Chapter 181
Chapter 181
Chapter 181: The True Culprit (3)
Translation: godtl
Sssssssss—
A crescent-shaped manifestation of the Void, neither liquid nor gas.
Without the slightest hesitation,
it plunged straight into Si-mun's chest as he spread his arms wide.
At this,
'Tch. Did he lose his mind before it even began?'
Daniel clicked his tongue with a somewhat disappointed expression.
'Those types are especially fun to break.'
The more arrogant and haughty they were,
the greater the pleasure in shattering them.
The Void caused mental disturbances upon mere contact,
and exposure to high concentrations or large quantities would grotesquely twist the affected area.
The sheer joy of engraving that process into someone firsthand—
it was one of Daniel's few hobbies, aside from reveling in chaos.
'But if he's already gone mad before it even started...'
He wouldn't be able to properly enjoy that hobby now.
Daniel let out a regretful sigh.
In that case,
'I'll just mount Kim Si-mun's body as a display piece and head to Do-hu or Joji.'
He needed to make an example of what happened to those who dared raise their heads against Desperado.
And since the location was a sports stadium,
it was perfect for a public display.
Or so,
Daniel thought.
"W-what?!"
Si-mun, who had been struck by the Void,
"You! Why are you completely unharmed?!"
—was smiling leisurely, utterly unscathed, until he spoke.
"Well? Why do you think?"
Si-mun's infuriatingly relaxed grin.
At that,
"You bastard!"
Daniel roared, swinging his dagger again.
Dozens of razor-sharp Voids, honed to lethal precision, surged toward Si-mun—but that was all.
Despite their sharp forms and fearsome reputation,
Sssssss—
Like oil separating from water,
the Voids couldn't even touch Si-mun, scattering harmlessly around him.
The Voids floated around Si-mun like freed egg yolks, bobbing weightlessly.
At this unbelievable sight,
"How... how is this possible...?"
Daniel couldn't help but be stunned.
But only for a moment.
"I don't know how you're resisting the Void, but—"
His vacant, dazed eyes instantly filled with murderous intent.
"—if I just slice your throat, that's the end of it!"
Crack!
Daniel kicked off the ground.
His charge, accompanied by a sharp sonic boom, truly showcased the speed of a Ranker-class assassin.
Despite the considerable distance,
Swoosh—!
His dagger grazed Si-mun's carotid artery by a hair's breadth.
Had the blade been slightly longer,
or the violet Sword Qi a fraction stronger,
Si-mun's neck would have erupted in a fountain of blood.
But.
There wasn't a trace of disappointment on Daniel's face.
Instead,
"You...!"
It darkened.
The reason was simple.
"How did you dodge that?"
True to his Ranker assassin status,
he realized Si-mun hadn't dodged by luck—
but had precisely calculated and evaded his attack trajectory.
Si-mun shrugged.
"Guess I got lucky."
"Cut the bullshit!"
Daniel's voice rose instantly at Si-mun's audacity.
"Do I look like an idiot to you?! You definitely—!"
His outburst cut off abruptly.
'No, I don't need to play along with this bastard's rhythm.'
There was no need to exchange words with Si-mun.
'I can just check again.'
He could attack again and find out for himself.
How a mere Platinum
had managed to evade an attack from a Ranker like him.
Swish!
Daniel lunged again.
This time, as if resolved,
Whooosh—!
His dagger was wreathed in Sword Qi even sharper than before.
Then,
'Only two feints.'
Hidden weapons—where he'd pulled them from, no one could tell—left his hand.
Shiiing!
The projectiles shot straight forward.
Imbued with vivid violet Sword Qi,
they flew toward Si-mun's neck and abdomen with a deliberate delay between them.
And then.
Swish.
The bare minimum of movement.
As if dodging the previous strike.
Si-mun twisted his neck and waist with just a hair's breadth to spare.
'As expected. He's reading all my attacks.'
Certainty flickered in Daniel's eyes at the sight, but that was all.
'No idea how he's doing it, but with his upper body twisted like that, there's no way he can dodge this!'
Si-mun's waist and neck were bent in opposite directions.
His upper body was tilted diagonally,
like someone bracing on a crutch.
Schlick.
A sword strike cutting across his entire torso—there was absolutely no way to evade it.
Yes.
That should have been the case.
Kreeeek!
Crack.
A sharp ringing sound.
Simultaneously, the sound of a body contorting reached his ears.
And then.
Swish.
With a movement that completely defied the laws of physics,
Si-mun dodged Daniel's slash yet again.
The sinister violet Sword Qi clawed pathetically through empty air.
Instead of panic.
'Damn it!'
A look of utter dismay settled in Daniel's eyes as he prepared to launch another counterattack.
"Even if I'm Platinum......"
His gaze locked onto the dark energy coalescing in Si-mun's now-steady hand.
"You can't just swing recklessly like that."
And so.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Strike: Tyrant Emperor Break.
Si-mun's fist, embodying the Path of Hegemony, slammed squarely into Daniel's chest.
The Olympic Main Stadium at Jamsil Sports Complex.
The massive stadium.
Rumble.
Trembled faintly.
The reason was simple.
The Tyrant Emperor Break that had smashed down from the stadium roof.
Daniel, struck by it, had been sent crashing all the way down to the center of the stadium.
One curious thing, however.
Despite falling from such a height after taking the Tyrant Emperor Break.
"Guh...!"
Daniel himself was completely unharmed.
Si-mun, looking down from the stadium roof, glanced at the fist that had struck Daniel and—
'As expected of a Ranker.'
He recalled the earlier situation.
A sword strike aimed across his entire upper body.
Naturally, Daniel's movements had to be wide to execute it.
And Si-mun, now a Platinum escapee, had more than enough skill to exploit that opening.
So he had immediately unleashed the Tyrant Emperor Break.
'To cover the impact point with Void in that split second... As expected of a Ranker, his trait utilization is impressive.'
Just before the Tyrant Emperor Break could bury itself in Daniel's chest,
Daniel had used his trait, Void Shaping, to block it.
Though "block" wasn't quite the right word.
'Being a Void-related trait, it couldn't even manifest half its effectiveness.'
Whether it was the title 'One Who Receives the Gaze from Beyond' or anything related to the Black Goat,
Si-mun held an overwhelming advantage when it came to the Void.
Enough to crush half of Daniel's defensive Void barrier.
With a smirk, Si-mun leaped down into the stadium.
Then.
Thud.
His feet sank deeply into the stadium floor, but that was all.
Unfazed, Si-mun casually pulled his feet free from the ground.
And then.
"Must be nice being a core member of Desperado—getting to wear all the good stuff, huh?"
His voice was relaxed, his steps matching that ease as he approached.
"If that armor was A-grade or lower, your chest would've been blown wide open."
At that.
"You...!"
Thud.
Daniel struggled to his feet, shaking off dirt and debris.
"A mere Platinum! How dare you trick me?!"
"Trick you? You overextended and got countered—that's entirely on you."
Si-mun's infuriating grin made the veins in Daniel's neck bulge.
But only up to that point.
"Hah... Fine. I'll admit it."
With a sigh, Daniel spat out a mouthful of blood and gave a slight nod.
"I underestimated you. You're better than I expected."
He dusted off the dirt clinging to his body.
"So I'll take you seriously now."
His dagger shifted in his grip.
Si-mun let out a soft chuckle.
"Seriously? You saw it yourself earlier. Your trait doesn't work on me."
"Ha! No wonder you're just a rookie. Did you really think I became a Ranker with just one trait?"
Daniel similarly sneered, his lips curling in contempt.
"Looks like getting a little taste of being a Ranker has gone to your head..."
He shot Si-mun a murderous glare before adding,
"Let's see how long you can keep up that arrogance."
Swish.
In the blink of an eye, his form vanished as if it had all been an illusion.
Whoosh.
A chilly evening wind swirled through the arena.
Si-mun's gaze swept across the empty battlefield as he thought,
'Ranker-level Assassin Class is truly on another level.'
He couldn't help but marvel at the complete absence of any detectable presence.
'This is fundamentally different from the stealth techniques of Jong-jun or Jin-uk.'
Kim Jong-jun and Park Jin-uk were both Diamond-ranked Assassin Class players.
And Jin-uk, in particular, was among the absolute elite of assassins.
Yet Daniel's stealth as a Ranker existed in an entirely different dimension.
'Well, in my past life, Daniel's concealment was ranked first among the three greatest assassins.'
Even Andrew Burns, an American High-ranker, had only managed to track Daniel by detecting his Void Trails.
Had Andrew failed to notice those traces,
he never would have caught Daniel, who had been assassinating high-profile American figures.
And now...
'No wonder he's called the world's greatest infiltrator.'
Si-mun finally understood why even Andrew with his SS-rank Analysis trait
had failed to detect Daniel's stealth in their past life.
'Who would've thought he'd be half-stepping into the Void itself?'
The arena was utterly silent except for Si-mun,
but to his eyes—favored by the Void—the truth was crystal clear.
There Daniel was, cautiously circling him,
his form half-submerged in the Void's characteristic deep violet hue.
One question lingered, though:
'How is this possible? An SS-rank Void Shaping trait shouldn't allow access to that dimension.'
Void Shaping, an SS-rank trait,
granted control over the Void and the ability to mold it into desired forms—but nothing more.
It certainly shouldn't enable someone to partially step into another dimension like this.
Much less utilize it for stealth?
If it could, the trait would have an entirely different name—
something like 'Vagabond of the Void.'
Then—
'I see.'
The faint crease of confusion in Si-mun's brow smoothed away.
'Could this be connected to that entity of Chaos that Black Goat mentioned?'
The Constellation Black Goat.
She rarely batted an eye at anything, yet had shown clear emotion when speaking of that being.
Moreover, the fact that she'd issued this mission outside the regular Arena system...
'It must be true.'
Daniel's stealth undoubtedly involved that entity known as Chaos.
Furthermore,
'This Chaos entity must be a Constellation from the Void dimension.'
Given how Daniel could freely use that dimension for stealth
without suffering any penalties,
Chaos had to be a Void-aligned Constellation.
'Desperado and a Void Constellation working together...'
This warranted further investigation.
Having organized his thoughts, Si-mun gathered Demonic Energy at his fingertips.
Then—
Piiing!
Countless streaks of blackish light erupted forth.
Annihilation Cannons crisscrossed the vast arena, their beams fanning out in all directions.
At first glance,
it appeared to be the standard countermeasure against a hidden assassin—
blanketing the area with wide-range attacks.
But the reality was slightly different.
"Hmm."
Si-mun's eyes narrowed slightly.
While his Annihilation Cannons seemed aimed at flushing out the concealed Daniel,
this was merely a smokescreen.
A ploy to make Daniel believe his hiding spot remained undiscovered.
Yet amidst this,
'I thought attacks wouldn't land at all if he's hiding between dimensions...'
Two or three Annihilation Cannon beams had shot toward Daniel's location,
which he'd swiftly dodged.
This meant—
'So even while phased between dimensions, he's not completely immune to attacks.'
His stealth might straddle dimensions, but physical attacks could still reach him.
'This makes things easier.'
Si-mun suppressed the twitching corners of his eyes and mouth as much as possible.
Snap.
He flicked his fingers.
Krrrrumble.
A rough thunderclap echoed across the now-darkened sky.
The lightning that struck down was immediately drawn into Si-mun's grasp.
Vwoom.
The surging Lightning Qi coalesced into a swirling mass of black Demonic Energy.
And then—
Shwip.
The movements of Daniel, who had been prowling around, grew even faster.
'He must've seen my broadcast, so he'll know this is an explosive technique.'
During the last Siege Warfare.
The Heavenly Demon Orb imbued with Astrapē, which had utterly annihilated one side of the fortress wall.
If he detonated that in the center of this arena—
No matter how high-ranking an Assassin Class he was, there'd be no dodging it.
Therefore.
'He'll come at me before I can set it off.'
As expected.
Swish.
From behind Si-mun—
Meticulously, from the blind spot of his left eye—his right flank—Daniel revealed himself.
But Si-mun, who had seen through Daniel's stealth from the beginning—
Shing!
Through the flickering Future Sight, he perfectly read the trajectory of the dagger thrust.
Crucially.
The Lightning Qi and Demonic Energy gathered in Si-mun's grasp were not the Heavenly Demon Orb.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Wave Annihilation Cannon.
Lightning Rod!
A beam of intense thunder tore through the air.
The ray carrying Astrapē streaked across space in an instant—
"Ghk—!"
—and pierced through Daniel, who had been launching a surprise attack.
But perhaps it was because he was a top-tier assassin?
At that critical moment, Daniel twisted his body on instinct.
"Argh—!"
With a short scream, he tumbled to the ground.
Had the Annihilation Cannon originally been aimed at his heart?
Daniel's left shoulder, now collapsed, looked as if it had been cleanly gouged out.
Thud.
His severed left arm, its connection point gone, struck the floor.
But Daniel didn't even dare think of retrieving it.
The reason was simple.
The Lightning Qi from Astrapē, which had seeped into his destroyed left shoulder—
Crackle.
"Gaaaah—!"
—was relentlessly ravaging his wound.
"Tsk. 500 points—no, 400 points went into that, and you still won't die cleanly."
Si-mun clicked his tongue in disappointment.
In response—
"You monstrous bastard—!"
Instead of charging at him with bloodshot eyes, Daniel—
Sssss—
—clenched his remaining right hand, Void energy swirling within it, and violently seized the air.
The same technique he had used to remove Kim Si-hyeok and Park Jin-uk earlier.
Void Banishment.
Then—
Shhh—
With the motion of his arm, Si-mun's figure vanished without a trace.
A brief silence fell over the vast arena.
"F*cking hell—!"
Daniel shattered the silence with a furious curse.
He immediately pulled out various potions from his inventory and frantically poured them over his wounds.
But—
Crackle!
"Argh—!"
The encroaching Lightning Qi refused to dissipate easily.
It stubbornly interfered with the effects of the Recovery Potions.
Amid the excruciating pain—
"Kim Si-mun, you son of a b*tch! I'll kill you for sure... I'll tear you to shreds!!"
Daniel, grinding his teeth, let out a roar filled with hatred.
Wee-ong wee-ong.
Through the gaping hole in the arena's ceiling—
The faint sound of sirens could be heard.
Likely, the Awakened Special Forces had been dispatched due to the aftermath of the battle.
"Ghk—!"
Unable to properly tend to his wounds because of the Lightning Qi,
Daniel clutched his flickering left torso—
And staggered to his feet.
"Just you wait, Kim Si-mun..."
Gritting his teeth against the relentless, nerve-scraping pain—
"I'll tear apart not just your family, but every bastard who's ever so much as spoken to you!"
His words dripped with murderous intent.
But then—
"Oh?"
A voice that should never have reached his ears—
"I was slightly considering capturing you alive. But I guess there's no need now."
—spoke.
And that night.
—Breaking News. At approximately 7:40 PM today, at the Jamsil Olympic Stadium...
—Reports confirm the death of a core member of the notorious villain organization, Desperado.
Not just the 8 PM and 9 PM news.
Across global news portals—
[Shocking! Desperado's Core Member Daniel, Dead?!]
[Association Confirms: Void Strider Daniel's Death!]
[One of the Top 3 Assassins, Daniel, Falls in Korea? The Reason?]
Articles poured in about the death of the infamous villain who had terrorized the world.