Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 014
Chapter Title: Shadow Worm, Cha-Ratevil (6)
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7.
It felt like time slowed down for a moment.
A flash of dawnlight swirled from the blade, then suddenly the entire sword exploded outward, spewing sword winds in all directions.
Cha-ra-ra-ra-ra-rang!
An explosion of radiance.
From within that light, two daggers emerged.
No. Perhaps they should be called the Twin Dawn Swords.
One was blood-red with dawnlight. The other was golden with dawnlight.
It was as if the Dawn Sword had split into two.
[Unique Skill, 《First Liberation: Dawnlight Yeomyeong Sword》 activated successfully.]
- Succession Progress: 10% - Duration: (15) seconds.
- First Use Bonus: The memories of a mythical battle will guide you directly!
What... guide me directly?
Suddenly, combat memories invaded my mind and body.
My body began to move on its own. My hands shot forward in an instant, gripping the twin swords. And then—
──Chae-aeng!
I immediately crossed the blades, blocking the massive scythe that was slashing down vertically.
「Ssshhsss……?!」
Incredible power.
Incredible speed.
Probably even more shocking to Cha-Ratevil than to me.
No... there was no time to be shocked.
The duration was only 15 seconds.
Shin Tae-yeop's flame wall was weakening by the second, and my body wouldn't hold out for even that long.
I didn't know what was happening.
But one thing was clear. I had to take this thing down within these 15 seconds.
Pa-ba-bat!
The combat memories propelled me toward Cha-Ratevil.
Moving had been a struggle before, but now the combat memories ignored all pain and took full control of my body, changing everything.
Shiiiiiik!
The right scythe tore through the air toward me.
I couldn't even see it.
A killing blow that I barely registered from the sound of it slicing the air. But then—
────Chwaaak!
The combat memories tilted my head back lightly, dodging it effortlessly.
The scythe grazed right above my eyes.
In that instant, I spun my body like a top and burrowed straight toward its main body.
As I charged, the spinning blades shredded its right arm.
「KIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!」
Cha-Ratevil let out a scream of agony.
Was it panicked?
Overwhelmed?
For a split second, Cha-Ratevil's momentum faltered.
The combat memories didn't miss the opening.
The blood-red sword slashed down across its chest. Almost simultaneously, the golden sword carved a horizontal slice. The next instant, the blood-red sword struck upward across its chest again.
Gold. Blood-red. Gold. Blood-red.
And gold once more.
A brilliant sword dance where crimson trails and golden arcs intertwined from above, below, left, and right. A rainbow of dawn embroidered in the air.
A single scream.
The only effective counter from Cha-Ratevil amid its flurry of attacks.
The combat memories evaded every retaliation while the two blades continued to carve into it relentlessly.
It mounted its final resistance.
Hiding into the shadows, just like before.
But... why did it feel so much slower than when it vanished instantly earlier?
It wasn't just it.
Everything in the world except me felt slowed down.
Either way, I couldn't let it escape.
It knew my condition all too well.
This moment, right here—this was the turning point.
“Uwaaaaaaaaah!”
I bellowed a shout that was almost a scream.
Its main body slipping into the shadow on the floor. I slashed it, struck it, slashed it again.
My body's limits were closing in.
My vision blurring. My fingers growing numb.
That's why I gritted my teeth.
I bit my tongue to desperately cling to consciousness. And I muttered inwardly.
- We came to save you.
I had to take this thing down. Right here, right now.
「……SHIAAAAAAAAAAKKKK…….」
I was drenched in blood—mine or its, I couldn't tell.
The combat memories merely assisted in swinging the blades.
The final moment.
Suddenly, the ecstatic sensation enveloping my body cut off.
[Unique Skill, 《First Liberation: Dawnlight Yeomyeong Sword》 has expired.]
A cold pain exploded in my left arm.
At the edge of my vision, I saw my severed arm and the blood-red sword flying into the air. My left arm had been cut off.
Judging it too late to hide, Cha-Ratevil had halted its submersion and launched a counterattack of triumph.
Now, it was tucked into the shadows everywhere except its head and one front leg.
……Fine.
Take my left arm. Gladly.
In exchange, I'll take your damned head.
It happened in an instant.
The moment the blood-red sword flew from midair into my right hand.
The moment the two blades flickered with faint light and merged back into the broken greatsword.
The moment Cha-Ratevil was about to fully submerge into the shadow.
Chaaaang!
I drove the broken blade into its forehead. A sharp silence fell for a moment.
「You…… you bastard…… no way…….」
Cha-Ratevil, its head pierced.
The loathsome eyes glaring at me began to fill with bewilderment.
「That one…… why someone like you…… heh…… heheheha…….」
For a moment, it seemed to say something.
But then—
The spot where the Dawn Sword had pierced it.
Crimson light rippled from there, spreading instantly into the shadow it was hiding in, setting it ablaze.
「HIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!」
That hate-filled scream was Cha-Ratevil's death cry.
Faster.
Just a little faster.
……Pa-sus-sus-su……
As Cha-Ratevil's massive body fully incinerated, ashes swirled softly from all directions.
Still... not yet...?
Tock.
It felt eternally long.
Until a massive soulstone dropped from the center of the ashes.
I couldn't hold out any longer.
Just as my knees finally buckled, the voice I'd desperately awaited rang in my head.
[Hunt Successful: Exalted Subordinate, 'Shadow Worm, Cha-Ratevil']
[Legendary Achievement Unlocked: First to Hunt a Subordinate (1 / 10)]
[The world pays its respects to the Hunters who have hunted a Subordinate for the first time!]
- All physical ability stats receive a (+3) bonus.
I collapsed to the floor.
Tang-grang. The sound of the Dawn Sword hitting the ground.
[Unique Weapon Unequipped: Dawn Sword]
Blood poured from my mouth, my severed shoulder, my side.
This was still better off.
The other three senses had gone numb entirely.
[Notice: 'Muak-dong' has been incorporated into 'New Seodaemun-gu.']
Kim Baek-jun... don't lose consciousness... absolutely... or you'll die... you'll die....
[Notice: 'Purification Operation' has begun in the region 'Muak-dong.']
Someone was racing toward me from afar at tremendous speed.
It was Jeong Ha-kyeong.
The next moment, she scooped me up and shouted something frantically, but I could barely hear it.
“Th... this crazy... look... at me... you... bastard....”
Then a roar came from behind.
In my hazy vision, a black swarm of human wheels surged forward.
These bastards... coming for revenge on their master? But what's that pressing in from behind you... fog...?
The fog was even faster than the human wheels' advance. It swallowed them in an instant, then engulfed my body too.
This... familiar fog.
Ah... the fog I'd desperately longed for.
[Entering Region: Star Pleasure Garden - 'New Seodaemun-gu']
[You are currently located in the 'Paradise Zone.']
- Hunter Privilege: 'Stars' Healing' effect activates.
Signals that my insane gamble had succeeded. Which meant...
Ah... yeah... it's over.
Only then did I release the eyelids I'd been desperately holding open. Darkness rushed in all at once, and my consciousness faded away somewhere.
8.
When that miracle occurred.
Jeong Ha-kyeong was struggling against the human wheel barricade.
She'd thought she needed to draw the trash mobs' attention even a little. That's why she hadn't returned to the flame wall.
‘Stupid bitch.’
She was regretting that decision bitterly.
She'd used her unique skill, and now she was out of ammo and weapons. The human wheels knew it too, cackling disgustingly.
“Hi-hi-hi... ee-hee-hee-hee....”
Doomsday had arrived, but surprisingly, she felt detached.
‘This was a fight humans could never win from the start.’
She'd faced reality since the day of destruction.
The world had become a playground for aliens or gods or whatever they were, and humans were just bugs in it.
What a fucked-up reality.
“Hope you enjoyed watching this bitch's final struggle, you fuckers.”
[Holy Apostle, Baladon's Manager feels a strange affinity for your speech.]
- Unique Skill, 《Super Acceleration》 uses (1) recharged.
This fucker?
This was an insult. Even if the count increased, it meant nothing.
Unique skills overloaded the body beyond their limits, leaving you unable to move.
Hi-hi-hi-hi...
The human wheels froze all at once.
Not because of the Holy Apostle. A horrific scream had erupted from beyond the barricade.
“What the hell?”
She wondered what was happening.
Then an unbelievable notice appeared before her eyes.
[Hunt Successful: Exalted Subordinate, 'Shadow Worm, Cha-Ratevil']
It was bizarre.
She blinked repeatedly.
It was clearly in Korean, but she couldn't comprehend it for a while. Because... there's no way they actually won, right?
「Kee-ee-eeek!」
But as the human wheels began fleeing one by one, and fog rolled in from the Paradise Zone like a tidal wave.
Her heart started pounding. Not from fear, but from thrill.
Kim Baek-jun.
This guy... actually...?
Jeong Ha-kyeong activated 《Super Acceleration》.
Body limits? Forgotten in that moment. In a world where everything slowed and only she sped up, she raced to Kim Baek-jun.
Kim Baek-jun lay dead in a pool of blood. A gruesome sight. Left arm severed, guts spilling from his side.
Oh my god.
Jeong Ha-kyeong lifted Kim Baek-jun into her arms. He's gone... he saved us all....
At that moment, she felt a pulse.
No.
He's still alive. Alive.
Alive, but... in a state where he could die any second.
“This fucking lunatic.”
Jeong Ha-kyeong shouted frantically.
“Look at me. Look at me, damn it. Look at me! Fuck, look at me! If you pass out now, you're done for!”
The human wheel swarm was charging.
Desperately, furiously charging. The entire underpass shook like it would collapse.
She tried to flee with Kim Baek-jun, but couldn't. Strength drained from her body as a notice appeared.
[Warning: Body at limit due to overusing unique skill.]
Fuck this.
Her mind went blank, and something engulfed Jeong Ha-kyeong. Not the human wheels.
Fog.
All noise vanished in an instant.
The white fog was just serene and cozy. No human wheels in that silence.
When the fog wave finally swept everything away, Jeong Ha-kyeong collapsed to the ground at the unbelievable sight.
First, the stars in the night sky.
Then, a modern city. Countless soulstones scattered on the streets.
Dong-ang... dong-ang... dong-ang... A clock tower wailing somewhere.
Jeong Ha-kyeong looked at the Hunters.
Everyone's faces were dazed. No one could speak for a long time.
Soon, someone sobbed. In that moment, the joy of survival tangled into laughter and tears.
“We won... we actually won....”
She didn't know how they'd surfaced from underground.
Or exactly why all the Heteromorphs had vanished, replaced by scattered soulstones.
That wasn't what mattered now.
[Notice: 'Muak-dong' has been incorporated into 'New Seodaemun-gu.']
[Entering Region: Star Pleasure Garden - 'New Seodaemun-gu']
=====
[Population Limit]
Paradise Name: New Seodaemun-gu
- Region 'Muak-dong' incorporated into zone. (+500)
Current / Limit
- [Paradise Main District]: 3,000 / 3,000
- [Paradise Sub-District - 1]: 0 / 500
=====
This... wasn't just a victory.
Not just reclaiming one region.
It was the moment humanity first triumphed over the Nightmare.
The moment the vague despair of 'we can't win' that humanity had accepted was shattered.
Truly, the moment a ray of dawn pierced the darkness.
Jeong Ha-kyeong looked down at Kim Baek-jun.
Starlight flickered across his body from the 'Stars' Healing' effect.
His face held not the agony of death, but the relief of accomplishment.
- I won't abandon you. None of us here will. If I win, we can achieve it all, right?
Jeong Ha-kyeong let out a dazed chuckle.
“That mad bastard actually...”
Unaware a single tear had spilled from her eye.
Forgetting she'd never shed one since the destruction, nor ever would.
April 11, 2045.
Day 7 of destruction. One man's will had conquered a mad world.
But the light shining on the world was still too faint; the world's darkness remained thick and deep.