Chapter 46
Chapter 46
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: Wretched and Ugly
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The ability to summon an infinite number of enemies was quite annoying. He could summon them without any complex procedures, and since it didn't seem to cost him any stamina, he showed no signs of fatigue.
Even when the number of enemies dwindled, they would just multiply in even greater numbers.
Throughout the battle, Red's stamina was draining, little by little, very slowly.
Adam was right. Though she had the upper hand for now, the longer the battle dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would become for her.
Fighting a relentless horde of monsters would wear down not only an ordinary person but even seasoned Fixers, both physically and mentally.
It was a situation where it wouldn't be strange to sink into despair and lose one's mind.
Yet, Red's eyes knew no surrender.
Her red eyes burned even brighter with hope. A faint smile of victory touched her lips.
‘Good thing my opponent is an arrogant fool.’
Nothing is perfect.
No matter how absolute a power may seem, it is bound to have a weakness, and Adam's ability was no exception.
Adam himself seemed unaware of this fatal flaw.
His confidence in victory and his arrogance had clouded his judgment and vision.
It was a common mistake made by fools drunk on their own superiority, eager to show off their power.
If Adam truly wanted to defeat her, he should never have shown himself here.
The moment he appeared, his defeat was sealed.
Just as Red was considering going all out to end this meaningless battle, Adam suddenly spoke.
He had committed a taboo, something he should never have said in front of her.
"Ah, right. I heard you sponsor an orphanage. After I take you down, I'll take care of that orphana—"
The price for breaking a taboo is steep.
Red's mind became astonishingly clear, and a cold, seething rage engulfed the entire plaza.
The moment Red got serious, the monsters that filled the space instantly disintegrated into particles of light.
The owner of those menacing red eyes approached.
Adam, slowly getting up from the ground, swallowed hard.
Someone was silently approaching through the golden mist.
Belatedly recognizing it was Red, Adam felt an unexplainable chill run down his spine, yet a cruel smile still hung on his lips.
"No matter how menacing you look, nothing will change. My army is infinite! Feel the terror of infinity!"
The golden mist cleared, revealing new monsters.
Not all SS-rank monsters were created equal.
Even among SS-ranks, there was a disparity in power.
"Trample them! Crush them! Violate them!"
A five-story-tall diamond giant threw a punch, and in that same instant, a massive hole was blown through its diamond torso as it vanished.
One step.
A large, ferocious knight with three heads and eight swords displayed its elegant swordsmanship, only for its swords and all its arms to shatter and disappear in an instant.
One step.
Thick, grotesque tentacles shot up from the ground to ensnare Red, but with a single stomp, the earth screamed as all the tentacles were reduced to dust.
One step.
Monsters of exceptional strength, even for SS-rank, charged at her relentlessly.
Not a single monster could halt Red's advance before exploding into nothing.
The sight of her approaching with such light steps, as if on a leisurely stroll, was utterly terrifying.
"Haha..."
A dry laugh escaped Adam's lips unconsciously.
Her strength was on a completely different level from anyone he had fought before.
Her footsteps brought ruin, and her fists brought the apocalypse.
"Damn it, why? Why aren't you getting tired?"
Red showed no signs of fatigue. Her momentum hadn't diminished in the slightest.
After continuous battles, she should have been exhausted, her stamina depleted.
Instead, she had become even more ferocious.
Adam broke into a cold sweat. Whether from a chill or something else, his fingertips and toes trembled involuntarily.
The composed smile he had maintained throughout the fight had frozen on his face.
One step.
At the sound of her footsteps, Adam was startled and instinctively took a step back.
His own action made his eyebrows twitch, and his expression slowly contorted.
In Adam's ears, he could hear the faint sound of his pride cracking.
His handsome face was filled with rage, and he stepped forward to reclaim the ground he had just lost.
"Getting full of yourself... You think this is the end? I told you. I have a trump card to take you down!"
Adam was well aware of Red's reputation.
The reason he hadn't challenged Red until now, despite his infinite army, was a nagging sense of uncertainty.
No matter how large the numbers, they were powerless against overwhelming strength.
The monsters Adam summoned had fixed ranks.
From the lowest F-rank to the highest SSS-rank. Naturally, the higher the rank, the more abysmal the odds of summoning one.
Even with numerous SS-rank monsters, Adam couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing.
It felt like he was just 2% short.
He had tried to fill that gap through repeated summons.
And as a result!
Adam had obtained it.
A true monster of the highest SSS-rank.
Four of them, no less!
Adam grinned, his eyes curving into crescents.
"Now, I'll show you my true power."
*Snap.*
With the snap of his fingers, the atmosphere changed drastically.
Their mere appearance exerted an immense pressure, filling the air with something foul.
These beings were fear incarnate, manifestations of the unknown.
They were indescribably hideous, their appearance evoking a feeling beyond mere discomfort and disgust.
They exuded an aura darker than darkness itself, like a shimmering haze that encroached upon the surrounding space.
"Ahh... Truly beautiful."
Adam gazed at them with eyes full of emotion.
The appearance of just one had brought over a hundred organizations to their knees.
Those who had been insolent lost all will to fight.
They begged with their hands clasped together or bowed their heads to the ground.
They pleaded for their lives.
The memory of that day hadn't faded in the slightest.
"Ahahaha!"
Adam spread his arms wide and laughed boisterously.
"I should have brought these guys out from the start. They are the most sinister, the most evil, the most powerful creatures! Beings that a mere human could never hope to handle. Can't you see it? Their beautiful forms! Can't you feel it? Their power!"
Adam's eyes, which had been sparkling like a child's, suddenly turned to Red.
He opened his mouth wide and shouted.
"The strong trample the weak! The weak are trampled by the strong! That is the self-evident truth of this world. I was someone who stood higher than anyone else. But because of you, I couldn't properly enjoy my rights. But that changes now!"
Drunk on his impending victory, Adam continued speaking in an excited voice.
"I have grown even stronger, and now, our positions are reversed. After I defeat you, the weakling, I will use this power to bend the world to my will. I will devour everything!"
Adam didn't stop talking.
His dreams had been constantly thwarted by Red's interference.
Because of that, he spewed out all the resentment and grudges he had suppressed until now.
After all, once this moment passed, he would never have another chance to savor it.
"I'm going to crush you, and then I'll use drugs or whatever it takes to drive your broken body and mind insane and throw you in front of your precious children! Then, I'll do the exact same thing to every single one of them and discard them on the street like trash!"
Adam could see it clearly in his mind's eye.
Her impassive face, soon to be broken as she fell into an endless abyss.
Himself, pulling the strings of the world from the shadows.
The miserable end of the Fixer with her shallow sense of justice and all who followed her!
The corners of his mouth kept rising, and laughter kept bubbling up.
"This is the wretche—"
"Enough."
In that instant, there was a very soft sound.
Just after a sound like the flutter of a butterfly's wings, the brilliant future that had been reflected in his eyes was instantly scattered by a violent gust of wind.
Before he could even realize what was happening, a fist slammed into his beautiful, delicate face.
Adam's face caved in.
A deafening roar and a shockwave erupted as Adam was sent flying, crashing into the far wall.
*CRRAAAAAASSH!*
The beings with their overwhelming presence vanished.
Red casually shook the hand she had just thrown.
She muttered, though her opponent couldn't hear.
"Your power is truly a nuisance. Especially those monsters you just summoned. But no matter how many you summon, or how strong they are, it doesn't make *you* any stronger."
Red took a great leap forward, closing the distance in an instant.
Red looked down at the completely incapacitated Adam.
His handsome features were gone, replaced by something simply grotesque.
Red took a cigarette from her coat pocket and lit it.
With a troubled expression, she watched the smoke rise and chided herself.
She had lost her temper for a moment and used far too much force.
There was a lot she wanted to ask Adam, but now it was impossible.
It would have been fine if his brain was intact, but looking at his face, there was no way his brain was either.
After finishing the cigarette, she flicked it, and it landed on Adam's caved-in face.
"I don't care for the logic of the strong devouring the weak. But I'll admit, there's some truth to what you said."
She stood before the man who was as good as dead.
She raised her leg.
"Just as you said, the strong trample the weak. Like this..."
The greedy man who had relied on a single ability to freely violate others was, by the very logic he espoused, met with a far greater power.
Before his secret schemes could ever see the light of day.
He was mercilessly trampled and crushed to dust.
***
After some strange guys showed up and quieted everyone down, we waited patiently.
Before long, as if Red had succeeded, we were transported back to our original location, just as we had arrived.
The people who had been dreaming happy dreams in the amusement park, a place filled with joy, realized it was no different from the city and hurriedly left.
The sights that had first captivated me here began to look different.
Even I, who had thought of it as one of the few places in the city to relax comfortably.
Felt a bitter taste after seeing the amusement park's true nature.
"Sis!"
"Big Sis!"
Red returned, looking completely fine.
I was once again in awe of her strength.
On our way out of the amusement park with everyone.
"Lily... who are you, really?"
I turned my head at Red's mutter from behind me.
Red wore her usual expression.
Thinking I must have misheard, I was about to turn my head forward again when Red suddenly placed a hand on my head and started patting it.
Startled by the sudden action, I put some distance between us and stared at her from behind my mask.
Her eyes looked somewhat lonely.
What was that about?
Was she sorry for bringing me to this strange place?
***
After that.
Adam had been meddling in both the light and the shadows to become the ruler of the underworld, but with their backer gone, the many organizations and groups directly associated with him suffered significant blows.
The world stirred with a mixture of peace and chaos.
Of course, there were those who gathered power in the midst of such turmoil.
That was just the way money flowed.