Chapter 256
Chapter 256
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 256
Chapter Title: ACT.51 Antiquity and the End (1)
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I broke through the entrance to the secret laboratory and raced through it at high speed.
Unleashed beasts that hadn't yet escaped charged at me with all sorts of cries, but Alpha, sticking close behind me, swung his sword lightly, and they were all thrown back at once.
Here and there, I saw the corpses of researchers, mangled beyond recognition.
The small, switch-equipped devices clutched in their hands were also broken beyond use.
With all of them dead, it was safe to assume that none of the beasts here were under Pentagon Eagle's control.
[Lord. The number of enemies is high.]
Alpha whispered cautiously.
“There will be more the deeper we go. And they’ll be stronger.”
[Are you planning to break through like this?]
“That was the original plan.”
My mind had changed.
[Using the skill, ‘Extreme Eye’.]
“It seems someone’s already there, so I need to hurry.”
[Shattering Moon]
*CRASH!*
The location of ‘it’ was on the 10th basement floor.
A place I could reach by going straight down from here.
Though it was called the 10th basement floor, that was just an estimate of its depth.
In reality, this building only went down to the 5th basement level.
The space that existed below was not created by Pentagon Eagle for their secret lab, but had been there long before.
*THUD!*
After dropping through the hole I’d created, I opened the door right in front of me and went inside.
The room that came into view was exceptionally sturdy and secretly constructed.
A space that made me wonder if I had stepped inside a UFO.
And in the very center of it was a particularly incongruous object.
No, there should have been.
“...Who are you?”
I cautiously approached the figure holding the ring of domination, then stopped.
My instincts were screaming.
Don’t get any closer.
One wrong move and the thing on my shoulders could go flying.
“We finally meet.”
A voice, about my age, flowed out.
The partially revealed face was obscured by a mask, making it impossible to discern his features.
He was definitely a progressor.
The problem here was whether he was with Salbatio or against them.
“Are you with Salbatio too?”
“...”
There was no answer.
If he wouldn't talk, I'd have to find out by force.
[system error 104]
[Invalid target.]
[Cannot confirm target's information.]
‘As I thought.’
I had a feeling this would happen.
Roberto had also interfered with my Extreme Eye through his Mysticism trait; was it so strange that someone else would have a way to prevent their information from being exposed?
But there was a slight difference. Instead of being nullified by some power, a system error popped up.
Just like with Hwang Chan-jin.
“I’ll take your silence as a yes, then?”
He responded by silently lifting the ring of domination slightly.
Even if he was with Salbatio, as long as their primary goal was to prevent the apocalypse, he should know that using that ring to control the beasts was more beneficial.
Especially if he was an executive-level member or higher, who I presumed had played EOA quite a lot...
*Crack!*
However, he suddenly applied force and shattered the ring.
...What? He destroyed the ring of domination? Is he insane?
I was so dumbfounded that my face hardened.
“You broke it? Are you crazy?”
“I’ve already released ‘him’.”
“Don’t change the subject. Why did you break it?”
“You know, don’t you? ‘That which’ is sealed in the deepest part of this place.”
It was as if he couldn't even hear me, just spouting whatever he wanted to say.
The moment I thought I had to at least find out who he was, his last words flashed through my mind.
That which is sealed in the deepest part of this place.
No way.
No, it couldn’t be.
Unless he had completely lost his mind, that couldn't be right.
Especially for a progressor who would know of its existence.
With trembling eyes, I looked past the mask and into his.
And then, I realized there was not a hint of falsehood in them.
“You crazy son of a...!”
A furious shout burst from my lips.
***
The Primeval Beast.
That is what people called it.
A single being, sealed in the deepest part of Pentagon Eagle's secret lab, a place that could be called the abyss.
No one knew when or where it had appeared.
Only that after it was finally captured at the cost of many lives, it was silently forgotten by the people.
No, it would be more accurate to say that someone forced it to be forgotten.
Then why was ‘it’ called Primeval?
Because one day, a researcher studying it said so, with a look on his face as if he had seen something he shouldn't have.
“That is a being from primeval times. Something we must not touch... no, something we must absolutely not provoke any further.”
After saying he would observe it just one more time, he vanished without a trace.
It was hard to believe he had fled in terror.
His belongings were still there, and no CCTV at any exit had captured him leaving.
He had literally disappeared.
Naturally, people’s attention turned to the creature.
It had changed somehow.
From a mouth that could only chew and swallow, something like babbling words emerged.
It squirmed, changing its form.
And then, it spoke.
“Hello. Were you looking for me? I made a mistake and got trapped in here. Can you get me out?”
That is what it said.
With a face everyone knew, in a voice everyone knew.
While explaining the details of the research that had been ongoing just yesterday.
The emotion the people there felt at that moment was not fear or dread that it could transform into what it had eaten.
The power to absorb what it ate and make it its own.
If only we could make that power ours.
They smiled.
Smiling, they willingly took another step closer to that being.
“Are you letting me out?”
What awaited it was not freedom, but even more experiments than before.
Parts of its body were continuously torn off, and when it tried to speak, it was ignored as if it were a ghost.
It was different from before.
It could think, and it could understand words.
It hurts, and I’m lonely.
And, I’m hungry.
Meat was continuously supplied.
But nothing truly satisfied it.
‘There’s no power worth eating.’
It was not a creature that simply consumed energy.
It was a being that devoured the power inherent in living things.
Hungry.
Hungry, hungry, hungry.
Its gaze turned to the people studying the parts of its own body.
Most were just meat, no different from the first thing it ate, but among them were some who possessed great power.
I’m hungry.
They look delicious.
It instinctively moved its severed body parts.
It bit a researcher’s finger.
It tore at their screaming arms, bit their necks.
The more it ate, the larger the severed parts grew.
Figuring out how to open the capsule it was trapped in was easy.
All it had to do was eat them.
When news spread, players were deployed, but they were no match for it.
It devoured them gluttonously.
Their power was delicious.
It absorbed their power and grew stronger.
But it was not satisfied.
Only then did the people realize what a terrible mistake they had made.
Just like when it was first captured, an immense amount of blood was shed.
Even so, killing it proved impossible, and all they could do was seal it away tightly in the deepest place.
As time passed, a new building was erected on top, and even as the world hurtled towards ruin...
It remained fast asleep.
Until someone woke it.
“Wake up. I know you can understand me, even in your current state.”
There was a delicious smell.
A scent sweeter, richer, and more tempting than anything it had ever eaten.
And, a dangerous scent.
It instinctively recoiled.
It knew that in its weakened state, it was no match.
But the dangerous prey seemed to have no intention of attacking it.
“I will set you free. Go out and rampage.”
The question of ‘Why?’ was fleeting.
As soon as it determined that there was truly no hostility from him, it bolted outside.
There was still plenty to eat outside.
There were even overflowing amounts of strange, unseen prey.
It opened its mouth.
It was time to feast.
***
“Are you trying to kill us all, you crazy bastard?!”
“Kim Se-hyeon.”
In the same tone as before, he spoke his own words again.
“Stop it. Prove your ability, your power. Prove your worth.”
With only those words, he vanished into thin air.
Even though I was watching, he disappeared from that spot as if he had never been there.
From his identity to how he obtained such power, and what his purpose was.
Endless questions arose, but my body was already moving, leaving that place.
“Choi Yeon-soo! Can you hear me!? Answer if you can! Jun Bo-ra! Cha Eun-ha! Min-ah! Min-woo!”
The communication item remained silent.
I let out a loud curse and picked up my pace.
“Shit...!”
The Primeval Beast is a boss so far beyond the norm that it won't appear unless deliberately awakened.
Defeating it only grants an achievement.
It helps with earning coins, but the reward changes based on how strong it has become, making it a high-risk, high-return affair.
Even then, by the late game when one is strong enough to consider waking it for coins, the reward is paltry compared to the damage it causes and the difficulty, making it a hidden boss not worth the trouble.
Please, please don't let me be too late.
“...Ah.”
However, the moment I reached the surface, what I saw...
Was a tragic scene that made it clear I was already too late.
“Save me, save me! Please!!”
“Aaaah! I don’t want to die! I don’t want to dieeee!!”
There was a giant tentacle.
A living terror of a thousand parts crawled about, swallowing everything it touched.
It made no distinction between humans and monsters in what it consumed.
Nor was there a distinction between living and non-living things.
It was, quite literally, a disaster that devoured everything.
[The ‘Angel of Benevolence’ covers her mouth.]
A sudden laugh escaped me.
How shocking must this be for even those who had been too busy with systemic matters to send sponsorship messages for a while to show themselves?
[‘Light's Justicar’ is enraged!]
[The ‘Vessel of Iniquity’ shows interest in how you will resolve this situation.]
There was a saying.
If you release that thing in a place with many living beings, it will gain disaster-class power in five minutes.
That was no exaggeration.
[Causality is distorted by the presence of a powerful ancient being!]
[The main quest content is being changed.]
[Ch.20 Abyss]
Do not gaze into it.
If you do not wish to be devoured by it.
Do not awaken it.
If you do not wish to know your own immaturity.
Do not confront it.
If you do not wish to lose everything.
※The difficulty has been significantly altered.
※The rewards for success and the penalties for failure have greatly increased.
[Wow, these crazy bastards. They’re waking that thing up now?]
A demon I’d never seen before was watching from the air, as if impressed.
The high-ranking demon Besial had mentioned, the one currently managing the American region.
As vast as the land was, there was bound to be a higher-ranking demon.
“Hey. Shouldn’t you put some restrictions on that thing? This isn’t a normal situation.”
[Huh? What’s this? A human who can see me. Why would I put restrictions on it?]
The demon asked back, cleaning his ear.
[This is something you all caused. It’s not due to the intervention of some completely external force. You made this mess, so you have to clean it up. If you have a problem with me, you should be moving to stop that thing before it gets any stronger.]
The demon scoffed and flew off to another location as if he had nothing more to say.
I knew he’d say that.
I let out a frustrated sigh.
“If this had at least happened in Korea, I could’ve used Besial to manipulate things somehow...”
[What are you talking about!? Manipulate what! I’ll get fired! I’ll die!!]
Borrowing the power of a manager was impossible.
And overpowering it by force was already past the point of possibility.
That thing had already obtained power greater than the Disaster of Countercurrent Heaven.
In that case, what I could do was...
“Kim Se-hyeon!”
“Mister Kim!”
Jun Bo-ra and Simila approached, their faces fraught with panic.
“What is that thing!? This is ridiculous! America has things like that!?”
“...I know what it is. Now that it’s grown that strong, it’s practically impossible for us to win.”
“What kind of nonsense is that! Then what are we supposed to do!”
Jun Bo-ra clutched her head.
I slowly closed and opened my eyes.
It wasn't entirely hopeless.
As far as I knew, there was just one way.
“There is a way.”
I have to die.