thor on the shoulder.
"Hmm. That was settled faster than I expected. I guess there are tiers even among the family heads."
"Indeed. If we can recruit Kang Jinhyuk, we'll be able to bring that True Ancestor along with him. It's an incredibly profitable deal."
The two deities became even more convinced that they had to recruit Jinhyuk.
Although they had made enemies of massive factions like the Demon World and the vampires by coming here, Jinhyuk's sheer appeal made all of that trivial.
With him, it might actually be possible.
We can land a blow on those Greek bastards.
A small spark ignited in the eyes of the two deities.
* * *
Whoosh...
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Countless sword strikes clashed.
Nietzsche—no, Hesimodium—swung his arms frantically.
However, with every passing second, the tide of battle was visibly tilting.
It was only natural.
Even if they fought under equal conditions, Hesimodium was lower in the hierarchy.
Furthermore, as a half-baked incarnation borrowing a human body, he stood absolutely no chance.
"Veliel! You absolute fool. You're throwing away your entire territory for something like this? You will definitely regret this!"
Hesimodium had been searching for a way to break his seal using the Demonic Humans to achieve a free, unconstrained incarnation.
Thus, he could not comprehend why Veliel was making such a massive sacrifice.
"Whether I sell my castle or hand over my treasures is my business. If you find it so unfair, why don't you burn everything you have too?"
"Urgh!"
Hesimodium gritted his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.
At this rate, his defeat was only a matter of time.
Since his soul was infused into this body, if the physical vessel collapsed, even a Demon King like him would suffer a severe blow.
Ultimately...
[Hesimodium has canceled 'Partial Manifestation'!]
[The denizens of the Demon World are retreating to their domain!]
There was only one choice left to survive.
Hesimodium and the high nobles who followed him vanished back to the Demon World.
"At least he knows his place," Veliel muttered, shrugging his shoulders.
"Thanks. Things went smoothly because of you."
"Save it. Just keep your promise. I took a massive hit this time."
"Well, I'll try. Key word being try."
Now, the only one left was Nietzsche, abandoned and standing alone where Hesimodium had just departed.
He stood there with his mouth agape, looking utterly dumbfounded, as if he couldn't fully grasp what was happening.
It was only natural for him to be bewildered, considering the being he worshiped as a god had just been defeated.
Right then.
Ding!
[You have successfully copied the unique ability 'Nihilism'.]
[Nihilism - Green Grade]
Acquisition Difficulty: SS
Description: Allows the user to seal the unique abilities and skills of enemies within their vicinity. However, using Nihilism requires an extremely high level of understanding and delicate control. Activating it in conjunction with other skills may cause fatal damage to the user's body.]
A Green Grade, which he hadn't even dared to expect!
Nice.
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
I got this one too.
He had defeated Nietzsche while his own unique abilities and skills were sealed, and he had forced a Demon King to abandon his own apostle.
Fulfilling those two conditions hadn't been easy, but he had achieved his goal nonetheless.
It'll take some time to use it as freely in combination with other skills as Nietzsche did.
It wasn't that he had never used this ability in the past, but he had never made it his main focus.
The backlash was simply too severe.
Of course, there was no rush.
He could take his time and master the skill slowly.
More importantly...
He had to squeeze the last drops of sweet juice from this hunting dog abandoned by its master.
Jinhyuk approached Nietzsche.
"Ugh..."
Nietzsche trembled slightly as their eyes met.
With no will left to resist, his previous confidence had completely vanished.
"There are a few things I want to ask you. If you cooperate, I won't take your life."
"W-what is it you wish to know?"
"My, my. Still talking with such a stiff tongue? Let's fix that tone of yours first."
"Aaaaargh!"
As the Flame of the Beginning manifested, a horrific pain flared in Nietzsche's shoulder.
"If you still think you're the grand leader of the Demonic Humans or whatever, you're sorely mistaken. You get that, right?"
"P-please... tell me what you want to know... and I will... answer you."
His attitude became instantly submissive.
Now they could have a proper conversation.
"The Crown of Pure Blood."
A heavy name slipped from Jinhyuk's lips.
"That is..."
"What? Don't want to answer? You should've just said so. I guess you haven't had enough of my fire massage yet."
Whoosh!
An even fiercer flame flared up.
"Wait! Wait! It's not that I don't want to answer! I can tell you how to find the crown, but acquiring it isn't up to me. That's why I was hesitating!"
"Acquiring it is my problem to worry about. Just tell me what you know."
At Jinhyuk's prompting, Nietzsche reluctantly opened his mouth.
"The crest held by Exencion, one of the family heads... That is the key to finding the crown."
As expected, Exencion held the clue...
Come to think of it.
"Where is he? Why hasn't he joined the battle?"
Exencion was nowhere to be seen.
It wasn't like he was plotting some last-minute plot twist either.
The battle was already over.
"I-I don't know that either."
Did that slippery bastard catch wind of something?
Jinhyuk smacked his lips bitterly.
He thought he had resolved everything perfectly.
Yet, the most crucial target for Alice's revenge had slipped away.
And he had taken the key to the Crown of Pure Blood with him.
"Now that you know everything you wanted... may I leave?"
"Of course, you're free to go. I did say I wouldn't touch you, after all."
However...
He had never said he would stop anyone else from doing so.
Jinhyuk took a step back.
Slide.
Melena and Tristan stepped forward as if they had been waiting for this exact moment.
A long whip and a sharp sword gleamed with lethal intent.
"Y-you... what do you think you're doing?!"
"Always clean up thoroughly."
"You were the one who taught us never to leave loose ends."
If they let him live, there was no telling what he might do.
As long as he maintained a connection to the Demon King, this man could stab them in the back at any moment.
"No... No..."
Nietzsche reached out, but the two had already made up their minds.
Thrust!
Slash!
The sword and whip moved in unison, and the leader who had once commanded the Demonic Human Association finally drew his last breath.
Now, the major crises had finally been settled.
But right at that moment...
Crack!
A sound like the heavens and earth splitting apart echoed.
[The Gate is being liberated!]
[Shub-Niggurath is manifesting outside the Tower.]
Everything was dyed in blood-red.
* * *
Ancient Beings.
They were the strongest residents of the Tower of Trials, capable of shattering an opponent's mind just by facing them.
And now, Shub-Niggurath, one of the highest-ranking among them, had finally begun to manifest.
"Kiiiiii..."
Throb! Throb! Throb!
Despite being hundreds of kilometers away, the shockwaves were beyond imagination.
Just the opening of the Gate caused stinging mana to prickle against their skin.
Just how absurdly massive was her mana...?
...It was impossible to even estimate.
"This is a bit too dangerous," Veliel muttered, swallowing hard.
No matter how powerful a Demon King was, they stood no chance against the entities of the 50th Floor.
By definition, the residents of the lower floors were those who had been defeated by them and pushed down.
"Wasn't there still time left? The Association said we just needed to clear this place before the Gate opened... Why on earth?!"
Cheon Yu-seong raised his voice as well.
Did Exencion pull some strings?
Or was it Hastings, the High Manager?
Or perhaps someone else had intervened.
But finding the cause at this point was meaningless.
This was no longer a matter of preparation, but of reaction.
They had to figure out the best move starting right now.
Jinhyuk's mind raced.
By now, the things he had asked Yu Yeon-hwa and Lee Tae-min to prepare should be complete.
If he got the timing right and had a bit of luck... perhaps...
Damn it. Is it really possible?
His preparations weren't fully complete yet.
As Jinhyuk was lost in thought, Loki approached him.
"Kang Jinhyuk."
"Ah. I owe you a lot in many ways. I'd like to thank you, but the timing is terrible."
"Indeed. It's the worst possible situation to celebrate our achievements. That's why..."
Loki spoke cautiously.
"I know you are attached to this world. But now that she has emerged, there is no hope."
A disaster that even deities could do nothing about.
Against such an absolute existence, there was nothing a Player could do.
It meant they had to submit, just as one would accept a natural disaster.
"Come with us. Even if it's not here, we can build a place for you to live as much as you want inside the Tower. We will make sure you can enjoy everything Valhalla and our mythology have to offer. So, give up on this place."
This was... a form of consideration.
To ease the guilt of someone who had no choice but to make the only decision available.
Yes, maybe that's the right choice. After all, once Shub-Niggurath satisfies her curiosity, she'll return to where she came from.
However...
He didn't want to give up.
It wasn't out of some grand purpose like saving everyone and protecting humanity.
It was simply...
"If I were afraid of a mere obstacle like this, I don't think I'd ever be able to sleep soundly again."
"A mere obstacle? I don't think you realize what you're facing... The one crossing over right now is the Tower's..."
"I know."
He knew about the Ancient Beings better than anyone else here.
He had fought them.
He had been defeated by them.
And he had finally seen the top of the Tower.
"There's still something I can try. The chances are slim, but if it's me... it's possible."
All of his abilities had already returned.
[Reading the 'Memory of the World'.]
Beyond the countless bookshelves that materialized, Jinhyuk prepared for his final battle.