Chapter 87: The Ritual of Sacrifice (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 87: The Ritual of Sacrifice (1)
Along with the cheerful words Jinhyuk spat out,
[‘Rotting Heart’ is enraged!]
[You have received the ‘Demon King’s Curse’!]
[The curse will persist until your death.]
Rumble!
A massive shock jolted his entire body.
‘Damn it. That hurts like hell.’
Jinhyuk swallowed his scream.
It went without saying, but there was no such thing as "getting used to" the process of engraving a brand onto one's heart.
It meant it delivered a fresh wave of agony every single time.
Some perverts might pant and enjoy this kind of pain, but that was a story for those who had abandoned the last vestiges of human dignity.
Isn't it human instinct to avoid physical pain if possible?
But this time, he had no choice.
Because receiving this curse was part of the process to clear this floor.
[All stats will decrease by 90% for 3 minutes.]
[Engaging in unreasonable combat will lead to exhaustion; in the worst-case scenario, you may faint or die.]
[Time Remaining: 0h:2m:59s]
[Due to the strong intervention of a higher divinity, a hidden quest has been generated.]
[Hidden Quest]
Difficulty: A
Description: The corrupt fanatics who recklessly take the lives of others are ‘evil’. For every fanatic you kill, your Adaptive Stat will increase by +0.1. However, killing the Cult Leader will increase your Adaptive Stat by +30.
Yes, this was exactly it.
The error in probability caused by the active intervention of a divinity.
Naturally, to resolve that contradiction, the system was bound to provide the cursed player with a fitting reward.
Up to this point, everything was as expected.
He had anticipated all of it.
Except for one thing.
The stat given as a reward was different from before.
‘To think it would give Adaptive Stats...’
Jinhyuk's pupils shook with shock.
He couldn't help but be surprised.
In the past, it gave +0.1 bonus stats, but now, that reward had actually changed to Adaptive Stats.
A stat that couldn't be obtained through normal means, granted only to players who had seen the top of the Tower.
At the realization that he could continuously stack this stat, Jinhyuk's heart began to beat uncontrollably fast.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
‘No matter what, I have to get my hands on this.’
The most delicious yolk of all rewards had appeared, so failure was out of the question.
He would succeed, no matter what.
For once, Jinhyuk burned with determination.
It was then.
Throb!
An excruciating pain flared up.
‘The aftereffects of the curse are really strong.’
The pain in his left chest made him feel like he was about to lose consciousness.
He had to get out of this place immediately.
He wouldn't be able to fight properly for at least three minutes. Even ‘Blurred Presence’, which he had received from the kingdom, probably couldn't be used during this time.
“Sorry, but can we call it a draw?”
Jinhyuk looked up at the Breaker with an awkward smile.
“Groooar!”
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
The Breaker charged forward, hammer in hand.
Seriously, not a single cute bone in its body.
Nothing else for it, then.
Jinhyuk quickly spun around and began to run.
Though it was a pitch-black maze where hitting a dead end at any moment wouldn't be surprising, Jinhyuk never once stopped or hesitated.
‘Left here.’
‘And then right at the next turn.’
At the very least, he knew the layout of this ward like the back of his hand.
Meaning he had memorized exactly what was where, even with his eyes closed.
Squeezing through narrow gaps and turning corner after corner, he finally arrived at the medicine storage room.
‘I'll make it, just in the nick of time.’
There were only a few seconds left before the Breaker arrived.
Jinhyuk quickly dashed into the storage room and threw himself toward the cabinet at the very back.
Clack!
He squeezed his body into the space, which was just barely large enough to fit a single person.
[You have entered the special field ‘Cabinet’.]
[The Stealth effect has been activated.]
In the mental hospital, there were specific spots where players could hide from the hunters.
The place he was currently hiding in was one of them.
He couldn't hide perfectly, but with a bit of luck, it would be enough to throw off his pursuer.
“Huuup.”
Hiding inside the cabinet, Jinhyuk held his breath.
……Oneness of self and object.
Oneness of self and object!
Visualize it!
‘I am the cabinet, and the cabinet is me!’
He brainwashed himself and blended perfectly into his surroundings. Even a ghost wouldn't be able to find him like this.
Right then.
Thud! Thud!
The Breaker walked up to the cabinet.
And it began to look around, searching for Jinhyuk.
‘Don't panic.’
‘I am already the cabinet itself.’
There was no reason to be scared. No reason to be caught.
However...
“…….”
Through the slit in the cabinet door, the Breaker's red eyes came into view.
Their eyes met.
But Jinhyuk desperately tried to look away.
‘……It must be seeing things.’
Please let it be seeing things. Please.
“…….”
The red eyes drew even closer. Now, he could even feel its breathing and smell its rotten breath through the gap.
‘Damn it. It's not working.’
His face flushed from the awkwardness of the situation, but now was not the time to feel embarrassed.
Whoosh!
The Breaker prepared to swing its massive hammer.
At that exact moment,
Jinhyuk kicked the cabinet door open and burst out.
The Breaker hesitated.
A delay of about 0.2 seconds occurs for a hunter when a player enters or exits a cabinet.
Exploiting that brief window, Jinhyuk repeatedly opened the cabinet door, hopped in, and hopped back out.
If his timing wasn't absolutely perfect, he would be crushed to pieces.
But for a hardcore veteran like Jinhyuk, this was easier than breathing.
“Graaaah!”
Furious beyond belief, the Breaker let out a monstrous roar.
[The Breaker activates Lv11 ‘Body Charge’!]
Crash!
This time, the giant hammer completely pulverized the cabinet.
But Jinhyuk's movements were a beat faster. By the time the hammer completely crushed the cabinet, Jinhyuk had already opened the door and leaped out.
Throb! Throb!
Moving so violently made his chest throb even harder.
Though he had intentionally chosen a path with many obstacles, he couldn't dodge those monstrous attacks forever.
After making this much of a scene, they should be arriving soon...
Hurry up already.
I'm going to die at this rate.
Jinhyuk grumbled as he widened the distance.
Right then.
Stop.
As if by magic, the Breaker froze.
It held its hammer with both hands and knelt, as if worshiping something.
At the same time, a chilling cold swept over him. Goosebumps broke out along his spine.
‘Are they finally here?’
He felt like he had been waiting forever.
Jinhyuk looked back.
And there,
“Indeed, you are a human more than worthy of being a sacrifice.”
The Cult Leader appeared, leading an immense crowd of fanatics.
* * *
Being taken prisoner is not a particularly pleasant experience.
Even more so if your fate is to become a sacrifice.
“W-We're all going to die.”
“We shouldn't have come to this godforsaken place. We shouldn't have!”
“Blinded by a measly reward... I-I don't want to die. I really didn't know I'd die so pointlessly like this.”
The captured players wailed, cursing their own naive choices and rosy dreams.
With their unique abilities and skills sealed, the option of escaping was something they couldn't even dare to imagine.
However...
‘Hmm. Aside from the excessive mold, this place isn't half bad. It'd be perfect if they brought me some ramen as room service.’
Jinhyuk lay on the bed and stretched lazily.
Thanks to being captured, his health and mana, which had been weakened by the Demon King's Curse, were fully restored.
In other words, he was back in peak condition.
Furthermore, because they had dragged him deep into their stronghold themselves, he didn't have to bypass any troublesome gates or traps.
It also made the quest to eliminate evil-doers for Adaptive Stats much easier to carry out.
Why go through the trouble of hunting down enemies?
When they would all gather in one place on their own soon anyway?
If he just added a few ‘seasonings’ he had prepared to this already-set table, he could make that Cult Leader foam at the mouth and collapse.
‘After all, backstabbing overconfident bastards is always the most thrilling part.’
Thinking that way made even this cramped, smelly prison cell feel lovely.
Right then.
“Shut up! If you keep making noise, I'll strap you to the torture rack first, torture you, and throw you to the monsters as feed!”
A guard threatened them toward the iron bars of the players' cell.
Brandishing a vicious-looking torture device was a bonus.
In an instant, the surroundings fell dead silent.
It was only natural.
No one wanted to spend their remaining, precious little time being tortured.
“I've quieted them down. You may speak freely now.”
The head guard bowed his head.
Once the chaotic atmosphere settled, two figures approached Jinhyuk's cell.
One was the cold-faced Cult Leader.
The other was a man wearing a black hood.
“This is our first time meeting in person. Kang Jinhyuk. Is that correct?”
This guy is...?
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
Though it was a face he had never seen before, the unique mana radiating from him was all too familiar.
He had a rough idea of where this guy came from.
‘I wondered why they'd been so quiet lately. So he's from the Demonic Human Association.’
Come to think of it, Melena, whom he met on the 3rd floor, had mentioned that the Demonic Human Association's goal was to gather sacred relics and resurrect the Demon King.
The Cult Leader of the 5th floor and the Demonic Human Association.
Since they shared the goal of resurrecting the Demon King, it was only natural that they would get along like a house on fire.
‘If he's influential enough to contact a boss of the Tower, he must hold a pretty high position within the association...’
Jinhyuk stared intently at the man.
A Caucasian man with sharp features.
His black beard and blue eyes suited him quite well.
‘I wonder if his skills match his looks.’
‘Gluttony’s Eye’ pierced through the target's status window.
However...
Ring!
[Failed to view the status window.]
[The target has Lv14 ‘Mental Barrier’ active.]
A barrier capable of blocking not only 'Flame Sight' or 'Insight', but even his 'Eye'.
‘So that's why he showed his face.’
From his confident appearance to his relaxed tone of voice.
He was this bold because he had a trick up his sleeve.
But it didn't matter.
Jinhyuk gripped the ‘white’ elixir he had kept in his pocket.
As he squeezed, the elixir crumbled like a cracker.
[You have used the White Elixir.]
[Due to the effect of the elixir, you can double one of your stats.]
[Duration: 10 minutes.]
The stat to increase was, of course, his ‘Adaptive’ stat.
Originally, he had prepared the White Elixir for his fight against the Cult Leader.
But since he could now obtain additional Adaptive Stats through the hidden quest anyway, using it now was far more efficient.
After all, opportunities to meet high-ranking members of the Demonic Human Association in person didn't come around very often.
[Adaptive Stat has been increased from 10 → 20.]
[Lv4 ‘Gluttony’s Eye’ penetrates the target.]
Just as expected.
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
Maybe if it were someone like Alice or Pendariel, who had a monstrous level difference.
But there was no way a mere player could block this.
——————————————————
Name: Hosenbelt
Gender: Male
Age: 41
Level: 38
Strength 19 Agility 25 Stamina 18 Mana 28 Malice 80
Available Stat Points: 0
Coins Held: 30,855
Class: Knight of the Round Table
Unique Ability: Guardian's Domain
Skills: Lv14 ‘Mental Wall’, Lv10 ‘Sword of Condemnation’, Lv10 ‘Blessing of Britain’, Lv9 ‘Knight’s Oath’
——————————————————
The status window cascaded down.
Jinhyuk swallowed hard.
‘Ho.’
This... was a much bigger fish than he had anticipated.
Because the class ‘Knight of the Round Table’ was something only the highest-ranking executives of the Demonic Human Association could possess.
In other words...
The guy standing right in front of him was one of those who held the title of ‘Knight’.