Chapter 78
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: It's Me.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Players who wield scythes are rare.
Especially one so huge and brutish.
If there was a player who carried such a scythe, it could only be one person.
'D-don't tell me... Black Scythe?'
As if by agreement, they both thought of the same person.
The undisputed number one ranker, a high-level player no one could fail to know.
'Is he really claiming to be Black Scythe?'
Lost Ark's surprise faded, his eyes narrowing.
There was a disconnect between this person and the image of Black Scythe.
'First off, he's short.'
He didn't even look to be 170cm tall.
A massive scythe that looked difficult to wield.
A somewhat young-sounding voice, a slight build...
He was very different from the image they had of Black Scythe.
'Of course, comparing him to an avatar is a fool's errand, but...'
What could he do? The guy looked like a pushover.
But Hwang Yong-min, who had actually faced Black Scythe, knew.
'B-Black Scythe... It's really him!'
His build was different, but his tone and aura were identical.
Above all, he could never forget the look in those eyes, visible through the mask.
'It's him... The real deal has shown up.'
The hair on his head stood on end, and his hands and feet trembled intermittently.
It was the reaction of a prey animal recognizing its predator.
'To think Black Scythe would appear in the real world...'
His vow to cut him in half if they ever met in real life was long forgotten.
To be honest, that had been a joke.
How could he possibly kill someone whose level was more than double his own?
'But why is Black Scythe here...?'
No, more importantly, why did he steal his name?
They shouldn't have any business with each other anymore, right?
In any case, showing up armed couldn't mean he had good intentions.
Whether to wipe the sweat from his palms or to ease his tension, Hwang Yong-min repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists.
Seeing this strange behavior, Lost Ark looked at Black Scythe again.
'Is he really Black Scythe? That guy?'
Even he, who had dismissed the man as a pushover, now looked a little tense.
'I've never seen him in person, but if he's really Black Scythe...'
A level 20 like himself would be no match.
A surprise attack was probably the only option.
"You."
Startled by the sudden address, Lost Ark flinched.
"Y-yes?"
"You didn't come here alone, did you?"
"..."
"Tell the others to come out. I know everything."
Lost Ark was honestly surprised.
So surprised he felt like clapping.
'To think he knew there were other executives here...'
Just moments ago, he had only suspected the man might be Black Scythe.
But this confirmed it.
Regardless of whether he was the real Black Scythe, this was no easy opponent.
It was then.
*Thump, thump—*
Was it because they heard his voice telling them to come out?
Two men who had been hiding on the corridor stairs revealed themselves.
It was [Soboru is Delicious] and [Poporing].
"Ah, looks like we've been found out."
"How did he know we were here?"
Unaware that he could have found them with Presence Detection, the two men approached Ryu Min.
"Don't come any closer. If you don't want to die."
"Heh, what a bluff from a little shit."
As Soboru scoffed, Poporing stopped him.
"Hey, are you really the Black Scythe?"
In response to Poporing's question, Ryu Min brandished his scythe.
"You should know just by looking at this, no?"
"I heard he uses a scythe as his main weapon, but we've never seen Black Scythe in person. We can't tell just from the scythe."
"Then why ask? It's not like you'll believe me."
"Still, I wanted to hear it from you directly."
"Fine, I'm Black Scythe. Satisfied?"
As he admitted to being Black Scythe, the look in Poporing's eyes changed.
[The target you are currently viewing is speaking the 'truth'.]
It was because of the [Rune of Truth] he possessed.
Soboru, standing beside him, turned to Poporing and asked.
"What does it say?"
"It says... truth."
At those words, the executives stared at Black Scythe with shocked eyes.
'This person is the famous Black Scythe...?'
'I couldn't believe it, but it was true...'
Everyone was surprised by his real-life appearance, which felt somewhat disconnected from his reputation, but...
'Fuck, I'm screwed.'
Soboru, however, wore a grim expression.
It was because he had acted arrogantly just moments before, thinking there was no way this guy was the real Black Scythe.
'Dammit. This mouth of mine is going to be the death of me!'
To have offended someone who might become an executive of the cafe.
If they became colleagues, he would surely be singled out.
'What should I do? Sh-should I just apologize? No, wait. Maybe he didn't hear me. He's just standing there, right?'
Feeling guilty, Soboru cautiously greeted him first.
"Sir Black Scythe. It's a pleasure to meet..."
"Skip the greetings."
Ryu Min pointed his scythe at Soboru.
"You said you wanted to confirm if I'm Black Scythe, right? Then confirm it with your skills."
"W-with skills?"
Soboru was flustered.
It was tantamount to a level 40 challenging a level 20 to a duel.
The intention was clear.
'Dammit, he was holding a grudge after all.'
He clearly intended to humiliate him in front of everyone.
'Th-there's no way out of this. I just have to apologize and beg for forgiveness.'
Of course, he had no confidence he could win.
He knew without even having to fight.
"S-Sir Black Scythe, I'm truly sorry for my rudeness earlier."
"Sorry my ass. You still need to confirm if I'm the real Black Scythe, don't you?"
"You don't need to show us your skills. We've already confirmed it."
Poporing interjected, but Black Scythe's anger hadn't subsided.
"I just said my name and you're saying it's confirmed?"
"Ah... well, I have a rune related to that..."
"Enough. If you can block my attack, I'll forget about your earlier rudeness. Shall we begin?"
"S-Sir Black Scythe. If you could just spare me this one time..."
Before Soboru could finish his plea, it happened.
*Shlick—!*
With a gruesome sound, Soboru's head fell to the ground.
*Thud— Roll—*
As their colleague's head rolled to their feet, the two men were horrified.
'Fuck!!! What the hell is this guy!?'
Lost Ark wanted to scream.
But if he did, he feared he would end up like Soboru, so he just swallowed hard.
Poporing felt much the same.
'I-I couldn't even see him swing the scythe.'
A stark difference in power.
It was a speed that would be difficult to follow even with the common skill, Enhanced Dynamic Vision.
"S-Sir Black Scythe! W-what is the meaning of this?"
"What do you mean? I just proved with my skills that I'm Black Scythe."
"But we told you there was no need..."
"Haaah..."
As if to say this had become a huge headache, the two men clutched their heads.
A person had died in the real world.
An executive, no less.
Unlike in the other world, there was no resurrection.
The only silver lining was that he wasn't a founding member, but an executive hired through an interview.
He was replaceable.
'Replaceable with whom?'
For a moment, the madman in the white mask entered their vision.
Black Scythe was the ideal candidate for an executive position.
After all, they had come here to recruit him.
But...
'We're supposed to accept a madman who slices up his own colleagues as an executive?'
'The Chairman would never agree. He cares more about the lives of his subordinates.'
The risk of bringing Black Scythe to their side was too great.
As they had just seen, he was a cold-blooded killer who murdered people for trivial reasons.
Therefore, their deliberation was not long.
'Accepting Black Scythe as an ally is too dangerous. If we can't embrace him, we must kill him here and now.'
No matter what, they couldn't just let him get away with murdering a colleague.
If he couldn't be an ally, he had to be killed.
From the perspective of eliminating a competitor, it was the right thing to do.
The Chairman would probably agree.
'It won't be easy. He's level 40.'
'First, we pretend to surrender to lower his guard, then we ambush him. That's the only way.'
Just as the two exchanged glances, tacitly agreeing to the murder.
"How amusing."
A dry laugh escaped from behind Ryu Min's mask.
"If you reveal your killing intent so openly, do you think I won't notice?"
"Huh? W-what are you talking about...?"
"You were just planning to kill me. Did you think I wouldn't know?"
"Haha, of course not. How could we possibly do that to you, Sir Black Scythe..."
"You were planning to feign surrender, bowing your heads just like now, and then launch a surprise attack. Weren't you?"
"..."
Hit right on the mark, they were left speechless.
It was as if he could read their minds.
"Do you know why I used Hwang Yong-min's name and address to apply for membership?"
Of course, they didn't.
"Because I wanted to meet you executives."
"Us?"
The executives looked at each other.
"W-what is it you want?"
"Simple. Die for me."
"..."
If it were anyone else, they would have dismissed it as a joke, but this was Black Scythe.
He was not a man who made jokes.
He had already killed one executive as an example.
Above all, his eyes were filled with a thick killing intent.
'Wh-what do I do? Th-think. If I just stand here, I'll die a dog's death.'
Poporing, who was considered the quick-witted one, tried to calmly assess the situation.
But in a state of panic, his mind wouldn't work.
Especially in a pressing situation like this.
'F-first, let's try to placate him. Buying time is the only answer.'
He had killed someone without warning, but maybe, just maybe, they could talk things out.
With that thought, Poporing was about to open his mouth, but.
"Huh?"
A dumbfounded sound escaped his lips.
It was because Lost Ark had also become a headless corpse.
*Thump—*
In an instant, there were two corpses.
A pool of blood quickly formed on the floor, leaving only three people in the hallway.
The trembling Hwang Yong-min and Poporing, and the grim reaper.
'Ah... so he lured us here to kill us all from the very beginning.'
As Poporing faced this reality, his eyes filled with terror.
"W-why? What grudge do you have against us...?"
"And what about you?"
*Shing—*
Ryu Min's scythe touched Poporing's neck.
"What grudge did you have to frame an innocent person as a criminal and kill them?"
"H-how did you..."
"Did you think I wouldn't know? That you kill people as part of your interview test?"
"..."
"Especially the executive interviews. You have to personally dispose of an innocent civilian, one-on-one."
"...They weren't innocent civilians."
Poporing said, as if wronged.
"They were inferior civilians who dared to look down on players. Inwardly, they were just jealous because they didn't have powers. A hypocrite like that deserves to die."
"And you?"
"..."
"You're strict with others but lenient with yourself. Isn't that a double standard as well?"
"How unpleasant. You don't know anything about me."
'Why wouldn't I? I can see right through you with the Rune of Inner Thoughts.'
Swallowing his inner thoughts, Ryu Min raised his scythe.
"I may not know anything else, but I do know this."
*Shlick—!*
The head, falling like a grape from its stem, rolled across the floor.
"That you're a piece of trash who killed a civilian."
Glancing over, he saw Hwang Yong-min trembling in fear.
"Nothing to be afraid of. I'll be sending you to join your friends soon."
Was he triggered by the word 'friends'?
Hwang Yong-min, who had been trembling just moments ago, now stared with a stern expression.
"How do you know my friends?"
"Why wouldn't I? We used to hang out together. Though to be precise, I was dragged around by your group."
"What?"
Ryu Min smiled at Hwang Yong-min, who was looking at him as if he were spouting nonsense.
"You don't know who I am?"
"You're Black Scythe..."
For a moment, Hwang Yong-min couldn't continue.
Because the face revealed as Black Scythe removed his mask was one he knew all too well.
"It's me. Ryu Min, the one you used to bully."