Chapter 63
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 063
Chapter Title: Palace in the Gap (3)
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The demons clinging to my arms and legs like leeches didn’t slow me down one bit.
Another sprint carried me forward, and just like cranking up the magnification on a monocular, the bastard’s form filled my vision in an instant.
Paang—!
The air ripped apart with a sharp crack as the greatsword thrust straight ahead.
The only sounds echoing through his palace were the wet bursts of the demons exploding on impact.
Earlier, they’d thrown themselves to block my view and snatch my glasses. Now, they hurled their lives away like straw to buy Fraus even a moment more to escape.
‘Flies buzzing around.’
It wasn’t entirely pointless. The greatsword’s path veered off, clogged by the densely packed bodies. The blade tip, aimed dead center at Fraus’s heart, sliced through two of his front legs instead.
Sure, the One-Man Army title boosted my stats to absurd levels, but their magic offered real resistance against my physical power.
‘Fraus, no matter what you do, you’re dying by my hand today.’
Of course, their numbers had thinned out considerably by now. With the massive stat gap—magic or otherwise—killing them wasn’t hard.
But my top priority was slaying Fraus. No more interruptions.
I shoved aside any thought of holding back.
To shake off the nagging demons, I gathered the scraps of star power left over from entering the gateway and poured them into the greatsword.
Sss—
A faint glow shimmered over the pitch-black blade.
And then.
The heads of the demons blocking Fraus’s path—crawling desperately toward the gate on its limping legs—tumbled to the floor.
Whirlic—Kwang!
A graceful arc carried the black iron lump flying straight into Fraus’s face, halting it in its tracks.
As Fraus slowly turned its head to glare at me, I closed the distance one step at a time.
“Where’d all that cocky taunting from earlier go?”
“D-Don’t… come closer.”
“You were all ‘let’s go to Atlnak together’ in the illusion? Perfect timing. I’ve got business with that guy anyway. Let’s go.”
“You’ll… spare me?”
“Nah? Get absorbed into my body, and you’ll meet Atlnak soon enough.”
“Y-You bastard! Mother won’t let you get away with this.”
Anyone hearing it might think Fraus was gearing up for some final mutual destruction line.
But its body kept scrambling past the greatsword, nonstop toward the gateway outside.
Nimble as hell, hard to believe it had lost two legs.
If the demons kept interfering, I might’ve lost it.
‘First things first.’
I grabbed the back of its head and slammed it face-first into the floor. Blood sprayed from its crushed face, splattering mine.
But it wasn’t enough. This wouldn’t vent my rage.
I mounted it, locked in position, and hammered down punches like a machine.
No letting go. No mercy. And definitely no quick death.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
It looked a bit scrawnier than the others, but its durability wasn’t frail.
I just kept swinging wildly.
The price for glimpsing my memories, my fears, my ugliness—it wouldn’t be light.
“Hah… hah…”
Only after pounding until my breath burned did I start taking in its state.
Nose caved in, cheekbones shattered, a few teeth gone.
‘Yeah, that’ll do.’
Time to end this pathetic life. I gripped its hair in one hand and dragged it by the scalp to where the greatsword lay.
Blue blood trailed long across the white marble floor.
The few remaining demons, terrified, had given up on rescue. They just ringed around, watching the one-sided beating.
I flung it down and pressed my foot on its back.
Fraus thrashed, regaining its wits, but it was no physical powerhouse to begin with. The stat gap was too vast—its struggles were futile.
I hefted the greatsword with both hands and brought it down like executing a criminal.
Fsssh—
The headless half-human white spider sprayed blue blood like a fountain.
I drove a star power-charged fist into its limp chest and shattered the core.
[Absorbing the ‘Gateway Core.’]
[Star power level rises dramatically.]
[Eliminated Fraus. Closed the second gateway of ‘Atlnak’s Labyrinth Garden.’]
[Completed ‘Sub Quest – Raid.’]
[Rewards: ‘Karma +1.0’, ‘3,000 hours’, Skill ‘Fraus’s Eyeball.’]
I glanced around.
The watching demons recoiled.
I spun the greatsword calmly and took a step toward them.
I’d do my absolute best—that was all.
* * *
The T-shirt under his combat suit clung sweat- and blood-soaked to his entire body.
Myeong Team Leader, the eldest of the Myeong brothers, desperately wanted a shower.
No—he wanted to reward himself for surviving with one.
‘In the end, we made it out of that monster’s clutches.’
Not just him—all his team had survived. A few had lost limbs or arms, sure, but with minimized bleeding and mid-grade red potions, those bodies would regenerate.
“Ptooey—”
He spat out a chunk of spider flesh rolling around his tongue and gathered his thoughts.
Staying put would’ve meant drying out and dying, so it had been half a gamble.
But luck smiled on them—the outcome was good, and their lifelines had extended a bit more.
‘That young man, though…’
He’d led the charge against hundreds of spiders.
He’d slain Fraus and sealed the gateway.
He’d rescued their team, barely hanging on after escaping.
No battlefield was risk-free, but where he was? It was a razor’s edge between life and death.
He really did resemble a hero from old tales.
‘Almost like a halo shining around his head… Damn, what am I even thinking?’
Myeong Team Leader shook off the ridiculous notion and scanned his team.
Every survivor stared at the young man like he was their first love.
Meanwhile, the guy himself was rampaging, hunting the fleeing spiders like a maniac.
‘Urgent fire’s out. Time for a breather and some healing.’
Myeong Team Leader turned back to Min-jun, and his younger brothers sidled up around him.
“Bro, doesn’t it feel like we half-dipped in the Jordan River this time?”
“Yeah. When Uncle Park and the bank clerk kid lost their limbs at the end, I really thought we were goners… No clue how we pulled through. Right, bro?”
“Yeah. Without them, we’d be dead for sure.”
Myeong Team Leader nodded toward Min-jun and his crew amid his brothers’ fussing.
The demon-like figure leaping around swinging that massive hunk of metal—unfathomable how he wielded it—sent chills even through allies.
“That guy… he’s human, right? Not some otherworldly being like the apostles…?”
“Who knows. I’d say no, but right now, one thing’s clear: he’s not our enemy. That’s blessing enough.”
Answering his third brother, Myeong Team Leader voiced what he’d mulled over throughout the fight.
“Guys, hear me out. I kept thinking during the battle—what if we give up that 30% magic stone share we were set to get?”
“…What?! Then what was the point of risking our necks? And the team? They’ll accept that?”
“I’ll convince the team. I think they’ll agree once I explain.”
Myeong Teacher adjusted his glasses, probing his intent.
“You’re not the type to say that for no reason. Why…?! You wanna ditch the stones and…?”
“Yeah. Join under that young man in exchange.”
“Bro! Even so, giving up our stones? Sure, he’s strong because of them. But if we forfeit ours, how do we grow?”
Myeong Teacher argued against his brother’s proposal, but Myeong Team Leader shook his head.
“Let’s think longer-term. Why’d we want the stones in the first place?”
“For survival, obvi—”
“Right. Survival. I just think joining him helps us survive better than getting stones.”
“Bro, you know better than anyone there’s no one to trust in this world. He might pretend to take us in now, then ditch us as cannon fodder when things get tough. No gains, just risks… What then?”
“Nam-ho, you see one tree and miss the forest. Compare his team to ours.”
Myeong Teacher turned to look.
None of his own team had died, but plenty were missing limbs or gravely wounded.
In contrast, starting with his old student Song Dan-woo, the young man’s team looked grimy and exhausted—but mostly intact, no major injuries.
Myeong Team Leader, eyeing the same, murmured low.
“Intact, right? What’s the reason?”
“…”
“See that guy over there, the rep from my old company? Jeon Nam-cheol? No different from us. Potbellied middle-aged office drone, allergic to exercise. Same at Jamsil Girls’ High not long ago. His stats weren’t far from ours until recently.”
“…Min-jun helped them?”
“Probably gave them survival time or stones. Or his team fought supporting him. Point is, they’re not lone wolves. They care for and look out for those around them.”
“…”
“I’ve lived my life wrist-deep in grease, not books like you. But one thing I know: Don’t preemptively fear the unknown and push people away. You can’t last long in this world alone.”
“Got it. I’ll remember.”
As their talk wrapped, third brother Myeong Junior realized it was his cue.
Since childhood, the eldest and second’s squabbles were constant—smoothing them over was always his job.
“How are you two bros exactly the same as when we were kids? Heh. Anyway, save that for later. Can’t we just savor the victory first? I don’t care about tomorrow—who knows? Right now’s what matters.”
The youngest’s cheekiness drew chuckles from his brothers. They slung arms around each other’s shoulders and headed to their team.
For today, they’d survived.
That was what mattered most to the three.