Chapter 136
Chapter 136
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: Parhel's Demise
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Parhel, who had been struck by something and thrown his head back for a moment, yanked the object embedded in his forehead free. It was a rusty nail.
— Why do you have this? How do you even have this?
Parhel clearly hadn't suspected for a second that I was carrying this nail.
Not that I'd ever given any sign of planning to use it.
From his perspective, he must have figured I'd stall for time until the others smashed the steles reinforcing Organ and joined me here.
And at that moment, Ramin would use the nail.
"That's what you get for being half-smart."
Black energy seeped from the wound on his forehead. And then, the white light made it vanish.
— It... doesn't matter. My eternity ends here. But so does yours. Before I fade, the meteor will fall.
That meant I'd get hit by the meteor before escaping this Erosion Core.
— At the very least, I'm taking you with me.
"In your dreams, you bastard."
I said that, then grinned and tapped the ground with the toe of Han Sang-ah's shoe I was wearing.
Using this shoe creates a state where no damage can be exchanged for a few seconds. Which means...
"That meteor falling from the sky won't affect me at all."
I planned to activate the shoe's ability the instant it collided with the earth.
That's how you hide your trump cards. Save that one crucial blow for the most important moment, landing it perfectly.
— You... slimy bastard.
"Thanks for the compliment."
Insults from the enemy are always high praise. Parhel was dying. Time would finish him off.
The black-burning meteor slammed into the ground. The shockwave, untouched by Paradox Flame, swept the earth, carving out a massive crater.
I slipped free of the spreading impact in my translucent state.
"See ya. Don't worry too much. Your buddies are toast soon enough anyway."
White light enveloped Parhel's body. His withered flesh sizzled under it, crumbling away bit by bit.
— That power you wield... it'll devour you someday. You don't see it. But I've lived for ages, seen so much. You...
I grabbed Parhel's head as he tried to keep talking, locked eyes with him, and squeezed. With a crunch, his skull shattered.
"Won't happen, corpse."
Every mage with any real skill had said something like that when they saw me. That I wielded power beyond my station, that I'd eventually succumb to it and bring ruin to the world.
But against their words, I'd saved a world doomed to destruction and made it back to Earth.
This time would be no different. A box dropped with a thud in front of me. The reward for clearing this Erosion Core.
"Gloves, huh."
A pair of gloves gleaming with a black sheen. Up close, they were made of obsidian fibers.
I had no idea how they'd spun fibers from obsidian, but they were clearly no ordinary item.
"Transmutation gear."
They converted life force into mana and stored it. Of course, I could convert my own life force into mana too.
But the real kicker was using life force from anything touching the gloves. And on top of that...
"Curse infusion."
The stored mana could be used directly, or channeled through the gloves to infuse attacks with curses.
"This thing's perfect for drawn-out fights."
Mix in some poison with Paradox Flame and wrap it in curses. Sounds delicious.
"It's almost frustrating that my main enemies right now are undead."
Undead resist curses and poison. They're corpses, after all. But as a hunter, I wouldn't always be facing just undead.
When that time comes, this reforged spear and these gloves will shine.
After claiming the reward, the Erosion Core collapsed, and we returned to Pyeongseong. Jeong Oh-hoon clapped me on the back and said,
"With this, securing the Korean Peninsula's safety is just a matter of time!"
The Grade 1 Erosion Cores in Jaun Valley and Samhyeol-dong were gone. The rest, Korea's hunters could handle without us.
"Alright, let's hurry! Mountains of gold to strip from Geumsusan Sun Palace and treasures to grab are waiting for us."
Was he a hunter or a tomb raider? I agreed with Jeong Oh-hoon anyway, even as I thought that. Everything in that place would end up in someone's hands eventually.
If it's going to someone, might as well be us—the ones who suffered the most this time.
"This should quiet down the critics a bit."
There'd been plenty of talk about choosing Erosion Core clears over defending Korea. But controversy dies under results.
"Damn corpses are still crawling around."
Undead surrounded us.
Only the ones tied to Samhyeol-dong had vanished. We'd ignored the corpses holding the area and charged straight into the Erosion Core.
Naturally, returning to Earth now had us surrounded by undead. I looked at Han Sang-ah and Jeong Oh-hoon.
"Handle this yourselves, yeah?"
I was beat. Jeong Oh-hoon looked hurt at my words.
"Hey, we weren't just slacking off."
"Yoo Chan-seok did the heavy lifting, that's true. We didn't do much."
Han Sang-ah gave a cold assessment of their roles in clearing the Erosion Core.
"Still so harsh."
"We're weaker than Yoo Chan-seok. For now, we're just support."
Han Sang-ah shot back at Jeong Oh-hoon, drew her sword, and swept away the oncoming corpses.
It was brutal, like pressure-washing a filthy car. Jeong Oh-hoon watched her, shouldered his rifle, and unleashed a red rain on the corpses lunging at her.
"The Samhyeol-dong monsters are all dead anyway, right?"
Unenhanced undead couldn't handle Jeong Oh-hoon and Han Sang-ah, no matter the numbers.
Thanks to them clearing the path, we made it back safely. Taebaek's hunters holding the outpost wore faces caught between joy and dismay.
Bet that felt weird.
"Here, your shoes back."
Han Sang-ah took her shoes, then handed me back my crown.
"Both took a beating."
"No life-threatening wounds. Just a bit fatigued."
I'd handled Parhel, but they'd fought hard too. No desire to downplay that.
"Anyway, job's done. Let's rest up back home."
We needed a break.
"Exactly! We've been nonstop. At our level, anywhere we go treats us like VIPs for some R&R!"
Jeong Oh-hoon looked thrilled, but Han Sang-ah eyed me tensely and dropped one word.
"Gonsalok?"
"Gonsalok."
I repeated it, tweaking the tone slightly. Jeong Oh-hoon's face hardened as he watched us.
"What are you two talking about?"
"Yoo Chan-seok says he needs rest—not anyone else. Means we have to."
Jeong Oh-hoon looked at me at Han Sang-ah's words.
"Rest can't be a reward."
It's just a pause for what's next. And next was brutally tough, so rest was essential.
Gonsalok.
"Wouldn't more prep time be nice?"
I grinned at Jeong Oh-hoon's question.
"Prep's done."
Well-maintained Samhyeol-dong and Jaun Valley were gone. Lower Erosion Cores? Who knows. But higher-grade ones definitely communicated somehow.
"The Parhel I fought called himself a vassal of Gonsalok."
Vassal sounds fancy, but it means a subordinate serving a king.
"Samhyeol-dong's core was Gonsalok's vassal. We killed that vassal."
Jeong Oh-hoon's face stiffened.
"So Gonsalok will retaliate."
"Yep."
Vassal bonds demand mutual trust. Vassals serve expecting protection or vengeance from their king.
Gonsalok wouldn't have just one vassal.
"If Gonsalok skips revenge on Samhyeol-dong, he loses face with the others."
For his remaining vassals' sake, Gonsalok had to move.
"Gonsalok will attack Korea."
"What's that got to do with us hitting Gonsalok?"
Han Sang-ah glanced at him and said,
"We forced Korea into action."
She was right. I grinned at Jeong Oh-hoon.
"Gonsalok's a Great Eight. Unlike Jaun Valley or Samhyeol-dong, it needs whole different scales of resources and hunters."
Jeong Oh-hoon, listening, stared at me like I was ruthless.
"You dragged all of Korea into assaulting Gonsalok."
"If Korea does nothing, Gonsalok hits first."
Do nothing, and Beijing's million-strong undead legion marches on Korea.
"Unavoidable war, right? Korea won't want its turf as the battlefield, even if they win."
Korea was currently tying up hunters to "protect" against the foreigner zones—manufactured panic they controlled.
But Gonsalok from Beijing? No fake threat, no control.
"Defending just their land means damage even in victory."
I knew Gonsalok's undead legion's power firsthand. And they'd swarm in hordes.
Nothing like blocking DMZ Erosion Zone stragglers.
"If Korea doesn't want to poke the Great Eight, make it so they have to."
Shove a capable but reluctant army into a corner.
Jeong Oh-hoon looked defeated.
"Crazy bastard. Destroying Samhyeol-dong started all this. Korea might blame us for provoking Gonsalok."
"Blame?"
We'd smashed three Grade 1 Erosion Cores in a flash. Even if we sparked Gonsalok, we were essential to stop it.
"Blame us now, with Gonsalok looming? What, throw us in jail?"
That'd gut their own forces. No way.
"Later?"
"If we lead the Gonsalok takedown, they can't blame us."
Round and round, it ends with us saving the day.
Good results make processes forgivable.
"For Gonsalok, we just rack up merits proactively."
Logistics? Hunter recruitment? Korea handles it this time. I pulled out my smartphone, smirking.
"First, gotta share this fun news with our president."
I could already picture his delight at our handiwork.