Chapter 159: Solo. Be Careful with Contracts.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 159: Solo. Be Careful with Contracts.
Clatter—Boom!
The chainsword, extended nearly twenty meters, unfurled like a writhing dragon. As it slammed down upon the players' heads like a whip, a massive cloud of dust erupted.
Skreeeeee!
One knight barely managed to block the squirming blade with his shield. Sparks flew as the metal ground against metal, shrieking as if being reduced to dust.
"Close in! Everyone, close in!"
"What are the mages doing?!"
There are countless strategies a majority can use against a minority, but the most efficient is simple: surround and hem them in.
Knowing this, the players scrambled desperately to encircle Seo-un.
Do they really think they can surround me without even holding their positions?
Seo-un scoffed inwardly. He infused his internal power into the chainsword embedded among the players and gave it a sharp tug. As the chainsword began to lash out even more violently and rapidly, screams erupted from all sides.
As if playing a game, Seo-un swatted away any players who got too close and nimbly dodged incoming spells. The enemy found it impossible to pin him down. Eventually, they began to make wider movements, attempting to encircle him from a distance.
Idiots.
As the clustered enemies began to fan out to the left and right, Seo-un charged straight toward the mages who were trying to keep him in check from the front. While there were knights and martial artists among them, the group was primarily composed of mages, who possessed relatively lower mobility.
"Fall back!!!"
One knight, seeing Seo-un charging head-on, screamed until the veins in his neck and forehead bulged. These players weren't from the same guild and had never worked together; the price for letting their emotions dictate a reckless fight was steep.
Even as he was pelted by dozens of spells, Seo-un didn't slow down for a second. The massacre of the mages happened in the blink of an eye. Ice froze to his arms and back, and his legs were marred by black scorch marks from lightning strikes, but these were wounds a single recovery scroll could fix.
Before the players who had split to the sides could even return, Seo-un stood atop the loot boxes of the annihilated mages and leisurely tore open a recovery scroll. Seeing this, the remaining players froze in their tracks as if struck by a spell. Only then did they coldly realize the staggering gap in strength between themselves and their opponent.
Furthermore, they could see the force field—which had shrunk even faster during the fight—approaching from the distance.
The exodus began with a single player who turned and bolted toward the In-Circle. Once one person turned tail and fled, the rest followed suit, running away from Seo-un as fast as their legs could carry them.
"The... the rank is different!"
"He wasn't someone we could take on in the first place!"
Do they think shouting like that makes them run faster?
Seo-un had decided to intercept and hunt them here for one reason.
They don't have teleportation scrolls.
If they did, they would have used them long ago.
Dealing with enemies who showed their backs was trivial. Moreover, not a single one of them possessed a lightness skill superior to his.
Slash!
As he felt the tactile feedback through the chainsword while cutting down the fleeing enemies, the victims were plunged into extreme terror. Even though someone more terrifying than the force field was closing in and slaughtering them, they couldn't afford to look back. They had to use every second to push forward.
Splat!
"Aaaaaagh!"
The occasional screams and the sound of bodies being sliced apart—growing closer and closer—made everyone's minds go blank. In the end, fewer than ten players successfully made it into the In-Circle.
Having barely escaped the threat of the force field, they tried to keep moving without a moment's respite, but before they could take more than a few steps, their heads were claimed by Seo-un's chainsword.
Clatter—Clink!
Having completed its task, the chainsword returned to its original length with a boastful metallic ring. Looking at the boxes left outside the force field, Seo-un didn't linger and farmed only the nine boxes within reach.
—This is...! It's dangerous!—
Hamit shouted just as Seo-un was farming his fourth box. Simultaneously, a creature emitting an overwhelming presence appeared in the distance, flying toward him at a speed comparable to the force field.
When he activated his map, it was, as expected, an epic monster.
"Sigh. Why do my bad hunches never miss?"
The creature that had given him the illusion of flying toward him a few days ago was indeed heading straight for him again. He could dismiss it as a coincidence once, but not twice.
They've certainly prepared a lot of things.
Thinking this, Seo-un watched the creature approach. The moment it got close, wearing a crazed smile, Seo-un tore a scroll.
BOOM!
The moment Seo-un vanished, the ground where the creature landed split into an 'X' shape, sending cracks spiderwebbing through the surroundings. The creature, having caused a hundred-meter-wide crater, walked out from the billowing dust with a dissatisfied expression.
"He carries all sorts of annoying things."
*
The Red Swamp was aptly named, surrounded by dense jungles. Having dropped into the heart of that jungle, Seo-un checked his map first.
The distance is wide enough. Thank goodness. But how did it know my location and chase me immediately? Did they rig that too?
Seo-un fell into deep thought. After a long silence, he let out an involuntary exclamation.
"Ah!"
He realized the commonality between the time he felt the epic monster approaching him before and now.
My location is revealed whenever I kill a player.
It was a nasty trick. The penalty rule required him to be in the Top 10 while also being in the Top 3 for kills. And the epic monster was targeting him. That monster could track his location every time he took a life.
They've really set this up. Those damn admins.
Even if it was within the rules of the game, he could feel the meticulous preparation. The fact that the map was being restricted so aggressively as soon as the epic monster appeared was a setup designed entirely to eliminate him.
It's a relief I racked up kills early on. I must have killed at least 250 people. My kill rank is definitely at the top. The problem is that damn epic monster is on a level I can't handle.
Seo-un's brow furrowed deeply as he pondered how to kill players and end the game quickly without crossing paths with that thing.
Survivors.
Remaining Survivors: 118/500
.
.
.
Jin Seo-un—Giluyen. (Kill by sword.)
There were still over a hundred players left. Moreover, the map size had shrunk significantly, meaning the speed at which the monster would reach him after a kill would only increase. As the game dragged on, the map would become more restricted, and the probability of encountering the beast would inevitably rise. Furthermore, the remaining players were likely to play even more defensively—camping—because of his presence.
If the game drags on and the players realize my situation...
If he were in their shoes and saw a powerful enemy with such a penalty, he would definitely try to exploit it. Clinging to such weaknesses was the way to survive a survival game.
I'm really in a bind.
It felt like being in checkmate. However, Seo-un's mental fortitude wasn't so weak that he would spend his time merely resenting the administrators. He thought long and hard, strategizing by recalling every item he possessed and every resource he could mobilize.
As the setting sun vanished, the moon rose, and the sun climbed again, Seo-un cycled through countless strategies. Finally, with a sigh, he opened his subspace.
Is this the only way? I didn't think I'd use it like this. Well, it's not bad.
He pulled out the Contract of the Prime God and a pen he had prepared. Seo-un unfurled the faintly glowing contract and began to write, word by word, with great care.
[This contract defines the rights, duties, and general matters of both parties necessary to achieve their mutual goals between Jin Seo-un (hereinafter referred to as 'Party A') and the fragments of the Great Sage, Equal of Heaven's soul, Pride and Deception (hereinafter referred to as 'Party B').]
Party A. Name: Jin Seo-un (Seal)
Party B. Name: (Seal) Name: (Seal)
After finishing the draft, Seo-un filled most of the contract with Articles 1, 2, and 3 in large handwriting. He squeezed Articles 5, 6, and 7 into the remaining small spaces. As for Article 4, he deliberately wrote it in tiny letters on the back of the contract.
After scrutinizing the contract once more and debating if there was anything else to add, Seo-un pulled out two soul stones.
As his immortal demonic energy was drained, Shin-yo (Deception) and Shin-geum (Pride) appeared.
"What is it now?"
Shin-geum openly displayed his annoyance, while Shin-yo surveyed the surroundings before looking at Seo-un. Looking at the identical-looking monkeys—making him wonder if they really did come from the same being—Seo-un spoke with a grave expression.
"The situation isn't good..."
When he finished his explanation with a somber tone they had never seen before, the two monkeys' faces contorted with rage.
"Those bastards!"
"I knew it! There was no way they'd just sit still!"
Seo-un, who had been hanging his head, spoke up.
"It's not that there's no way out."
At his words, the two monkeys looked at him.
"The administrators. You could call them absolute beings or gods. The ones who split you apart. For some reason, they want to exclude me, yet they haven't used their omnipotent powers. Even though they could split the Great Sage, Equal of Heaven, they haven't simply erased a mere human like me."
"That's because..."
Shin-yo nudged Shin-geum's side as he was about to speak, silencing him. Seo-un pretended not to notice and continued.
"Whether it's a matter of pride or something else, it doesn't matter. They want to deal with me using the rules of this game. If that's the case, I just need to escape this crisis according to those rules. That's why I'm asking... lend me your strength."
Shin-geum shook his head at Seo-un's request.
"With your measly amount of immortal demonic energy, you cannot draw out my true power."
Seo-un held out the contract and the pen to the protesting monkey.
"What if you sign this and lend me your power directly?"
Shin-geum's face crumpled as he scanned the contract.
"Even the Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils are more power than a human deserves!"
Seo-un calmed the agitated monkey and spoke.
"If I'm eliminated before you become whole, you'll rot in my subspace forever. I have to keep playing the game to find Shin-hwa. It's just a temporary loan anyway; it's not like you're losing much."
Shin-geum's expression softened slightly. As he held the contract written in terrible handwriting, Shin-yo snatched it away.
"You've cooked up something interesting."
Seo-un slowly raised his head to look at him.
"Did you really think I'd fall for such a trick?"
Of course not.
Seo-un hadn't expected for a second that Shin-yo, a master of deception, would be easily fooled. At that moment, Seo-un looked in a certain direction with a startled expression. He had known for a long time that a player had been camping there.
In response to his reaction, the tall grass swayed ever so slightly, and Shin-geum lunged. In an instant, he threw a punch toward the player who had been barely maintaining stealth.
"No!!"
Seo-un shouted just in time, but Shin-geum had already turned the hidden player into a box. Belatedly, Shin-geum looked at Seo-un with a puzzled expression.
"The survivors!"
After shouting that, Seo-un checked the kill list and slumped to the ground.
"It's over."
Only then did Shin-geum remember what Seo-un had told them.
"Ah. You said that epic monster was coming."
"It's a monster that crossed a map that took me days to travel in just dozens of minutes. Now, there's no way out."
As soon as Seo-un finished speaking, an immense presence could be felt approaching from the distance. Faced with the sudden urgency, Shin-geum scowled and signed the contract. A golden powder emanated from his body and entered Seo-un's nose.
"It is half of my bone. For a human, this should be enough to ensure your limbs aren't severed, no matter what comes."
"I might not be decapitated, but it's already too late. There's no way to run from that thing."
Seo-un finished speaking while looking at the creature that appeared like a tiny dot in the distance, then subtly shifted his gaze to Shin-yo. As the epic monster's overwhelming presence began to be felt, Shin-yo clicked his tongue. It didn't seem like Seo-un was spouting nonsense just to trick them.
Watching Shin-yo hesitate, Seo-un began to feel anxious as well.
Hurry up and decide, you monkey...
Just as he thought that, Shin-yo gritted his teeth and signed the contract. Instantly, the contract glowed intensely and split into three lights, flying into the chests of Shin-yo, Shin-geum, and Seo-un.
The contract was branded into their chests with a halo of light. When Seo-un pulled back his shirt, he saw a white tattoo. The two monkeys' tattoos were hidden by their fur, but they likely bore the same mark.
"We'll try to buy some time, so run."
"I've heard of him. Was he some king of the Demon Realm? If only your immortal demonic energy were sufficient, we might have stood a chance..."
Looking at the two monkeys, Seo-un promptly shoved their soul stones back into his subspace.
"I don't need you to."
As soon as they entered the subspace, the two monkeys vanished. Looking at the rapidly approaching epic monster, Seo-un smiled and tore a scroll. He already had plenty of teleportation scrolls.
Since he had farmed quite a few from the royal palace, Seo-un vanished without hesitation just as the epic monster pounced on his previous location.
"Like a little rat. Let's see how long you can keep running."
*
Seo-un appeared in a wasteland where large boulders were scattered haphazardly. He landed on the ground with a smile. An indescribable power surged through his body.
Diamond Bone, huh.
For a martial artist, the musculoskeletal structure was vital. In particular, 'bone' was closely related to a martial artist's durability. After contemplating the power within him for a moment, Seo-un's lips curled into a smirk.
"So he was a Demon King? Now I know why that item dropped."
Seo-un's smile deepened as he pulled out the item he had picked up after defeating the Nephilim.