Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Act 5: Disintegration (2)
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“Right. It’s much better for our survival if we maintain our strength rather than them, isn’t it?”
“Is that enough of a justification?”
“It was stated outright. Pay up, even if you have to take it from others. This is justified.”
It was a conversation I couldn't ignore.
Just when one side quieted down, another started making trouble.
The only saving grace was that their side had a failsafe.
“Get a grip, you crazy bastards.”
Just then, Kim Ji-hyeon appeared from a blind spot and smacked both of them on the head.
“Ugh!”
“C-Captain. Don't you think you hit us a little too hard?”
“What? You want another one?”
“……”
The man who complained immediately shut his mouth.
Kim Ji-hyeon clicked her tongue, sat down in an empty chair, and let out a long sigh.
“Don't you guys get swept up in it too. You know damn well why we're here.”
“……Yes.”
The two men obediently backed down, and Lee Seon-yul took their place.
Lee Seon-yul also wore a look of deep concern.
[Pfft, puhahahaha!]
Suddenly, the devil clutched its stomach and laughed until tears streamed down its face.
[It's a joke, a joke! It's obviously unfair to spring this on you without any warning, right?]
Coming from creatures who wouldn't think twice about killing a few people for a laugh, it was enough to make me scoff.
But it had to be a joke, just as the devil said.
If it wasn't, this stadium would turn into a slaughterhouse where people killed each other, and we'd all be annihilated in the subsequent monster raid.
[The quest has been canceled.]
Hope immediately blossomed on people's faces.
Life returned to their dead eyes, but it didn't last long.
It was because of what the devil said next.
[But the part about the usage fee is real.]
“W-What!?”
“We're back to square one!”
He was good at toying with people.
It was the same in the game.
I couldn't count how many times I wanted to tear that devil to shreds in the early days of the game.
Though, once I realized what a useful fool it was, I was glad to see it.
“S-Se-hyeon-ssi.”
Unable to bear the anxiety any longer, a trembling Lee Seong-chan called my name.
“Yes.”
“I-It'll be okay, right? It won't be something cruel like that last quest, will it?”
His eyes were begging for an answer.
Not the eyes of someone asking for information they didn't have, but the eyes of someone wanting me to give them the answer they desired.
However, I couldn't give Lee Seong-chan the answer he wanted.
“……We'll see.”
My gaze naturally shifted to the spot where I had done some ‘preparatory work’.
If things proceeded peacefully as Lee Seong-chan hoped, it would be a problem for me.
That event had to happen for me to get what I wanted, which would lead to clearing the next chapter.
I shook my head slightly and turned my eyes back to the devil.
There was nothing to worry about.
The monster movements I confirmed through scouting matched the game, and the devil's appearance, speech, and actions were all the same.
What was about to happen wouldn't change.
[So, I'll give you a chance to earn some coins.]
The devil's mouth split wide, stretching to its ears.
Nothing good ever came from a devil's smile.
That was a common saying among the NPCs in the world of ‘End of Apocalypse’.
But this time, the corners of my own mouth turned up.
This was the development I wanted.
[Go ahead and catch as many as you like. After all, in a colosseum, only the victorious gladiators deserve to live!]
The sound of people gasping could be heard all around.
The momentary silence that followed soon turned to ice.
Because, like a besieged army, the howls of Death Bites echoed from all directions.
Reminded of the terror from the first day, people with corpse-like eyes and pale faces screamed silently.
It begins.
[You cannot leave the stadium until the raid is over.]
[Time remaining until raid: 10:00]
The problematic third chapter.
Its first stage.
[Well then, I'll be back on the hour, so do your best to survive. Humans.]
[Main Quest has been cleared.]
[Reward: 1200 Coins have been awarded.]
[A new Main Quest has been generated.]
[Ch.3 – Disintegration]
Lured by the scent of prey, the monsters flock.
Endlessly. Ceaselessly.
The tiny iron cage will not hold and is bound to collapse.
Objective: Survive by any means necessary
※Failure results in death
“Get in there, now!!”
There was no time to hesitate.
Ten minutes remained until the raid.
That was barely enough time for this many people to move in an orderly fashion.
At my shout, Kim Ji-hyeon and Lee Seon-yul snapped to their senses and began controlling the crowd with loud voices.
“Evacuate to the temporary underground shelter we made earlier!”
“Move quickly but in an orderly fashion! Rushing in chaotically will only slow us down!”
The sound of feet pounding the ground filled the air.
Even as people with deathly pale faces moved with precision, there was one who resisted.
“There's no way this will work! Why are you all listening to that guy!?”
I studied the man who, despite his fear, pointed a finger at me instead of following orders.
He was one of Choi Nam-hoon's associates.
Choi Nam-hoon himself, however, had already evacuated to the shelter.
Glancing toward the shelter, I saw Choi Nam-hoon look back in this direction just before he entered.
So you know I won't let you die, and you're trying to check my growing influence?
“Then stay here and die.”
“W-What… Kugh!”
I approached the man and struck the back of his neck.
I tossed his unconscious body to Lee Seon-yul, who, though startled, caught him and moved toward the shelter.
There was no benefit in revealing all my strength now, but I had even less patience for being delayed by some nobody.
I quickly scanned the 'traps' properly buried in the ground around me.
'Hoo.'
The preparations were complete.
I had obtained all the hidden items, and I used all my coins to raise my stats to their maximum.
[Character Information]
Name: Kim Se-hyeon
Gender: Male (26)
Strength: 20(+8) Stamina: 20(+8) Agility: 22(+8) Mana: 10(+8)
Unique Ability: ???(EX)
Traits: One Who Started from the End (S), Accustomed to Battle (D)
Skills: Extreme Eye (S)
Looking at my stats, a smile spread across my face, revealing my teeth.
Death Bites?
A few dozen of them swarming me wouldn't be a problem.
I tightened my grip on my sword until my knuckles turned white and slowly rose to my feet.
***
A cloudless night sky.
A round, full moon.
It was a fine view for sharing a drink with a friend, but the atmosphere was anything but friendly.
“Grrrrrr!”
The hungry howls of Death Bites echoed from outside the stadium.
The grating sound, as if scratching from the depths of one's chest, dredged up fear.
[The invasion begins.]
“Ugh…”
“They're… they're here…! Those monsters!”
The temporary shelter was created by mobilizing everyone with earth-related abilities.
It wasn't just a hole dug in the ground.
It was excavated from an 'unfinished construction site' within the stadium building, so climbing up a ladder wasn't difficult.
If the Death Bites were to storm this place, we'd be doomed, but they would never even find it in the first place.
I made sure of that.
“Are you sure you'll be okay?”
Kim Ji-hyeon asked.
“I'll be fine.”
“You're full of confidence. This is a situation where many lives are on the line, starting with your own.”
*I've done this many times before.*
I swallowed those words and left the shelter entrance, slowly moving toward the center of the stadium.
The Death Bites, which had entered the stadium and were sniffing around, confused by the lack of people, all lifted their noses in unison and turned their heads toward me.
There were more of them than I'd seen at the school.
Once the count passed a hundred, it was pointless to keep track.
'Just as I thought, there are no monsters other than Death Bites.'
The monster wave was exactly as I remembered.
And that's why I could use this 'one-time' strategy.
“Be careful. If it looks too dangerous, we'll back you up immediately.”
Lee Seon-yul's voice barely reached my ears.
That wasn't going to happen.
These Death Bites—I was going to kill them all myself.
“Kraaaah!”
*Boom!*
The moment the nearest Death Bites started to charge, I flipped a switch. With an explosion, a hazy orange smoke spread throughout the stadium.
The Death Bites that were charging at me stopped in their tracks.
It wasn't a paralyzing poison.
If it paralyzed me too, that would be a bigger problem.
It was something that had no effect on humans but was highly effective against the eyeless Death Bites.
An air freshener bomb.
“Kkyaeng!!”
A Death Bite, unable to locate me, yelped as its long tongue was sliced, and it fell dead.
The scent of the air freshener was so strong that even I felt my nose going numb.
For creatures with far more sensitive noses, the information flooding their senses must have been chaotic.
'I didn't tell them to raid the supermarket for nothing.'
Food. Of course, it was important. If I had to rank necessities, it would be number one without a second thought.
But if you were going to a supermarket anyway, there was one more thing to grab.
The dozens upon dozens of air fresheners lying around.
The students who had already witnessed their effectiveness at the school had swept up every last one, and I had put them to use.
I sheathed my sword and immediately moved toward the next target.
*Swish!*
Purple blood splattered.
With every swing of my sword, one monster fell.
The Sa-in-geom itself was powerful, but the effects of the Hunter's set I had equipped beforehand were truly shining.
“Incredible…! Is he really a newly awakened player?”
“Air fresheners. I never thought a trick like that would be so effective…”
“Quiet down and just focus on blocking the ones on the outskirts whose noses aren't as overwhelmed. They might catch our scent.”
“A few are coming. Get ready.”
Some of the Death Bites at a distance had their aggro split and were moving toward where the others were waiting.
I was going to handle as many as I could, but taking on all of them was physically impossible anyway.
Having them draw some of the aggro created space for me to move, so it wasn't a bad thing at all.
'Twenty-four.'
I wiped the sweat with my arm.
Killing the Death Bites one by one using these advantages wasn't difficult, but it was physically exhausting.
Some of them even managed to catch my scent through the thick fragrance and tried to dodge my attacks.
[The 'Devil Who Mocks the Heavens' is amused by your cunning.]
[The 'Wise Guide' sends you their praise.]
[You have been sponsored 300 coins.]
The scene of a lone fighter struggling, using his wits to defeat his enemies.
It was the perfect scenario to attract sponsorships.
“Shouldn't we join in after all?”
“As Se-hyeon-nim said, it's better for him if we, the strong ones, stay here and protect the people. It puts his mind at ease.”
“But if just one of us went to help…”
“Besides, if we joined in, we would only get in the way of his plan.”
Lee Seon-yul smiled faintly as he looked my way.
He understood exactly why I had insisted on doing this alone.
[You have acquired 100 coins.]
The main objective was to escape to the safety zone and survive.
But I wasn't just surviving; I was actively hunting the enemy.
The bonus points for doing so were being converted into coins in real-time.
'The coins are nice, but I have to get *that*.'
When my stamina dropped too low, I bought a potion, drank it, and started moving again.
More. I had to kill as many as I could.
Before the air freshener scent completely dissipated.
[You have achieved a remarkable feat.]
[You have hunted over 100 Death Bites in this chapter.]
[Your attack power against Beast-type monsters will be permanently increased by 15%.]
'Done.'
The strength drained from my body.
My tightly contracted muscles relaxed, and a sudden wave of fatigue washed over me.
My eyes were drawn to the corpses of the Death Bites that littered the stadium.
Perhaps because of the bright moonlight, the scene was all too clear.
I happened to catch my reflection on the blade of my sword.
It was not a pretty sight, splattered with the blood of monsters on my clothes and skin.
Even though they weren't human, it was undeniably a mass slaughter, yet I felt surprisingly numb.
“G-Good heavens…”
“All those creatures… they're all…!”
As the noise died down, those who had poked their heads out to check the situation let out gasps of awe.
Among them was the man who had complained that this wouldn't work.
The moment our eyes met, I gave a faint smile.
In response, his face flushed with embarrassment, and he quickly looked away.
“Did you accomplish what you wanted?”
“For now, yes.”
“For now…?”
“I don't think it's over yet.”
*Pajijeut.*
Space began to tear.
From within, a familiar figure I had seen once before revealed its face.
“The devil!?”
“The devil is back again…!”
Was it pleased with their reaction?
The corners of the devil's mouth curled into a smile.
[Let's see, I wonder how many survived… huh…?]