Three Monsters (1) EP.63 Constellations and Players

The reason Constellations grant coins to players and nurture their growth is to expand their own influence and build factions. For that reason, Constellations accept well-developed players as incarnations and begin sharing their power in earnest—yet they generally refuse to take on players from the lower floors as incarnations. If the recipient of their power dies in some absurd manner or turns out to be too weak to contribute to their forces, it would be nothing but a disastrous loss.

However, on the Tower’s third floor, right before the competition, there existed exactly one player who had received a Constellation’s choice.

—How amusing… How very amusing…… This damned—

While the snake-headed helper Echion was monitoring the individual matches, he discovered that single player belonging to his coordinate. A player born with the talent of an assassin. A man who, immediately after the tutorial, slaughtered every player around him, stole their coins, and rapidly grew stronger. It was fortunate that he had entered the Tower alongside coordinates from other regions of the same world; without them, the upcoming team match would have been utterly destroyed.

But the problem was not the team match that lay ahead. The individual match existed to obtain rewards that would make the team match easier, and furthermore to collect items useful for climbing the Tower. Therefore, the individual match should have been dominated in spectacular fashion.

—That arrogant little bastard……!

When Death left the Holy Kingdom coordinate’s players without stealing the Heart of Frost, Echion had let it pass. Even a player under a Constellation’s protection might struggle to hunt a Level 5 monster alone. The treasure Death had failed to obtain was something no other player would even dare to covet. Thus, Echion had felt no concern. Once he learned that the Breath of Fire lay in the direction Death was heading, he simply assumed the man had changed his route. Obtaining the Breath of Fire would make hunting the monster that held the Heart of Frost far easier.

Yet the real problem arose the moment Death seized the Breath of Fire.

—Why! Why did he simply accept the curse?!

Death had clearly possessed more than enough ability to dispel the curse emitted by the Breath of Fire. His mental strength should have been sufficient to endure it, and even if it had not been, once he had properly obtained the status of an incarnation, he should never have been unable to shake off a mere third-floor curse.

—Did growing strong too quickly become his poison?

To Death, who had swept up coins in the tutorial, the trials of the first and second floors had been nothing more than child’s play. He simply charged in, slit his opponent’s throat, and completed the mission without bothering with any cumbersome clearing process. Because of that, the man had grown arrogant. No… after slaughtering the players loitering at the entrance of the Death Forest without so much as breaking a sweat, he had more than enough qualification to be arrogant—his arrogance overflowed.

So when the man discovered the Breath of Fire, he burst into an unpleasant laugh. As though he had found an amusing toy. As though he had decided this round’s entertainment would be this. Thus, ignoring every piece of advice, the action he took was now……

「Kuaaaak!」

「S-Save me!!!」

He was indiscriminately attacking every player in sight. The head of a player from the same coordinate ignited in flames within his grasp.

—……There is no choice. We can only hope Death simply kills them all.

Players who had yet to return began discovering the Death Forest and gathering toward its center. Currently, Death was in the process ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of monsterization. He had already collected more than five treasures, so as long as he did not die within the time limit, he would naturally complete the mission.

—By the way, what happened to the Heart of Frost?

The dungeon where the Holy Kingdom’s Saintess and knight had undergone monsterization had become impossible to clear. Naturally, no player could face those two, so Echion had lost interest—yet once Death became a monster, he could not help but pay attention again.

—The Frost Knight never leaves the cave, so he will not encounter the Flame Knight, but just in case……

At that moment, Echion’s eyes flew wide open.

—Why is it outside!!!

The Frost Knight, who should have been holed up inside the cave guarding the treasures, was now running through the Death Forest. Moreover, if this path continued, the two were certain to meet.

—Just who? No, more importantly, how?

The years Echion had lived as a helper were so long they could not be counted. He had seen the Frost Witch several times, and while it was uncommon, he had occasionally witnessed both the Frost Knight and the Frost Witch appear together. However—there had never once been a history of the Frost Knight bursting out of the cave and laying waste to the Death Forest.

After running for a long time in the direction Han Gamin had indicated, we discovered a flame monster that resembled Landon.

“What do we do now?!”

At Park Cheolho’s shout, I looked at Han Gamin. The reason she had guided us here was to use that flame knight to capture Landon. But it was not going to be as easy as it sounded. The distance between us and Landon had closed enough that his face was clearly visible, so retreating was no longer an option.

‘A way……!’

Moreover, the worst-case scenario would be both monsters launching a pincer attack on us. Fortunately, the monster’s expression was gradually hardening as he witnessed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the spectacle of ice rising behind us.

“Cheonho!”

“Yes?”

“Do you happen to know any Taoist arts for flying through the sky?”

“Ah……?”

I decided to ask Namgung Cheonho. Of course, there was also the option of using Thunder-Chasing Footwork or the footwork of Single Flash to disappear quickly, but fleeing alone felt somehow unpleasant, so I checked for another method first.

“It’s not flight, but I do have one idea!”

“Let’s go right now!”

At my words, Namgung Cheonho hurriedly began forming hand seals. Landon was right on our heels. Just before he could reach out, Namgung Cheonho slammed his palm against the ground and shouted the skill name.

“Seonpung!”

Kuhwaaaaak!

A whirlwind formed beneath our feet. Our bodies began to rise rapidly with it, and in that fleeting moment, we soared into the sky.

“Ugh.”

People’s faces began to turn deathly pale in an instant.

“Uwaaaak!”

Screams erupted from all directions. Han Gamin’s face turned blue as she recalled the window-diving incident from the first floor, her expression stiffening. I gently wrapped my arm around the frightened Han Gamin’s shoulder, and with Namgung Cheonho’s continued Taoist art, we safely landed on the opposite side. We cleared the clearing guarded by the flame knight in a single leap.

Then I immediately turned my body and finally witnessed the flame knight clashing with Landon.

Chaaaaang!

When Landon swung his hand, the ground beneath his feet began to freeze solid. The frost-laden mana struck the clearing where flames burned everywhere, and at that moment, the flame knight, receiving his energy head-on, drew a sword made of fire.

However—

—Haa……!

The gap in levels could not be ignored. That ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠player called Death had also become a monster thanks to treasures, yet he seemed no match for Landon, who had evolved one stage further after losing the witch. Flames…… Landon created a long ice sword in his hand. With every breath he took as he stepped forward, the surrounding flames flickered and died out. Seeing this, the flame knight’s eyes began to shake violently, as though flustered.

—Kuaaaak!

When the flame knight raised his sword, the flames dominating the ground rippled and surged toward Landon all at once. Thus began the battle of monsters.

“It might sound strange to say this, but…… it’s quite the spectacle.”

“I agree.”

At Namgung Cheonho’s words, Cheongrin, who had been standing nearby, unexpectedly voiced his agreement and continued.

“But this is as far as we can go.”

We had survived when we thought we would die. Coveting the treasures those two monsters held was pure greed. Though we had not obtained many, each of us had secured as many as we needed. Now, if we simply escaped to a place where we could return to the lobby, the individual match could be considered a success.

“It would be right to be satisfied with this.”

I made the most rational judgment possible. There was nothing we could do by inserting ourselves between those monsters anyway. Furthermore, if we lingered any longer watching, the flame knight would surely fall and the monster would come after us again—staying here would be foolish. Therefore, we decided to retreat.

Of course, that was only if it had not been for the sudden message.

—A small number of Constellations are protesting this mission.

—‘The One Who Knows Nothing But War and Combat’ says that if you dislike it, step forward yourself.

No matter how I looked at it, the mission’s content seemed like the whim of a single Constellation. Yet what stood out most in the mission details was none other than the penalty. Win by fighting and gain profit. Lose and break even… no, even if you die, you break even. This was the first time I had received a mission where not fighting seemed like the actual loss.