A Bet in a Place of Lies
Shhhhk.
Whoosh.
The wind rose, scattering the monsters that had been reduced to ash.
"Still so many of them."
A low hum built in the air.
Crack.
As Do-ha drew up his energy, fine frost began to form across his body.
Ice Soul Divine Art, Third Form: Thorn Flower Full Bloom.
Boom!
Crackle-crackle-crackle-crackle!
The moment Thorn Flower Full Bloom unfurled, everything within a one-kilometer radius of Do-ha froze solid.
"Haaah."
Cold breath drifted from Do-ha's lips as he walked forward at an unhurried pace.
"Is that guy really just Hwa-gyeong…? Not Profound Realm?"
Canteas, who had been watching in silence, let out a hollow laugh.
Look at this place. Everything was frozen solid, as if they had stepped onto a ten-thousand-year snow mountain. The wyverns, of course—and even the cyclops that had been flinging Cheon Seol-gyeong around—were locked in ice.
"Ah, right! Where's Cheon Seol-gyeong?"
"Looking for me already?"
Cheon Seol-gyeong stepped out from among the monster corpses. Until Baek Do-ha appeared, he had been piling the bodies into heaps.
"Hmph. Now you're finally worth watching."
Cheon Seol-gyeong snorted as he watched Do-ha clear the remaining monsters.
Back when Do-ha was only Super-Peak, his attacks had been flashy but lacked real weight. Now even the lightest strike carried the force of a mountain.
He clenched his fist.
"Train."
"What the hell is this all of a sudden, you bastard?"
When Cheon Seol-gyeong bit his lip slightly and told him out of nowhere to train, Canteas's face twisted.
As if it weren't enough that Do-ha kept telling him to train—now even his own summoned Death Knight was saying the same thing.
"Don't tell me… you're jealous?"
After thinking it over, Canteas burst out laughing. Was Cheon Seol-gyeong jealous of Do-ha for reaching Hwa-gyeong?
"It's not jealousy. I simply find my own limits frustrating."
Because his summoner, Canteas, was weak, there was a ceiling on the power he himself could unleash. If he could use his full strength, he wouldn't be dealing with the monsters swarming here—he could erase an entire country.
"Even if you got stronger, you'd still be weaker than Do-ha."
"…"
Grind.
Canteas's provocation made Cheon Seol-gyeong grind his teeth. It infuriated him, but it was true.
There were a few people he had acknowledged so far. But the only one he had ever admitted was stronger than himself was a single man: Baek Do-ha.
A deep thrum rose.
Baek-bo Myeol-hwang Gong, Seventh Step: Heaven-Suppressing Demon Emperor Art.
Kuuuuuuuuu!
Crush.
Under Do-ha's Heaven-Suppressing Demon Emperor Art, every remaining monster was pulverized like insects.
"We spent hours busting our asses, and that bastard Do-ha finishes it in an instant."
Canteas grumbled as he picked his way between the corpses. Watching Do-ha made the world feel truly unfair.
"Canteas."
"Yeah?"
"Do you know where the Military Demarcation Line is?"
"Yeah. There are signs. I know it."
"I sealed a cultist's pressure points and left him there."
"Ah—so go fetch him?"
"I was going to extract information, but I don't need it anymore. Just kill him."
"Got it. But where are you going?"
Do-ha's gaze was fixed somewhere in the distance. Canteas turned his head the same way, but he couldn't tell what Do-ha was looking for.
"There's a cultist who sent monsters from the Chinese side into North Korea. And there's an interesting one mixed in with them."
"Alright. Go ahead."
Crackling sparks.
Whoosh!
The moment Canteas finished speaking, sparks leapt from Do-ha's body and he vanished in an instant.
"We've lost contact with everyone."
"Damn it. The plan is falling apart."
Assistant Bishop Daleman scratched furiously at his head.
They had triggered waves simultaneously across the entire world, yet the casualties were far lower than expected. Each country had responded faster than anticipated.
That's why we targeted Korea…
Korea had left the North Korean region largely neglected, which meant they could gather far more monsters there before sending them south. And yet Korea was far too quiet. Even contact with the other assistant bishops and cult members had been completely severed.
If I'd known it would turn out like this, I should have sent the monsters into China instead…
China had a huge population and, accordingly, many Awakened. They had expected lighter damage there and so redirected everything toward Korea. Now he almost wished they had simply hit China after all.
"For now, everyone withdraw—"
A chill.
Killing intent from above froze Daleman in place.
"Assistant Bishop? What's wrong?"
"…"
He swallowed hard and slowly lifted his gaze.
Who could be up there, radiating such a cold presence?
"Where do you bugs think you're going?"
Their eyes met. Do-ha smiled thinly in greeting.
He drifted down.
Thud.
"Who the hell are you?!"
As Do-ha descended at a leisurely pace, the cultists behind Daleman drew their weapons and shouted. The fact that he had been hovering over their heads meant he already knew they were the Demon God Cult.
"Enough."
Daleman raised an arm and stopped them.
"Who are you?"
"Baek Do-ha."
"Baek Do-ha?"
"I operate under the name A."
"…Cheon-oe-cheon."
Only then did Daleman realize who stood before him. He let out a long breath. Of all people to run into—Cheon-oe-cheon.
"But I'm not interested in you lot."
"…What?"
Daleman's brow furrowed at Do-ha's words. Not interested in them? Coming all the way here meant he had already grasped the full scope of the wave incident.
Do-ha's gaze shifted.
"You. Over there."
"M-me…? Me? Ah—no, you mean me!"
One of the cultists among the others stammered, then collected himself and tried to look confident.
"Long time no see."
"?"
Daleman turned to look at the cultist. Long time no see? Did the two of them know each other?
"I think you must have the wrong person—"
"Hiding among humans again. What kind of nonsense are you up to this time?"
"…"
The cultists around them all fell silent as they watched Do-ha's smiling face. In this situation, one of the two was lying. And when you weighed the odds, the cultist was far more likely to be the liar.
"Speak honestly. Don't tell me… you were a spy?"
"No, Assistant Bishop! This is unjust! I don't know that man!"
"Just so you know—he's an angel. And a lying, bullshit-artist of an angel at that."
"An… angel?"
Daleman's face twisted. He had thought spy at worst—but an angel? One of those angels from Heaven, the Demon God's greatest enemies?
Shing!
"Speak honestly. Is what Cheon-oe-cheon says true?"
In the end Daleman drew his sword and threatened the cultist. The odds that Cheon-oe-cheon would lie in this situation were low. If it had been an attempt at sowing discord, he would have used a more plausible lie.
"If you don't talk, I'll start with your tongue—"
"Haa… This is all ruined because of Baek Do-ha."
The cultist who had looked ready to cry a moment ago suddenly scratched his head and sighed. He had planned to play with them a little longer and extract more information, but the Absolute Being had ruined everything.
"Why do you keep getting in my way every time you see me?"
A casual flick of the wrist.
Crunch-crunch-crunch!
Thud.
The cultist's expression turned arrogant. He twisted his hand through empty air, and the heads of every gathered cultist snapped around at once.
"Reden."
"Ah, this is annoying."
Sizzle.
The cultist—no, the Fifth Sphere Angel, Power Angel Reden—was returning to his true form.
"Why were you hiding your appearance and posing as a cultist?"
"To gather information, of course."
Reden shrugged. As if he would waste time on something this bothersome just to kill boredom. He had only been hiding because he needed the cult's information.
"By the way, Absolute Being. You're alive? There were rumors you died fighting the Demon God."
"As you can see, perfectly fine."
"Well, whether you're alive or not is none of my business. And more than that… calling me a lying angel? Unbelievable. I have never told a lie in my life. I am an angel, after all. Getting called a bullshit artist is starting to piss me off."
To smear him like that—someone who had nothing to do with lies—and in front of humans, no less. Once wrong information spread, it eventually became fact.
"So why did you come looking for me? Interfering with my work and all."
"I want to make a bet."
"…What?"
At the word "bet," Reden's eyebrows shot up. For a moment he thought he had misheard. Come to do what? A bet? With him?
"Are you serious?"
"I am."
"Pfft… Puhahahaha!"
Reden's laughter rang high into the sky. Baek Do-ha must have finally lost his mind after fighting the Demon God once.
"Ah… I haven't laughed that hard in a long time."
Reden wiped the tears that had spilled out.
"But I have no reason to bet with you."
"You say that, but your mouth is smiling."
"Heh. Sharp eyes, as always. Fine. If you win the bet, what do you want?"
"Everything you know about the Demon God Cult."
"Hmm… And what will you give me?"
"I'll give you one piece of information in return."
"Hey, come on… the trade-off doesn't make sense."
Reden's face soured at Do-ha's words. He demanded all of Reden's information on the Demon God Cult, yet offered only a single piece of his own? What kind of deal was that?
"The Blood of Sin."
Reden froze the instant the words left Do-ha's mouth.
"I'll tell you where it is."
"…Are you serious?"
"Yeah."
"…"
Reden smacked his lips.
The Blood of Sin. Long ago, blood that had flowed from the heart of the fallen Lucifer. The moment you absorbed it, a choice opened before you: become a higher angel, become a demon—or belong to neither Heaven nor the Demon Realm and walk free.
"Keheheh. Fine."
Clap!
Shhhhk-shhhhk!
Reden clapped his hands. The surroundings darkened, and a table and chairs formed between them. This was Reden's game space. The moment you sat in those chairs, the bet began.
Scrape.
Thud.
"Sit. Time to start the game."
Scrape.
At Reden's words, Do-ha sat as well.
"I never expected you to challenge me to a bet again."
"That so?"
"Of course. You already lost to me once."
Back when they were in the world of Belhart, the Absolute Being Baek Do-ha had lost a bet against him. And yet, as if he had forgotten that defeat, he had come to wager again.
Reden lightly bit his finger and let blood drip onto the table.
Do-ha likewise cut his own finger and let the blood flow.
Flash!
Shhhhk!
The moment the flowing blood was fully absorbed, the chairs began binding their legs.
"You've done this once before, so you remember, right? Before the bet starts, each of us sets a rule we want. If the other party agrees, it becomes a registered rule."
"I know."
"Then I'll go first. The winner of the bet obtains information from the loser. If someone loses the bet and still refuses to hand over the promised reward, they die on the spot."
"I agree."
"Your turn."
"For the duration of the bet, in every place and every situation, falsehood cannot be expressed. Breaking the rule means defeat. If someone refuses to accept defeat and tries to restart the bet, they die on the spot."
"This is ridiculous. Why are you so obsessed with falsehood? Did someone put it in your head that I lied to you? Last time you lost fair and square!"
Reden snapped in irritation. He might needle people, but he had never once told a lie in his life. So why did everyone keep painting him as a bullshit artist?
"So… do you agree?"
"Fine. I agree."
A smile curved Do-ha's mouth the moment Reden finished speaking.
"What? Why are you smiling?"
As Do-ha smiled, a chill ran down Reden's spine. What was this? Why the sudden smile…
In that instant—
Rumble-rumble-rumble!
Crash.
Space fractured, and only Do-ha's restraints began to come undone.
"What is this…"
Only Do-ha's bindings releasing meant that Reden had lost.
"Wh… what?! What did you do?! The bet hasn't even started and I already lost?!"
"You broke the rule, so you lost."
"What rule did I break?! I've never told a lie!"
"I never used the word 'lie.'"
"…What?"
"I said 'falsehood,' not 'lie.' I told you—any place, any situation."
"So… so what does that matter?! I never expressed any false—"
Mid-shout, Reden's expression began to harden as something dawned on him.
"This game space. You won it in a bet from the Marquis demon Shax, didn't you?"
"…"
"Did you think this game space was magic or some kind of authority? The game space itself is a false place that distorts reality."
Do-ha shrugged.
When he had lost to Reden in the past, he hadn't known whose game space this was. Now he knew its nature all too well, and he had been able to exploit the opening with precision.
Shax's epithet was the Lying Thief.
"The moment you agreed to my rule inside this place of falsehood, you lost."
From the first moment they met, the reason he had condemned Reden as a bullshit artist—
was exactly this.