Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 155
>Chapter Title: The Outlaw King's Decision
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Chapter 155
>155.
>-If I... become... a Legion Leader...... can I... take... my... soldiers... with me...?
That was the first thing Pain uttered.
“Jihad.”
-......Up to two is possible. But more than that is impossible.
Jihad, who knew exactly what he meant, answered immediately.
His level had risen, allowing him to create additional undead, but taking all of them was impossible.
-......I can't... leave... them... behind... and... live... alone... anymore....
Too many soldiers had sacrificed themselves so far.
He no longer wanted to prolong his life that way.
Back then, there had been a greater cause, but becoming that human's subordinate would make even that hard to protect.
-Our path... and yours... are different.
-We... can't... coexist... with humans....
He had to give up.
On top of that, wasn't this guy an apostle of the gods?
It was obvious what future his kin, marked by the Underworld God Hades, would face if they followed a divine apostle.
No matter how great the apostle was, they were ultimately a servant of the gods.
-......This time... at the moment of death...... I want... to be with them....
That was when he resolved himself.
Do-hyun suddenly interjected as if asking what that meant.
“There seems to be a misunderstanding. I'm not an apostle.”
-......Are you... lying...? I've seen... and heard... things....
“No, I am an apostle, but not of the gods. If anything, I'm their enemy, right?”
-......What do... you mean...?
Pain, who had seemed resigned, showed interest for the first time.
Do-hyun summarized it in his own way.
That he was a descendant of ancient humanity at odds with the gods, and the truth about the beings now revered as gods.
“Believe it or not, that's up to you. I can't prove it right now.”
-......
“But one thing is certain.”
If you die like this, your kind ends here.
Follow me, and who knows—maybe an opportunity will come someday.
Once he finished saying that, Pain couldn't respond right away.
He didn't know if the man's words were true.
But the god and its proxy, the Monarch, that he had faced were more than capable of something like this.
‘Maybe......’
Maybe he was letting go of a once-in-a-lifetime chance?
That thought made him hesitate.
In his place, the outlaws answered.
-Your Majesty...... please... follow him....
-We... are fine....
Their voices, kneeling and bowing their heads, were filled with resolve.
-We will... dwell... in the underworld....
-The underworld... has... that 'man's'... hideout....
-With our numbers... reduced...... survival... will be... easier....
-Your Majesty...... please....
Such voices weren't alone.
The soldiers' pleas from all directions shared the same sentiment.
Finally, the last soldier raised his head to meet Pain's gaze.
He was the longest-surviving outlaw besides Pain himself.
-We... are not... afraid... of death...... but....
-......
-We fear... holding back... Your Majesty's... steps....
With that, the soldier bowed deeply once more.
-Please...... do not... miss... this final... chance....
-Do not... miss it...!
-Do not... miss it...!
The other soldiers bowed even deeper and shouted.
It was quite a spectacle.
In the moonlit forest, ghost soldiers kneeling and crying out—even Jihad felt like sweeping his arm across it.
At that moment, the faint moonlight dimmed, and the darkness deepened.
[The energy of the full moon fades.]
[The outlaws depart.]
Time was up, and they were vanishing.
[Remaining time: 00:00:17]
Do-hyun was in the same boat.
“Decide quickly. What will you do?”
Even now, the outlaws were fading and rising into the sky.
They didn't forget to utter one last word amid it all.
-We... are fine....
-We will... wait... for the day... you return....
-We believe... in you....
Had that resolved him?
-You have served... your lacking... king... and suffered... much....
Pain caressed them once, then turned and bowed to Do-hyun.
-I will... follow....
“Okay, Jihad! Hurry!”
-Got it!
Having finally swayed Pain's heart, Do-hyun urgently prodded Jihad.
Three had already vanished.
Fortunately, it wasn't too late.
[Using Legion Leader Creation.]
[Conditions met: Creating the outlaw leader, ‘Pain,’ as a Legion Leader.]
[The vessel is too vast compared to Guardian ‘Jihad Black's’ stats.]
[Stats adjusted proportional to Guardian ‘Jihad Black's’ level. The Legion Leader will grow as ‘Jihad Black’ grows.]
Pain was successfully made a Legion Leader,
[Guardian ‘Jihad Black’ undead-ifies an outlaw.]
[Guardian ‘Jihad Black’ undead-ifies an outlaw.]
[Undead-ification successful.]
[Undead count at maximum.]
and two outlaws became undead.
That one......
The last departing outlaw muttered lowly at the sight of the transforming outlaws and Pain.
-Please...... take good... care... of him....
With those words, complete night fell.
In the forest where darkness overpowered the moonlight, the outlaws and Pain bowed toward Do-hyun.
[All access restriction time used.]
[Forced logout in 5 seconds. Please move to a safe location.]
[RCD recording ends.]
Do-hyun's vision soon turned black.
* * *
Pssshhh-
Do-hyun emerged from the opening capsule with a sigh of relief.
“Phew.”
It had been really nerve-wracking.
Five more seconds, and he couldn't have turned the outlaws into undead. Taking Pain away from them had been a stroke of genius.
‘A shame the stats got adjusted......’
Well, that was natural for balance.
He wanted to test just how much they were adjusted and what level Jihad's legion was now at with a Legion Leader.
‘I'll do it tomorrow.’
The important thing was that he had made history in Zek as the first to turn an outlaw into a Legion Leader.
At least in the current brackets, there probably wasn't a stronger undead legion than Jihad's?
Thud.
Do-hyun sat in his computer chair with a satisfied smile.
It was for the now-routine video editing.
‘I want to hire an editor, but then I'd have to worry about them again.’
Do-hyun walked a different path from others.
He was the only one clearing the main quest, and he had to hide things like Eyes of Truth and more.
In that situation, would info really not leak if he hired an editor?
He wanted to just hand it off comfortably despite the unease, but his gamer passion wouldn't allow it.
“Sigh. What can I do? I'll handle it myself...... At least there's not much to edit today.”
He had two videos to upload.
The outlaw challenge finale and the lord meeting.
Not much editing needed despite two.
Upload the challenge almost raw, and for the lord, just cut suspicious main quest dialogues.
[Uploading video.]
[Outlaw Challenge uploaded.]
[Uploading video.]
[Sargis Lord uploaded.]
“Done!”
Do-hyun finished in under an hour and headed to the living room.
To soothe his growling stomach.
There, he saw Hyun-ah leaning back on the sofa, watching TV.
“Why lean back when you have a sofa?”
Do-hyun sat at the table without properly looking, saying so.
As he scooped miso stew over rice, Hyun-ah replied half-heartedly.
“This is comfy.”
“Then why buy a sofa if you won't use the backrest? Doesn't make sense.”
“Why are you picking on me again? Just eat.”
As always, they bickered right away upon meeting.
After the meaningless exchange, Do-hyun glanced at the TV and let out an “Huh?”
His eyes widened fully.
‘......That's me?’
And indeed, Do-hyun—or rather, Kaiser—was on TV.
Clips and photos of Kaiser in silver armor alternated, with MCs chattering.
-He's the hot topic these days. Who doesn't know Kaiser now?
-A legend of Delrock, and since returning, he's been writing myths nonstop!
-This time, he succeeded in the outlaw challenge first-ever, reclaiming 1st for three straight wins...
‘It spread to TV already.’
He hadn't watched TV lately, but it seemed related talk had been ongoing.
No wonder—Do-hyun had been rampaging unusually.
His every move was unconventional, perfect broadcast fodder for stations.
Back in Delrock, he never got this TV attention no matter what......
Seeing his in-game character on TV felt oddly surreal.
Bzzz-
[Kim Doo-hyung: Hey, Kaiser's on God O live broadcast.]
His friends reacted too.
[Kwak Jae-yeol: Heard he graduated Sargis 1st too? Guy's class is insane.]
[Yoo Jong-hyun: So next is Fratel? Wow...... How long since he started, and he's already overlapping with us? Is he even human?]
[Kim Hyun-soo: Nah, not human, a god. Kaiser, he is a god! Kaiser, he is a god!]
[Kim Doo-hyung: Wanna see real-life Kaiser. Bet his presence is no joke.]
[Yoo Jong-hyun: But what about Kang Do-hyun? Didn't he play Delrock long too? No reaction to Kaiser talk. 1 means he's seen it, though.]
[Kim Doo-hyung: Leave him, stomachache probably. That game addict must be in Raven at best, no way he started God O.]
[Kwak Jae-yeol: lololol gotta enlist right at 20~]
The quiet group chat livened up.
‘Come to think of it, these guys are in Fratel too.’
Thinking he might meet his discharge-unmet friends in-game felt strange.
Especially since they didn't know he was Kaiser.
Seeing them praise him without suspecting made him feel oddly dirty.
‘I didn't hide it on purpose......’
1st in a dead game wasn't brag-worthy.
He just hadn't mentioned it, but now he wondered if he should reveal it.
“Oppa, know Kaiser?”
“......Huh?”
Worse, now Hyun-ah was interested.
“You played Delrock a ton, right? Was Kaiser famous there too?”
“......Well, 1st place, so obviously famous.”
“Wow, crazy. I'm in Fratel too. Gonna see Kaiser in person. Feels like meeting a celeb.”
Do-hyun's spoon stopped.
He creakily turned his head to glance at Hyun-ah.
“......You too? Why?”
“Why? I'm level 71. Fratel grad level is 71, so I'm sticking around.”
“......Not graduating?”
“Grad quest's a hassle. Friends still in Fratel, so waiting to grad together.”
“Y-yeah. I see......”
“Gotta say hi if I meet Kaiser IRL!”
“No. That's a bad idea.”
Do-hyun tried to stop her urgently, but her excited ears didn't hear.
Her face full of anticipation, she suddenly remembered something and pulled out her phone, fiddling.
“Whoa! New video's up.”
“......What video?”
A chill hit him as he asked, and she turned her screen his way.
Too small to see clearly, but no need.
“KaiserTV new upload! Wow...... reactions exploding. Fights so well. Gotta be handsome, right? Feels like manly handsome. Tall too.”
“Crazy......”
Unable to hold back the goosebumps, Do-hyun set down his spoon.
Feeling queasy inside, he vowed.
Never let his identity slip.