Chapter 127
Chapter 127
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 127
>Chapter Title: Beautiful Explosion
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
>“……Huh?”
Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know froze mid-charge, voicing his confusion at the bizarre sight.
Sure, the rumors said Kaiser had the Weapon Master trait, so throwing a sword instead of a dagger could be excused, but hurling a weapon away made no sense at all.
‘Okay, fine, but… why throw it there?’
If he’d flung it at him or the monsters, that’d be one thing.
Shuuu—
The dagger sliced through the empty air, landing not near the monsters but off to the side, cutting through nothing at all.
Grrr…?
Gr?
Even the lycanthropes bulged their eyes in bewilderment for a moment.
Yip.
They quickly snorted in disdain.
A blade had come flying out of nowhere, putting them on alert, only to sail harmlessly off to who-knows-where. Infuriating.
Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know felt the same.
‘Yeah, Kaiser’s human after all.’
God this, god that—all talk. In the end, he was just a person.
NewTube only showed perfect clips, but in real life, even he made mistakes like this.
This was his chance.
‘Kill Kaiser and impress the guild bros.’
He’d leave a deep impression here.
[RCD recording started.]
Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know gripped his longsword tight, starting the recording.
The full moon made the night especially bright, its light glinting off the blade.
Kaiser was just 6 meters away. With a skill, he could stab him in the back before he could blink.
And Kaiser hadn’t noticed a thing.
He didn’t even have a weapon anymore.
‘Here I go…!’
Convinced this was his kill shot, Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know charged.
Whoosh—
‘Whoosh?’
A strange sound rang out, followed by the unexpected.
The dagger, clearly headed for an innocent tree, suddenly curved in midair.
Shuuuaak—
It flew back toward Kaiser even faster.
That’s when it happened.
Ta-at!
Kaiser reached out and dashed sideways. The dagger twisted again, chasing him.
Like a game of tag, circling round and round.
Kheong?
Grrr…?
The lycanthropes gawked in confusion at the bizarre circus act, and somehow, Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know got caught in the middle.
No, his expression was even more stunned than theirs.
‘…How is it that fast?’
Kaiser was sprinting at impossible speeds, making him lose his target.
Was this the frustration of a hunter watching prey slip away?
He scratched his head, glancing warily at the lycanthropes, but part of him was impressed.
“Uh…”
He peeked at the bushes. Ppok-Chik-Kkeut was frozen mid-leap, a beat too late.
Their eyes met, and Ppok-Chik-Kkeut wore the same dumbfounded look.
‘Does that even make sense? What’s going on?’
‘…No idea.’
Exchanging that glance, they turned back to Kaiser.
In that brief moment—just a few seconds—Kaiser had already completed a full circle.
The realization hit.
Pang—
Something faint in the moonlight tightened with a snap.
‘…Thread?’
It was thread.
A thin strand encircled him and the lycanthropes.
A memory flashed: the fuse wire Kaiser had set earlier looked just like this…
‘No way…!’
An absurd idea flickered in his mind, but Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know couldn’t pursue it.
The faint thread darkened,
-----
And an explosion erupted, like a chain reaction.
A silent one.
Black blasts bloomed everywhere—front, back, sides—dyeing his vision pitch black.
That was their last memory.
[Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know has died.]
[Ppok-Chik-Kkeut has died.]
The screen went black after that blast.
A few tough lycanthropes survived, but it was their final struggle.
Slash—stab!
Kyaaak! Kyaang—!
Kaiser appeared out of nowhere, emotionlessly ending them.
“Crazy…”
Hearing the pitiful cries as their comrades died, Staff and Rock-Solid instinctively ducked low, nearly prone.
They exchanged looks.
‘…Think we’re safe?’
‘Uh….’
Gulp.
They swallowed dryly, saying nothing more, but their eyes spoke clearly.
‘…Let’s bail.’
‘…Smart plan.’
They were wise.
No way were they dying pointlessly to this fuse-wire-circus murder maniac, comrades or not.
That day, tales of the event spread through Sargis, adding one more rumor to Kaiser’s feats.
[Lycanthrope defeated.]
[Player ‘Gyu-Cheol-Hyang-Nim-Do-Ya-Know’ killed. No karma increase in lawless zone.]
[Player ‘Ppok-Chik-Kkeut’ killed. No karma increase in lawless zone.]
….
[Lycanthrope defeated.]
“Whoa, that was effective… Huh? Gyu-Cheol?”
Do-hyun finished off the last lycanthrope, marveling, then tilted his head.
He’d only targeted monsters, so why the PK notification?
Had he accidentally killed someone he missed? But he’d checked—no one within dozens of meters when he threw the dagger.
No carelessness on his part.
‘Ah.’
Only one explanation left.
Hyenas stalking him had hidden nearby.
Whether after his life, info, or recruitment.
Someone with an agenda had waited for a chance to backstab.
‘Lucky it’s a lawless zone.’
Otherwise, his karma would’ve taken a pointless hit.
Do-hyun smirked and shrugged it off.
Not his first rodeo, and lawless zones meant no big deal.
Disturb him? He’d kill freely.
If they claimed innocence, they should act accordingly in a lawless zone to avoid misunderstandings.
‘No item drops. Kinda disappointing… but oh well.’
PK deaths in lawless zones rarely dropped gear.
Few had luck bad enough to beat those odds.
‘Anyway….’
Do-hyun’s gaze shifted casually to Thousand Changes, now the Assassin’s Dagger.
Specifically, the fuse wire tied to its hilt.
‘Didn’t think it’d work this well.’
Setting the fuse wire, he’d recalled Thousand Changes’ abilities, and a brilliant idea flashed.
—Ego: Responds to owner’s call; unqualified cannot use special options.
A collab between Thousand Changes’ special option, Ego, and the fuse wire.
Simple principle.
‘To use fuse wire right, stretch it to max range and attach.’
That required pulling the thread—exerting physical force.
Why it had to be used as a trap for full effect.
‘Can’t pull 20 meters on the spot.’
Sure, against huge bosses, you could snag an ankle for 10 meters in a pinch, but not easy.
Miss once, and the fuse wire activation ended.
Cut off at 10 meters? Couldn’t extend further.
Why it was cursed as “shit-thread.”
Its trap skill conditions were a pain; failures made “shit-thread” slip out naturally.
‘Fine for PvP, but hunting? Traps are the only answer.’
That’s why Do-hyun always bothered setting it up manually.
But with Thousand Changes?
‘Why bother installing? Just throw it and play tag.’
Bet your inventories don’t have this.
Do-hyun grinned, channeling a famous boy’s possession vibe.
No doubt—if fuse wire weren’t trap-only and could instant-extend to max, it wouldn’t be “shit-thread.”
Might’ve been “god-thread” instead of shit-thread.
‘Tricky conditions mean huge power when met.’
Look at now.
Just reach out, run a lap, and most lycanthropes wiped.
Even Do-hyun couldn’t AoE that hard without fuse wire.
With Thousand Changes, he could reliably land fuse wire’s max damage, tricky conditions be damned.
‘Total game-changer.’
Game-changer of game-changers.
Diabetically sweet.
Mythic gear plus all-master collab.
Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!
Applause from behind.
Reaction Bot Charlie couldn’t hold back on the synergy.
—As expected of my lord. A true hero of both martial and strategy…!
—Whoa…
Uh…
Not just Charlie.
Jihad and the undead marveled too, but Jihad’s face was priceless.
Jaw slack, trembling in denial.
‘Ah… He was hyped, but this shocked him?’
With Charlie joining lately, it made sense.
Charlie was prime talent, minus the overreactions and trash talk.
Enough to threaten even Eliza’s position for him.
‘No helping it.’
Do-hyun pondered comfort words carefully, about to speak.
—So beautiful…
“Ahem. Jihad, thanks for herding them—made it easy… Huh? What’d you say?”
—Th-this is too beautiful… my lord.
—Liza?
The unexpected words had Do-hyun—and Eliza peeking from his pocket—stunned.
Jihad ignored their demanding stares.
—Ah… explosions are…
Eyes sparkling like beholding art—or nostalgic homeland. Unsettling.
He cautiously drew black mana.
That look, that vibe. Familiar.
‘Like when Sword Emperor saw Sword Saint’s swordplay up close…!’
The face of one chasing romance upon witnessing it.
Endgame concept king, Sword Emperor chasing sword’s peak—often seen.
Among quirky comrades, unmatched in this field, so Do-hyun knew.
Sensing danger, Do-hyun cut in.
“Hey, just so you know—you’re Zeke, right? Your path is Zeke.”
—Ah… r-right. I know.
Jihad snapped to, nodding, but Do-hyun saw.
The regretful tongue-click, fingers twitching like withdrawal.
Swishing air habitually for Corpse Explosion?
‘…This guy’s for real.’