Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 155
Chapter Title: Past, Present, and Future are Connected
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◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Daddy Pig... is dead... You guys... did it...?"
The wolf mask tilted its head as it asked that.
"No!!! We're not the culprits!!!"
I immediately shot back a denial. But the wolf mask wasn't fooled. The bastard had an unnaturally sharp nose. It was because Bayou and Nick had pig mask's blood on them.
"Liar!!! I smell Daddy Pig's blood on those two!!!"
In an instant, its eyes turned red, and it unleashed a killing intent so intense it made my skin prickle. Bayou and Nick, taking the full brunt of the wolf mask's pressure, trembled like baby mice in front of a predator.
But I was the type with freakishly strong mental fortitude, the kind that didn't flinch even before evil gods, so I wasn't fazed by this wolf pup's intimidation.
'Everyone else looks mentally crushed.'
Even the Southeast Asian woman and the boy had completely gone limp, collapsing to the floor. They were shaking uncontrollably and had even wet themselves—it'd be hard to save them now.
'Mass mental breakdown. Could this be one of the wolf mask's abilities...? Maybe.'
The wolf mask's power wasn't what mattered right now. We needed to put as much distance as possible between us and that monster while we still could.
I quickly turned my head to scout an escape route. Right behind us was a door leading to the stairs up to the second floor. I felt a strong pull from upstairs.
'We have to go up.'
Escape route decided. I yelled at the idiots still stupidly staring at the wolf mask.
"Hey, you fucking morons!! Snap out of it and follow me!!!"
"Uh... uh...!!"
Nick reacted first to my voice, then Bayou shook his head hard to break free of the wolf's hold. But the Canadian boy and the Southeast Asian woman were still slumped on the ground. They tried to stand at my command, but their legs were jelly, shaking uncontrollably—couldn't trust that.
It hit me that it'd be better to use them as bait to buy time. Just as I was about to shout at the Southeast Asian woman and Canadian boy—who couldn't even stand properly—to hold it off...
"Damn it! Bayou!! Grab Lina!!"
Nick scooped up the Canadian boy and yelled at Bayou. Bayou dazedly grabbed the Southeast Asian woman, Lina, and they bolted after me and Nick up the stairs to the upper floor.
That's when the wolf mask, watching our escape, spotted the dead rabbit mask behind Bayou and let out a guttural scream.
"Uwaaa!!! Those bastards!! They killed Rabby too!!! Uwaaaaa!! You fuckers!!!! Mommy!!!! Sis!!!!! Hurry up!!!"
The wolf mask's inhuman tantrum echoed like a shockwave, cracking the hallway floor.
Bayou, at the rear, staggered from the impact.
"Fuck!! Don't fall, drop that bitch!!"
"Shut up!! I was gonna anyway!!!"
I bellowed at Bayou. He grimaced and hurled the Southeast Asian woman toward the approaching wolf.
Nick exploded in rage.
"Bayou!!! What the hell!!!"
"Fuck!! How am I supposed to carry a deadweight like her!!! I can't!! No!! Why the hell should I!!"
Lina, the Southeast Asian woman, was suddenly flung down the stairs.
The wolf mask charged down the hall like a maniac, grabbed her head as she tumbled screaming down the stairs.
"Mommy!! Mommy!!! Intruders!!! They killed Daddy and little brother Rabby! Hurry!!!"
It screamed like an alarm, then crushed Lina's head and tore her body apart with its bare hands, like ripping a paperback book.
"Uwaaaaa!!!"
Jacob, the Canadian boy in Nick's arms, screamed at the sight of Lina being shredded. With his piercing wail, we all made it to the upper floor.
"Shut the door and barricade it!! Block it with that wardrobe!!"
"Fuck... like this'll hold..."
💥 BAM!! BAM!! BAM!! 💥
> OPEN THE DOOR!!!! MOMMY WHY AREN'T YOU COMING!!!!! "Just shut up and barricade it!!! You fucking dog!!!"
"Goddamn son of a bitch!!! Help out or something!!! Ugh!! It's opening!!!"
Nick and Bayou strained to hold the door against the wolf mask trying to smash through. That's when I spotted a grandfather clock half-embedded in the room's wall.
'Found it...!'
With this, we could escape this shitty timeline. No clue where it'd send us, but we had to activate it.
If luck was on our side, it'd drop us right in the family head's reign with the seal ring, mission complete.
'How to use the grandfather clock...'
Set it to 4:44:44, and have three or more people gathered in front of it.
"4:44:44."
I adjusted the hour, minute, and second hands. The dormant clock roared to life with a clamor. A glowing circle appeared in front of it, light gathering within. Three or more people now, and we could go.
"Hey!! Gather quick!! We're teleporting soon!!!"
"Wait!! Who's blocking the door then!!"
"You there, James!!! Or Jacob? Whatever!! You block it!!"
"NO!!!!!!!"
Jacob stomped and wailed but couldn't defy my order, so he threw himself against the door with all his might. Bayou shot me a weird look but said nothing and rushed to my side.
"J-Jacob..!"
Bayou was already next to me, but Nick fretted over leaving Jacob alone. He seemed genuinely worried about the kid dying without him. Was he crazy? Or... no way, gay?
"Fuck!!! Nick!!! You gonna waste Jacob's sacrifice!!!"
"Sacrifice?! Jacob's not dead yet!!"
"Yes he is!!! You limey nose freak!!! Lina sacrificed herself for us too!!!"
"Wait, you ditched Lina—"
"Shut it, bun boy!!! Just call it a sacrifice!!!"
"Damn it!! Sorry!! Jacob!!!"
"NO!!!! Nick!!! Don't abandon me! (No!!! Nick!!! Don't leave me!!)"
Nick apologized to Jacob and sprinted toward us. The moment he pulled away, the door burst open. Jacob was grabbed by the wolf mask and turned into a pile of meat in seconds. He'd bought us a few moments.
'Thanks... Jacob..!'
We were engulfed in light just as he died.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ We materialized in front of the grandfather clock we'd used before. A black hole opened in the ceiling, and we dropped out in order: Bayou, me, then Nick. Bayou, crushed at the bottom, wheezed and punched me wildly.
"Guhh... heavy... move..."
"Cough..."
"Damn... Jacob..."
I shoved the dazed Nick—mumbling about Jacob—off and scrambled away from the stinky Bayou.
"Hah... fuck. What's your deal with Jacob? Why so torn up?"
"Y-You wouldn't get it... that kid... damn... he had a compass."
"Compass?"
Not just pity for the boy, then. He valued Jacob for what he could gain...
"If it was that important, you should've taken it."
"He said... only he could use it. And it was in his inventory... would've had to torture him to get it... but then the wolf mask freak showed up."
Nick ran his hand down his face. A compass, huh...
"That compass... was it..."
"A Phase Designation Compass... with it, you can set a location to..."
"Point to. Yeah, I know. I have one."
"What?"
Bingo. Jacob's compass was a Phase Designation Compass. I had one too.
"Here, look. I have one. And this."
"Th-That's..."
"Jacob's bag. The one with his stuff. Snatched it the moment we met. Let's see... here it is. Didn't know the compass was inside, though."
"Hah... hahaha...! Jun! You're... incredible."
Nick's face lit up. I pulled Jacob's side bag from my large magic pouch and dumped its contents on the floor. Amid junk and rations, another compass identical to mine tumbled out.
"No reason for a guy with inventory to lug around a heavy bag. He lied."
"Jacob... you sly little shit... you fooled me..."
Nick finally realized he'd been duped. Jacob must've sensed I'd use him as a meat shield anytime, so he lied about the compass being in his inventory to manipulate Nick into protecting him. Sneaky way to dodge my orders and save his skin. Nick thought he could one-up me by saving Jacob.
'He planned to use the non-existent compass—already stolen by me—to make Nick his shield.'
Smart play in that split second, but sadly, Jacob got no one's help and ended up as mincemeat.
'Now I have two compasses... jackpot.'
One for this room with the clock, one for the exit.
"For now... set this one here..."
I pressed the button on Jacob's compass to designate this spot. Now it'd only point here, to the grandfather clock room.
This massive mansion probably had more clocks for time travel elsewhere, but now I could always find this one. Though unusable for a day after our use...
"Anyway... let's figure out what time period this is."
"Before that... look at this."
"Huh? What?"
"Here... these dried bloodstains and bone fragments..."
"What... no way..."
The spot where Jacob had held the door alone, only to be torn apart by the wolf mask. Old, crusted blood and what looked like his bone shards clung there.
"We're in the future..."
Was it our 2022 timeline, or far future with high elves roaming? Definitely not the family head's era with the seal ring.
'Bones still intact... probably not ancient future, more like recent past...'
Needed to explore more. If modern era, find the exit first, then time jump again. Not a bad plan.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Damn... where the hell is this..."
Player Choi Seok-ho had been wandering the mansion for ages.
He'd gotten separated from his party, roaming alone. The cause? Insanely strong automatons.
Assassin Choi Seok-ho judged the fight unwinnable midway and bolted. His teammates saw and scattered too, all split up.
'Fuck... how do I get out...'
He'd lost track of when he'd entered or how long it'd been. He didn't even know how to escape this timeline—just dodging patrolling automatons while hunting other players.
To leech off them.
"Hm... what's this...?"
After wandering, he found a massive room packed with levers, pipes, and bizarre devices.
Like... a steampunk mansion control room.
"No way... time machine...?"
Thinking it might be his ticket out, Choi cautiously pulled one of the levers.
The instant he did...
⚡ RUMBLE!!!! ⚡ "U-Uwa!! Fuck!!!"
The mansion shook with a deafening roar, beginning to transform.
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