Chapter 62
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Deathmatch Result
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A head fell to the ground.
The deathmatch had officially begun.
However.
'Th-The Black Scythe?'
'Why is the Black Scythe here?'
The representatives, who had only just checked the nickname, trembled in fear.
Although they had never met the Black Scythe in person, they knew three things for certain.
First, he was a skilled player who had never lost the number one spot in any zone. Second, he was a high-level player at level 30.
And finally…
'Even if all of us attacked him, we could never win.'
The level gap was just that vast.
It crushed their will to fight.
His act of killing Super Psycho Coin in a single blow solidified this certainty.
They hadn't even seen how he'd done it.
'I-I'll die just like that guy, without even being able to react.'
'How are we supposed to beat a level 30? I'm only level 13!'
Just by checking his nickname, the representatives had already lost their will to fight.
All of them, save for Ryu Min.
Step by step—
As the shadow of the grim reaper drew closer, panic flickered across the representatives' faces.
"Ah, Sir Black Scythe. A pleasure to meet you. Hahaha…"
"To be in the same zone as the famous Sir Black Scythe. I'm so happy I could cry. Hahahat…"
But their flattery did nothing to change the cold glint in Ryu Min's eyes.
He didn't stop walking.
"W-Wait, please stop! Let's talk this out. Okay?"
"Look. I've already put my weapon away, see? I'm telling you, I have no intention of fighting you, Sir Black Scythe!"
"Hey! Angels! I forfeit! I'm forfeiting!"
"Me too! I forfeit too!"
"Me too!"
Finally, they began waving their hands at the angels, declaring their intent to forfeit.
All eight representatives, without exception.
[Sigh…]
Faced with this unexpected situation, the angels could only press their hands to their foreheads.
[What is this pathetic display?]
[Forfeit? Did you just say you're forfeiting? Humans?]
[You're ruining the game we went to all the trouble of preparing.]
The angels were furious.
From their perspective, it was as if the dogs they'd sent into a fighting pit were just tucking their tails between their legs. They had every right to be angry.
[This is a warning. Any human who mentions forfeiting from now on will have their head blown up.]
[And if your head explodes, you'd best not think about being revived. Understood?]
At the angels' threat, the representatives fell silent in unison.
The thought of not being revived was far more terrifying than having their heads explode.
Shing— Shing—
The representatives had no choice but to draw their weapons again.
They judged it better to be killed by the Black Scythe than to be killed by an angel and not be revived.
Backed into a corner, they had no choice but to fight.
'There are eight of us, so maybe we have a chance...'
Clinging to this sliver of hope, they circled the Black Scythe.
With their weapons aimed, they gradually closed the distance.
Unlike a moment ago when they were fawning over him, a menacing aura now emanated from them.
Seeing this, Ryu Min let out a smirk.
'So they're more afraid of the angels than they are of me, is that it?'
Ryu Min wasn't afraid of the angels.
They were weak beings, no different from humans.
If the other players knew their true nature, they wouldn't be so terrified either.
'Of course, their 'Execution' ability can't be ignored.'
Execution, a privilege of the angels, could make a player's head explode with just a look.
Ryu Min was no exception.
If an angel decided to, his journey could end right here.
'But unless they're insane, they wouldn't kill the number one ranked player in all zones.'
To blow up the head of the person receiving the most attention, without any particular reason?
He was sure the higher-ups would definitely not approve.
'Nothing would anger the creators more than tearing up the guaranteed box-office hit of a game designed to toy with humans.'
He knew they couldn't kill him, but that didn't mean he could openly defy the angels.
'A truly crazy angel might just blow my head up.'
It was a one-time-use skill, but there could be angels who hadn't used it yet.
If such an angel used Execution on him simply because they didn't like him, it would be game over.
Knowing this, Ryu Min couldn't defy the angels for the time being.
'For now, that is.'
Until he obtained the title needed to stand against them, he had to endure whatever the angels said.
And he couldn't give them a reason to kill him.
'Still, I can't pass up the chance to become the integrated representative.'
He glanced over and saw the representatives creeping toward him like hyenas.
Eight opponents.
But Ryu Min was not intimidated.
No matter how many ants there were, they were still just ants.
Pfft—
As he let out an open sneer, veins bulged on the representatives' temples.
-That bastard is laughing at us?
-He thinks he can be cocky just because he's a high level?
-We're well-known rankers in our own zones!
Looking at their faces, he could read their thoughts.
They had fallen for his provocation, hook, line, and sinker.
"Charge!"
As if by some unspoken agreement, they all rushed forward at once.
But Ryu Min moved half a beat faster.
Being able to read thoughts meant he could act preemptively.
Slice— Slice— Slice— Shhhk—!
Four throats were slit, and jets of blood erupted simultaneously.
Before the remaining men could even react, Ryu Min moved like a flash of light.
Shlick— Shlick— Shlick— Shlick!
Each time Ryu Min passed, a head flew into the air.
Thud— Thud— Thud— Thud!
The headless bodies swayed before collapsing limply to the ground.
In an instant, the eight representatives had become corpses.
"…"
[…]
The crowd fell silent for a long moment.
Angels and humans alike were no exception.
It was an anticlimactic result, but in a way, it was to be expected.
Just comparing their levels showed it was a hopeless match, didn't it?
"But to think it would end so... emptily."
[…]
The angels didn't say it, but they were thinking the same thing.
Their beautiful faces were all frozen in stunned expressions.
[…It's over?]
[The Black Scythe won?]
[Then Olive, the Black Scythe's assigned angel…]
[...we have to treat her like a queen for a while...?]
Grrrind—!
Priscilla's face twisted into a vicious scowl.
[Olive!]
Furious, Priscilla stomped over to Olive.
[You, you knew it would turn out like this!]
[Of course, I knew.]
[I knew it! Everyone! This bitch tricked us! She only suggested it because she knew she'd win!]
[Why state the obvious?]
[What?]
[Of course I suggested it because it was a game advantageous to me. Why else would I have suggested it?]
[…]
Faced with such brazen confidence, Priscilla was at a loss for words.
[And did I threaten you into making this bet? No. You all agreed to it, saying it sounded fun. Are you trying to back out now?]
[Eeeeeek…!]
Frustrated, the skin beneath Priscilla's eye twitched.
[What's so unfair that you're shaking like that? Or is it twitching on its own? You should take some supplements. I hear in the human world, eye twitching is a sign of magnesium deficiency.]
[Has this bitch lost her mind!]
[Why? You gonna hit me?]
Priscilla, who looked ready to pounce, froze at Olive's words.
[Go on, hit me if you have the guts. An angel getting into a vulgar brawl in front of humans? If the Archangel finds out, you'll be sent to the Chungnang for sure.]
[…]
At the mention of Chungnang, Priscilla quickly regained her composure.
Chungnang was a punishment where one was trapped in a tiny, cramped space swarming with insects—a penalty that the fastidious angels abhorred.
'Chungnang... I really hate Chungnang!'
Shuddering at the mere thought, Priscilla swallowed her anger and backed away.
[What? You're not going to attack?]
[…]
[Good choice. You should be grateful to me, shouldn't you? If I hadn't said anything, you would've been sent to Chungnang, 100 percent.]
[G-Grateful? What! That's ridiculous!]
She yelled, but Olive was right.
Absurdly, Priscilla felt a sense of gratitude toward her.
[Anyway, as per our bet, I'm the queen now, right?]
[…]
[Priscilla. You'll be in charge of guiding the integrated zone for a while.]
[U-Until when...]
[Until I'm in a better mood.]
[…]
[What are you doing? Get on with it.]
A look of indignation appeared on Priscilla's face.
She looked at the other angels for help, but they all averted their eyes.
'Sigh... Why did I even make a bet like that!'
Having no choice, Priscilla flew above the players' heads.
A bet was a bet.
[Hoo, humans. As you can see, the representative for the integrated zone has been decided.]
As Priscilla flapped her wings, a message appeared before the players' eyes.
[Player 'Black Scythe' has become the new representative of zone C-ESKS007.]
Facing the obvious outcome, Ryu Min didn't even pretend to be happy.
He just calmly checked his skill window.
[Temporary Skill – Right of Domination]
-Effect: Allows you to issue a command to a player and forcibly control them.
The target player cannot disobey the command under any circumstances.
Can be used a total of 10 times. The skill will disappear after all uses are expended.
Only one command can be issued to any single player.
Note: The skill does not work on players with a higher level than you.
There was only one difference from the Right of Command.
It could dominate players regardless of whether they had completed their class advancement.
'Of course, there's the level restriction, but it's still an incredible privilege. As long as my level is higher, I can dominate anyone.'
In other words, as a level 30, Ryu Min could force anyone to do his bidding if he so chose.
Perhaps because they knew this.
The players kept stealing glances at Ryu Min, trying to read his mood.
If they got on his bad side, they could end up being controlled by his Right of Domination.
[Well, since the match is decided, I will now resurrect the other dead players.]
A brilliant light erupted in the arena.
The eight players who had been decapitated by Ryu Min were revived as if by magic.
"Huh, what happened?"
"I clearly remember my head being cut off..."
[You were all killed by the Black Scythe. The new representative of the integrated zone is the Black Scythe.]
"Ah…"
"So that's how it ended up?"
They had expected, to some extent, that they wouldn't be able to kill the Black Scythe.
They had only charged at him because the angels had forced their hand.
[Now that there is a new zone representative, the representative authority of the resurrected humans will be revoked. Don't be too disappointed, though. There will always be chances to reclaim the position.]
Even hearing that there would be a chance, the players weren't happy.
Their opponent was none other than the Black Scythe, after all.
He was like an impregnable fortress.
[That concludes the bonus game. Now, I will guide you through the main quest.]
With a flick of Priscilla's wings, the quest window appeared.
◀ ROUND 5 ▶
└Defeat 300 orcs per person within 10 hours
└Collect 4 Stones of Balance
└Success Reward ▶ ????
[All Zones]
└Participants: 77,310,228
└Achievers: 0/19,327,557
[Current Zone C-ESKS007]
└Participants: 4,844
└Achievers: 0/1,211
The players looking at the quest window widened their eyes.
"What? Kill 300 orcs?"
"And why is the number of achievers so low?"
"It's one-fourth again?"
Hearing the players' complaints, Priscilla grew annoyed.
[Why are you all complaining so much? Are you unhappy because the number of achievers is low? Should I reduce it further?]
The players shook their heads and clamped their mouths shut.
[I've been giving you easy rounds until now, haven't I? That's why this time, I've reduced the number of achievers and prepared something difficult. But don't be discouraged…]
"But is killing 300 orcs really a difficult quest?"
"In games, orcs are total pushovers, right?"
Hearing the murmurs, Priscilla's mood soured.
The humans' ignorant chatter was irritating.
[Hmph, you'll find out how difficult it is once you experience it for yourselves. I'll say no more.]
"Angel! What's the sub quest?"
"Why is the reward shown as question marks?"
Priscilla answered the questions curtly.
[Unlike previous rounds, the sub quest for this round is revealed. The reward, as you can see, is a secret.]
It was a secret, but Ryu Min already knew.
He knew what the sub quest's reward was.
'The Rune of Balance. It's a rune I absolutely must obtain this round by clearing the sub quest.'
It was on the list of 18 essential runes, and Ryu Min intended to claim it today.
'Because only one person can get the sub quest reward.'