The Guardian of the Black Egg

"The black barrier has vanished! After a full thirty-eight days!"

"How did this happen? What on earth took place in there? How did they survive for thirty-eight days inside that place?"

"This is the very site that Dimension Warriors unanimously declared had been invaded by the Four Calamities' Baal! And yet nowhere on Jeju Island can a single trace of an attack be found."

By plane, by helicopter, by ship — journalists from every corner of the world poured in.

Jeju Island. The lonely island Master had declared a lost cause, the place everyone had written off with a shake of the head — and now, after thirty-eight days, it had reappeared.

"Park Taewoo! Thanks to him standing watch over Jeju's coastal waters day and night, a rapid rescue was possible!"

"The Hero Alliance's performance in this rescue operation was decisive, and the Korean government…"

Naturally, Park Taewoo and the Hero Alliance — who had rendered such distinguished service in the rescue — were thrust into the spotlight. Had Park Taewoo not been stationed near Jeju, tens of thousands would have drowned in the sea without question.

He had risen overnight as a hero. But the truly important story lay elsewhere.

Gracia, and the survivors.

Gracia, however, formally refused every interview. The Korean government, citing the survivors' human rights and privacy, also blocked any public questioning.

Even so, there was no sealing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the mouths of six hundred thousand people.

"…Would you tell us what you experienced inside?"

And the interview footage released by one American journalist delivered a shockwave to the entire world.

It was nothing more than one man recounting, without embellishment, what he had lived through.

"The first thing we saw in that place — what we call the Abyss — was two colossal monsters locked in battle. One was the creature called Baal. The other was an ominous monster in the form of a crow."

"So Baal wasn't alone?"

"Yes. There were two of them. Ah — and devil-shaped monsters as well. But those all vanished within a few days."

"What happened?"

"Baal swallowed the head of the ill-omened crow, and the two of them collapsed together and stopped moving. Then, after about fifteen days, Baal's body melted away — and from inside its belly, a black egg emerged."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"A black egg? What came out of it?"

"Yes. The Messenger of God appeared and delivered us."

"…The Messenger of God?"

The man being interviewed then drew a single sheet of paper from his coat.

He kept it as carefully as a talisman. Printed on the yellow paper — the same texture as a charm — was the image of a reaper holding a scythe. Three pairs of wings, and a face resembling a goat's.

"What is this picture? A grim reaper?"

"Do not speak blasphemy. We call this one the Guardian of the Black Egg. Every person who was there at the time, myself included, carries this image with them."

"…I apologize. The Guardian of the Black Egg, then. Is that because he helped you escape?"

"How could that be? The Guardian was formed from the smoke that leaked from the black egg. And within that black egg sat the God who would save all of humanity."

"Ah — so he's the guardian because he protects the black egg. But… a god? Then more than six hundred thousand people all witnessed a god?"

The man shook his head.

"God saved us, but He did not reveal Himself directly. We were not yet ready. Therefore the world — all of humanity — must humbly prepare to receive Him."

Crunch!

Master ground his teeth and trembled from head to toe.

"How? How could anyone come back alive from the Abyss?"

Thirty-eight full days. In that span of time, every last one of them — Gracia included — should have been dead.

And yet they had returned.

Unharmed.

"This fucking…!"

The internet swarmed with posts mocking Master's every word. Player Talk — the community only Players could join — was no exception.

To Earthlings and Players alike, Master had become an object of ridicule.

Of course he had. He hadn't even marched on the mercenary city of Cartel for the subjugation. He had refused deployment to Jeju Island. And on top of all that, he had spewed the outrageous demand that they "abandon Jeju."

And Gracia? What of him?

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

His reputation had plummeted so far it could fall no further.

And this reaction wasn't confined to Player Talk. It meant Players had begun to stop fearing Master.

And so, from every direction, slander and mockery of Master overflowed without end.

Crash!

Master smashed the seat he had been sitting on to pieces.

"AAAAAAARGH! This goddamn…!!!"

He was being sucked into a bottomless pit with no end in sight.

The Dominators of the Abyss.

Their eyes were vanishing, one by one.

Rumble…!

And this place — the Abyss of the Resurrected — began to rise.

Together with every land that had sunk alongside it in Pangenia.

The Mountain of the Cultivator, and the five neutral cities.

The countless people who had sunk with them.

All of it was returning to its proper place.

And so was I.

This is only the beginning.

But it was not the end.

Once I returned, there was much to prepare for.

I had to devise countermeasures for the next main quest — and for the "bugs."

When I killed the Demon King, when I drove Baal to the brink — there had always been a "bug" that transcended the rules and killed me.

There's no law saying another bug won't appear.

Moreover, the chance to resurrect as Eternal Randolph existed only once.

I had been lucky this time. But if the same kind of "bug" killed me again, it would truly be over.

So I had to find a way not to fall victim to those "bugs."

Speaking of which…

I rummaged through my coat.

One of the seals was trembling madly.

It was the seal the White King had given me when I became the Fifth Lord.

…The White King is summoning me again.

What could it be?

He wouldn't call unless the matter were urgent.

I shook my head and looked at the warp that had opened before my eyes.

A warp Hell had opened himself.

"Let's go."

—Kyahahaha!

Together with Hell, I slowly crossed through the warp.

And in that instant—