Chapter 114
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: The Glutton's Demise
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"Full recovery? I can do that too. What a shame."
Current Status
Feels like dyi■g. Wants to eat the foo■ right in front no■.
Rem■ HP: 47■,1■■
I tossed a mocking jab at the insolent bastard, then scanned the faces of the other hunters.
'Ah, they all look pretty shocked.'
Good thing the outcome was positive—if not, we could've all lost our lives right there.
[The Glutton urges the Chef on.]
[The Chef hurriedly tosses asparagus onto the sizzling pan.]
The status window popped up, and everyone's stunned faces turned serious again. They snapped right back into combat mode.
BOOM!!
Se-bin-i, perched atop the Glutton's head, rocketed toward its wrist at blinding speed and sliced it clean across.
['My hand, my hand!!']
[The Glutton is right-handed.]
[The Glutton laments its inability to wield a knife properly.]
WHOOSH-BOOM!!
Then azure flames engulfed its left hand and arm, while a volley of emerald arrows riddled its body with holes.
Current Status
Inte■als emptied out, a rui■ed sta■e.
Rem■ HP: 361,■■1
[The Chef brings out the salmon steak.]
"The main course is finally here."
Cha Do-yun Hunter clicked his tongue in disappointment. Our stamina was wearing thin, so finishing it off quickly was for the best.
"Still, if Choi Min Hunter keeps blocking the food like this..."
[The Chef gasps in horror at the Glutton's state.]
[The Chef declares the Glutton cannot eat.]
'Huh?'
But an unexpected status window appeared.
[The Chef takes the food back inside.]
['...My food?']
The Glutton rubbed its face against the table while groping its empty belly with its arms.
['Myfoodmyfoodmyfoodmyfood!!']
KABOOM!!
"Guh!"
"Everyone, watch out!"
The Glutton flipped the table over with a thunderous crash, sending everything on it tumbling to the floor.
[The Glutton rampages wildly through the restaurant.]
RUMBLE.
'Bigger than I thought.'
It had looked dozens of times my height even sitting, but standing, it was like a three-story building. Covering its ruined face with its sleeve, the Glutton charged madly toward the bar counter connecting to the kitchen.
[The Chef locks the kitchen door.]
[The Chef and staff cower in fear.]
Clank, clank.
No matter how much the Glutton battered the door with its head, it wouldn't budge. It was absurd that it had evicted the customers so quickly, but anyone seeing the Glutton now would want to flee.
It grabbed the doorknob with its tattered arm and shook violently.
BOOM!!
A thick hand burst from the Glutton's massive shadow, yanking it toward the floor. As it resisted, gripping tighter, the bones on the back of its pale hand bulged as if about to tear through the skin.
"Now!"
BANG!
The moment I pulled the trigger on its wrist, a wind arrow streaked in from behind. The two projectiles severed the wrist simultaneously.
'Riding the Lucky Rabbit's Foot.'
I'd thought the table flip would hinder Cha Do-yun Hunter's attacks, but he'd fortunately mounted the Lucky Rabbit's Foot and was steadily drawing his bow.
THUD.
Its body finally slammed into the floor. Viewed from above, it was an absolute wreck. It was hard to believe it had once borne the name "Gourmet"—its form was utterly grotesque.
■■ Stat■
Do■n't wa■t to die.
Rem■ HP: 32■, ■■■
BOOM-CRASH!!
As if in a final frenzy, the Glutton spewed stems in every direction—the ones it had used to patch its face.
"Hup...!"
I blasted the stems flying my way with Ego and fell back a step. At this point, it was just barely hanging on. Dodging the stems was all it took to stay safe.
Click.
[The Chef activates the restaurant's security system.]
"What?"
The status vanished, and suddenly the tables and display cases began rattling.
CRASH!
"Everyone, be careful! Things are flying—ugh...!"
"Cha Do-yun Hunter!"
A massive teaspoon hurtled toward the Lucky Rabbit's Foot. Han Jin-woo Hunter dove toward the ground just in time—otherwise, both would have been gravely injured.
'The restaurant's causing more chaos than the Glutton!'
BANG!!
I shot the legs of the display cases packed with cutlery first. If those giant knives and forks started flying, the difficulty would skyrocket.
Thud, thud, thud.
The display cases toppled over, crashing to the floor.
Wooosh!
Rat-tat-tat.
A few knives escaping the cases were all repelled by Nokdu's howl. Drained of momentum, they veered off and plummeted toward the Glutton's body.
"Ji-ui!"
"Eek?!"
CRUNCH!
In a moment of distraction, someone snatched me up. In my shaking vision, a table bound by green stems was being shredded by Se-bin-i's sword.
"Are you alright?"
"Ah, th-thank you."
Choi Min Hunter released my waist and pivoted back toward the Glutton. She became a streak of crimson flame, plummeting like a meteor.
BOOM!
Choi Min Hunter's knee pierced straight through its chest.
Cu■rent Stat■
A■one.
Rem■ HP: 2■1,■■9
'Finish it with this attack...!'
I opened the Savior's Weapon Arsenal and grabbed the mortar.
Thud!
The mortar's weight forced me to land right in front of the Glutton. The completely withered bouquet stared at me.
"Everyone, get ready to attack!"
[Speech Power Increased]
[All lifeforms in range stirred by Awakener 'Shin Ji-ui's' words.]
[Speech Result: Accepted]
Squelch!
Dozens of black hands erupted from the Glutton's massive shadow. They constricted its body even tighter, dragging it toward the ground as if to bury it.
Cu■rent Stat■
Dyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ing
Rem■ HP: 20■,■■2
Whish-whish.
This time, wind arrows. Dozens pinned into its body, using the massive frame as a target.
Cu■rent Stat■
Dyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ing
Rem■ HP: 17■,7■4
BOOM!!
Hellfire capable of incinerating all life swallowed its head.
Cu■rent Stat■
Dyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ingdyi■gwan■ad■ing
Rem■ HP: 15■,9■2
It twitched in agony, but there was nothing it could do.
'Time to end this.'
Clack.
I placed my hand on Ego in mortar form.
"Fire."
BOOM!!
Everything in the space vibrated. The pristine white shell tore through the Glutton's body. Petals scattered in all directions. For a crass entity that had sought to devour us and savor our nightmares, it was a strikingly beautiful death.
[The Glutton laments its inability to eat anything tasty anymore.]
[The Glutton contemplates its fate.]
Current Status
Dead.
Rem■ HP: 0
"Haa, haa, whew..."
I panted heavily, staring at the status window. It clearly stated the Glutton was dead.
"We... we did it!!"
Only after Han Jin-woo Hunter shouted did the reality sink in.
'We really won...!'
"Woooah!"
I couldn't help but yell along with him. I grabbed Han Jin-woo Hunter's hand and jumped up and down right there. Se-bin-i approached with a bright smile, while Cha Do-yun Hunter and Choi Min Hunter watched from afar, grinning.
'Unni!'
"Nokdu!"
Nokdu leaped into my arms. I buried my face in its soft fur, basking in the joy of victory.
Shuffle.
'Unni... crying?'
The tears I'd held back finally flowed.
No one had died. We'd destroyed the Creator's fragment. Even lost in nightmares and suffocating under trauma, we'd survived. We'd triumphed spectacularly against the Creator who forged this nightmare.
[5 seconds until restaurant closing]
Crack!
A massive fissure spiderwebbed across the entire restaurant. Clutching Nokdu tightly, I waited silently for closing time.
[0 seconds]
[Today's business is closed.]
[No next business day.]
The world turned blinding white, rippling only with inky blue text.
[Twisted beings return to their places.]
[Chaotic emotions settle into calm.]
[Collapsed order rights itself.]
[Altered timeline erased forever.]
[Detected lifeforms: 5]
Crackle.
Then, a dark blue gem materialized before us—a palm-sized orb. I knew exactly what it was.
'The Creator's fragment.'
Sparks danced around the fragment. As we all stared warily, afraid to touch it...
Shatter!
[Gourmet's Fragment]
[The Gourmet's desire to taste someone's nightmare.]
[Gourmet's Fragment has been destroyed.]
The status confirmed the fragment's destruction. Everyone's expressions finally relaxed a bit.
Whirr.
[Savior of the World]
Protect the world from its end.
Progress Increased
Progress: 90%
[*Further progress requires destroying the Awakener's karma.]
'I've still got work left, though.'
Click.
"Ah."
The moment my feet touched solid ground, the scenery shifted. A peacefully flowing river, endless gravel banks, and bustling people...
"Wh-what, whaa...?!"
One of the people locked eyes with me. His jaw dropped, and he dropped the box he was holding.
"Y-you're back!!"
His shout snapped my dazed mind back to reality.
'Out of the fragment.'
Turning, I saw the gate we'd entered reduced to dust, slowly fading away.
"Is everyone okay?!"
"Ha Mi-jun Hunter!"
Ha Mi-jun Hunter sprinted across the gravel toward us in one breath. His usually perfectly styled hair was disheveled, his shirt rumpled—he'd clearly been through hell outside.
He carefully checked us over and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Phew... truly glad you're all safe."
"How long were we in there?"
"About two weeks. Longer than expected."
Ha Mi-jun Hunter rubbed his forehead at Han Jin-woo Hunter's question.
'The time distortion inside fragments is even worse.'
"What kind of dungeon was it? A boundary?"
"It's a long story. I'll share later."
Se-bin-i answered before downing a stamina potion. I hadn't noticed amid the chaos, but her face looked exhausted.
"Ah."
Over Ha Mi-jun Hunter's shoulder, my eyes met piercing blue ones.
The man who'd egged on the world's end, Kim Kang-hee, was staring at me. His lips curved faintly, and his jewel-like blue eyes gleamed brighter than usual.
No sign of relief or joy at our survival.
'Amused...'
He watched the scene like it was entertaining—like a child discovering a new toy.
Staring at his face, the pieces of various incidents clicked together like a puzzle.
I couldn't confirm if he'd contracted with the Creator, but Kim Kang-hee was undeniably its agent. With the power to summon dungeons at will, he'd swapped the gate by destroying a fragment. And he'd assembled the dispatch team to enter that fragment...
'Ah, damn it...'
The conclusion was clear.
He'd deliberately sent people with traumas into the fragment.
'To kill us all inside? Or to test something?'
"Thanks for making it back alive."
Kim Kang-hee strode toward us then.
"Chairman...!"
Cha Do-yun Hunter bowed shyly with a smile.
"I figured you'd return, but honestly, I was a bit anxious."
"......"
"Heaven's accuracy has been slipping lately."
He turned his gaze to me.
'Thinks I'm the cause.'
When I'd first revealed my awakening, he'd been purely delighted as Hunter Association Chairman. Same in the previous timeline when I'd awakened.
But now, his gaze toward me had changed. Whether he'd watched my actions inside the fragment or not, he clearly suspected me.
"We'll need a thorough investigation into what this dungeon was. I'd appreciate your help."
Kim Kang-hee smiled at me.
'Yeah, this is where it starts.'
I flashed a grin back at Kim Kang-hee.
Let's see if you can keep that face until the end. I'll be watching.