《Global Awakening: Only I Can Respawn》


 Chapter 1: Outcast

    Kang YuWon thought as his overgrown jet-ck hair spilled over his eyes. Known for his unkempt hair and oversized unwashed clothes, his attireplimented his gloomy and loner attitude.


    Although his college was just thirty-five minutes away by subway, he didn''t have enough money to get on one. Instead, he had to walk for two hours just to get to the college in time. But things weren''t bad a year ago.


    One lie ruined his whole life, and no one seemed to care enough to find out the truth. Why? It was because he looked the part to be involved in some perverted scheme. That was it.


    He lost everything he once cherished. A loving mom, close friends, everything. That incident fromst year forced him to turn into the outcast he is today.


    YuWon looked at the sky, wanting to curse the god for his fate. But then he noticed something. He squinted at the sky, trying to make sense of the strange writing among the clouds.


    He was so engrossed in that he didn''t notice the person in front of him until it was toote.


    "Watch where you''re going, weirdo!"


    A strong shove sent YuWon stumbling backward. His sses flew off his face,nding on the pavement.


    "I-I''m sorry," YuWon stammered, crouching to find his sses.


    "This idiot... he never learns, does he?"


    YuWon could barely make out the outline of the person he bumped into, but he felt scared when he recognized the voice.


    "Oh, no¡­" YuWon whispered under his breath, realizing it was his bully, Kim Hoon.


    "Do you need a hand there?" Kim Hoon scoffed.


    Before YuWon could respond, a fist mmed into his nose, and he fell to the ground, dazed. A momentter, everyone burst outughing, and through his tear-filled eyes, he saw familiar faces mocking him. Some of them used to be his friends, but not anymore.


    "Get up, you idiot!" one of Kim Hoon''sckeys said as he grabbed YuWon by the cor and lifted him off the ground.


    "I-I''m sorry! I didn''t m-mean to-" YuWon stammered.


    However, Hoon wasn''t done. He began pping YuWon across the face, each hit more forceful than thest. YuWon''s cheeks burned with pain, and tears streamed down his face.


    "Look at him cry! What a little baby!" another one of his former friends taunted.


    Kim Hoon delivered a final, hard p that left YuWon''s face swollen and red. His vision was still blurry, but he could see enough to notice his stepsister, Yeji, standing with Kim Hoon. She had her arm linked with his, and she stared down at YuWon with a look of cold indifference.


    "Yeji¡­" YuWon called out weakly, hoping for some help, for the old time''s sake. But she didn''t move, didn''t even flinch. She just kept looking at him like he was a stranger.


    "This is what you get for being in my way," Kim Hoon said.


    He then kicked YuWon between the legs. YuWon curled up on the ground, trying his best to breathe as he felt the worst pain any man could.


    "See you after the break, loser," Kim Hoonughed, grabbing Yeji by the waist. "We''ve got something special nned for you."


    With that, he and his friends walked away, leaving YuWon squirming in pain on the ground. YuWony there for a few moments, gasping in pain.


    He could hear whispers and see teachers looking at him with disgust. None of them offered to help. He knew they all disliked him, but this level of hatred was something new.


    Slowly, he got to his feet, his body still hurting. Eventually, he found his sses on the ground and put them on. He saw his bag thrown to the side, but he didn''t bother picking it up. There was no point; he wouldn''t need it, anyway.


    With onest look around, YuWon walked away, but not towards the sses as he would.


    ***


    "You really wanna do this?" the girl asked, blowing a bubblegum bubble.


    "Yes... will this be enough?" YuWon asked, handing the girl some crumpled notes. "This is all I have on me..."


    Popping the bubble, the girl grabbed the money, quickly pocketing it. "It would be enough for half a pill. But since I''m feeling generous, here, take it."


    However, YuWon wasn''t listening. He was more busy looking at the girl''s tanned body which added to her gal look. YuWon couldn''t help but think that she was undeniably beautiful, with a curvy figure and a big chest that made her stand out even more. If he had met her a year ago, he would have asked her out... but it was toote for that.


    "Are you done mentally stripping me?" the girl rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers. "Fucking weirdo. Just take the pill and get lost."


    "I-I''m sorry!" YuWon mumbled, snatched the pill, and ran away without a second look.


    The girl raised an eyebrow as YuWon ran away, wondering if he was the pervert everyone warned her about.


    "He is a pervert alright," Hannah chuckled before leaving herself. It would be bad if someone caught her selling inside the college campus.


    ***


    Sitting on the edge of the terrace, YuWon wondered if his death would affect anyone. He thought about it, but didn''t think anyone would even bat an eye.


    He was once the star student of the college. Unfortunately, his poprity attracted the wrong crowd toward him. His mother was proud of him and so was his stepfamily, but all that changed one day.


    One day,pletely out of the blue, he was called into the dean''s office. When he walked in, he saw his stepfather, stepsister, and mother sitting there.


    At first, he thought something bad had happened to his grandmother. But then, his stepfather punched him in the face, and his mother just kept crying.


    Through the screams and crying, YuWon pieced together that his stepsister was using him of taking her pics in the school''s locker room and selling them online.


    YuWon vehemently denied doing such a thing. But Yeji''s im was more than enough to brand him as a pervert. After all, she was a valedictorian. Why would she lie about something like that?


    Ever since then, Kim Hoon, Yeji''s boyfriend, has bullied him relentlessly, and no one did anything about it. YuWon knew it was Kim Hoon who put Yeji up to it because YuWon had the spot on the ser team that Kim Hoon wanted.


    What hurt YuWon the most was when Kim Hoon and his gang attacked him and broke his leg. Even after that, Yeji defended Kim Hoon, saying YuWon had been trying to peek into the girls'' washroom.


    She imed Kim Hoon only pushed YuWon because he saw him, and identally broke YuWon''s leg. Once again, she had no reason to lie and Kim Hoon had his parent''s backing unlike him. That was the day YuWon gave up defending himself.


    As a result, every club kicked YuWon out and asked him to thank Yeji because she was willing to bury everything for the sake of his mother and not get him expelled.


    When he returned home, he also got kicked out of the home his father built before dying. Living by himself, doing every meager job he could to pass by. But now he had enough.


    He was going to end it all.


    "...this is it, Dad," YuWon mumbled, looking at the pill in his hand. "It''s not the end I wanted, but... you already know why."


    Even though he wanted to, he was too scared to jump. So, he saved up what little money he had to buy the pill that would give him the courage to leap.


    Just then, something strange happened. Suddenly, the sky filled with the same writing he had seen before. This time, though, the words were easy to read.


    [Initializing Global Awakening Protocol.]


    [Please select a ss.]


    [Note: The ss you choose will stay with you forever. Choose carefully.]


    YuWon blinked twice, convinced he was hallucinating because of the pill he had taken earlier. He waved his hands frantically, trying to get rid of the illusion. To his surprise, the screen disappeared, only for another to appear.


    Before he could make sense of it, a loud explosion erupted from within the building, right as the bell rang for the start of sses.


    The force of the st shook the entire structure, causing YuWon to lose his grip on the railing and fall. This wasn''t how he wanted it to end, but it seemed like it was all over.


    YuWon closed his eyes, epting his fate. He felt like he was falling forever, but then something changed. Suddenly, he no longer felt the rush of wind around him. Slowly, he opened his eyes, expecting to see the ground rushing up to meet him. Instead, he was standing back on the terrace.


    "What¡­ what just happened?" YuWon muttered, pinching himself to see if it was a dream. But it wasn''t.


    He looked around in confusion and noticed the campus''s big clock. It was five minutes before the bell rang. It was difficult to believe, but he had somehow gone back in time.


    The familiar screen reappeared before him, congratting him.


    [Congrattions on selecting the <Revenant> ss.]

 Chapter 2: I Can Respawn?

    "Revenant? What''s that?"


    Unfortunately, YuWon barely had time to think when the clock hit the rm, and the explosion happened again. This time, he was ready. He jumped away from the edge just in time, avoiding the st.


    He didn''t know why he did that. After all, he was willing to die a couple of moments ago, but he knew something was weird about him. For all he knew, he should have been dead already, but somehow made it out alive.


    He was still thinking about what happened, but screamsing from the building below cut his thoughts short. He looked up and saw something that made his blood run cold.


    The door leading to the terrace flung open and a short, green and ugly humanoid animal casually walked in.


    "What the...?"


    YuWon barely had time to react as the goblin lunged at him. The creature was quicker than anything YuWon had seen before. He tried to push the goblin off himself. But the darn thing was like a leech, holding on to him.


    "Keek! Keek! Keek!"


    Before YuWon knew it, the goblin was busy stabbing him in the neck repeatedly. His strength drained away, and soon the world faded to ck as the goblin repeatedly stabbed him in the neck, causing blood to pour from his wounds.


    But then, YuWon opened his eyes again, only to find him standing on the terrace, right after selecting the Revenant ss. While panting, he immediately checked his neck and, other than sweat, there was nothing else.


    But this time YuWon knew he wasn''t dreaming. He had died again. The screen before him confirmed it.


    [You have earned a new title!]


    [Title: Survivor of Death]


    [Information: A weakling who died twice at the start of the tutorial.]


    [Effect: The awakener will get double stat points during the tutorial.]


    YuWon stared at the screen, bewildered. What was happening to him? But then another screen popped up before his eyes.


    +++


    Name: Kang YuWon


    ss: Revenant


    Sub-ss: none


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 1


    Experience: 0%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 100 / 100


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 0 / 0


    ¡ª Stamina: 30 / 30


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 8


    ¡ª Agility: 6


    ¡ª Intelligence: 4


    ¡ª Defense: 2


    ¡ª Endurance: 2


    ¡ª Wisdom: 1


    ¡ª Luck: 2


    Secondary Attributes:


    ¡ª Attack Power: Nil (Please equip a weapon to view this stat.)


    ¡ª Magic Power: Nil (Please equip a weapon to view this stat.)


    ¡ª Magic Defense: 0


    ¡ª Critical Hit Rate: 4%


    Special Abilities:


    ¡ª Active Abilities:


    None


    ¡ª Passive Abilities:


    1. Respawn:


    Description: Instantly return to life after being defeated, restoring 100% of maximum health and mana to a safe point or checkpoint.


    Cooldown: 10 seconds


    Respawn Points Cost: 10


    Remaining Respawn Points: 980 / 1000


    Achievements:


    ¡ª [Survivor of Death]


    Description: An achievement awarded to a weakling who died twice at the start of the tutorial.


    Effect: The awakener will get double stat points during the tutorial.


    Awakener''s Stats:


    y Time: 6 minutes 32 seconds


    ¡ª Monsters Defeated: 0


    ¡ª Quests Completed: 0


    ¡ª Gold Earned: 0


    +++


    YuWon didn''t care about everything before him. His eyes were focused on the abilities section. It made him realize he wasn''t hallucinating all this time. The Respawn skill brought him back to life after he died.


    10 points per death... I would need to die 98 times to die for sure.


    YuWon wondered. Dying once was a different thing, but knowingly dying ny-eight times sent chills down his spine. It was a scary thought, but then he realized something.


    Why did he need to die? The society had forced him to take that step. His bullies and his family had forced him to take that step. They were responsible for the mess and it was time they suffered the consequences of it.


    YuWon felt the seed of revenge take root in his mind. He still didn''t know what was going on with the explosion and the monsters. It all felt surreal. But he knew one thing. It was his chance to deal with Hoon and everyone who had made his life hell.


    But before that, I need to adapt to the new world.


    He nced at the clock; it was almost time for the bell to ring again.


    Okay, YuWon think. You''ve got a few minutes before the goblin shows up. You need a n.


    First, he needed a weapon. Something that would help him deal with the goblin. Unfortunately, he was on the terrace and he knew he would get killed before he made it to the sports equipment shed to get a bat or something.


    With no way out of the mess, YuWon quickly scanned his surroundings, looking for anything he could use as a weapon. Thankfully, the terrace was full of broken chairs, tables, and other rubbish.


    YuWon noticed a chair with a leg that was hanging onto it by a screw. He yanked the metal leg, which was sharp and jagged at one end. It wasn''t a conventional weapon, but it was better than nothing.


    He tore a sleeve from his oversized shirt and used it as a makeshift handle, then waited. A momentter, the bell rang, and the explosion followed.


    Come on...e on...e on...


    YuWon grasped the weapon, waiting for the goblin to show up. When the ugly green creature appeared at the terrace entrance, YuWon didn''t wait for it to charge. He rushed at the goblin, swinging the piece of metal with all his might, which wasn''t much.


    The goblin was taken by surprise and YuWon hit its shoulder before it jumped away. In pain, the goblin snarled, baring its sharp teeth towards YuWon, who didn''t know what to do next.


    From hisst time facing the creature, YuWon knew it would lunge at him. Sure enough, the goblin jumped at it, iling its small dagger. Filled with adrenaline, YuWon ducked, raising the metal bar which sliced into the goblin''s arm.


    The creature screeched in pain before biting into YuWon''s leg. YuWon tried to hit the goblin with the bar, but it tackled him to the ground, knocking the metal bar out of his hands.


    YuWon tried to push the creature off, but it was too strong. A momentter, the goblin brought down its dagger and everything went ck.


    Once again, YuWon found himself back on the terrace, the screen congratting him for choosing the Revenant ss still floating in front of him.


    [Respawn points: 970/1000]

 Chapter 3: Infinite Money Glitch

    This is going to be harder than I thought.


    YuWon thought as long as he took the goblin by surprise, it would be his win. Unfortunately, that wasn''t the case. The darn creature was too quick.


    At that moment, he looked down at his leg. Ever since Kim Hoon had broken it, he always had to limp. It didn''t heal right because it wasn''t looked after properly.


    When his leg was first broken, no one gave him any first aid, and by the time he made it to the hospital, it was toote.


    On top of that, YuWon had little money because he had just been kicked out of the house. He couldn''t stay in the hospital for long and had to work to feed himself.


    Because of all these things, his leg never healed properly, making it hard for him to move quickly. Just thinking about those incidents made his blood boil.


    Calm down. Now is not the time for this.


    YuWon reminded himself and looked at the clock. He had another three minutes to prepare to deal with the goblin. Wanting to kill the damned creature, YuWon opened his stats and considered his options while preparing the metal bar.


    He did not know what luck, wisdom, and intelligence did. But he was familiar with strength, agility, defense, and endurance. Unaware of the Goblin''s stats, there wasn''t much for YuWon to go by.


    But even then, he knew his stats were probably the worst within the college. He couldn''t run, he couldn''t take over two hits, and the only thing he could depend on was his strength.


    Just then, he noticed a blinking icon next to his attributes. YuWon wondered what it was and clicked it. The moment he did that, another screen popped up before him.


    [You have 10 unallocated attribute points.]


    [How would you like to use them?]


    A momentter, a ''+'' appeared next to his attributes. Without thinking, YuWon pressed the icon next to strength, dumping all ten points into it and suddenly, he felt his muscle grow bigger.


    YuWon''s oversized clothes did a good job concealing his body, but he wasn''t the same skinny guy anymore.


    "Woah... this feels like a dream," YuWon muttered, looking at his once lost athletic body.


    With everything done, YuWon positioned himself behind the door, waiting for the goblin to appear. A momentter, the bell rang, and the explosion followed as usual.


    Soon the goblin appeared on the terrace, ready to hunt its prey. YuWon jumped, yelling as he brought down the metal bar onto the creature''s head. The metal bar broke the goblin''s head in half with a sickening crunch, killing the darn thing instantly.


    [You''ve hunted a Goblin Scout! Exp +2%, Gold +10]


    [You''re the first Awakener to hunt a monster! Exp +20%, Gold +50]


    [You''re the first Awakener to hunt a monster with an unconventional weapon! Exp +10%, Gold +20]


    [Current Exp: 32%]


    [Current Gold: 80]


    [Achievement Unlocked: You killed a monster with that!?]


    [Description: Use a makeshift weapon to kill your first monster.]


    [Effect: Strength, Endurance, and Defense increase by 20% when using an unconventional weapon.]


    [Sessfully hunted a Beginner monster! +2 Respawn points.]


    [Current Respawn points: 972/1000]


    Notifications flooded YuWon''s vision, but he didn''t care. For a moment, YuWon allowed himself to celebrate. He turned his back to the entrance, looking at the sky as all the adrenaline slowly disappeared from his body.


    "Maybe I can survive this after all," YuWon mumbled, smiling.


    Unfortunately, his celebration was short-lived. In his celebration, he hadmitted a grave mistake by turning his back to the terrace entrance. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another goblin charging at him. He tried to react, but his reaction time was too slow.


    Before he knew it, two goblinstched onto him. YuWon pushed one of them away, but the other plunged its dagger into his side.


    "Fuck, not again!" YuWon yelled.


    He tried grabbing the second goblin, but the one he had pushed away stabbed the dagger into YuWon''s leg, making him fall. As he fell, he saw the goblins sneering at him as they stabbed him in the chest. Just like that, YuWon''s vision faded to ck once more.


    ***


    When he opened his eyes, he was back on the terrace. The familiar screen congratted him for choosing the Revenant ss.


    "Fucking hell!" YuWon groaned in frustration, flopping down.


    But instead of dwelling on it, he once again opened up his attribute page. His death, while unpleasant, made him realize something. Dumping all the points into strength was stupid of him.


    He died because of his low agility and negligence. While he could be vignt this time around, he still needed to add some points to increase his agility.


    But would it even matter?


    YuWon thought, staring at his leg. Since his leg was broken, would he benefit from investing any points in agility?


    I won''t know the answer unless I take the leap.


    His father often told him this whenever he felt scared or worried. That saying had pushed him so far, but now, remembering those words felt bittersweet.


    After all, he was about to give it all up for a stupid reason and even worse people. But not anymore.


    YuWon quickly brought his strength and agility to ten points each before dumping the remaining points to upgrade his endurance and defense to four. The distribution wasn''t perfect, but it was better than nothing.


    With that done, he waited behind the door again, ready for the goblins to appear. The first goblin appeared, and YuWon repeated his earlier strategy, getting rid of the goblin with ease.


    Simr prompts shed before his eyes, but YuWon didn''t celebrate. Instead, he kept his eyes on the entrance, knowing another goblin could appear at any moment.


    He didn''t have to wait for long as the goblins came charging towards the terrace. One goblinunched itself towards YuWon''s head. He ducked to avoid a blow to his head, surprised that his leg didn''t hurt at all. He could move and run like before.


    "Thank you, attribute points," YuWon muttered in disbelief.


    With him distracted, the other goblin charged at him. However, YuWon noticed it and swung his metal bar like a baseball bat, hitting the disgusting creature in the face. The goblin was sent flying to the far end of the terrace. It won''t be any trouble for now.


    Upon seeing itsrade flying away, the first goblin rushed and stabbed YuWon in the feet. YuWon winced in pain, but it was tolerable, unlike before, and it was all thanks to the points he had added to his defense and endurance stats.


    "I''m not going down this time, you bastard!" YuWon growled, stabbing the goblin with the metal bar.


    The goblin screeched loudly before copsing, dead.


    "Keek! KEEEK!"


    The goblin YuWon had hit the home run on came charging right back at him. But he no longer feared them. As soon as the creature got close enough, YuWon kicked it in the face, dislocating its jaw.


    The goblin took a few steps back, its jaw hanging loosely on its green-skinned face. It tried fixing it by awkwardly pushing the jaw back in ce, but it kept falling.


    "Need a hand with that?" YuWon taunted.


    He watched as the goblin fumbled with its dangling jaw and kept taunting it. Angered, the goblin forgot about the jaw and rushed at YuWon. But he was ready.


    Instead of fighting it head-on, YuWon just sidestepped and stuck his foot out. Blinded by rage, the goblin didn''t notice it and tripped. Its momentum carried it forward, hitting the railing and toppling off the terrace.


    The goblin kept iling its arms in the air and couldn''t even scream with its dislocated jaw. After a few seconds, YuWon heard a faint thud as the goblin hit the ground far below.


    [You''ve hunted a Goblin Scout! Exp +2%, Gold +10]


    [You''ve hunted a Goblin Scout! Exp +2%, Gold +10]


    [Current Exp: 68%]


    [Current Gold: 180]


    [Sessfully hunted two Beginner monsters! +4 Respawn points.]


    [Current Respawn points: 966/1000]


    "Wait a minute!"


    While going through the notifications, YuWon noticed something interesting. He still had the exp and gold he had gained from defeating the goblin the first time, and when he killed the first goblin again, he got the same amount of experience points and gold.


    "¡­infinite money glitch!?"

 Chapter 4: Level 10, already!?

    [You have leveled up to lvl 2!]


    [Unallocated Attribute points +2]


    [2 additional attribute points gained, because of the achievement .]


    YuWon wiped the blood on his face, discarding the metal bar and picking up the dagger to stab himself. He wanted to takeplete advantage of the glitch, as he called it, before someone or something patched it up.


    Blood trickled down his chest as YuWon respawned back into the familiar space and repeated the process to gain experience and gold from killing the goblins, as they were easier to deal with than whatever other monster he would eventually face.


    ***


    After five respawns...


    [You have leveled up to lvl 3!]


    [Unallocated Attribute points +2]


    [2 additional attribute points gained, because of the achievement .]


    [Please select a bonus Awakener push pack from the following. (Avable at every three levels during tutorial)]


    ¡ª Primary Attribute boost pack


    ¡ª Core Stat boost pack


    ¡ª Secondary Attribute boost pack


    ¡ª Random Skill boost pack


    Four options appeared before YuWon''s eyes, just like before. The options were easy to understand.


    By using the primary attribute boost pack, he could increase his HP, MP, or stamina. The core stat boost pack would increase his core attributes like strength, agility, etc. The secondary attribute boost pack would increase his attack power, magic power, or crit rate.


    But YuWon wasn''t interested in either of those things. While experimenting with his attribute points, he noticed the attributes depended on his core stats and leveling up.


    For example, his HP would go up whenever he leveled up or added points to increase his endurance.


    Simrly, raising his intelligence would boost his MP. As for the crit rate, it was proportional to luck stat.


    So, selecting those boost packs wouldn''t help him much since he could get the same effect by using attribute points instead.


    However, it''s different with the skill boost pack.


    Even though YuWon had respawned many times, he hadn''t figured out how to make his [Respawn] skill better. By now, he had given up on improving it.


    That''s why he chose the skill boost pack when he saw it. Since he only had one skill, he knew it would help his [Respawn] skill somehow.


    [Passive skill  has leveled up.]


    [Skill cost: 10 --> 9 respawn points.]


    YuWon raised an eyebrow. It wasn''t the effect he had hoped for, but it was better than nothing.


    "Either way, let''s keep hunting."


    ***


    After a while...


    [You have leveled up to lvl 10!]


    [Unallocated Attribute points +2]


    [2 additional attribute points gained, because of the achievement .]


    [Achievement Unlocked!]


    [Level 10, already!?]


    [Description: Reach level 10 within the first five minutes of starting the tutorial.]


    [Effect: +10 attribute points, Beginner weapon pack, Beginner essory pack.]


    [New ss ability unlocked: Checkpoint.]


    "A new ability, huh?"


    YuWon opened the stat page to check the ability, and it was quite a strange one.


    +++


    Checkpoint (Lvl 1): Sets a respawn point at the current location. Upon death, the yer will respawn at thest set checkpoint.


    Cooldown: 8 hours


    Respawn Points Cost: 50


    +++


    It was a handy ability for YuWon. Finally, he won''t have to start from scratch anymore. After checking the ability, YuWon opened the stat page to use the points he had gained so far.


    +++


    Name: Kang YuWon


    ss: Revenant


    Sub-ss: None


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 10


    Experience: 7.2%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 300 / 300


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 90 / 90


    ¡ª Stamina: 30 / 30


    Core Stats:[+0 unallocated points]


    ¡ª Strength: 20


    ¡ª Agility: 20


    ¡ª Intelligence: 4


    ¡ª Defense: 12


    ¡ª Endurance: 12


    ¡ª Wisdom: 6


    ¡ª Luck: 12


    Secondary Attributes:


    ¡ª Attack Power: Nil (Please equip a weapon to view this stat.)


    ¡ª Magic Power: Nil (Please equip a weapon to view this stat.)


    ¡ª Magical defense: 9%


    ¡ª Critical Hit Rate: 24%


    Remaining Respawn Points: 772/ 1000


    Abilities:


    ¡ª Passive Abilities:


    1. Respawn (Lvl 3)


    ¡ª Active Abilities:


    1. Checkpoint (Lvl 1)


    Achievements:


    ¡ª [Survivor of Death]


    ¡ª [You killed a monster with that!?]


    ¡ª [Level 10, already!?]


    Awakener''s Stats:


    y Time: 16 minutes 19 seconds


    ¡ª Monsters Defeated: 153


    ¡ª Quests Completed: 0


    ¡ª Gold Earned: 5280


    +++


    YuWon nodded, satisfied with the results. He had decent stats and amassed a lot of gold, even though he didn''t know how to use any of that. But now he had a choice. To continue doing what he had been doing or proceed ahead and look for his bullies.


    After thinking for a second, YuWon decided on the former. He didn''t know how strong his bullies were at the moment. So instead of taking on them, he decided to get even stronger.


    But first, he had two packs to open. YuWon opened the  and  in quick session and got a [Rusty Sword] and [Traveler''s Bracelet].


    [Rusty Sword]


    Description: A basic and slightly worn sword suitable for closebat.


    Damage: 30-70 HP


    Special Effect: None


    [Traveler''s Bracelet]


    Description: A pendant that slightly increases the wearer''s HP.


    Effect: +25 HP


    Special Effect: Locked


    "Hm... interesting."


    ***


    A quick respawnter...


    YuWon stood over the goblin corpses, frowning. He got the gold for killing the goblin, but the notification for exp didn''t appear. Instead, a new message popped before him.


    [You have hit the level limit for the tutorial. To level up again, you must defeat the Zone Boss and lift the level barrier.]


    "The zone boss? We even have those?" YuWon sighed, before leaving the terrace for the first time in ages.


    Unbeknownst to YuWon, hidden in the clouds, a pair of glowing eyes watched YuWon with keen interest. A beautiful angel with glowing blonde hair was the owner of the said eyes. The angel, known as Seraphina, leaned forward, smiling.


    "Well, well, well," she mumbled. "Who would have thought a mere mortal could fight with such tenacity? He''s not bad-looking either."


    Seraphina twirled her hair, trying to remember thest time a mortal intrigued her. As YuWon left the terrace, Seraphina wondered what it would be like to meet YuWon face to face.


    "I wonder if he''ll survive long enough to meet me," she said. "If he does, it could be... interesting."


    With a final, lingering nce at YuWon, Seraphina spread her wings and rose higher into the sky, disappearing from view.

 Chapter 5: Checkpoint!

    It was a usual day when they received the message about picking sses. Most of them thought it was a prank by the new teacher. But within seconds, an explosion shook the ground, clearing any doubts they had.


    Before they could gather themselves after that, the corridors were filled with screams as goblins descended upon the unprepared students and teachers. The shock factor gave the monsters plenty of time to attack and kill people.


    Within moments, the walls were smeared with blood. Limbs and half-eaten corpses could be seen everywhere. But the girls had it worse. While the males were killed, most women were dragged into unknown corners, their fates remained unknown.


    In one ssroom, a group of students had hastily constructed a makeshift barrier in front of the door. The students hastily piled desks and chairs high, creating a flimsy blockade.


    A few students stood guard nearby, holding whatever weapons they could find¡ªbroom handles, broken chair legs, and even a fire extinguisher.


    The rest of the students, who didn''t pick a ss in time, had huddled in the corner, their faces pale with fear. They switched off the lights and all appliances to avoid getting the goblin''s attention on them.


    But it wasn''t the appliances that would get their attention. Among them were several corpses, both belonging to humans and goblins. Their blood was enough to attract monsters.


    Meanwhile, the wounded were on the floor, wrapped with torn cloth as makeshift bandages. But they needed professional help if they were going to survive.


    The crude first aid applied to them was barely effective against the deep, festering wounds left by the goblins'' weapons.


    "We need to wait for the police or army," said a tall boy named Min-Joon, who had taken charge.


    Even though he was the one in charge, his voice trembled as he tried to sound brave.


    "We can''t let the monsters get in again."


    The others nodded, but deep down they knew it was only a matter of time before their barrier copsed, and the goblin would have a field day killing them all.


    As if on cue, they heard goblins outside the door, trying to break in. The barrier shook as the goblins pounded against it, growling as the scent of blood made them frantic.


    "They''reing!" a girl cried, gripping her broom handle tighter, channeling the only skill she had into her broom.


    "Stay strong," Min-Joon ordered, though his own hands were shaking.


    Eventually, the barrier gave way, and the students with weapons braced themselves for the inevitable. Just as the barrier copsed and the goblins poured in, a figure appeared behind them.


    It was YuWon. He moved between the goblins, dodging the attacks like he knew when and where those green bastards would attack him.


    Not only that, he was dispatching the goblins with ease with a sword. Goblins fell left and right as they could not keep up with his strikes.


    YuWon''s presence came as a surprise to the students. He was well known as a pariah and rarely anyone had been kind to him. So why was he going to such an extent and saving them?


    Moreover, he seemed to have done this a hundred times before. For the rest of the students, killing a single goblin was a herculean task, but YuWon couldn''t have made it look easier. He finished thest goblin by severing its head and turned to face the students.


    While everyone in the ss looked relieved, Min-Joon looked at YuWon with suspicion.


    "Why are you here?" he asked.


    Without a word, YuWon grabbed a goblin dagger from the floor and threw it with incredible uracy. The dagger flew past Min-Joon and embedded itself in the goblin''s head, killing it instantly.


    The goblin fell back out of the window, and Min-Joon turned around, his eyes wide in horror. If YuWon had hesitated in throwing the dagger even for a second, Min-Joon would be having lunch with his ancestors.


    "You... you knew it was there?" he stammered, looking back at YuWon.


    The students stared at YuWon, their fear momentarily reced by awe and gratitude. So far, they had only been hiding away, and it was the first time they had seen someone fight with those creatures so easily.


    But despite their pitiful look, YuWon didn''t bother replying and headed inside. Everyone was looking at him, but he couldn''t be bothered by them.


    Min-Joon stepped forward. Despite whatever rumors there were about YuWon before, he couldn''t just ignore the man who had saved him.


    "Thank you," he said. "We were... we didn''t know what to do."


    YuWon gave a brief nod, staring out of the window to check for more monsters. Sure enough, he could see packs of goblins roaming around, looking for prey.


    Remaining inside is the obvious choice here. But, I''m confident this zone boss isn''t hiding in this building.


    "Can you say something¡ª" Min-Joon mumbled.


    "If you want to survive, don''t stay in one ce for long," YuWon advised, looking into his stats. "And learn how to fight first. Not everyone woulde rushing to your rescue."


    [Would you like to create a checkpoint here? It will consume 50 respawn points.]


    [Yes/No]


    "Yes."


    [Remaining Respawn Points: 702/1000]


    [You checkpoint set. The host will respawn here upon dying.]


    YuWon breathed a sigh of relief. It had been a hassle to get here, and he died over a dozen times, just to make this checkpoint. But despite that, he was still worried.


    Although he had managed to reduce [Respawn] skill cost to 8 points, he was dying too often and the 3 points he got for killing the beginner monsters wasn''t cutting it anymore. He wanted to upgrade his skills more, but couldn''t because of the level limit.


    At least I can look for Hoon and his bastardckeys now. But where do I start?


    As YuWon turned to leave, Min-Joon got into his face.


    "Would you¡ª"


    "No," YuWon interrupted.


    It was obvious what Min-Joon wanted to talk about. They had a lot of injured people and safely moving around with them wasn''t possible. Min-Joon probably wanted YuWon''s help either to protect them or to get some supplies for them.


    However, he wasn''t interested in that. Why would he be helping others? None of them ever helped him and treated him like absolute filth.


    The only reason he even saved them was because they were in the right ce and had built up decent defenses.


    Plus, if the goblins attacked, they would go after the weaker ones first, giving YuWon plenty of time to sneak up or attack. In other words, it was a safe ce for him to use as a checkpoint.


    "Come on! You need to help¡ª" Min-Joon instinctively grabbed YuWon''s arm and pulled him back.


    "Alright, I''ll help you."


    "Thank¡ª"


    "But what''s in it for me?"


    "Eh? What do you mean? In time of need, we should stick together."


    Upon hearing that, YuWon couldn''t hold back any longer andughed hysterically. Everyone looked around puzzled, thinking something was wrong with him.


    But then the next moment, YuWon grabbed Min-Joon''s cor and effortlessly lifted him into the air.


    "Listen up, you righteous piece of shit," YuWon whispered in his ears. "This isn''t the world you''re thinking of. Here, the weak will die, and you will too if you keep dragging them along."


    He continued, "It''s called survival of the fittest for a reason. So if you want my help, you better make it worth my time, or you''re on your own."


    Min-Joon stared at him in disbelief and so did everyone else. They were there, trying to help each other survive and there was YuWon, who couldn''t care less about anyone but himself.


    "I should have known better than to expect anything from the likes of you," Min-Joon retorted, looking at YuWon with disgust.


    However, instead of being offended, YuWonughed and dropped Min-Joon on the ground.


    "It''ll be interesting to see how long you stick to your morals," he said, shaking his head. "But now, if you don''t mind, I''ve got monsters to kill."


    "You bastard!"


    With that, he was about to leave when Min-Joon jumped back up and kicked YuWon, aiming for his head. However, YuWon grabbed his leg without flinching and sighed.


    "Big mistake."


    With no hesitation, YuWon shoved Min-Joon out of the window, holding him by his leg so he dangled in the air.


    "Let''s see if killing people gets me any rewards," YuWon growled.

 Chapter 6: Life Lesson

    Everyone in the room froze after seeing YuWon''s reaction. It was uncharacteristic of Min-Joon to attack someone unprovoked. But they all saw it themselves. He was the one who kicked YuWon.


    However, they were even more surprised by what happened next. YuWon, the weak and pathetic YuWon, grabbed Min-Joon''s leg and carried him to the windows like he weighed nothing.


    They all knew YuWon as the quiet outcast who never bothered standing up for himself, the ultimate pushover. That''s why people bullied him so much. But they could feel like something inside him had changed, and it wasn''t good news when the quiet kid finally snapped.


    "Listen closely because I''ll only say this once," YuWon hissed. "I don''t have the time or patience to deal with you."


    He continued, "Be a goodd and try not to get in my way or I won''t mind killing you along with those monsters. Hell, killing you would be much easier than dealing with them either way."


    The next moment, YuWon opened two fingers, leaving Min-Joon dangled with support from his thumb and two remaining fingers. He did it to make sure Min-Joon knew he wasn''t joking about it.


    "I-I''m sorry!" Min-Joon yelled, begging for his life.


    Down below, some goblins seemed to have noticed him dangling in the air and were waiting for him to drop. Even if the fall didn''t kill him, those hungry bastards would finish the job. But YuWon had a different idea.


    He turned towards the crowd inside the ssroom and then back to Min-Joon. An evil mind came to his mind, but it was more to teach thetter an important lesson.


    "I''ll pull you back up," YuWon announced. "As long as someone you saved volunteered to change ces with you."


    "W-Wait... are you for real?" Min-Joonughed. "I-I''m sure someone... will be willing to... help me!"


    Unfortunately for Min-Joon, the students watched in stunned silence, not daring to make a move or YuWon might turn on them instead. As d as they were for Min-Joon''s help earlier, they would not sacrifice themselves for his sake. No one in their right mind would.


    "To think you wanted to help them... tsk, misced heroism would get you killed here," YuWon shook his head. "Don''t me me for this."


    "No! I beg you! Don''t do this!" Min-Joon yelled. "Someone please help me!"


    Min-Joon begged, but his voice fell on deaf ears. No one wasing for his help.


    "You should have minded your business, Joon. See you in the afterlife."


    Despite his threat, YuWon didn''t want to kill Min-Joon, but it would be a lie if he wasn''t curious about the rewards he might get for it. Every time he did something unusual, he got rewarded for it. So he wondered how big the reward would be if he killed another human instead of a monster.


    Moreover, hearing Min-Joon''s desperate pleas wasn''t doing him any help. If anything, it was making YuWon feel powerful, something he hadn''t felt before... not in thest year at least.


    Without even thinking, YuWon loosened his grip on Min-Joon''s leg. Min-Joon noticed this and began crying like a baby, even wetting his pants in fear of being dropped. Unfortunately for him, all the pee flowed downwards, soaking him in his piss.


    "No... No... Please! I''LL DO ANYTHING FOR YOU!" Min-Joon yelled as his pee mixed with his tears.


    A momentter, YuWon pulled him back before throwing him into the ssroom. Everyone covered their nose because Min-Joon hadn''t just pissed in his pants... he had done a lot more damage in there.


    However, Min-Joon didn''t care about all that. He was just happy to be alive and startedughing like crazy before heading toward YuWon and was about to grab his leg when YuWon kicked him while keeping his eyes on the screen.


    [Awakeners cannot kill other Awakenersduring the first tutorial round, and any attempts to do so will result in strict measures being taken against the individual in question.]


    YuWon processed the information quickly, but didn''t let it show on his face. It was an unexpected and infuriating rule, but he didn''t want others to know about the restriction, either.


    If people learn about it, they won''t hesitate to create problems for me.


    But YuWon was not only pissed about the stupid rule for that reason. He was angry because he had to postpone his ns to kill Hoon.


    I need to kill this zone boss and end the tutorial fast. Once it''s done, I can take my sweet time killing those bastards. For now, let''s pretend to be Buddha''s incarnation and preach forgiveness.


    With that thought, YuWon turned to face the crowd with a smile, before directing his attention to Min-Joon.


    "Do you get it now?" he asked. "In this world, no one will put their lives at risk for you, no matter what you do for them. Either way, don''t think about testing my patience again."


    Min-Joon looked at him, caressing his cheeks. But instead of hostility, YuWon saw reverence in his eyes. YuWon knew what those eyes meant and wasn''t interested in carrying someone along in the apocalypse.


    Not wanting to deal with them anymore, YuWon turned and left the room. What happened to them was none of his concerns anymore.


    However, as soon as he left, something inside Min-Joon changed and he snatched the extinguisher from a girl who had been using it as her weapon.


    "Hey!"


    The girl protested, but Min-Joon ignored her and walked towards the door.


    "Where are you going!? You can''t just leave us here!"


    Everyone in the room panicked, since Min-Joon was the only one in the group who knew how to fight.


    Min-Joon stopped for a moment before turning around to face them, probably for thest time. He looked at the people he was willing to fight YuWon for before shaking his head.


    "YuWon was right. In this world, good deeds don''t matter," he said, stepping outside the gate. "Besides, it''s better to stick around YuWon than stay here with backstabbers like all of you!"


    The students looked taken aback by his words, but they couldn''t refute his im. Without waiting for a response, Min-Joon stormed out of the room hoping to change his clothes first before joining up with YuWon.

 Chapter 7: Meeting A... Nec-

    "This sword feels more like a club now," YuWon shook his head, tossing the sword aside. "To think it got dull so soon. At least I got some gold and respawn points from hunting."


    [Respawn points remaining: 762/1000]


    [Gold: 5880]


    YuWon entered another ssroom, but the interior remained the same... filled with half-eaten corpses and blood. Ignoring all that, YuWon grabbed a chair and dragged it outside.


    "Something is weird..." he mumbled, sitting down.


    As he nced out of the corridor window, YuWon noticed something. Although his watch showed that hours had passed since the nightmare began, yet the sun remained frozen in ce, unwilling to budge.


    Did Earth stop moving?


    That was the first thought in YuWon''s mind, but he quickly shut that possibility down. If that happened, they''d be dead even before the goblins could hunt them down.


    "The time... seems to be stuck outside the campus," YuWon mumbled, leaning further in the chair. "It''s the only exnation I got."


    Even though the time had stopped, it didn''t mean he didn''t feel any fatigue. Earlier he was respawning often, so he didn''t get tired. But now that he had been fighting non-stop for over two hours, his body had begunining about it.


    "Taking a break won''t hurt anyone," YuWon said, closing his eyes. "In the worst scenario, I''ll just respawn."


    He had barely fallen asleep when he heard strange footsteps. At first, he thought another goblin scout party had found him. However, he realized that wasn''t the case.


    The goblins weren''t careless enough to make so much noise. Quickly hiding behind the wall, YuWon peeked towards the stairs.


    Is that a skeleton?


    YuWon blinked twice and even pinched himself. But he wasn''t dreaming. It really was a skeleton, roughly the same size as the goblins he had been fighting so far. Not only that, it also carried the same dagger as those goblins.


    It seems to be looking for something, or just looking around to ensure it''s alone.


    Although he seemed calm, YuWon was taken aback. So far, he had only seen goblins, fought them, and killed them. In other words, he had gotten used to fighting them and could predict their moves. But he had never encountered a skeleton before.


    But then a weird thought popped up in his head. What if the skeleton is the zone monster and finding it was difficult because, well... it seemed to move all over the ce?


    Zone boss or not, I should kill it for the rewards, at least.


    He crouched lower, using the wall as cover, and noiselessly picked up the chair.


    [Achievement: You killed a monster with that!? is in effect.]


    [Awakener''s Strength, Endurance, and Defense increased by 20%]


    "This chair might just be better than that damned sword either way."


    As soon as the skeleton turned its back towards YuWon, he charged at it with the chair. Upon hearing his footsteps, the skeleton turned and raised its dagger, but it was toote.


    YuWon swung the chair with all his might. The metallic back of the chair banged against the skeleton''s head, shattering it into pieces. A momentter, the skeleton''s bones crumbled to the ground in a heap.


    With a smile, YuWon waited for some achievement or gold, but strangely, nothing happened. There was no notification, nothing.


    "What the hell? I got nothing?" YuWon stood there staring at the fallen bones.


    "What did you do to Mickey!?"


    Someone yelled, prompting YuWon to look down the stairs. Just a few steps below was a girl in a tracksuit with a scythe strapped to her back.


    But she wasn''t alone. Around her were seven more skeletons, staring at him with their empty eyes... or at least where their eyes would have been. The girl pushed past him, her blonde ponytail waving around as she did.


    All the while, YuWon stood there, confused. Why were those skeletons following her, but more importantly, why weren''t they attacking them? After all, they were monsters! It was their job to hunt humans.


    "Are these... yours?" YuWon asked, scratching his head.


    "Of course, they are mine, fucking dumbass!" the girl replied, holding the broken bones. "Why did you kill him?"


    "Him?" YuWon mumbled, looking at the skeleton''s pelvis. "It looks like a they/them situation to me."


    The girl shot him a dirty look before pulling out her weapon. "Why did you kill him!?"


    "Why? Look around!" YuWon replied, raising his hands. "There are monsters everywhere. How the fuck was I supposed to know your Mickey wouldn''t kill me?"


    The girl sighed, shaking her head. For the moment, she didn''t seem angry, just upset at the loss of a... skeleton. YuWon didn''t know what would happen next. However, the next moment, her intentions became obvious.


    The skeletons surrounded him, their weapons at the ready. The girl slowly walked up to him before staring at him with crimson eyes.


    "You killed my puppet," she hissed. "So you''ll be the one to rece it."


    "Skeleton puppets? So you are a necromancer..."


    The girl sighed loudly. But a momentter she raised her scythe, pointing it directly at YuWon.


    "How do you know about my ss?"


    However, YuWon didn''t reply. Instead, he rushed forward before the girl could react. She tried swinging the scythe, but YuWon quickly disarmed her.


    "How¡ª" the girl said but was interrupted when YuWon grabbed her by the neck from behind.


    "Rx, will you?" he whispered in her ear. "Ever heard about Yolo leveling? It''s quite famous Webtoon and the protagonist there has simr powers to yours."


    He continued, "Besides, you''re the one advertising your ss with the skeletons and scythe. Why are you getting mad at me for it?"


    "¡­"


    A secondter, he released her and, like loyal pets, the skeletons jumped between them, ready to strike.


    "Can you call off your Mickeys before I destroy more of them?" YuWon said, picking up two of Mickey''s bones and taking a swing. "Also, I''m taking this. I kinda need a weapon."


    "What''s your name?" the girl asked, instructing the skeletons to stand down.


    "...you''re better off not knowing it," YuWon replied before throwing the bone past her, hitting a Goblin in the head. "There. Consider us even. A fresh corpse for you to raise a new Mickey. Goodbye."

 Chapter 8: Respawn... Again

    After being burned by everyone he ever knew, YuWon would trust no one but himself. Not in the apocalypse, at least. However, a little thing called fate had other ns.


    All that yelling between them had garnered the attention of more than one goblin. As he was about to leave, YuWon saw a group of seven goblins headed their way. Dealing with them wouldn''t have been a problem if it weren''t for the thing behind them.


    The creature looked like a goblin but was thrice as big as others and was wielding two spiked wooden clubs soaked in blood.


    "What is that?" YuWon mumbled.


    "We got to run!" the girl yelled before running up the stairs. "You cannot beat that thing. I tried and failed multiple times and now that ugly fucker is following me everywhere."


    Despite the urgency in the girl''s voice, YuWon had no intention of running away. What if the creature was the zone boss? From what the girl told him, it was strong and looked different from the rest. In other words, the perfect candidate for the zone boss.


    Even if it wasn''t the zone boss, it was an unfamiliar creature, and killing it may give him some kind of reward. YuWon would not pass on that.


    "What are you doing!?" the girl asked. "Do you have a death wish?"


    "I used to," YuWon replied. "But not anymore."


    With that, he charged towards the goblins. The bigger goblin roared, prompting the others to rush ahead.


    As the first goblin lunged at him, YuWon swung the bone with all his might, smashing it into the creature''s skull. The goblin''s blood sttered everywhere, but it was just the beginning.


    Then, out of nowhere, a goblin came at YuWon, but he kicked it in the face, sending it flying into the wall.


    The girl was stunned. She hadn''t seen anyone fight the goblins so well. Even her skeletons could only kill goblins because of their numbers. But YuWon wasn''t like that. He fought them alone and with no fear of death.


    "Just who is he..." the girl muttered, staring on.


    Meanwhile, YuWon leaped over another goblin, hitting it in the head while he was at it. Another unlucky goblin tried to stab him from behind, but YuWon was ready for it.


    He knocked the goblin down by sweeping its legs. The goblin fell t on its back and YuWon, without a shred of hesitation, stomped on his chest, killing it.


    Within moments, the seven goblins were gone. But even if they weren''t, YuWon didn''t give them another thought. His sole attention was on the tall goblin, who looked amused.


    "¡­he''s smiling? Well, not for long."


    YuWon charged at the beast, who immediately began swinging his clubs. The attack came faster than he had expected and YuWon barely ducked under the first club as it went whistling past his head.


    But he had no time to celebrate and rolled to the side to avoid being crushed by the other club. The club hit the wall, shattering it.


    It''s stronger than I thought.


    YuWon looked at the creature. He had to knock it off its feet. Once it was down, it would take a while for something that big to get back up. With that thought, YuWon targeted its feet.


    But the goblin was quick, quicker than YuWon. It jumped back, as if it expected YuWon to go for its legs and brought down his clubs on him.


    "Fuck!"


    YuWon cursed, diving through the broken wall to avoid being crushed by the clubs. The goblin''s clubs smashed into the ground, cracking it. But miraculously, the floor didn''t give in.


    For the first time in a while, YuWon felt scared for his life. The goblin''s strength made him forget he could respawn afterward.


    Eventually, he snapped out of daze and focused on more obvious problem, such as his weapon. Given the creature''s size, he didn''t think his bone weapon would do much to it. But he had nothing else to use.


    Meanwhile, the goblin entered the ssroom through the hole it had made. YuWon was looking around for anything better than his bone club to fight the creature. But his search got interrupted when the goblin swung its club.


    YuWon dodged and ran around the ssroom like a rat stuck in a snake''s cage. But slowly, he was getting tired, and the goblin sensed it.


    With a grin, the goblin feinted a swing, prompting YuWon to jump sideways, only for the second club to m into his side.


    The spiked club pierced his skin as he got flung out of the ssroom, crashing into the walls of the corridor. YuWon could feel his cracked bones and knew it was over for him. Still, he gritted his teeth and stood up.


    I need to find its weakness¡­ before respawning.


    YuWon couldn''t understand why the fight was so difficult. He had already reached the level limit of the tutorial, so why he was being overwhelmed by one monster?


    However, he didn''t get much time to think about it as the monster came charging towards him, both clubs raised high above its head.


    YuWon knew he had to move or he''ll die. But his body didn''t respond... he had too many broken bones to do anything.


    A momentter, the clubs came crashing down and everything went ck.


    [Respawning at thest known checkpoint. Please wait.]


    [Respawn Points: 775/1000]


    YuWon opened his eyes, and he was back in the ssroom, with him holding Min-Joon''s leg as he dangled outside. The sight of scared students greeted him along with Min-Joon, begging for his life.


    "No... No... Please! I''LL DO ANYTHING FOR YOU!" Min-Joon yelled as he peed his pants.


    YuWon was still reeling in shock but quickly gathered his thoughts and got into the role of a psychopath.


    "Anything you say?" he mumbled.


    "ANYTHING!"


    "Fine," YuWon replied, throwing Min-Joon back inside.


    YuWon had thought of a n. If one level 10 awakener wasn''t enough to defeat that goblin, maybe he needed more people to take it down.


    Teaming up with strangers wasn''t something YuWon wanted, but if he wanted to stop the goblin from causing problems, teaming up with others was the best option. And his first recruit was Min-Joon.


    "This will be fun," YuWon smirked, looking at Min-Joon. "But let''s get you out of those clothes first."


    "I-I know I said anything," Min-Joon stuttered, covering himself with his hands. "But I don''t swing that way! If you want, I can be your wingman!"


    "...what the hell is wrong with you?"

 Chapter 9: Berserk

    "Ah, it feels good!" Min-Joon eximed, stepping out of the ssroom in fresh clothes. "Though a shower would have been better."


    "Why settle for a shower? Just get a jacuzzi." YuWon retorted. "Come on, we got some work to do."


    Min-Joon did as he was told, even though he wasn''t too keen on being spotted with YuWon.


    He might be a weirdo, but he is strong. Being by his side is the obvious choice.


    That''s what Min-Joon thought. Little did he know YuWon''s n didn''t involve in Min-Joon being safe, not even for a second.


    "What''s your level and ss?" YuWon casually asked.


    Min-Joon hesitated to tell it. After all, if he talked about his ss and abilities, people could learn about his strengths and weaknesses. But one re from YuWon and he immediately spilled the beans.


    "Uh, Warrior," he said. "Currently level three."


    "Better than I thought," YuWon nodded. "What about skills?"


    "Well, I have a skill called Berserk," Min-Joon mumbled. "But I, uh, haven''t used it before."


    "Don''t worry," YuWon smiled eerily. "You''ll be using it a lot from now on."


    Min-Joon was confused. He wasn''t nning on fighting those monsters, but said nothing. YuWon was crazy. Who knew how he would react if he knew Min-Joon was nning to leech off of him?


    "What about your ss¡ª"


    "None of your concern."


    "It''s not fair you know about my ss¡ª"


    "Want me to throw you out? Keep talking and I''ll do just that."


    "I-I''m fine as is..."


    The duo walked towards the stairs, but Min-Joon realized someone had made a barrier to stop the monsters from getting there. He thought YuWon wanted to check the barrier and then they''ll head outside. But to his surprise, YuWon stood there as if waiting for something.


    "Pull that chair," YuWon instructed, pointing at a random chair.


    "Why¡ª?"


    "Pull out or else¡ª"


    "Again with the sexual remark¡ª"


    "You got a death wish?"


    "Fine! Fine! I got it..."


    Shaking his head, Min-Joon walked to the barrier and pulled the chair as asked. But when he did that, the entire structure copsed, revealing half a dozen goblins behind it, waiting to pounce on the next thing they saw.


    "YuWon... sir, what is the meaning of this!?" Min-Joon yelled, jumping back.


    After getting no response, Min-Joon turned around, only to see YuWon had disappeared. With no way out, he ran down the corridors, the goblins hot on his trail.


    "You need to level up!" YuWon yelled, standing behind the copsed barrier. "Go around the corridor once and get back here. I''ll help you deal with those critters, then."


    "Fuck you and your help!" Min-Joon yelled back, not stopping as the goblins chased after him.


    "Fine by me," YuWon shrugged and pulled out his sword.


    If there was anything YuWon had learned, it was the human tendency to work its best when under life-threatening situations.


    He was in a worse position than Min-Joon at the beginning, but he adapted to the changes and made the most of it. That''s what he hoped Min-Joon would do, too.


    And if he dies, well... I can always respawn. After killing a few goblins, that is.


    While Min-Joon learned about the goblins, YuWon began sharpening his de with the best thing around him: the stair railings. While he did that, Min-Joon hadpleted the round around the corridor and was heading back towards the stairs.


    "YuWon!" Min-Joon shouted, running towards him. "I can''t keep this up forever!"


    However, YuWon didn''t reply. Instead, he squatted down, waiting like a predator.


    "Jump!" YuWon called out.


    Without thinking anything, Min-Joon jumped over YuWon, showing his athletic ability. YuWon swung his de rapidly, severing the legs of the goblins. They toppled over each other, writhing in pain.


    Min-Joon turned around to see why the goblins were howling suddenly.


    "What the hell..."


    Min-Joon couldn''t believe his eyes as he cautiously approached YuWon, who handed him the sword.


    "Here," YuWon said. "Finish them off."


    "What?"


    "You want to level up or not?"


    Min-Joon gulped his saliva. He was thinking of mooching off of YuWon without getting his hands dirty. But it didn''t seem like he had any choice.


    It wasn''t like he hadn''t killed them before. But that situation was different... he had to kill them or else they would have done the same to him.


    "You''re too weak," YuWon scoffed. "Move, I''ll do it."


    "No!" Min-Joon said, pping himself. "I''ll... do it."


    Seeing the goblins in pain reminded him of how they had killed his friends and ssmates. They were in pain too, just like these goblins, but they never showed mercy to humans. So why was he hesitating?


    With that thought, Min-Joon raised the sword over his head and stabbed the first goblin in the chest, twisting the de until the goblin was dead. But as he did, something inside him snapped.


    He continued stabbing and slicing at the goblins thaty before him. Min-Joonughed maniacally while wildly swinging the sword. Limbs and pieces of goblin flesh flew everywhere as he hacked away like a madman.


    He had lost all sense and kept attacking the corpses. Both his clothes and the floor became covered in goblin blood. All the while, YuWon kept watching him from the sideline, smiling.


    Berserk, huh? It''s an apt name for such a skill.


    "Enough!" YuWon called out. "We can find others for you to chop."


    Unfortunately, Min-Joon''s bloodlust caused him to see YuWon as an enemy. He raised the sword, ready to attack the only living thing in sight.


    "Really? You''re going to attack me now?" YuWon shook his head as Min-Joon charged at him.


    As Min-Joon got closer, YuWon grabbed his arm and threw him over his shoulder before mming him on the ground, using Min-Joon''s momentum against him.


    Not willing to give up, Min-Joon struggled, trying to get up, but YuWon pinned him down.


    "Easy now," YuWon whispered. "Breathe and calm down!"


    It took a while but, Min-Joon''s rage slowly faded. The bloodlust in his eyes disappeared over time, reced by confusion and exhaustion.


    "What am I doing on the floor?" he asked. "And why... wait a minute. I already told you I don''t swing that way! I know I have a fat ass, but that doesn''t mean--"


    "For fuck''s sake, shut it!" YuWon yelled, getting off him. "You''re the one who attacked me, remember?"


    "Uh... what''s going on here?"


    YuWon looked up and saw the necromancer girl standing there with her skeleton soldiers.

 Chapter 10: Round Two, Fight! (1)

    "About time you showed up," YuWon said, casually walking to the girl.


    "Stay right there," the girl warned, raising her scythe.


    A momentter, her skeleton soldiers jumped in, forming a barrier between YuWon and her.


    "Easy. I just want to help you get rid of the monster chasing you."


    The girl raised her eyebrow when YuWon mentioned the monster. As far as she knew, the monster had only shown up around her. As such, it was unlikely anyone else would know about it.


    "How do you know about that? Are you some kind of oracle or something?"


    "An oracle, huh?" YuWon chuckled, nodding along. "Yeah, something like that."


    Unknowingly, the girl had given a way for YuWon to justify knowing the future. It was the perfect fake ss for someone like him.


    Before the girl could respond, Min-Joon stumbled up beside YuWon, his face flushed. He stared at the girl, unable to form any coherent words.


    "Y-you¡­ you''re¡­ uh¡­ I mean, do you¡­ uh¡­" Min-Joon stuttered.


    Watching his reaction, YuWon raised an eyebrow. "What is wrong with you now?"


    "Do you even know who she is, YuWon?" Min-Joon finally managed to say.


    Being an outcast, YuWon was too busy focusing on survival than wondering what was happening around the campus. But by the way, Min-Joon was talking about the girl, it seemed she was a hotshot, probably the daughter of some rich guy.


    "Not really. Should I?"


    Upon hearing YuWon''s words, Min-Joon''s eyes widened in disbelief. He couldn''t believe someone didn''t know about Korea''s leading track and field idol.


    "She''s Lee Soo-Ah! She''s set to represent South Korea in the next Olympics. A literal track and field star, the greatest prodigy¡ª!"


    Min-Joon continued yapping about her, but neither Soo-Ah nor YuWon were paying any attention to him. But YuWon saw Soo-Ah smile as Min-Joon introduced her.


    "That''s right. But I''m guessing all that doesn''t really matter anymore, does it?"


    "I mean, watching people run for medals with monsters on their ass would be a funny sight."


    Soo-Ah frowned as he said that. She knew the possibility of her showing her skills on the grandest stage of them all was little to nothing.


    Even so, she had trained her entire life for that and it wasn''t something she could just forget about, like YuWon said.


    But for that to happen, she had to first make it out of there and deal with the monsters. Unfortunately, that meant facing the hobgoblin.


    So far, she has tried various tactics to defeat the beast, but all of them failed, leaving her with no option but to run.


    It seemed like the monster was obsessed with her and would only go after her, even if there were an entire group of humans right in front of it.


    But can we defeat it?


    Soo-Ah looked at YuWon. His torn baggy clothes made it seem like has had a tough time with the goblins. As for Min-Joon... it didn''t seem like there was much he could do.


    As much as she didn''t want to put her trust in anyone, there was little Soo-Ah could do on her own regarding the monster. But maybe... their numbers could help her defeat the hobgoblin.


    "What level are you two?" Soo-Ah asked them.


    "Level... 4," Min-Joon murmured. "As for him? Don''t bother, he won''t answer."


    "He will," Soo-Ah said, staring into YuWon''s eyes.


    "Does it matter?" YuWon replied.


    "It matters if you want me to fight alongside you," Soo-Ah replied. "I''m not teaming up with someone weaker than me, even if they are an oracle."


    "Level eight," YuWon lied.


    He knew if he told them the truth, it would raise questions. After all, it wouldn''t have been possible for someone to reach that level so soon. But even though he lied, Soo-Ah didn''t believe him.


    "Huh? You told her, but not me?" Min-Joon acted offended. "As I thought! You''re a womanizer¡ª"


    YuWon took a deep breath before grabbing Min-Joon by the back of his neck and pulling him towards him.


    "If you don''t stop yapping, I just might feed you to the hobgoblin."


    "U-Understood, boss!"


    However, Soo-Ah had no interest in their bickering and shoved Min-Joon aside, getting into YuWon''s face.


    "You''re lying. To reach level 8, you''d have to kill hundreds of goblins, and there hasn''t been enough time for that."


    "Are you sure about that?" YuWon asked, pointing at the sun and then tapped on his wristwatch. "How long do you think the sun''s been stuck up there?"


    Soo-Ah looked up and sighed. She had been too busy running away from the hobgoblin to pay attention to the minor details. But it was true.


    While Soo-Ah and Min-Joon were thinking about it, YuWon quietly marked a second checkpoint.


    He hadn''t nned to do this at first, but after seeing how hard it was to make them believe him, he figured it would be easier to just set up the checkpoint rather than deal with all that trouble again.


    [Checkpoint marked!]


    [The host with respawn here upon death.]


    [Respawn Points: 725/1000]


    Now then, this should be easy... I guess?


    With his preparationsplete, YuWon turned to ask Soo-Ah about the hobgoblin. Since he knew little to nothing about the creature, he was hoping she would have some information about it.


    "Huh? Do you think I''d be running away from it if I knew its weakness?" Soo-Ah shook her head. "You''re the oracle. Shouldn''t you know about these things?"


    "...my powers have certain limitations¡ª" he said, but was interrupted by the thumping footsteps of the hobgoblin.


    The skeletons jumped before Soo-Ah as the hobgoblin appeared with its contingent of goblins.


    "I guess we''ll have to find out about it ourselves," YuWon said, pointing at the skeleton''s arm. "Are you going to use that?"


    "What?" Soo-Ah looked at YuWon, thinking if he was on drugs. "Of course, Mickey will use his hands¡ª"


    However, to her surprise, the skeleton casually ripped off his arm and handed it to YuWon like it was the most normal thing in the world. All the while, Soo-Ah watched on with her jaw dropped.

 Chapter 11: Round Two, Fight! (2)

    "...why do I have to go first!?" Min-Joon yelled as YuWon shoved him ahead. "Why can''t those skeletons go first!?"


    Min-Joon looked at them, but the skeletons gave him a thumbs-up for his noble sacrifice. A momentter, the hobgoblin yelled, prompting the goblins to go ahead as YuWon predicted.


    YuWon had sent Min-Joon first to learn about the hobgoblin''s attack pattern. It was also an ideal time to test the limitations of his [Berserk] skill.


    He would have done the experiment himself, but now that he had pawns to control, he didn''t want to waste his respawn points on needless experiments.


    If he dies, then the skeletons would be next. Though I don''t think Soo-Ah would join them. If things get out of hand, I can respawn and repeat the process until I figure out its weakness. The fucker is going to be defeated either way.


    Meanwhile, Min-Joon swung his de, severing a goblin''s head with ease. As soon as he killed one of them, the look in his eyes changed. Instead of waiting for the goblins to attack him, Min-Joon charged at them, wildly swinging the de while he was at it.


    Min-Joon killed a couple more goblins, but then he got too close to the Hobgoblin, forcing it to react. The monster swung its clubs together, but then YuWon noticed something.


    The swing was slower than he remembered, and even the impact was less explosive. YuWon remembered the hobgoblin''s strike to be powerful enough to crack the floor and shatter the walls. But this time, it barely made a dent in the floor as Min-Joon dodged the attack.


    Something is off...


    The next moment, Min-Joon killed another goblin. As he did that, the hobgoblin''s strike got faster. Suddenly it clicked him. The goblins were the key to hobgoblin''s strength!


    YuWon turned to Soo-Ah before rushing ahead.


    "Keep those goblins busy, but don''t kill them!" he yelled.


    "Don''t kill them? But why?"


    "Just do as I say!"


    First things first, he had to get Min-Joon out of there. Before that berserking maniac killed all the goblins and made the Hobgoblin invincible.


    "Min-Joon! Stop!" YuWon shouted, but Min-Joon didn''t hear him.


    YuWon watched on as Min-Joon killed another, then another, leaving only two out of the seven goblins. YuWon pushed himself to the limit and ran faster. He had to stop him now!


    But Min-Joon was on a killing spree, totally lost in the excitement. Without a shred of hesitance, he brought his weapon down on the sixth goblin, splitting it in half.


    With one goblin left, YuWon looked around, only to find the goblin between Soo-Ah''s skeletons and Min-Joon. Unfortunately, the skeletons couldn''t stop Min-Joon in time, and now all of them were doomed.


    The next moment, the hobgoblin let out a guttural roar, signaling their end. Its muscles bulged as it absorbed the strength and agility of the fallenrades, and now there was no stopping the hobgoblin.


    The massive creature swung one of its clubs with terrifying speed and power, catching Min-Joon in the side. He got smashed through the window, ss breaking all around him as he got thrown out of the building.


    Just like that, Min-Joon was dead.


    YuWon skidded to a halt. He knew there was no point in continuing the farce. They had already lost, and all that was left was to respawn. Meanwhile, the hobgoblin turned to look at YuWon before fixating its eyes on Soo-Ah.


    The hobgoblin smiled, revealing rows of sharp, yellow teeth before licking his lips.


    But then, YuWon ran up to him, before jumping and smacking the creature''s head with Mickey''s arm. YuWon had to die before the hobgoblin did anything to Soo-Ah because he didn''t want to see the creature acting on his impulses toward the girl.


    "Yeah fucking dumbass, I''m still alive!" YuWon smiled, waving at him with Mickey''s hand.


    YuWon wanted the creature''s attention, and now he had it. The hobgoblin didn''t hesitate before swinging at him with its clubs.


    "Dodge!" Soo-Ah yelled, but YuWon had no intention of doing that.


    He stood there, allowing the creature to hit him. The club caught him in the chest and sent him flying backward. The pain was unbearable, and somehow, he was still alive.


    Thankfully, the hobgoblin was already on him. It raised one of its clubs high above its head, smiling as YuWon flipped him off. After all, it was thest time the ugly bastard would kill him.


    The club came down and YuWon felt his bone shatter upon impact. His internal organs were a mess, and he was on the verge of dying. The hobgoblin let out a roar and dered his victory, then stomped on YuWon''s chest just to be sure.


    YuWon smiled, knowing his job was done. But just as he was on hisst breath, he caught a glimpse of Soo-Ah''s skeleton soldiers rushing to his aid. Although touched by the gesture, YuWon had wished they would let the hobgoblin finish its job.


    Still, the skeletons attacked the hobgoblin, but they were no match for it. The hobgoblin swatted them aside like they were nothing, crushing them one by one.


    After destroying the skeletons, it then turned its attention to Soo-Ah herself, who tried to run away, but the hobgoblin was too fast. It grabbed her by the head, lifting her off the ground as she screamed.


    Tears streamed down her face as the hobgoblin smiled, ripping her clothes off before licking her face. A momentter, the hobgoblin dragged her into one of the nearby rooms. Her cries for help echoed through the corridor.


    Fucking bastard... So that''s why... he was chasing her...


    Thest thing YuWon heard was Soo-Ah''s desperate screams, and then everything went silent.


    [Respawning at thest known checkpoint. Please wait.]


    [Respawn Point: 717/1000]

 Chapter 12: Greed Has No Limits

    YuWon scratched his head. No matter how many times he respawned, it made his head fuzzy for a while. But even then, he smiled. After all, he finally knew how to defeat the hobgoblin.


    "I do," YuWon replied, taking away the sword from Min-Joon and giving it to Mickey. "Take this, but can I have your arm?"


    "Uh... Boss?" Min-Joon mumbled. "Do you not trust me¡ª?"


    "Stop with the emotional bullshit," YuWon snapped back, taking the arm instead. "You won''t need it, anyway."


    Min-Joon looked at him, confused. How was he supposed to fight against the monsters without a sword? It wasn''t like he wanted to fight to begin with, but not having a weapon felt strange.


    But for YuWon, he couldn''t trust Min-Joon with the sword. At least, not against an opponent, like the hobgoblin.


    "So here''s the n," YuWon said, swinging the bone club. "Soo-Ah will keep the goblins busy with her skeletons, but don''t kill them. As for Min-Joon, you stay close to Soo-Ah and protect her."


    "Are you sure?" Soo-Ah asked. "Killing the goblins would make the fight easier, wouldn''t it?"


    "I''m the oracle, remember? Do as I say, and it''ll be over before you know it."


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon were skeptical, but they had no option but to trust YuWon and pray he was correct. Meanwhile, YuWon stood before them, staring at the Hobgoblin.


    This won''t be thest time we meet, but it will be the first time I kill you.


    Like before, the hobgoblin roared, ushering its minions to go ahead and get ughtered. But not this time.


    "Go!" YuWon shouted as he charged toward the monsters.


    Following his lead, Soo-Ah instructed the skeletons into action. The goblins rushed to attack, but to their surprise, YuWon just vaulted over them, leaving the skeletons to deal with them.


    The hobgoblin appeared to be taken aback by YuWon''s strategy, but stood its ground. As YuWon got closer, it swung one of its massive clubs in a wide arc. However, the attack was slow and predictable.


    YuWon slid onto the ground, ducking under the hobgoblin''s legs just as the massive club smashed into the wall. With the hobgoblin''s defenses dropped, he swung Mickey''s arm to hit the hobgoblin''s knee with all his might.


    The creature roared in pain before dropping on one knee. Meanwhile, YuWon stopped and turned before running toward the hobgoblin again.


    "Gotcha bitch!"


    With the hobgoblin''s back turned to him, YuWon used its hunched form as a stepping stone as heunched himself over the hobgoblin''s head. With the skeleton arm over his head, he hit the hobgoblin''s head with everything he had.


    A sickening crunch followed the hit as the hobgoblin''s head got deformed. But even after all that, the damned creature wasn''t dead yet.


    Not wanting to waste his time dwelling on it, YuWon hit it again and again. Each blow deformed the hobgoblin''s skull further, but even that wasn''t enough to bring the monster down.


    "Fucking hell... how much will it take to bring this bastard down!?"


    A momentter, the hobgoblin got back to its feet, stumbling around as he swung the clubs. With Mickey using the sword, YuWon needed another weapon to finish the job.


    That''s when YuWon saw an opening and struck the hobgoblin''s shoulder, forcing it to drop a club. Before the hobgoblin could get to it, YuWon snatched the fallen club.


    At first, the club felt strangely heavy, but with the adrenaline coursing in his veins, YuWon managed to lift the club before swinging it to hit the hobgoblin''s head.


    Without wasting another second, YuWon kept hitting the creature. Eventually, the hobgoblin''s head caved in further, with its blood sttering all over YuWon''s face as he kept hitting the creature.


    "Die already!" YuWon shouted, hitting the Hobgoblin''s head for the neenth time.


    Finally, the hobgoblin let out a pitiful groan before copsing to the ground. Wanting to ensure the creature had died, YuWon hit it twice more and finally, a series of notifications popped up before his eyes.


    [You''ve hunted an Elder Hobgoblin! Exp +50%, Gold +100]


    [You have in the Zone Boss! Exp +200%, Gold +500]


    [You have found Hobgoblin''s Cache Key!]


    [You''re the first Awakener to hunt an Intermediate grade monster! Exp +100%, Gold +250]


    [You have leveled up to lvl 13!]


    [Unallocated Attribute points +6]


    [6 additional attribute points gained, because of the achievement .]


    [Sessfully hunted an intermediate boss monster! +20 Respawn points.]


    [Current Respawn points: 737/1000]


    [Please select a bonus Awakener push pack.]


    YuWon panted, signaling the Soo-Ah to kill the goblins which the skeletons promptly did. He wasn''t particrly concerned about not getting respawn points for those kills. Instead, he immediately looked at the rewards he got.


    Exp and gold, the usual stuff. 12 attribute points and twenty respawn points... finally!


    YuWon was happy to find one monster who could fill his respawn counter without having him kill dozens of monsters. Besides, the rewards were quite good. But the one thing that caught his attention was the...


    Hobgoblin''s Cache Key...


    It was a weirdly shaped old rusty key. But that wasn''t all. When YuWon picked it up, another notification shed before his eyes.


    [Hobgoblin''s Cache Key]


    Description: An old, rusty key that opens the hobgoblin''s secret treasure room. It can guide its owner to the cache and let them choose one out of the seven rewards kept there.


    One out of seven rewards, huh... Interesting.


    Just then Soo-Ah and Min-Joon came running towards YuWon, worried that he might have been injured.


    "Did you get the rewards too?" YuWon asked, returning Mickey''s arm.


    "Yeah!" Soo-Ah nodded in excitement. "I can''t believe I''m level 10 already! I even got a new skill!"


    "What about you?"


    "I got nothing..." Min-Joon replied, sulking.


    YuWon nodded while getting up. It made sense for Min-Joon to not get any reward. After all, he did nothing against the monsters. But it wasn''t like he wouldn''t get another chance to get some rewards.


    "So what now?" Soo-Ah asked as YuWon leaned against the window.


    "Now... we do this again."


    "What do you¡ª YuWon!"


    Before anyone could say or do anything, YuWon jumped out of the window, plummeting to his death.


    [Respawning at thest known checkpoint. Please wait.]


    [Respawn Point: 729/1000]

 Chapter 13: Invincible? My Ass!

    [You''ve hunted a Berserk Hobgoblin! Exp +100%, Gold +300]


    [You have in the Zone Boss! Exp +100%, Gold +500]


    [You have found Hobgoblin''s Cache Key!]


    [You have leveled up to lvl 19!]


    [Sessfully hunted an intermediate boss monster! +25 Respawn points.]


    [Current Respawn points: 989/1000]


    I''m stupid, aren''t I?


    YuWon sighed as he got the key again. Initially, he thought by respawning and killing the hobgoblin repeatedly, he could gain all seven keys and get all the rewards. But his stupid brain forgot one important detail.


    Every time he respawned everything apart from his gold, Exp, and attributes got reset when he died. In other words, he couldn''t have more than one cache key at any time.


    As frustrating as it was, YuWon didn''t dwell on it. After all, he leveled up quite a bit. That was enough of a reward for him. On top of that, he got to upgrade his skills and now respawning only costs 7 points while his checkpoint skill now had a 7-hour cooldown, unlike 8 before.


    Killing goblins gives me 5 points now, hobgoblin gives 25. Not bad.


    With the counter nearly filled up, YuWon didn''t think he needed to do another run. ying the hobgoblin was fun, but after six times, it got too easy for him.


    YuWon wanted a challenge and took the battle to the next level. How? By fighting the hobgoblin in its [invincible] state. It was unlike any fight before.


    The entire floor had turned into a pile of rubble from the berserk hobgoblin''s attacks. Soo-Ah almost got killed trying to run interference on her own, but thankfully, Min-Joon saved her.


    And after all that, YuWon was standing victorious over the corpse of the fallen monster.


    Unfortunately, he couldn''t say the same about his clothes. They were in tatters and soaked in blood. Before doing anything, he needed new clothes and possibly a shower.


    As much as I would like to sleep, now is not the time for that.


    With that thought, he jumped off the monster''s corpse, only to be greeted by another notification.


    [You have earned a new achievement!]


    [Title: You call that Invincible?]


    [Description: Defeat the Berserk Hobgoblin during the tutorial.]


    [Effect: The awakener''s stats will increase by 20% when fighting an intermediate or above-ranked monster.]


    YuWon smiled, knowing that the trouble he went through didn''t go to waste. Now when facing elite monsters, he could get up to a 40% increase in his stats from all his achievements.


    As Soo-Ah and Min-Joon approached him, YuWon took a quick look at his stats and used the unallocated attribute points.


    +++


    Name: Kang YuWon


    ss: Revenant


    Sub-ss: None


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 19


    Experience: 17.2%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 465 / 465


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 135 / 135


    ¡ª Stamina: 30 / 30


    Core Stats:[+0 unallocated points]


    ¡ª Strength: 25


    ¡ª Agility: 30


    ¡ª Intelligence: 4


    ¡ª Defense: 20


    ¡ª Endurance: 17


    ¡ª Wisdom: 6


    ¡ª Luck: 20


    ¡ª Respawn Points: 989/1000


    Secondary Attributes:


    ¡ª Attack Power: Nil


    ¡ª Magic Power: Nil


    ¡ª Magical defense: 9%


    ¡ª Critical Hit Rate: 40%


    Abilities:


    ¡ª Passive Abilities:


    1. Respawn (Lvl 5):


    ¡ª Active Abilities:


    1. Checkpoint (Lvl 2):


    Achievements:


    ¡ª [Survivor of Death]


    ¡ª [You killed a monster with that!?]


    ¡ª [Level 10, already!?]


    ¡ª [You call that Invincible?]


    Awakener''s Stats:


    y Time: 4 hours 16 minutes 22 seconds


    ¡ª Monsters Defeated: 621


    ¡ª Quests Completed: 0


    ¡ª Gold Earned: 9080


    +++


    "You did it!" Soo-Ah eximed. "And I leveled up to 10!"


    "I didn''t hit level ten, but level seven isn''t bad," Min-Joon chimed in. "What about you, boss?"


    "You''re not gonna believe it, so there''s no point telling you," YuWon shrugged before grabbing one of the hobgoblin''s clubs as his new weapon.


    A momentter, YuWon lifted the club and aimed for Min-Joon''s head. Since the zone boss was dead, the penalty of killing other awakeners should also have been lifted.


    However, when YuWon was about to swing the club, the familiar warning prompt appeared before him.


    [Awakeners cannot kill other Awakeners during the first tutorial round, and any attempts to do so will result in strict measures being taken against the individual in question.]


    YuWon shook his head before sighing deeply. It seemed killing the zone boss didn''t end the tutorial. However, it made him wonder what he would have to do to end the tutorial.


    Judging from the fights so far, it will not be easy.


    "Come on, let''s go before something else shows up here," YuWon said.


    "Wait a second! I''m almost done." Soo-Ah replied.


    The boys turned to see her standing next to the hobgoblin''s corpse with her hands raised over it.


    "What''s she doing?" Min-Joon whispered.


    "She''s a necromancer. Take a guess what she''d be doing?" YuWon rolled his eyes.


    Meanwhile, Soo-Ah moved her life, silently chanting a spell. The next moment, a swirling vortex appeared out of her hand and began swirling around the hobgoblin''s corpse.


    Slowly, the hobgoblin''s massive body twitched. Its skin began to shrivel and crack, peeling away from the muscle and bone beneath. The once powerful form seemed to dete before copsing into a heap of unrecognizable flesh.


    Eventually, the hobgoblin''s skeleton rose out of the fleshy remains. The fragments of its broken bones slowly reassembled itself. The next moment, the creature kneeled before Soo-Ah, and its empty eye sockets locked onto her as if awaiting hermand.


    "I did it!"


    Soo-Ah jumped, overjoyed by her achievement, and ran to hug YuWon, unable to contain her excitement.


    For a moment, YuWon was surprised. It was the first time someone had touched him and not hit him the next second. It had only been a year since someone hugged him, but it felt like a lifetime had passed since anyone treated him like a human.


    But before he could respond, Soo-Ah quickly pulled back, her face flushed with embarrassment.


    "I-I''m sorry about that!" she said, scratching her neck.


    "I''m happy you got a stronger pal now," YuWon said emotionlessly, before turning around to leave. "Now, if you don''t mind, I have to... clean up."


    "Let''s go together!" Soo-Ah replied without thinking.


    "...what?"

 Chapter 14: Snapped

    But he wanted fresh clothes and a shower without the threat of being jumped by the monsters. So for the moment, YuWon stuck around them.


    "Um... everything looks fine here," Soo-Ah replied, as they checked the ce for any monster hiding there.


    "Great," YuWon said as he tore off his shirt. "I''ll go first. You two can go outside and guard the entrance."


    Min-Joon rolled his eyes upon hearing him. It wasmon sense to offer the girl to go first. But it seemed YuWon was too far gone to adhere to basic etiquette.


    However, YuWon had his reasons for going first. First, he wanted to check the hobgoblin''s cache for a better reward ASAP, and second, his reputation around girls wasn''t all that good. He had already suffered a lot because of them and didn''t want to add more troubles to his life.


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon agreed and left the room as YuWon stepped into the shower. Surprisingly, the water supply was still intact. But he had seen enough apocalypse movies to know things like water and food would soon be luxury.


    If I want to survive, there''s a lot more I need to do other than fight.


    But before all that, he needed to figure out what was happening and how toplete the tutorial. Once that was done, he could think about exacting his revenge on others and eventually focus on survival.


    It didn''t take him long to finish up and nning for the future kept his mind sane. After drying himself, he grabbed a tracksuit that fit his new physique before walking out.


    "You can shower now¡ª" he said, not realizing Soo-Ah and Min-Joon weren''t alone.


    "That''s who you''ve teamed up with?" the blonde guy with a bloodied baseball batughed, pointing toward YuWon. "I didn''t know you were a weirdo like him, Min-Joon."


    YuWon recognized the man. He was Jaehwan. They both used to be on the ser team in middle school, but after the stunt Yeji pulled, he turned against YuWon like everyone else. Now, he was like Hoon''s right-hand man.


    Jaehwan was nked by two others whom YuWon didn''t recognize. They were probably some juniors who preached Hoon and wanted to get into his clique.


    "Jaehwan, you shouldn''t¡ª" Soo-ah tried to say something but got cut off.


    "You too should stay away from him," Jaehwan continued to bash YuWon. "You might not know, but that guy over there is a certified creep. Someone who got disowned by his biological mother."


    YuWon clenched his fists and closed his eyes, trying to not lose his cool. He didn''t think those words would hurt him now, but he was wrong. The taunts made him even angrier than ever before.


    Meanwhile, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon exchanged ufortable nces but said nothing. They just stood there, watching while Jaehwan continued to humiliate YuWon, unsure of what to say.


    Despite what happened between them, Min-Joon still believed YuWon did the things Yeji framed him for. Besides, since YuWon never spoke about the matter, none of them knew what to say in his defense.


    However, YuWon mistook their silence for something else. For a moment, he had forgotten about the past, but now he realized nothing had changed. He was just as lonely as he had been before.


    But that didn''t mean he was the same guy he had been before and he wanted Hoon to know that.


    YuWon smirked as a n formed in his head. The screens had only warned him about not killing other awakeners; it didn''t warn him against beating the absolute crap out of them.


    I wonder how the system will react if I act in self-defense.


    Soo-Ah nced at YuWon and knew something was wrong. But before she could say anything, he stepped forward with a smile on his face.


    "Are you done yet?" YuWon asked Jaehwan.


    Since YuWon had only peeked out of the door before, Jaehwan didn''t realize the change in YuWon''s physique and thought of him as his usual pushover self. But when YuWon stood before him, his smile faltered for a moment.


    "What? Are you gonna cry about it to Mommy now? Oh, wait! You can''t even do that!"


    YuWon kept smiling and shook his head. "Did you forget what happened in middle school? If you want, I can help you remember that."


    Suddenly Jaehwan''s eyes red up with anger. He didn''t need any help to recall the embarrassing scene of him pissing his pants after being hit by the ser ball in the stomach... during a match with a live audience.


    It was an incident Jaehwan had a lot of trouble getting over and now YuWon had reminded him of it. Jaehwan tightened his grip on the bat and took a step forward.


    "What did you say, sister abuser?" he said, and theckeys too jumped to fight YuWon.


    Without warning, Jaehwan swung the bat at YuWon. YuWon moved quickly, ducking under the swing andnding a solid punch to Jaehwan''s gut, causing him to stumble backward.


    Min-Joon and Soo-Ah wanted to help YuWon, but he looked back and growled at them, "Stay out of this!"


    Theckeys jumped in, but YuWon blocked one of them before elbowing the other in the face, breaking the guy''s nose. Watching the other fall to the ground, theckey hesitated, not wanting to fight anymore.


    Unfortunately, YuWon had already decided to mess them up. He swept theckey''s legs out from under him, finishing with a swift kick to the ribs that made the guy puke blood.


    "You fucker!"


    Jaehwan recovered enough to charge at YuWon again, but YuWon was ready. He dodged another swing of the bat and countered with a punch to Jaehwan''s jaw, followed by a knee to the chest.


    That was enough to knock Jaehwan down to the ground, but YuWon wasn''t done. He pinned Jaehwan down and continued to pummel him until fear reced the smug grin of his.


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon watched in horror as YuWon kept punching Jaehwan''s face until his fists were covered in his blood. But when Jaehwan stopped reacting to his attacks, YuWon stopped pummeling him, only to pick up Jaehwan''s bat.


    "Send my regards to that bastard Hoon," YuWon replied, lifting the bat before bringing it down on his leg, shattering the kneecap.


    YuWon was finally done. But even after crippling Jaehwan, he felt no satisfaction, only anger.


    As he turned around, he noticed Soo-Ah and Min-Joon watching him with fear in their eyes, and watching them like that made YuWon smile. It was then he realized something.


    Fighting and killing monsters was fun, but watching someone cower in fear before him was even better. Min-Joon opened his mouth to say something, but YuWon walked past them.


    "You two are no better than them," YuWon mumbled. "Thanks for reminding me that."


    With that, YuWon grabbed his club and left without sparing another nce at any of them.

 Chapter 15: Interlude

    Around half of the 100 people crowd had weapons in their hands, but thankfully, they didn''t need to use those there. After all, they were in a safe zone.


    Shortly after the goblins showed up, there was an announcement about safe areas throughout the building. These were ces where the monsters couldn''t enter, giving the humans a ce to gather and recuperate.


    But that illusion was shattered when the doors swung open, and a hulking skeleton stepped into the room, carrying three battered bodies. It was Soo-Ah''stest pet, Skullee, holding Jaehwan and his as it walked into the room.


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon were right behind Skullee, but since he was quite big, the others couldn''t see them and panicked.


    "What the hell is that?" someone yelled. "I thought this was supposed to be a safe ce!"


    "Are those¡­ are those more monsters?"


    "Someone kill it!"


    People were scared because monsters were thest thing they expected to see in that ce. Suddenly, Hoon jumped before the crowd carrying his spear.


    Since it was just a skeleton, he thought it was the perfect chance to show off and be the leader. With some luck, he might even catch the attention of some cute girls along the way and create a harem like he had been nning.


    "Kwan, Seok, take it down!" he barked, instructing two of hisckeys to attack.


    "Why us?" Seokmented.


    "Just do as I said!" Hoon yelled back.


    The two boys hesitated for a second before charging towards Skullee. However, it didn''t flinch at their attack. Their blows didn''t even scratch its bone as it kept moving forward, ignoring the attacks.


    Suddenly, a voice rang out, stopping Seok and Kwan before they did something stupid.


    "Stop!" Soo-Ah yelled,ing into view.


    Min-Joon was right by her side as they walked to the front to face the confused crowd.


    "These are my creations," Soo-Ah rified, staring at Kwan and Seok. "They won''t harm anyone here unless I tell them, or you attack me."


    Hoon lowered his spear and walked towards them, still on edge.


    "If they wouldn''t harm anyone, why are Jaehwan and others in such a state?" he said, pointing his spear toward Skullee.


    "I know it... looks suspicious¡ª" Soo-Ah tried exining, but Min-Joon jumped the gun.


    "It wasn''t us! YuWon did it!"


    Soo-Ah could only stare at Min-Joon in anger as the room fell silent. Almost everyone in the auditorium was aware of YuWon.


    But none of them could believe a limping, frail-looking guy like YuWon could beat three level 4s by himself. But none were more surprised than Hoon.


    Hoon only sent Jaehwan and the others to find more survivors, because he knew Jaehwan could handle the goblins on his own. But he was supposed to believe YuWon knocked out all three of them by himself?


    Could he be taking revenge?


    That was the first thought in Hoon''s head. He was the one who had caused him the most grief over thest year. Even in the morning, he had continuously pped him.


    YuWon didn''t show any will to fight back then. How could he change in a matter of a few hours? Hoon couldn''t decide whether to be afraid or angry.


    "Stop fucking with me!" Hoon snapped and grabbed Min-Joon by the cor. "Are you telling me a weak, pathetic bastard like him could put someone in this state?"


    "Weak?" Min-Joon scoffed before pushing Hoon back and pointing at Skullee. "Do you see that thing? He is the one who killed it!"


    "What?" Hoon mumbled, before looking at Skullee. "He killed this thing...?"


    Soo-Ah took a deep breath and nodded. Thanks to Min-Joon''s big mouth, everyone would hate YuWon even more.


    Some might even start fearing him, and that made her remember YuWon''s expression before he left. She wasn''t sure if people being afraid of him was a good thing.


    Hoon, on the other hand, was worried. YuWon was still out there, and from the looks of Jaehwan and hisckeys, he wasn''t the same person they used to bully.


    At that moment, YuWon appeared before him like a wounded predator, lying in wait, ready to strike back at those who had hurt him. But then another thought appeared, one that calmed him down.


    There were over eighty students and around twenty teachers in the auditorium. No matter how strong YuWon had be, there was no way he could take all of them on by himself.


    If he shows up here, he''ll make an enemy out of everyone. Yeah... as long as I stick to groups, there''s nothing YuWon can do to me.


    However, Soo-Ah interrupted his thoughts.


    "They should be d YuWon left them alive after they attacked him first."


    "They¡­ attacked him?" he asked.


    When Min-Joon said YuWon had hurt Jaehwan and others, he assumed YuWon was out for revenge. But if Jaehwan had attacked first, then maybe¡­ maybe this wasn''t about revenge and YuWon hadn''t lost his marbles.


    At that moment, Yeji, who had been watching the conversation from the sidelines, walked up to them.


    "How do you know YuWon?" she asked, with a hint of concern.


    "He¡­ he saved my life," Soo-Ah said, pointing at Skullee. "I was being chased by this guy here, and YuWon killed it."


    Earlier when she heard YuWon was alive, she silently thanked the god. When she didn''t see YuWon anywhere in the auditorium, she got scared, thinking he had died.


    "And where is he now?" Yeji pressed on, ignoring the look Hoon was giving her.


    "No idea. He left alone after the fight with Jaehwan." Soo-Ah shook her head before pointing at Jaehwan''sckeys, being treated for their wounds. "They told us about the safe zone, so we came here."


    Yeji sighed. It wasn''t what she wanted to hear and hoped YuWon woulde to the auditorium, where it was safe¡ªwhere she could keep an eye on him.


    Despite everything, despite what he had done to her, she didn''t want him to die out there.


    In contrast, Hoon wanted the opposite. He hoped YuWon would die before meeting him. Because he knew YuWon wouldn''t spare him like he spared Jaehwan.


    But no matter how much he feared what YuWon might do next, he knew he couldn''t let it show. He wanted to be the leader there, and no one wanted a weak leader.


    However, before he could do anything, there was a loud explosion as something fell out into the courtyard from above. A few students rushed to look through the windows, only to realize it was a goblin.


    But something felt off.


    It wasn''t a goblin they had seen before. The goblin was seven feet tall and... was a female with white hair. But that wasn''t all. She was carrying something, or someone, to be precise.


    As the cloud of dust and debris cleared, Yeji and Soo-Ah gasped in horror when they saw that the person the monster was holding was YuWon, battered and covered in blood.

 Chapter 16: Priestess (1)

    YuWon, with nothing better to do, bought out the cache key and began looking for the hidden treasure somewhere in the college. The description said the key would guide the owner to the treasure, so he had hoped to get the reward easily.


    However, no matter what YuWon did, he couldn''t get the key to react. There was no glow, no sound, nothing. The key remained unchanged, leaving him frustrated.


    "Just my life..." YuWon sighed in frustration.


    He shook the key next, hoping it would trigger it. But the key remained lifeless in his hand. Eventually, YuWon started walking around the building.


    If the cache was in the building, then surely the key would react once he was close to it. He didn''t know if that would happen, but he was running out of ideas. It was his only hope.


    It took a while but YuWon roamed every floor, from the basement to the empty ssrooms on the top level. He checked every corner, every room, every nook and cranny that he could think of, but the key didn''t so much as twitch.


    After searching and fighting goblins for four hours, he was tired, both physically and mentally. He was about to give up the search in frustration, but just then, he remembered a ce he hadn''t looked at.


    "The terrace!"


    He hadn''t been up there since his fight with those goblins early on. It seemed unlikely that the hobgoblin found the deserted ce and turned it into his treasury.


    But YuWon figured that since he had checked everywhere except the terrace and the ground floor, he might as well search the terrace before heading down.


    With nothing to lose and a lot of time to spare, YuWon headed for the stairs that led to the terrace. But as he climbed, something strange caught his eye. The walls had these weird, red symbols all over them.


    I''m pretty sure these weren''t here before.


    The markings looked fresh. Meaning someone had drawn them in thest hour or so. YuWon ran his fingers through the marking. The texture was sticky, and the familiar smell made his stomach churn.


    "Blood?" he mumbled, wiping off the gooey mixture on his pants.


    Following the revtion, YuWon stopped climbing ahead. The sight of blood wasn''t new to him. But the markings were way too organized to just be a coincidence.


    Someone had to have deliberately ced those markings everywhere. But why? YuWon stood rooted to his spot, debating whether he should continue his search.


    After looking at his watch, he realized the checkpoint skill was still on cooldown, which meant if he died, he would have to start over from before the fight with the hobgoblin.


    Dealing with the hobgoblin isn''t the problem here.


    YuWon knew he could handle the hobgoblin again if he had to, but the idea of facing Soo-Ah and Min-Joon afterward made his blood boil.


    He didn''t want to see them or anyone else from his past for a while, because he didn''t know what he would do to them.


    One didn''t have to be a genius to know that the smart thing was to leave. The markings, the blood¡ªeverything about this screamed danger.


    Let''s leave for now.


    For once, YuWon trusted his instincts. But just as he was about to back away, the key in his hand vibrated a little and a notification appeared before him.


    [The Awakener has discovered the cache. If the awakener opts to leave the area, their ownership of the cache will be nullified, leading to the allocation of the reward to a different Awakener.]


    "So I can''t even leave now?" YuWon mumbled, scratching his head.


    He didn''t want to take unnecessary risks, but losing the reward after all, this would be a huge blow. Besides, he would have to go to the terrace eventually. Even if he dies, he would have to defeat the hobgoblin and get back to the same ce.


    Besides, if he died, at least the next time he would have a n in ce. So in a twisted way, YuWon had nothing to lose and a lot to gain.


    "I''ve already beaten the zone, boss," he muttered, trying to reassure himself. "There''s no way something stronger than that hobgoblin is lurking around here. Two bosses wouldn''t share the same territory¡­ right?"


    With a deep breath, he climbed onto the terrace, only to be greeted by a gruesome sight. Unlike how he remembered, the entire terrace was littered with human corpses.


    Their bodies were so severely damaged and contorted that it was impossible to understand how it happened.


    Just six hours ago, there had been nothing here but the remains of the goblins he had fought. Now, the terrace looked like a massacre site out of a horror movie.


    What is that thing?


    Other than the corpses, at the center was a decorated pir that looked more like an altar. The whole thing was soaked in blood, surrounded by human skulls.


    It was a sight that made his stomach churn. Thankfully, by now YuWon had seen enough corpses to not throw up. Still, he couldn''t just shrug off the strange aura around the ce.


    Even though YuWon could respawn, he had no intentions of staying there for long. He approached the altar cautiously, and as he did, the key in his hand glowed brightly, confirming the cache was somewhere around the altar.


    "These fucking chills..." YuWon mumbled, looking around. "Let''s just break this shit, take the reward, and get the hell out of here."


    But before YuWon could do anything, he felt a presence behind him. Someone was watching him. He spun around to see a tall, arguably curvy goblin standing behind him.


    She had pale green skin and long white hair that covered half her face. She wore ragged clothes that barely covered her body, and unlike the other goblins he had encountered, she was strikingly beautiful.


    So beautiful that for a moment, YuWon forgot she was a monster. No one could me him, though. The goblin looked more like a woman than any of the grotesque creatures he had fought before.


    Strangely enough, she kept staring at the club in his hand and tilted her head as she asked, "Did you kill my father?"


    YuWon blinked, stunned not only by her words but because she could speak. It was the first time he had heard a goblin speak and was processing it, but the silence only fueled her anger and she lunged at him.


    YuWon stood frozen in his ce, but his instinct kicked in at thest moment, prompting him to jump to the side and save himself.


    But even though he was safe, he noticed that his body had turned sluggish, and he was having trouble thinking straight.


    He couldn''t seem to tear his eyes away from the goblin and realized it must be the altar''s effect. If it hadn''t been for the key''s constant burst of light that snapped him out of his daze, YuWon was certain he would have been dead by now.


    However, he wasn''t safe just yet. The goblin attacked again, this time faster than before. YuWon swung the club with all his strength, trying to stop her. But to his horror, she caught it with one hand and crushed it like it was nothing more than a twig.


    YuWon couldn''t believe that the club that destroyed concrete walls and floors snapped into pieces and fell to the ground.


    However, he had no time to be shocked. The goblin attacked him again. But she couldn''t control her momentum and both of them fell over the railing and crashed in the courtyard below.


    Every part of his body screamed in pain. But miraculously, he was still alive... even though he couldn''t move. He could feel his cracked ribs and a broken arm, which was a good thing because he was feeling something, at least.


    But unlike him, the goblin looked unharmed as she grabbed his neck, lifting him off the ground.


    "I''ll ask you one more time," the goblin hissed. "Did you kill my father?"


    "That... ugly bastard... was your father?" YuWon smiled through the pain. "You should thank god... for having... taken after your mother..."


    The goblin wasn''t pleased with YuWon''s wittyment and raised her w to sever his head. But just as she brought her ws down, something pushed her away, and she went crashing through the wall on the other end.


    YuWon once again hit the ground. Only this time, he saw a skeleton standing over him through his blurry eyes.


    "YuWon!"


    He heard a familiar voice. But everything turned dark before he could see who it was.

 Chapter 17: Priestess (2)

    He blinked a few times and looked down at himself, only to see that he was wrapped in bandages from head to toe.


    Why¡­ am I still alive?


    That was the first thought in his head. YuWon hadn''t expected to survive after what had happened. The fall, coupled with the goblin''s strength, should have killed him long ago.


    For YuWon, the idea of dying and starting over had be almostforting. It was better than living through the pain and misery, that was for sure. That''s why he felt frustrated that he was alive and in pain.


    Since no one knew about his ability toe back to life, it wasn''t strange if someone helped him. But it was different. Given his reputation, he didn''t expect anyone to help him.


    And yet, here he was, alive and bandaged up. But why? Who had saved him, and why would they bother risking their lives for him?


    Slowly YuWon noticed his surroundings and realized he wasn''t alone. He was in the ground-floor auditorium, surrounded by people.


    However, they weren''t there to check on him or even pray for his survival. YuWon knew better than to think that. Besides, their expressions did little to hide their true feelings, as it didn''t seem like any of them were happy to see him.


    Well, YuWon didn''t care. He felt the same way. Being pitied by people who hated him was thest thing he wanted. At that moment, getting out of there was the only thought in his head.


    Gritting his teeth, YuWon tried to stand, but the pain was too much and he copsed back onto the ground, groaning in pain. Suddenly, a skeleton rushed over to help him up. It took him a second, but he noticed it was Mickey.


    "Where did youe from...?" YuWon mumbled and Mickey pointed behind him.


    That''s when he noticed Soo-Ah and Yeji standing nearby, arguing with Hoon and a few others, including some faculty members. YuWon didn''t have to eavesdrop to hear them as he already knew what they were on about.


    "No way! He''s in no condition to go anywhere!" Soo-Ah shook her head. "He''ll die for sure if he leaves in this state!"


    "And what do you suggest we do?" Hoon shot back."Let him stay here and cause more trouble? You might not care, but I do and I won''t let a maniac like him stay here! Not after what he did to Jaehwan!"


    "YuWon wasn''t the first to attack them¡ª" Yeji tried to argue, but one teacher interrupted her.


    "I know you''re apassionatedy," he said. "But that boy doesn''t belong here. Just look around and see. No one wants him here. Not even for a moment."


    YuWon''s vision blurred as he got angry. He didn''t care about what anyone had to say about him, but he got angry because of one person¡ªHoon.


    The sight of him made YuWon''s blood boil. He wanted nothing more than to tear that bastard apart right then and there. But he knew he couldn''t. With the restrictions in ce, attacking Hoon now would only make things worse for him.


    Meanwhile, Soo-Ah noticed YuWon was awake and rushed over to check on him. The argument died down as well because no one wanted to talk about him now that he was awake.


    "How are you feeling? Does it hurt anywhere?" Soo-Ah asked as she kneeled beside him. "Do you need anything?"


    Unfortunately, YuWon didn''t respond to her questions. He didn''t care about his injuries. But there was something he wanted to know.


    "Who bandaged me?" he asked coldly.


    Soo-Ah hesitated for a moment, ncing at Yeji before answering. "It was Yeji. She''s a priestess so¡ª"


    Before she could finish, YuWon frowned. Soo-Ah was confused, and the next moment she regretted ever telling him about Yeji.


    Without a word, YuWon ripped the bandages around his chest despite the pain.


    Everyone around him fell silent. No one expected YuWon to react like that. But no one was more bewildered than Yeji, who stood frozen to the spot, as YuWon stared at her with pure, unfiltered rage.


    "YuWon¡­" Yeji mumbled.


    But YuWon didn''t let her finish. He tore off thest of the bandages and threw them at her feet. Even though he was bleeding from multiple spots, the pain didn''t matter to him.


    "YuWon, stop! You''re going to hurt yourself!"


    Soo-Ah tried to stop him, but one look from him made her back away. Even though she had only known him for a short time, she had never seen him so angry before, not even when he beat the living hell out of Jaehwan, and it scared her.


    However, Yeji did not fear her stepbrother. She rushed to YuWon''s side, reaching out to grab his arm.


    "YuWon, please¡ª"


    "Don''t you dare touch me!" YuWon yelled and pushed her hand away. "I don''t need your pity. Especially not from someone who ruined my life with her lies."


    Yeji recoiled as if YuWon had pped her. She opened her mouth to protest, to tell him not to be stubborn and to call him out on what he meant by saying she lied, but before she could say anything, Hoon stepped forward.


    "That''s enough," Hoon said.


    He stepped between YuWon and Yeji, pointing his spear at YuWon''s chest. "You better watch how you talk to my girlfriend. They might tolerate your bullshit, but I won''t!"


    "Hoon, no, let me¡ª"


    Yeji tried to intervene, to stop Hoon before things got out of hand, but it was toote. He had been searching for an excuse to put YuWon in his ce and now that he was hurt and vulnerable; it was the perfect time to provoke him into a fight.


    Yeji might not see through his motives. But YuWon knew exactly what Hoon wanted. He couldn''t deny that he wanted the same, but it wasn''t the right time, so YuWon decided to leave.


    "Move," YuWon growled.


    However, Hoon didn''t budge and just sneered. The next moment, he thrust his spear toward YuWon, just to hurt him while he could. But to everyone''s surprise, even in his injured state, YuWon was faster than Hoon.


    He sidestepped the attack before yanking the spear out of Hoon''s hands and snapping it in half. YuWon tossed the broken pieces aside and took a step closer to Hoon, so only the two of them knew what he was about to say.


    "Next time we meet," YuWon warned. "It''ll be your spine instead of the spear."


    Hoon''s face twisted with anger as YuWon, someone he used to bully, humiliated him.


    But before he could react, YuWon turned and limped toward the exit. He needed to get out of there before his anger got the better of him and he did something stupid.


    "YuWon, don''t leave! You''re not in any condition to¡ª" Soo-Ah yelled, but it was toote.


    YuWon pushed open the door and stepped outside, not knowing what awaited him. Before YuWon could take another step, he felt sharp ws digging into his neck. A momentter, the world spun as he fell to the ground.


    Thest thing he saw was the female goblin standing over him, her ws dripping with his blood and his headless body falling to her feet.


    And then everything went ck.

 Chapter 18: Love Has No Bounds: Goblin edition

    Because this time, YuWon didn''t care about the hobgoblin. Instead, his mind wandered to the creature''s daughter.


    As I thought... She looks nothing like the hobgoblin. Did I get trolled by a goblin...? No, that''s absurd.


    As he thought about her, he realized there was no way he could get strong enough to defeat her before she finds him. His usual tactic of respawning and farming wouldn''t work against her, because he did not know how strong she was.


    But then a strange thought crossed his mind. As far as he remembered, the woman only got pissed when she saw the hobgoblin''s club in his hand. It was a stupid thought, but he believed the club gave him away.


    As long as he didn''t take the club, she shouldn''t attack him immediately. That would give him time to grab the cache and n his next move. YuWon knew it was a wed n, but it was better than nothing.


    But there''s one problem.


    YuWon nced over at Soo-Ah and Min-Joon, who were still with him. He wanted to get rid of them, but he didn''t want them dead either. Besides, Soo-Ah had fought for him back when he was in the auditorium. Therefore, he didn''t want to harm her.


    However, he couldn''t allow them to witness him killing the hobgoblin for two reasons. He didn''t want Soo-Ah to raise the hobgoblin''s skeleton, as the crazy daughter might target her for it.


    Secondly, YuWon was nning to me the hobgoblin''s death on someone else, preferably Hoon and hisckeys. But for his n to work, he had to get rid of witnesses, so he had to send them away before killing the darn thing.


    "Change of ns," YuWon said, turning to them. "We can''t win against it. It''s better to run."


    "But you just said¡ª" Soo-Ah frowned.


    "Trust me, it''s not worth it," YuWon cut her off. "There''s a safe zone around the ground floor auditorium. We should head there instead of dying by that bastard''s hand."


    "Boss... you know that bastard you''re talking about is right in front of us, right?" Min-Joon smiled nervously. "Besides, can we even outrun it?"


    The constant questions were chipping away at YuWon''s patience. But he suppressed his irritation, trying not to cause a mess that would bite him in the asster.


    "Leave the hobgoblin to me," he said firmly. "I''ll handle it. You two just need to go."


    Soo-Ah hesitated, ncing at Min-Joon, hoping he could talk YuWon out of his crazy n. However, Min-Joon looked all too eager to leave.


    "Are you sure?" she asked YuWon.


    YuWon took a deep breath. He was really close to forgetting everything she did and throw her before the hobgoblin himself.


    "Yes. I can outrun it. Now go, before it''s toote."


    Thankfully, Min-Joon''s cowardice made the job easy for him as he grabbed Soo-Ah''s arm and started running, pulling her along with him.


    "You heard him! We need to get out of here!"


    Even as she was being dragged, Soo-Ah looked at YuWon for ast time before disappearing down the stairs. Now that they were gone, he could focus on his n.


    "I guess it''s the seventh time," YuWon mumbled, stretching his leg. "If everything goes right, I won''t have to see your ugly face again."


    The Hobgoblin didn''t like the tone of his voice and charged alongside its minions.


    ***


    [You''ve hunted an Elder Hobgoblin! Exp +25%, Gold +100]


    [You have in the Zone Boss! Exp +50%, Gold +500]


    [You have found Hobgoblin''s Cache Key!]


    "That was easy enough," YuWon mumbled, grabbing the key.


    However, he didn''t have time to celebrate and needed to get to the terrace. When he finally reached the terrace, he paused for a moment.


    The markings on the ground were the same as before, but the pir in the center was only half-constructed. It made him worry if the key would work on the altar or not.


    Thankfully, the key reacted as it was supposed to and YuWon hurried to get the treasure. But like before, the moment he got close to the altar, the female goblin appeared behind him like it was a cut scene of a game.


    "Who are you?" she demanded to know.


    YuWon sighed. He knew he was on the verge of dying. One wrong move and history will repeat itself and he couldn''t let that happen. Slowly, he raised his hands as if surrendering to her.


    "I''m not here to fight," he said, showing off the rusty key. "I''m just here for the treasure."


    "Where did you get it from?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.


    YuWon knew he couldn''t tell her the truth or she would rip him to shreds. So, he quickly made up a story.


    "I¡­ I stole it from someone," he said. "There was this guy. He killed a big monster, and I took the key from him when he wasn''t looking. I swear."


    "One human killed my father?"


    "No! He wasn''t alone," YuWon replied. "He was with a group of others. They were all working together to kill the monster."


    "Stop calling him a monster!" she growled and lunged at YuWon, grabbing him by the neck and lifting him off the ground. "Where is the one who killed my father? Tell me!"


    "I¡ªI don''t know!" YuWon yelled, struggling to breathe. "He¡ªhe was heading toward the lower floors. I lost track of him there!"


    However, as he said that, the woman''s grip around his throat tightened. For a moment, YuWon thought she would crush his throat right then and there.


    But then the key glowed again, and the woman''s grip loosened. A momentter, she put him back down.


    "That key... I remember now," she mumbled. "My father always said that the one who holds the key would be my mate¡­"


    "Eh? Mate? I think you misunderstood him¡ª"


    "You are my husband now," she said, cutting YuWon off. "You have the key, so you must be strong. The perfect mate for me."


    A momentter, a notification appeared before him, informing him about a new achievement.


    [Achievement Unlocked!]


    [Love has no bounds: Goblin edition.]


    [Description: Form a romantic rtionship with a Goblin.]


    [Effect: Goblins ranked lower than your mate will cease to be hostile towards the Awakener.]


    YuWon''s eyes widened in shock as those words sank in. The title''s effects were immediate. The goblin woman''s hostility faded, and she kneeled with her head bowed before him.


    "I''m yours tomand, my beloved," she mumbled. "You are my destiny and now I have you... if you''ll ept me."


    YuWon didn''t know how to respond. He thought back to the first time he had encountered her, how she had attacked him without hesitation.


    But now, this goblin woman¡ªthe one who had killed him in another timeline¡ªwas kneeling before him, calling him her husband.


    However, there was something else that confused him. He also had the key when she attacked him before, yet she killed him with no mercy. And now she was treating him like he owned her and patiently waited for him to ept her.


    He wanted to know why, but didn''t want to trigger the woman''s rage again. Moreover, he did not know how a rtionship between him and a goblin would work and what she even meant by bing his mate.


    But then another thought appeared in his head. One that aligned with his goals. With her by his side, killing Hoon was a piece of cake. Hell, the entire apocalypse thing would get much easier for him.


    "I... ept," YuWon said with a crooked smile.


    Upon hearing those words, the goblin woman''s eyes lit up with happiness, and she smiled for the first time since they met.


    "Thank you, my beloved."


    YuWon didn''t know what the future had for him. But for now, he had a new ally¡ªa powerful one at that. And with her, taking revenge on those bastards would be so much fun.

 Chapter 19: The Struggle Between Two Heads

    I mean... I shouldn''t be weird. She''s my wife, after all.


    But the next moment, his thoughts changed.


    Hell no! She''s a monster! A tall, curvy, beautiful, strong monster¡ªwhat am I even thinking!?


    The goblin woman tilted her head slightly, wondering what was going on inside her mate''s head. YuWon noticed her looking at him and cleared his throat, gathering his thoughts.


    But as he did that, he realized something. Despite being her husband, he didn''t even know the woman''s name, and wondered if asking her now would be awkward.


    Forget that. It''ll be more awkward to ask for her help if I don''t even know her name.


    YuWon sighed, breaking the silence, and asked, "What should I call you? Like, do you have a name or something?"


    "Name?" she repeated, as if the concept was foreign to her. "I don''t have one."


    "Wait... you don''t have a name?" YuWon asked, surprised. "Then how do youmunicate with your kind?"


    "I... can''t," she shook her head and her white hair swayed along. "Only my father could understand me and he didn''t give me a name. I was just ''daughter'', nothing more."


    YuWon scratched his head, feeling awkward. He hadn''t expected this. But then again, it was foolish of him to hold monsters in the same regard as humans, even though they were the same to him.


    Besides, it gave YuWon the opportunity to get closer to her. After all, if he named her, then it would make the goblin feel closer to him and then they could bang¡ªhang! Hang around and sleep¡ªlive! Live together.


    "Well, you should have a name," he said, trying to sound casual.


    He looked at her as he tried to think of something, anything, to call her.


    "How about¡­ Gina?" he saidzily, the first name that popped into his head.


    The name didn''t have any significance at all, other than that YuWon just so happened tobine G for goblin with the name of his favorite idol. Despite hisziness, Gina''s eyes lit up when she heard the name.


    "Gina," she repeated, as if savoring its sound. "I like it. I''ll cherish it forever."


    YuWon couldn''t help but feel guilty watching her smile. He hadn''t put much thought into the name, but it seemed to mean a lot to her.


    "I''m d you like it." he mumbled.


    Gina kept smiling back at him and the warmth in her expression was something YuWon hadn''t seen in a while. After all, whenever anyone saw him, they only shot him disgusting looks.


    But Gina''s smile. It almost looked cute, unlike how fierce she had been before. YuWon''s eyes then fell on the markings on the ground and he remembered about the altar and his reward.


    Although Gina was the best reward YuWon could get from there, he was a greedy bastard and always wanted more. This case wasn''t any different.


    "Gina, did you make this altar?"


    Gina''s smile suddenly faded at the mention of the altar as she nodded.


    "It''s iplete, but I created it to help me find the one who killed my father."


    YuWon''s face turned pale when he heard that. He couldn''t let her continue working on the altar or she would discover his lie. And if she realized he was the one who had killed her father, things could turn bad quickly.


    Fuck! I need to destroy that altar, but how!?


    If he did anything to the altar, Gina would realize something was off. But he couldn''t let it be. YuWon needed to find a way to get rid of the altar without making her suspicious.


    But before YuWon could even think of a n, Gina suddenly raised her arm and, with a single strike, broke the altar in half. The stones and bones shattered into pieces, scattering across the terrace.


    YuWon looked at Gina, confused. Why would she destroy the altar on her own? However, she looked back at him, smiling once again.


    "Avenging my father was my goal before I met you," she mumbled. "But I no longer want that. All I want now is to be by your side forever."


    YuWon forced a smile, trying to hide his immense relief. It felt like he took a step inside his grave, but someone pulled him back.


    But he was also worried. What did she mean by not avenging her father? He had gone through the trouble of framing Hoon for it and now she wanted to ignore all that?


    "That''s¡­ good to hear," he said in a strained tone, ignoring the questions in his head.


    But there was one thing he couldn''t get past. As d as he was to see the destroyed altar, her devotion to him was a bit unsettling. YuWon was worried Gina might turn into a yandere and that would be troublesome for him.


    Thest thing I want is for her to kill me and carry my head around or, worse, kiss my severed head like that crazy Ackerman.


    Changing the topic, YuWon retrieved the key and asked Gina what it was for.


    "Come, I''ll show you." Gina gestured for him toe closer.


    YuWon hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward. Gina kneeled by the remains of the altar and revealed a hidden keyhole underneath the broken stone. YuWon raised an eyebrow, not expecting the treasure to be hiding under the altar.


    "Go ahead," Gina said, pointing at the keyhole.


    YuWon nodded and carefully inserted the key into the keyhole. For a moment, nothing happened. But then an orb of light appeared before him, floating in the air.


    On Gina''s insistence, he touched the orb, and a notification appeared before him.


    [You have found the Hobgoblin''s hidden cache!]


    [The Awakener will receive a ss-specific item as a reward for their feat.]


    A momentter, the orb of light turned into a backpack. YuWon grabbed it and the next moment it disappeared and a strange swirling tattoo appeared on his left palm.


    [You have received the Phantom Bag.]


    [Grade: Unique.]


    [Description: The Phantom Bag is a magical tattoo on the holder''s arm. Despite its appearance, it is a storage space for carrying many items without a physical bag.


    To ess the items, the Awakener needs to touch the tattoo and think about what they want to retrieve or store. The item will appear in their hand or disappear into the tattoo.]


    [Special skill: The Phantom bag isn''t affected by respawning effects. The items once stored inside, will be there even after the Awakener respawns.]


    YuWon couldn''t believe his eyes. Phantom Bag was invaluable for him, especially considering how many times he had already died and respawned.


    "This is perfect!"


    YuWon turned to share the joy with Gina, only to be shocked. Gina was undoing her clothes to untie theces and straps.


    Before YuWon could do anything, her top fell off her shoulders and so did his mouth as he nkly stared at her, or specifically, her breasts as one word echoed in his mind¡­


    Motorboat.

 Chapter 20: Princess Treatment (1)

    "Gina, wait!"


    However, his timing couldn''t have been worse, as instead of grabbing her shoulders, his hand ended up on her breast. YuWon''s face turned red realizing what had happened, and he froze, unsure of what to do.


    I fucked up...


    YuWon thought Gina would get angry, like any other woman. However, her reaction was far from what he expected. Instead of getting angry, she smiled and grabbed his wrists.


    "I''m d you find me attractive," she said teasingly. "Your eagerness is... appreciated more than you know, my love."


    "W-What? No, I didn''t mean to¡ª"


    YuWon tried to exin, but before he could finish, Gina wrapped her arms around him. A momentter, she mmed him on the ground and climbed on top of him.


    YuWon panicked as Gina''s soft hands traveled to hisher regions. This was not how things were supposed to go in his marriage!


    "W-Wait, what are you doing?!" YuWon eximed, grabbing her arm to stop her, but to no avail. "This¡­ this isn''t appropriate!"


    "Isn''t appropriate?" Gina looked at him, tilting her head.


    "I''m merely following tradition. Tradition can''t be inappropriate," she continued, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.


    YuWon raised an eyebrow, confused about the weird traditions Gina was talking about.


    "Tradition?" he asked, forcing himself up on his elbows. "What tradition?"


    Gina''s expression softened, and she blushed. For a moment, YuWon''s heart skipped a beat, and he wondered why it did. However, Gina''s reply made his heart stop beating entirely.


    "We have to consummate our marriage under the open sky, where the gods can see us enjoying the gift of procreation."


    "W-What?! No, no, no!" YuWon''s face turned bright red as he stammered. "This isn''t the right time or ce for that!"


    "Why not? It''s our tradition." Gina tilted her head again, clearly confused. "Father told me it''s our tradition that when we find a mate, we should procreate with no dy. And the sky is open here. It''s perfect."


    "It''s just¡­ it''s not special enough," he blurted out, trying his best to dissuade her from forcing herself onto him. "Our first time should be special, right?"


    "Special? Why does it need to be special?" Gina frowned in confusion.


    YuWon tried to think of an exnation that would make sense to her. After all, as beautiful as she was, he wasn''t keen on having her hawk tuah the shit out of him.


    "Because¡­ because there are monsters everywhere," he blurted. "We should find a way out of this mess first, you know? Then we can¡­ mate somewhere safe."


    Gina seemed to consider his words for a moment, then shook her head.


    "There''s no need to be afraid. The goblins wouldn''t dare approach us. And if they do¡­" A fierce look crossed Gina''s face. "I''ll kill them all for interrupting my intimate time with my precious husband."


    YuWon''s heart pounded in his chest. He was running out of excuses, and Gina didn''t seem to take the hint. Besides, the more he didn''t want her to turn into a yandere, the more she was nearing the edge.


    "It''s not just about that," he said, grabbing her by her shoulders. "I''m human, remember? We have our own traditions too, and we can''t just¡­ you know, have intimacy out of nowhere."


    Gina''s expression darkened, and for a moment as his, she was going to stab the shit out of him. YuWon feared she would snap and turn into a full-on yandere, carrying his severed head or dick with her.


    "J-Just think of it like this!" YuWon made ast-ditch effort to stop her. "First let me kill the goblins, then we can do whatever you want!"


    Gina kept staring at him and YuWon wanted her to say something, anything. Instead, she grabbed him by the crotch, her grip firm but not painful.


    "I''ll respect your wishes," she whispered in his ears. "But I won''t be able to hold back my desires for too long. I''m already struggling too much because of it."


    YuWon swallowed hard, feeling a wave of panic as Gina let go of him and started getting dressed again. He was relieved that she had stopped, but the intensity of her desire was more than a little overwhelming.


    ...I''m toast, aren''t I?


    Despite his worries, YuWon was d he got some time off. There had to be thousands of goblins inside the campus, and it would take days to kill them all. He had to think of a way to get his dick off her mind during that time.


    But fate had other ns.


    Gina finished tying her clothes back into ce, then turned to face him with a smile and it wasn''t a cheerful smile, but a crazy one.


    "If you''re worried about the goblins, then we should find and kill the Goblin Monarch of this region," she said. "Killing him would scare the goblins into running away or kill each other to be the new monarch."


    YuWon''s eyes widened in surprise. For a moment, he forgot about their deal and instead realized that the goblin monarch could be the final boss, and killing it might end the tutorial, allowing him to get his revenge by himself.


    "The Goblin Monarch? You know who that is?" he asked.


    "Oh, I know," she mumbled. "And if we take down the Goblin Monarch, no goblin will ever dare challenge us, giving us all the time to receive the blessing of the gods."


    YuWon''s heart raced as he considered her words. Never in his life has someone desired him so much and at first it was ttering, but now her lustful expression was creeping the hell out of him.


    He knew he''d have to be more careful with his words around her. Or else she might just jump his bones in a street filled with monsters.


    I can think about itter... for now, let''s just focus on this monarch and end the tutorial.

 Chapter 21: Princess Treatment (2)

    This is not what I had in mind...


    Earlier, he had offhandedly mentioned that he needed to kill goblins before they could be intimate. Although it was a remark to get Gina off him, she had taken it to heart.


    In her mind, if YuWon wanted goblins dead, then she would kill every one of them to make him happy and get intimate with him as soon as possible.


    However, that wasn''t the only reason. Gina knew YuWon saw goblins as his enemies and she wanted to set herself aside from that category, that''s why she was hunting any goblin that she saw despite being one herself.


    I don''t think those goblins had ever been this terrified in their lives.


    Gina had an overwhelming aura. The goblins could sense her and when they did, they immediately fled.


    Unfortunately, Gina was faster than them and it only took her a second or two to kill them, even if they had a head start. YuWon stood back, watching as she swiftly dispatched them one by one.


    So much gold and experience wasted...


    YuWon couldn''t do anything but watch. He had tried taking part in the hunts, but Gina''s growl made him change his mind for the better. He only hoped she could also level up like he did or else... he''d never forgive himself for standing idly.


    "There, beloved," she said with a proud smile. "They''re all gone. None of those filthy creatures will bother you anymore."


    "Uh, thanks, Gina," YuWon scratched the back of his head, unsure of how to respond. "Also, I told you to call me YuWon¡ª"


    Ignoring his question, she leaned towards him and asked, "Do I please you, husband?"


    YuWon sighed. He wasn''t used to this kind of attention, but Gina insisted on giving him the princess treatment. However, it came at a cost, and that''s why she was leaning forward, with her head bowed.


    "Yeah, you did great," he said and patted her head awkwardly.


    As he touched her, Gina''s smile widened, as she was practically glowing with pride.


    "I''ll keep hunting them down until there are none left," she dered, clenching her fist. "All for you and our... future child."


    "C-Child? You don''t have to go that far," YuWonughed nervously.


    However, Gina wasn''t listening. She was already scanning the area for more goblins to hunt, and was gone once she sensed them. As she took off again, YuWon sighed, watching her go.


    Unfortunately, things were about to go south quick.


    As they strolled around the campus, YuWon forgot that Jaehwan and hisckeys were moving around, looking for survivors.


    Min-Joon and Soo-Ah had met them and asked them to look for him, to which Jaehwan graciously agreed.


    Soo-Ah didn''t know it, but Jaehwan had no intention of bringing YuWon to the auditorium. The only thing they wanted to do was take some built-up frustration out on him.


    "Besides, no one will ever know what happened to him?" Jaehwan chuckled. "It''s a monstrous world, after all. Anything can happen to anyone, especially that limping bastard."


    "Of course, senior!" theckey jumped up to lick his feet.


    "Senior is always right!" the other did the same. "But... it''s been a while since he encountered one of the monsters."


    Jaehwan looked at the guy and realized he was correct. At first, the monsters appeared often. But it had been a minute since they crossed paths with any goblin.


    However, as they turned a corner, they got to know why. The floor was littered with goblin corpses, and at the end of the corridor, YuWon was casually walking around.


    The skinnier one among theckeys noticed YuWon and immediately pointed towards him.


    "Did¡­ did he do all this?"


    However, Jaehwan wasn''t listening. His entire focus was on YuWon, who looked nothing like how Jaehwan remembered him. YuWon appeared more muscr, and he didn''t limp like before.


    "What the hell¡­?" Jaehwan muttered. "There''s no way¡­"


    "Are you sure that''s him? YuWon was supposed to be weak, right?" the bulky one asked.


    Jaehwan had told them that YuWon was a pathetic, weak guy who would be easy to bully. However, the man before their eyes looked nothing like Jaehwan had told them.


    "Of course it''s him!" Jaehwan snapped. "He''s changed a bit, but that''s no concern. There are three of us and only one of him. We can deal with him, so go!"


    Theckeys hesitated for a moment, but then charged at him. If they could kill monsters, then dealing with a human would not be difficult.


    However, as they got closer, YuWon ducked down, causing theckeys to stumble forward. Theckeys couldn''t control themselves and mmed against the wall in front.


    "Fucking idiots," YuWonmented. "I couldn''t see you, but even a deaf guy could hear your steps."


    Watching them fail, Jaehwan shook his head in disbelief.


    "Why do I even bother with these idiots?" he said. "I got to deal with him myself now."


    "About time you showed up," YuWon smirked.


    "What? You missed me?" Jaehwan retorted. "Although I gotta say I didn''t expect to see you walking around like this. Hell, had it not been for your friends, I would have thought you were already dead."


    "Friends? Oh, you mean Soo-Ah," YuWon shrugged. "I didn''t think she''d be worried about me."


    "What''s that supposed to mean?"


    "Nothing, although you should leave," YuWon said dismissively. "If you want to live, that is."


    "Leave? You think you can scare me with a threat?" Jaehwanughed. "Just so you know, we can''t kill each other."


    YuWon frowned. Only a person who''s tried to kill someone would know the rule.


    "Have you killed someone, Jaehwan?"


    "Kill? No, I haven''t killed anyone," He replied, licking his lips. "But, you know, if a few defenseless girls happen to get found by monsters¡­ then that''s not exactly my fault, is it?"


    YuWon''s expression darkened. He knew what Jaehwan was implying, and it sickened him. However, by admitting to it, Jaehwan made things easier for YuWon.


    Any doubts YuWon had about what he needed to do were gone. Jaehwan wasn''t just a bully¡ªhe was a monster in his own right and as a monster hunter, it was his job to kill them, right?


    Unfortunately, the bbermouth didn''t hold back and made things worse for him.


    "You know, YuWon," Jaehwan continued. "Since your reputation is already in the gutter, why don''t I make your life even more miserable?"


    "Oh yeah? How will you do that?" YuWon smirked, knowing it was thest conversation Jaehwan would ever have.


    "It''s easy. If I tell everyone that you molested someone and got them killed, they''ll believe me. That''s what I''m going to do¡ªruin youpletely before I let the monsters hunt you. That''ll be fun!"


    While Jaehwan said all those things, something felt off. The fucker had always been a bit unhinged, but this was too much. Even for Jaehwan.


    "You''re disgusting, Jaehwan," YuWon took a deep breath. "But you''re right about one thing. Someone is going to die today."

 Chapter 22: The Truth

    Unfortunately for him, YuWon was much faster. He grabbed the bat mid-swing before hitting Jaehwan and disarmed him.


    With a loud tter, the bat fell to the ground. Ignoring the pain in his hand, Jaehwan lunged toward the bat. However, YuWon snatched the bat from his hands and mmed it into Jaehwan''s back.


    The sickening crack of broken ribs echoed through the corridor, and Jaehwan cried out in pain before copsing to the ground. His reaction made YuWon realize how weak the others were.


    Since he had respawned countless times now, information about anyone but himself was a mess in his head. Yet, he expected the rest to be stronger than Jaehwan was. If not, they''d be screwed against the monsters.


    Meanwhile, Jaehwan squirmed on the floor staring daggers at YuWon as he was the one in the wrong. YuWon couldn''t help but smile at his reaction. But a momentter, he did something unexpected.


    YuWon tossed the bat toward Jaehwan. Considering how weak he was, YuWon felt it wouldn''t be fun if he used a weapon against him. However, Jaehwan was surprised.


    "W-What?" he mumbled.


    "Pick it up," YuWon ordered, looking down at him.


    It wasn''t the first time Jaehwan had seen that look. Back in middle school, the star YuWon always looked down on him. It wasn''t the truth, but Jaehwan''s mind had twisted the facts to enable him to bully YuWon feeling no guilt.


    Fueled by anger, he reached for the bat even though he was struggling to breathe after YuWon''s hit. But just as his fingers brushed against the handle, YuWon''s knee connected with Jaehwan''s face.


    The same knee that Jaehwan and Hoon had shattered months ago in an attack rammed into his nose with brutal force. Blood poured from Jaehwan''s nose as he clutched his face, squirming in pain.


    However, YuWon wasn''t done yet. He stepped on Jaehwan''s foot at an odd angle. Jaehwan screamed in pain as YuWon slowly increased his weight on the leg, which eventually snapped like a twig.


    Last time he had left Jaehwan alive because he wanted to send a statement to Hoon. But he no longer needed to do that. After all, he knew where the bastard was hiding and could deal with him himself.


    "YOU BASTARD!" Jaehwan screamed, only for YuWon to kick him in the face.


    "It doesn''t feel good, does it?" YuWon mumbled, pulling Jaehwan up by his hair. "For someone to break you?"


    Jaehwan could only stare in horror as YuWon''s gaze intensified. Never in his life had he thought someone like YuWon would have a murderous expression.


    But now that he did, Jaehwan couldn''t think of anything but the things he had Hoon had done to YuWon.


    "I-I''m sorry!" Jaehwan yelled, holding out his hands pleading YuWon. "I''lle clean to everyone!"


    YuWon was about to step on his other leg, but stopped. "Come clean about what?"


    Upon realizing YuWon didn''t know the truth about Yeji''s pics and wasn''t beating him because of it, Jaehwan tried backtracking his statement. But it was toote.


    YuWon lifted the bat, hovering it over Jaehwan''s head. "Speak or I will kill you, consequences be damned!"


    "NO! Please, I''ll tell you everything!"


    Unlike what YuWon thought, Yeji didn''t make false ims. Someone had taken images of her while she was in the changing room. The phone used was YuWon''s, but the one who took those photos and shared them was Hoon.


    Jaehwan caught him in the act, but instead of telling the truth, he sided with Hoon. In his twisted logic, he was getting back at YuWon for their middle school years.


    "How did you get ess to my phone¡ª?"


    "Suhyun helped us!" Jaehwan yelled.


    Suhyun... only then things clicked into ce. Last year YuWon was busy with the ser seasoning up. One day as he was leaving for the field, Suhyun stopped him by asking to borrow his phone to call her parents, as her phone was dead.


    Back then, YuWon was a free spirit, helping others with no thought. He unlocked his phone and let her make the call. She must have seen his passcode and told Hoon about it.


    "The lockers back then were easy to break and fix," Jaehwan continued. "So while you were practicing, Hoon stole your phone to take Yeji''s photos and got to her good side by framing you. If you let me live, I can testify against him¡ª"


    Jaehwan expected YuWon to get mad and hit him. But hisugh interrupted him. YuWon stood over him with his hand covering his face as he keptughing like a maniac.


    Jaehwan went from scared to absolutely terrified of YuWon. Not wasting time, he tried running away, but as he did, YuWon grabbed his leg and looked at him with rage.


    "Who said you could leave?" he snarled.


    Scared shitless, Jaehwan turned to yell for help from his underlings, but when he saw the scene behind him, his blood ran cold. Hisckeys¡ªboth of them¡ªwere dead, swimming in the pool of their blood.


    "W-What the hell¡­?" Jaehwan stammered. He looked up at YuWon, his eyes wide with terror. "You killed them! You¡­ you''re not supposed to kill other humans!"


    YuWon smiled coldly, which soon turned into a cruel smile.


    "How could I kill them, Jaehwan? We''re not allowed to kill each other, remember?"


    Jaehwan got even more scared. It was true. YuWon was standing before him this entire time. Then who could have killed them?


    As he tried to make sense of what was happening, he noticed a shadow looming over him. It was a tall shadow¡ªtoo tall to be a goblin.


    Feeling some hope of survival, Jaehwan slowly turned his head, hoping to see a fellow student who could help him. But when he looked up, he knew his worst fears hade true.


    Standing above him was a green-skinned woman, her hands drenched in blood. Before Jaehwan could even scream, she lunged at him, and her ws tore through his chest with ease.


    Jaehwan gasped as blood spilled from his mouth. He looked down at the gaping wound in his chest. He tried to speak, to curse YuWon onest time, but all that came out was a gurgling sound.


    A momentter, Gina tore his heart from his chest. Jaehwan''s vision went dark, and he copsed to the ground, dead.


    YuWon watched in silence as Jaehwan''s body hit the floor. Gina turned to face him, holding the bloody heart in her hand.


    "Is this what you wanted, beloved?" she asked in her sweet voice.


    YuWon nodded slowly, not trusting himself to speak. There was a part of him that felt relief¡ªbut the anger inside him didn''t subside. Especially after hearing Jaehwan''s admission.


    For a moment YuWon wondered if he should''ve left him alive. But didn''t care about clearing his name. Besides, even if he cleared his name, it wouldn''t undo the pain he had suffered through thest year.


    I yelled about my innocence, but none of them listened to me and now I don''t care if they do.


    After suffering through thest year, YuWon realized the true nature of humans. The more he thought about it, the more he hated them. Every single one who didn''t believe him. Including his family.


    Then there was also a part of him that knew he had crossed a line by having Jaehwan killed. He had let Gina do the dirty work, but he was the one who had set everything in motion. But he quickly pushed that thought out of his head.


    "Let''s go," YuWon said finally, turning away from the gruesome scene. "We have more work to do."


    Gina smiled, tossing Jaehwan''s heart aside like it was nothing.


    "As you wish," she said, following YuWon as they left the corridor behind, leaving the bodies to rot.

 Chapter 23: Seeds Of Mistrust (1)

    YuWon sighed, standing outside the auditorium, and touched his neck. Thest time he was there, Gina had severed his head. It was a memory that still sent a shiver down his spine, but now, things were different.


    Instead of being hostile, Gina stood by his side. It was a strange feeling to have the one who killed you be by your side like a protector.


    Things are sure different now.


    With that thought, he reached out to open the door, but felt Gina tug at his tracksuit. YuWon paused and turned around, only to see Gina staring at him.


    "Is something wrong?" he asked her, wondering if she was nervous at the thought of being around humans.


    "There''s a barrier," she replied, touching the air before her. "I can''t join you inside."


    But unlike YuWon, who felt nothing, Gina''s hand stopped like she was touching a wall. He nodded before lowering her hand.


    YuWon had thought since Soo-Ah could bring her skeletons inside, it should be the same for Gina. But he was wrong. Unlike with Soo-Ah''s skeleton, the system didn''t recognize Gina as his summon. So she wasn''t allowed inside.


    YuWon had expected it. After all, the auditorium was a safe zone, and Gina was still a monster in the eyes of the system. So she wasn''t allowed to enter a ce meant to protect humans.


    Watching her sad expression, YuWon smiled and patted her head.


    "I''ll be back soon," he said reassuringly. "Just hide somewhere while I''m in there, okay?"


    But Gina didn''t let go of his tracksuit. Her grip only tightened as she looked at YuWon, worried about his safety. She had treated him like a princess, so it was natural for her to think YuWon was in danger without her protection.


    But there was something else. YuWon saw a strange fear in her eyes.


    Could it be¡ª?


    YuWon was wondering when Gina whispered.


    "Why do you have to be with humans?"


    He looked at her and wanted tough. Gina''s expression was like a lost child, and he knew she was feeling insecure. She thought he might see her as just a monster and nothing more, and that''s why he wanted to leave her and be with humans.


    YuWon sighed, realizing she wouldn''t let him go, and he wasn''t strong enough to free himself from her. Just then, an idea struck him.


    It was odd and uncharacteristic for him, but he knew it would work on someone like Gina, as he had seen it before in dramas and stuff.


    While Gina stared at him, YuWon gently ced his hand on her lips. Before she knew what was happening, he leaned in and kissed the back of his hand, right where it covered her lips.


    Gina''s eyes widened in surprise as she blushed. She touched her lips, flustered as if YuWon had kissed her and not his hand.


    Taking advantage of her moment of distraction, YuWon patted her head once more and stepped inside the barrier before turning around.


    "I''ll be right back," he said, opening the doors to go forth with his n.


    The atmosphere of the ce was just like he expected. As soon as YuWon stepped in, all eyes turned to him, and just like before, none of them looked pleased to see him there.


    Everyone got busy whispering while staring at him with disdain. However, YuWon wasn''t there to fight... yet.


    Ignoring the hostile stares, YuWon scanned the room until he found Min-Joon and Soo-Ah standing near the back. Both of them looked relieved to see him, but there was also a hint of shock in Min-Joon''s expression.


    YuWon, however, wasn''t interested in them. He hurried past them and headed straight towards Mickey and pulled a sword from the palm of his hand before giving it to the skeleton.


    He then lifted his hand and Mickey, with no hesitation, gave him his arm. YuWon smiled, wondering if the skeletons returned the memory about his respawns before he took the hand and turned to leave.


    "YuWon wait¡ª" Soo-Ah opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, someone pping stopped her.


    YuWon didn''t need to turn around to know who it was. Hoon, along with hisckeys and Yeji.


    "Who let the pervert in?" Hoon mocked before looking around. "Girls, cover yourselves properly. We wouldn''t want him getting any ideas, now would we?"


    Everyone in the roomughed, with a few exceptions. However, YuWon knew what Hoon was doing. But he would not give them the satisfaction of a reaction, not yet.


    Ignoring thements, and began walking away. He had aplished what he came for¡ªto let everyone know he was alive and no longer the weak, limping man they all thought he was. It was more like a warning to them.


    But Hoon would not let him leave that easily. As YuWon turned to go, Hoon rushed towards him. Yeji followed him closely behind as she wanted to ask YuWon not to leave the safe zone.


    Unfortunately, Hoon had different ideas and wanted to bully his favorite prey. From his posture, it looked like YuWon had forgotten about the beating he received in the morning and Hoon was about to remind him of that.


    Just as Hoon swung at him, YuWon blocked the attack with ease. The sight left everyone shocked.


    They had grown so used to Hoon bullying YuWon and seeing him cower that they never expected YuWon to defend himself, let alone stop the punch. But he did.


    Seeing matters escte, Soo-Ah took a step, but was pulled back by Min-Joon.


    "Don''t," he whispered. "Don''t go against Hoon. Everyone here is with him and going against him would make us the target."


    "Some friend you are," Soo-Ahmented with disgust. "No wonder you ran with tails between your legs and dragged me along instead of fighting the hobgoblin together."


    Min-Joon didn''t respond. He wanted to, but the words were stuck in his throat. It was true that YuWon had saved them and helped him level up. It was obvious one would call them friends. But if that was the case, then why didn''t Min-Joon take a step to help him?


    As the two of them argued, the sound of a loud snap echoed in the hall. They turned to see YuWon standing over Hoon, who was on the floor, clutching his face in shock.


    "Don''t you dare take his name with that disgusting mouth of yours!" YuWon yelled, his eyes blood red.

 Chapter 24: Seeds Of Mistrust (2)

    Hoony there, stunned, but only for a moment. He quickly recovered and started yelling as if YuWon had hit him without reason.


    "Fuck! Someone throw this maniac out of here!" he yelled, acting his part excellently.


    Hoon''smand was all the crowd needed to hear. They immediately forgot about what Hoon had said and turned their anger toward YuWon. Within moments people began shouting that YuWon to leave the auditorium.


    Their reaction pleased YuWon, and he knew he made the right choice by killing Jaehwan. They were all like him and soon they would suffer like him too.


    "I didn''t want to stay here anyway," YuWon shrugged and turned to leave.


    At this moment, Yeji hesitated and raised her hand to stop YuWon from leaving. She wanted to call out to YuWon, to ask him to stay, but Hoon grabbed her hand, using it to help himself stand.


    However, what YuWon saw was different. Yeji was helping the guy who talked ill of his father. At that moment, what little good he thought about her evaporated.


    But an idea hit him. So, he turned around and walked back to them.


    "By the way, Hoon," he said. "It''s not cool to steal someone''s phone and nt fake evidence on it. Not everyone is as lenient as me, you know."


    The crowd fell silent, unsure of what YuWon was talking about. They wondered if the things with monsters had made him crazy and he was spouting nonsense.


    But Hoon''s reaction starkly contrasted with the crowds. Upon hearing YuWon''s words, his face paled, his eyes widening in fear. He knew exactly what YuWon meant, but he couldn''t figure out how YuWon had found out.


    For a moment, Hoon''s gazended on Suhyun. Just like him, she too was shocked and shook her head when she noticed Hoon looking at her.


    If it wasn''t her, then... was it Jaehwan who told him?


    YuWon, noticing Hoon''s panic, smirked and leaned in close, so only he could hear him.


    "Don''t worry," YuWon whispered coldly. "You''ll join him soon enough."


    After saying his piece, YuWon turned to leave. But then suddenly Hoon yelled at the top of his lungs.


    "You killed Jaehwan!?"


    Hoon''s n seeded. Now everyone''s eyes were back on YuWon. But he did not know just how badly his n was about to backfire.


    YuWon, maintaining his smile, turned and said, "Have you gone mad?"


    YuWon didn''t care how much Hoon wanted to yell, and neither did he care about those who didn''t trust him. So, there was nothing left to say and YuWon wanted to leave, but Hoon wasn''t done yet.


    "You can''t leave, murderer!" Hoon yelled, grabbing YuWon''s shoulder and yanking him back.


    But YuWon wasn''t scared or worried. Instead, he was pissed and forced Hoon''s hand off his shoulder.


    "First you framed me as a pervert, now you''re calling me a murderer," he said with a smirk. "What will you use me of next? Being your father?"


    Everyone gasped upon hearing YuWon''s words, and some evenughed. He might have had his problems, but everyone enjoyed seeing the mighty Hoon get rebuked once in a while.


    Meanwhile, Hoon''s face turned red with anger. But before he could say anything, YuWon whispered, "It hurts, right? Joking about someone''s father?"


    "You bastard!" Hoon yelled. "I''m going to rip that dirty mouth of yours apart!"


    YuWon, however, ignored the outburst and turned to everyone else.


    "Do you all not know about the rule?" he asked.


    Everyone looked confused about what rule. YuWon looked at Hoon and shook his head.


    "You didn''t tell them? Some leader you are." YuWon then faced the crowd again and said. "You can''t kill other participants without dying yourselves."


    People began murmuring among themselves. Fear of death was the primary reason they all submitted to Hoon and hisckeys. They knew Hoon and his gang were the strongest and didn''t want to go against them.


    But now that they knew the truth, the people began wondering if Hoon deserved their respect or not. After sowing the seeds of mistrust, YuWon smiled inwardly.


    He had made up the part about dying after killing someone, knowing no one would dare try to prove him otherwise. Meanwhile, Hoon shook with rage.


    Of course, he knew about the stupid rule. He had received a warning himself before, but most of the others didn''t know about it. Gritting his teeth, he wondered if there was a way out of the mess.


    Just then, a woman stepped forward. It was their social studies professor, a stern-looking woman with sharp eyes and an equally sharp attitude. When she raised her hand, everyone turned quiet.


    "I can clear up any confusion about YuWon being a killer," she said. "I can detect lies as part of my abilities."


    YuWon smiled inwardly, knowing that Hoon''s n was about to crumble. But Hoon''s face turned pale, like he had just seen a ghost. He hadn''t expected the professor to get involved, and now he was in trouble.


    His expression said it all. Had she known about her before, he would have killed her in one way or the other. But now, it was toote.


    The professor walked up to YuWon and offered her hand to him. YuWon didn''t hesitate and ced his hands on her. The professor closed her eyes before asking the question.


    "Did you kill Jaehwan as Hoon ims?"


    "No," he replied firmly.


    A soft green light appeared over the professor''s head before the professor opened her eyes. She looked at him and then nodded before turning to face the others.


    "YuWon is telling the truth," she announced.


    Yeji, Soo-Ah, and Min-Joon all sighed in relief. Somewhere in their hearts, they had the doubt whether he did what Hoon imed. Since his name was cleared, there was no need for them to worry anymore.


    However, the show wasn''t over yet.


    Just as the professor was about to step back, YuWon stopped her.


    "Excuse me, Professor," YuWon said politely, "but your job isn''t over yet."


    Everyone was confused, but Hoon''s rmed eyes revealed his concern. It didn''t require a rocket scientist to know where the situation was headed, and it wasn''t a ce Hoon wanted to go.


    The professor looked at YuWon and then back at Hoon as she hesitated. She had only intended to help YuWon clear his name and not get involved in whatever personal issues were between him and Hoon. But it seemed impossible now.


    Watching her hesitate, YuWon pressed on. "Can you ask Hoon something for me?"


    The professor looked uncertain. Getting on Hoon''s wrong side was thest thing she wanted. After all, he was their leader, and crossing him might not end well for her.


    She was about to shake her head and refuse citing cooldowns and other bullshit reasons, when YuWon added something that put her in a difficult position.


    "Of course you won''t," YuWon scoffed. "All the trials and tribtions are reserved for me, right? Everyone else is holier than thou."


    Upon hearing his words, the professor bit her lips. Unfortunately, the crowd watching YuWon''s retort wanted to know where he was going with the y. After all, it was rare for a sheep to growl like a wolf, and they all wanted to see if the wolf could bite.


    The professor realized she couldn''t back down now without looking like she was ying favorites.


    So, with a sigh, she asked, "What do you want me to ask him?"


    YuWon smiled as his gaze shifted to Hoon, who was visibly nervous.


    "Ask Hoon if it was me who took Yeji''s photosst year."

 Chapter 25: [Bonus Chapter] YuWons Indifference

    The room went dead silent. Everyone knew about the incident with Yeji''s photos. After all, it was the scandal that had rocked their college, and YuWon was the culprit... or so they believed.


    At the same time, Yeji''s face drained of color as she looked at Hoon, and then back at YuWon. Her step-brother''s question raised many questions and Yeji didn''t know how she would face YuWon if it turned out Hoon had lied to them.


    The professor reluctantly nodded as she turned to Hoon. "Hoon, did YuWon take those photos?"


    Hoon couldn''t believe his eyes. YuWon had him trapped, and the bastard was smiling. He looked around. Everyone had their eyes on him. There was no chance for his escape.


    Hoon''s face twisted into a sneer, trying to regain hisposure. He didn''t know how the professor''s ability worked. If it was like a polygraph test, then maybe he could fool her, and that''s what he decided to do.


    "Of course he did! I saw him!" he replied calmly. "Why would I¡ª"


    But before he could finish, the professor''s ability activated, and a faint red light appeared over her head. It was an absolute sign Hoon was lying. Everyone gasped as they realized what that meant.


    "Hoon... lied?" someone whispered among the crowd.


    Everyone remembered Hoon''s statement as the reason YuWon was deemed as the weirdo. But if he lied, did it mean YuWon was innocent, and they were wrong?


    While everyone else was shocked, Yeji turned into a statue right there, her eyes fixed on YuWon. However, her brother never looked at her, just smiled and shook his head.


    "I do!"


    A green light appeared over the professor. But instead of being relieved, Hoon was hit with another question.


    "Was the person YuWon?"


    "Y-Yes!"


    The red light shed again.


    Hoon tried to defend himself, but the red light still hovered above the professor, damning every word that came out of his mouth. Soon the crowd, once on Hoon''s side, turned against him.


    The truth was about to be revealed. But a momentter, everything changed.


    Watching her, YuWon shook his head and turned to leave when Yeji''s voice rang out.


    "Everyone, whatever happened is between me and Hoon," she said. "Please stop ming him for everything. He might have lied, but the photographs were ultimately recovered from YuWon''s phone. So, if you have any evidence¡ª"


    "That''s right!"


    Oneckey immediately jumped to Hoon''s defense and a few more followed. Yeji turned to YuWon next.


    "Apart from Hoon''s statement, how will you exin the rest, YuWon?" she asked.


    Hoon didn''t miss the chance and immediately jumped up.


    "Are you framing me for taking Yeji''s photos? If you have any proof, show it! Don''t just talk crap!" he yelled.


    YuWon stopped but didn''t turn. Everyone held their breath, wanting to see what he''ll do now. With a long sigh, YuWon turned and stared at Yeji.


    "Proof? What good will it do?" YuWon asked. "I proved he lied, yet you chose his side. What good wille even if I showed you the proof? In your eyes, I''m already a criminal, so there''s no point in continuing this farce."


    The question caught everyone off guard. But especially Yeji. She was a practical person, that''s why she demanded proof so YuWon could clear his name once and for all. But YuWon assumed the worst, and he wasn''t entirely wrong.


    Next, YuWon turned towards Hoon and said, "I, Jaehwan, you, and Suhyun¡ªwe all know the truth. That''s enough for me."


    Hoon was wide-eyed and so was Suhyun. But Yeji was confused, wondering how Jaehwan, Hoon, and Suhyun were involved in it. However, YuWon had no interest in exining things because he knew no one would believe him either way.


    YuWon then turned towards everyone else andughed at their expression.


    "All of you want proof, but why should I give you anything?" he said, looking at Yeji. "Proving my innocence means nothing to me now. After all, it won''t undo the pain I''ve endured over thest year."


    His words hit Yeji like a truck. The look in YuWon''s eyes scared her. Her brother wasn''t like this before, but everyone''s betrayal seemed to have broken him.


    For the first time since everything had happened, Yeji wondered if maybe, just maybe, YuWon had been innocent all along. But to prove his innocence before everyone, she needed some proof which YuWon wasn''t willing to give.


    Everyone had questions, but YuWon had lost all interest in them and was about to leave. Much like thest time, Soo-Ah noticed something green outside and yelled for YuWon to stop.


    However, things were different this time as Gina approached YuWon with concern.


    "Are you okay?" she asked.


    "I''m okay," YuWon smiled, patting her head as usual. "Just had to deal with some old business."


    However, YuWon couldn''t lie to her as she looked inside the room with rage. Something had to have happened inside for her husband to appear distressed.


    "Did they hurt you?" she asked, clutching her fist.


    "No," YuWonughed. "I''m stronger now. They can''t hurt me like they used to."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I''m d," Gina looked up at him with a smile.


    "Let''s get out of here," he said, ruffling her hair.


    Everyone was surprised to see YuWon chatting casually with a monster. They thought maybe he had a ss simr to Soo-Ah''s and he could tame them. Little did they know it was far from the truth.


    However, a twisted grin spread across Hoon''s face, wanting to distract everyone, and saw an opportunity to shift the attention back to YuWon and away from his own lies.


    "Tsk, even monsters aren''t safe from YuWon''s twisted desires," Hoon yelled, pointing at Gina. "What''s next, YuWon? Are you going to start chasing after animals, too? You and that thing are both disgusting and ugly, so get lost!"


    No one joined Hoon in mocking YuWon this time. Not even hisckeys. But someone did as a momentter they heard someone''s rapid pounding of footsteps.


    YuWon ran back into the room, moving with a speed that caught everyone off guard. Before anyone could react, YuWon was in front of Hoon and punched him with so much force he went flying to the other side of the room.


    But YuWon wasn''t done yet. He grabbed Hoon''s fallen spear and threw it at him. Yeji wanted to stop him, but he was too quick. All they heard was Hoon''s scream as the spear pinned him to the wall.


    "YuWon stop!" Yeji yelled as he headed towards Hoon.


    But YuWon didn''t care about anything. She showed no concern when Hoon was spouting shit, so why should he listen to her now?


    Pinned to the wall, Hoon''s face turned pale with fear, his body trembling as he looked up at YuWon. Completely defenseless. Meanwhile, YuWon stared down at him like the eyes of a predator sizing up its prey.


    "Say whatever the hell you want about me," YuWon growled. "But I won''t tolerate a single word about my partner."


    The word partner confused them all. Everyone had seen the green-skinned girl standing outside, and though she was beautiful, she was clearly not human. So why was YuWon calling that¡­ thing his partner?

 Chapter 26: Region Boss: Goblin Monarch (1)

    Yeji was worried that because everyone had been pushing him away, YuWon had developed some mental illness. She wasn''t entirely wrong. YuWon wasn''t in his right mind, but could anyone maintain their sanity in such a strange world?


    He turned to look at Yeji, then burst outughing. However, it wasn''t a joyfulugh, but a maniacal one.


    "Parents? What parents?" YuWon asked sarcastically. "I had no one in this world before the shit show with the monsters, and I have no one now. No family, no friends, all because of you."


    Yeji flinched at his words. She bit her lip, struggling to say anything to bring YuWon back to his senses. But the look on YuWon''s face stopped her. There was a deep sadness in his eyes, hidden underneath a sea of rage.


    It wasn''t the first time Yeji had sensed it. She saw the same look whenever YuWon looked at her while Hoon beat him. But she always mistook it for something else.


    In her mind, her request not to expel him from college was enough kindness. Everything else that happened to him was none of her concern. Or so she thought, until their world changed forever.


    Back when the goblin appeared, Yeji first thought of YuWon. She even wanted to go look for him, but because of her healing abilities, she got too wrapped up in helping everyone else.


    It wasn''t until Soo-Ah and Min-Joon informed them about YuWon that she breathed a sigh of relief. Yeji was prepared to let bygones be bygones and treat YuWon''s leg. Only to be shocked when he returned.


    Only then did Yeji realize her brother had changed. He wasn''t the same guy he used to be, and it was toote to make amends.


    "Forget about your parents," YuWon continued as he turned to leave. "There''s no one in this world I care about. Not even myself."


    But just before he reached the door, he stopped and looked back at Yeji and he smiled.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You don''t need to worry about me," YuWon said. "I will not die or disappear. Not before I return the kindness that all of you have shown me this past year."


    With that, he left. No one moved, no one spoke. They were worried about what YuWon said before departing and for that moment he looked more frightening than those goblins ever could.


    But unlike them, Yeji didn''t think about herself. Only one thought echoed in her head. What had they done to him? What had she done to him?


    Before she could answer those questions, loud fighting noises erupted from the corridor. Concerned about YuWon, Yeji, Soo-Ah, and a hesitant Min-Joon rushed outside, only to find the entire area covered in goblin bodies.


    At that moment, a notification appeared before them.


    [Attention! Region Boss  has noticed the massacre of its kin.]


    [Region Boss  has begun its pilgrimage to resurrect the fallen kin.]


    [Hunt the Region Boss  before the pilgrimage isplete.]


    [Remaining Time: 2 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds.]


    [Reward: Tutorial Completion, subss selection, misceneous rewards (based on participation).]


    [Penalty for failure:


    ¡ª All monsters within the zone will evolve by one stage.


    ¡ª All safe zones will disappear.]


    "We have to go," Yeji mumbled. "Hiding away won''t solve our problems anymore."


    ***


    Minutes ago...


    Once outside the building, Gina continued her onught on goblins. Despite being a goblin, she could sense the turmoil in his heart.


    However, no matter how much she tried, she couldn''t get through the wall YuWon had made around his heart.


    Just then a notification informing about the region boss appeared before YuWon. However, unlike everyone else, he wasn''t worried even a bit. But Gina interrupted his thoughts.


    "It''s too soon," she mumbled. "The pilgrimage can only happen at night. Then why?"


    Gina didn''t have a system to inform her about events like YuWon. But as a goblin, her senses did a good enough job to let her know about the happenings involving the goblin monarch.


    As for her question, YuWon already knew the answer. With the time frozen outside the zone, there was no point in waiting for the dark. Therefore, YuWon asked the obvious question.


    "Where is he? The monarch?"


    Gina closed her eyes and raised her head as if trying to remember something. After a minute, she looked back at YuWon.


    "He''s... moving," she said. "Heading towards us."


    "Towards us?"


    "To resurrect the fallen kin, the monarch required the participants," Gina informed. "No. Calling it a resurrection won''t be urate. The monarch would breed to create more soldiers for himself."


    YuWon suddenly realized why the goblins didn''t kill females until they absolutely had to. They were bringing the women to their monarch. Even the thought disgusted him. But then again, who was he to worry about them?


    However, he still had to fight the Monarch for the sake of ending the tutorial. Then he could have his fun torturing Hoon and the rest.


    "Where is heing from?" YuWon asked, creating a checkpoint there.


    He knew everyone else would also get the notification. Even though it was unlikely anyone would leave the auditorium to fight, YuWon didn''t want to risk it.


    He wanted to kill the Monarch, and he wanted to do it himself. The rewards were based on participation, and he didn''t want anyone else to get a single thing from the hunt.


    Thankfully, I''ve got Gina with me. She will guide me directly to that jerk like apass, while everyone else will aimlessly wander.


    Gina did as he asked and pointed toward the north. However, she didn''t seem as enthusiastic as she had been before.


    "Something wrong?"


    "The monarch will have his strongest soldiers by his side during the pilgrimage," she mumbled. "I can deal with some of them but..."


    "We need more people?"


    Gina didn''t want to admit it, but she nodded. YuWon sighed. No wonder the rewards were based on participation. Killing the beast wasn''t the job for one guy, but the entire poption within the zone.


    The only problem was...


    They are all useless!

 Chapter 27: [Bonus Chapter] Region Boss: Goblin Monarch (2)

    Going back to the auditorium for help was not an option. Besides, even if he returned, he doubted anyone but Soo-Ah and Min-Joon would be of some use, thanks to their unique skills.


    Maybe Yeji could help¡ªno. Not her.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Just then YuWon came up with a n. It was risky, and he had no clue if it would work, but it was worth a shot. Thankfully, he had already set a checkpoint, so even if things went wrong, he could respawn and try something else.


    As YuWon entered the building again, he was surprised to see Yeji arguing with Hoon and a few others. But before he could hear what they were talking about, they saw him and immediately became silent.


    YuWon looked at Gina behind him and wondered if he should order her to kill Hoon. It wouldn''t be difficult, and it wasn''t like he cared about the opinion of those around him. But he shook that thought out of his head.


    No. Not yet. Besides, I''d need more cannon fodders to fight the monarch. Once it is dead, I can deal with Hoon myself.


    While he was lost in his thoughts, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon noticed him and ran towards him. However, they stopped when Gina jumped in front of YuWon, baring her teeth and ws at them.


    "It''s fine Gina," YuWon said, patting her head. "You don''t need to be worried about them."


    Upon hearing his words, Gina retracted her ws and stood by his side like a model wife. Soo-Ah looked at Gina with unease.


    It wasn''t surprising. After all, they had spent hours killing goblins and now they were supposed to ept her? Even if she looked human, she was a monster and Soo-Ah was worried about YuWon moving around with her.


    Meanwhile, Min-Joon kept staring at Gina. To him, she was no different from any other attractive woman, despite being a goblin. Soo-Ah noticed his gaze and promptly smacked him on the back of the head.


    "Snap out of it," she muttered, ring at him.


    "Ow... are you sure you''re a necromancer?" he replied, caressing his head. "I thought they were supposed to be weak."


    "Keep running your mouth and you''ll find out who is weak," Soo-Ah replied, making a fist.


    Min-Joon gulped down the words he was about to say. Even if he hadn''t known her for long, he knew better than to argue with Soo-Ah when she was in one of her moods.


    Once done, Soo-Ah turned her attention towards YuWon and asked, "Did you hear about the region boss?"


    "Yeah, that''s why I''m here," YuWonmented. "I need your help."


    "That''s great!" Min-Joon eximed. "I''ll leave you two to discuss your ns and... take my leave¡ª"


    As usual, he didn''t want to fight an unnecessary battle. But before he could slip away, Mickey poked his back with the sword, as if reminding him that running wasn''t an option.


    "When I asked for help, I meant both of you," YuWonmented and Min-Joon sighed.


    "Fine, I''m in."


    YuWon nodded, but then noticed everyone''s gaze on him. Following his fight with Hoon, they must have realized he was stronger than most of them, if not all.


    They probably wanted to join him for a better chance of winning. But knew better than to ask shamelessly for his help after everything they had done. However, YuWon didn''t like their eyes on him.


    "Let''s get out of here first," he suggested. "We can talk somewhere else."


    Yeji watched YuWon, wanting to call him over to join theirrger group. But she hesitated. He had made it clear that he didn''t want to work with them, so there was no point in trying to convince him.


    She kept her mouth shut, watching as YuWon disappeared with the rest of his group.


    ***


    Slowly, the group approached the spot where YuWon had killed the Hobgoblin. All the while, his attention was solely on Gina, watching her every move.


    When they turned and came face to face with the corpse, YuWon wondered if seeing her dead father would trigger some kind of emotional response in Gina.


    But to his surprise, she didn''t seem much affected by it. She just walked over to the corpse, kneeled down, and closed her eyes as if praying for her father.


    When Gina finished, she stood up and resumed her ce by YuWon''s side as if nothing happened. He looked at her, searching for any sign of sadness or anger.


    After all, she had once severed his head by mere implication of her father''s death. But now she seemed eerily calm. Noticing his gaze, Gina smiled up at him before shaking her head.


    "I already told you," she said, as if reading his mind. "You''re the only one who matters to me, husband. No one else."


    "Are they for real?" Min-Joon whispered in disbelief. "They look like a couple out of some drama series."


    Soo-Ah was equally stunned, but for a different reason. When YuWon had referred to Gina as his partner, she had assumed they were merely working together. Only when she heard Gina call YuWon her husband did she realize the rtionship the two shared.


    "...maybe I should find and get married to an elven prince," she mumbled.


    "Yeah¡­ it''s possible if you were thest female on the." Min-Joonmented, ignoring Soo-Ah''s sharp gaze.


    After patting Gina''s head, YuWon turned to Soo-Ah and asked, "Resurrect it."


    The request really caught Soo-Ah off guard. She looked at Gina, unsure if it was the right thing to do. But she was worried about nothing.


    "You should do as my husband asks," she said, without even looking at Soo-Ah.


    YuWon couldn''t help but smile at the way Gina emphasized the word husband. As if she was worried Soo-Ah would steal him away from her.


    Soo-Ah didn''t wait and stretched out her hand. However, unlike thest time, nothing happened.


    "What''s wrong?" YuWon asked when Soo-Ah failed for the eleventh time.


    "I... don''t have enough mana," she replied.


    Of course, she doesn''t.


    YuWon realized his mistake. Thest time when Soo-Ah raised Skullee she was already level 10. However, that wasn''t the case this time. Unfortunately, there wasn''t enough time for them to raise her level.


    "It''s fine," he said. "We''ll figure something outter¡ª"


    However, just then Gina walked up to Soo-Ah and gently took her hand. The gesture confused Soo-Ah, while Min-Joon cursed himself. If only he had chosen a ss like the necromancer, he would be holding Gina''s hand.


    YuWon loudly cleared his throat while side-eyeing Min-Joon, who immediately turned around as if he wasn''t thinking about Gina.


    "Try again," Gina urged Soo-Ah.


    Soo-Ah nodded and gave it another shot, this time with Gina''s support. Immediately, she felt a surge of mana rushing into her body. A momentter, Skullee was back. But something was different this time.


    Instead of being a simple skeleton like before, Skullee had absorbed the dead goblins around it, forming a skeletal armor over the main body. But that wasn''t all.


    Resurrected skeletons would usually only bow down to their master, but Skullee turned and bowed before Gina. It surprised everyone but Gina and she smiled at YuWon.


    "Father wants to thank you," she said, ying with her hair. "For epting me, and he demands at least seven grandchildren as dowry."


    "We''ve got what we need. Time to leave." YuWon quickly replied, and he turned to leave without answering.

 Chapter 28: Misfortune Favors The Weak

    YuWon wondered, feeling the warm blood on his face. Forget about taking down the monarch. They couldn''t even get past his generals.


    As he turned to one side, he saw Soo-Ah fighting desperately. The skeletons were shing with goblins thrice their size. Sweat dripped down her face as shemanded the undead, trying to hold back the monarch''s army at bay.


    But no matter what she did, the skeletons kept perishing. Even though she kept raising new ones to rece the destroyed ones, YuWon knew it was a matter of time before she ran out of mana.


    Not much further, Min-Joon was also fighting the goblins like a maniac. Although his [Berserk] skill was good, it wasn''t enough. Why? Because he was losing strength, as blood kept pouring from the stump where his arm used to be.


    Even so, Min-Joon kept swinging the de. But it was clear he wouldn''tst much longer. Every strike of his grew weaker, and every breath came morebored.


    As for YuWon... He had been long out of the fight. He was on the ground, his head on Gina''sp. Blood gushed from a deep wound on his forehead, the wound that the Monarch had so graciously given him.


    YuWon remembered the scene even as he struggled to stay conscious. One hit was all it took to reduce him to such a pitiful state.


    Defeating... the monarch... won''t be easy.


    Just then Gina''s whimpering voice echoed in his mind. She was holding YuWon''s head to stop the bleeding, but in vain.


    "YuWon, please," Gina begged, tears falling down her cheeks. "Keep your eyes open. Don''t leave me¡­"


    Although YuWon didn''t have the strength to smile, he felt happy. After all, it was the first time Gina had addressed him by his name. Unfortunately, he couldn''t enjoy the feeling for long as Min-Joon''s screams filled the air.


    How did we end up like this?


    ***


    About an hour ago...


    With their preparationsplete, YuWon, Soo-Ah, Gina, and Min-Joon left the campus, with Soo-Ah''s skeletons trailing behind them. With Gina''s help, they had tracked the Monarch''s entourage to a deste highway just outside the campus.


    However, that''s when they realized how severely they had underestimated the Monarch. There were at least a dozen hobgoblins surrounding a carriage inside, which was the monarch.


    But that wasn''t the only threat. More than a hundred goblin scouts were scattered throughout the area, and two elderly goblins with staffs were walking behind the carriage.


    "Is that¡ª" Soo-Ah couldn''t speak and covered her mouth.


    YuWon could understand why. After all, one didn''t see naked humans drawing a carriage like animals. However, unlike Soo-Ah and Min-Joon, YuWon didn''t care about that.


    The goblins were strong, and the humans were weak. It was inevitable for the rule of nature to take over. Besides, had it been humans who used Goblins as ves, he was pretty sure no one would bat an eye; including him.


    But YuWon was interested in something. Namely, those old-looking goblins. It was the first time he had seen them and, from his experience, he knew dealing with them would be troublesome.


    "Those are shamans," Gina whispered, noticing YuWon was staring at them. "Don''t be fooled by their frail bodies. They are incredibly strong. At least four times stronger than father. That''s what he told me."


    YuWon nodded. He had expected that much, but even then, the shamans only added to his tension. They were already outnumbered, and now they had to deal with powerful magic users too?


    "We can''t take them on in a direct fight," YuWon mumbled. "We need a n¡ª"


    Unfortunately, they won''t have any time to think things through. By allowing Gina to locate the monarch, YuWon had made a grave mistake. It never crossed his mind that just like Gina could feel the monarch''s presence, thetter could do the same.


    But there was no time to regret. The monarch''s army charged right towards them.


    "Get ready!" YuWon shouted.


    Soo-Ah''s skeletons rushed forward, along with Min-Joon, who immediately went berserk. YuWon had told them to try not to kill the goblins until the hobgoblins were dealt with, but in the heat of the moment, not even the skeleton could keep their mind straight.


    "Fucking hell! Gina, take care of the shamans!" YuWon ordered, his eyes fixed on the hobgoblins. "I''ll handle these brutes!"


    Gina nodded and headed straight for the shamans. Meanwhile, YuWon turned his attention to the nearest hobgoblin. The creature was massive, even bigger than Skullee. Even so, they didn''t fare off any better than him.


    The hobgoblin swung its giant club with all its might, aiming to crush YuWon. He dodged the attack, letting the club smash into the ground and sent gravel flying in all directions.


    "It''s your loss," YuWon smirked, noticing the weapon stuck to the road.


    Using the club as adder, YuWon climbed to the hobgoblin''s head before punching it with all his might. The force of the blow shattered its skull, and the creature crumpled to the ground, dead.


    But there was no time to celebrate. Another hobgoblin came charging at him, its club raised high. YuWon ducked under its swing and kicked its leg, bringing the creature to its knees. A quick, decisive strike to the neck finished it.


    Just like the two before, YuWon took down the third hobgoblin. But as he moved to attack the fourth, something felt off. It almost felt like an invisible force was dragging him down, slowing his movements.


    He looked up and noticed a shaman focusing on him. Gina was trying to attack the one targeting him, but the other shaman kept her preupied, maintaining its distance and only interfering when she got close to the other shaman.


    "Fuck this shit!" YuWon cursed and rushed towards the shamans.


    He had to stop it before it couldpletely immobilize him. But just as he reached the shaman, he felt a massive presence behind him. It was the Goblin Monarch.


    YuWon looked at the creature. The goblin barely looked like one and was as tall as a troll. Gold covered every inch of its body, including the sword it carried.


    "Perish," the monarch mumbled, swinging the de.


    Because of the Shaman, YuWon remained rooted to the spot and a momentter, pain shot through his head. The impact was brutal, sending YuWon flying across the highway. He crashed to the ground with no energy to fight back.


    ***n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Back in the present...


    Darkness slowly clouded YuWon''s mind and keeping his eyes open felt like a herculean task. Soo-Ah, having power over the dead, immediately noticed YuWon''s state.


    "YuWon!" she yelled. "Don''t you dare give up now! You still have to prove your innocence, remember?"


    Innocence? Why would I think about such trivial things?


    YuWon wanted to retort, but felt his life slipping away. The world around him grew darker, the sounds of battle fading into a distant echo. He tried to focus on Gina''s face, on her pleading eyes, but it was no use.


    The darkness was too strong. He had lost too much blood. His strength was gone. And as his eyes squinted shut.


    [Respawning at thest known checkpoint. Please wait.]


    [Respawn Points: 993/1000]

 Chapter 29: [Bonus Chapter] Resolve

    He thought with Gina and Skullee things would be easy, but that wasn''t the case. For once, he couldn''t cheat the scenario before him. Defeating the monarch truly required everyone''s participation.


    But how could he team up with those he hated with every fiber of his being? Besides, will they even work with him?


    YuWon was thinking all that while Gina looked at him strangely. Maybe it was because the confident look on his face had vanished.


    Just then, they heard rushing footsteps. YuWon turned, expecting to see goblins, but was surprised to see the students and the professors rushing out of the auditorium, brandishing their weapons.


    Yeji was leading them and stopped when she saw YuWon there. The others stopped too, but not because of YuWon. Gina was staring daggers at them, as if ready to kill them all.


    Meanwhile, YuWon smiled internally, as it was an opportunity he couldn''t miss.


    "Quite brave of you to leave thefort of the safe zone," YuWon smiled, staring at Hoon. "Is your shoulder okay?"


    "It''s none of your damn business!" Hoon yelled.


    "Bad move," YuWon clicked his tongue and Gina unveiled her ws at Hoon.


    Scared, Hoon forgot all his bravado and stepped back. The only people who weren''t afraid were Yeji, Soo-Ah, and Min-Joon. Soo-Ah and Min-Joon''s reactions didn''t surprise YuWon, but Yeji''s reaction did.


    Why isn''t she afraid of Gina? Does she think I''ll stop Gina from hurting her?


    Not wanting to know the answers to his questions, YuWon patted Gina''s head, and she happily retreated.


    "I guess you heard about the region boss?" Yeji asked, with no sign of timidness she had before.


    "I did."


    "...will you help us, then?" Yeji asked.


    As soon as those words left her mouth, Hoon grabbed her by the shoulders.


    "Have you gone mad?" he yelled. "You want that bastard and that monster to help us? Didn''t you see what he did to me before? He is a danger to all of us!"


    There were murmurs to support Hoon, but the voices were much lesser than before. As for the others, they didn''t say a thing, but YuWon could read them like an open book.


    "You fear me," YuWon smirked. "I get it. But if you think you can handle the region boss on your own, go ahead. I''m not stopping you."


    Hoon red at him, but before he could say anything, Yeji spoke up.


    "Yes, I saw what he did to you," she said, addressing Hoon. "How could I not when I''m the one who healed your wounds?"


    "Then why are you¡ª" he began but got interrupted again.


    "But I also heard what you said to him," Yeji continued. "If someone talked about me like that, what would you do?"


    "...beat the shit out of them," Hoon mumbled, ring at YuWon.


    "Then you know you got what you deserved."


    Yeji''s words shocked not only Hoon, but also everyone else. They had never seen Yeji talk back to Hoon publicly. Even if he did something wrong, she''d always wait to correct him in private, but not this time.


    "Yeji is right, Hoon," the professor from before interrupted. "This isn''t about a few of us. It''s about our collective survival and as things stand, we need all the help we can get."


    Hoon hesitated, clearly wanting to argue, but he wasn''t a fool. He knew anything he said couldnd him in trouble and if YuWon revealed the truth about Yeji''s pictures... then he''d lose everything he worked for.


    Meanwhile, YuWon looked at Yeji with confusion. He didn''t believe for a moment that she had suddenly changed her opinion of him.


    She is doing it to win me over and get me to help. I don''t mind it. At least in this arrangement, both of us will use the other.


    YuWon smiled and shook his head. Of course, she only wanted his help. Why else would she, someone who filled his mother''s ears, would take his side?


    "Fine, I''ll work with you," YuWon said. "But we''ll do this my way. Anything I say you''ll do without hesitation. If you argue, you''re on your own. Is that clear?"


    "Agreed." Yeji nodded, relieved.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Despite leading the team, Yeji knew she wasn''t the right person for the job. She was a healer, so while she could manage the organizational side, but anything rted to monsters was unknown to her.


    That''s why she had made Hoon the leader, while in truth she was the one everyone followed. But with YuWon, she didn''t need to give the role to Hoon. So, she quickly agreed to YuWon''s terms.


    YuWon smiled. He had plenty of ideas to test her resolve. Unfortunately, it wasn''t the right time. But that didn''t mean he couldn''t y with them.


    "Are you speaking for yourself or everyone here?" YuWon asked.


    "Everyone..." she mumbled.


    Hoon looked like he wanted to protest, but he finally relented. Everyone else did the same. YuWon looked at them silently. These people... all of them had treated him so poorly, but watching them act like lost puppies was indeed amusing.


    "Fine," he said. "If that''s what you all want. But first there''s something I need to do. In the meantime, I have a task for you."


    With a smirk, he turned towards Hoon and gestured for him to step forward. Although Yeji had healed his wound, Hoon still remembered the pain YuWon gave him and was hesitant to approach him.


    "Go."


    Yeji''s response made him relent, and he walked towards YuWon, who weed him with a smile before turning to the crowd.


    "Soo-Ah, Min-Joon," YuWon called next, and they approached him. Ignoring Hoon, YuWon announced. "There''s something we need to do inside. While we are gone, I want everyone to show their strength."


    Everyone looked at YuWon, confused as to what he meant.


    "I''m thankful that Hoon has volunteered for the task."


    Hoon''s expression darkened when he heard that. But there was no time to react.


    "One by one, you all will approach Hoon and hit him, wherever you please," YuWon said, continuing to smile. "Just think of him as a goblin and do your worst. After all, Miss Yeji can always heal him. So let''s start with..."


    YuWon made a show out of randomly picking someone from the crowd before pointing at Yeji.


    "Come on, Miss Yeji, show us your strength."


    YuWon pped as if it was an auspicious asion. But Hoon interrupted him.


    "Keep dreaming, you bastard!" he said, walking off. "Like hell, I''m going to be everyone''s punching bag."


    Hoon left and Yeji didn''t move either. It was obvious they wouldn''t follow his demand. It was a shame, but he couldn''t manipte them into it, could he?


    YuWon took a deep breath and turned to leave. But not before taking another jab.


    "It was a test of yourmitment," he shrugged, ying the role of a saddened benefactor. "But if you can''t even do this simple thing, then how can I expect you to kill the goblins? It''s a pity, but you''ll have to fight the boss yourselves¡ª"


    Smack!


    YuWon was in the middle of speaking when Yeji pped Hoon so hard it made his lips bleed.


    "Are you happy now?" Yeji asked, digging her fingers into her palm.


    "...you missed the point," YuWon sighed, shaking his head. "I asked you to show your strength. Unfortunately, I didn''t see you p him."


    Yeji looked at YuWon with hatred in her eyes, and YuWon smiled.


    That''s the Yeji he remembered. It was those eyes with which she always looked down at him while Hoon and his gang beat him. But this time, her hatred towards him was even more than before.


    And here I thought she couldn''t hate me more. My poor sister. I''d feel sad if she wasn''t such a bitch.


    "I''m sorry..." Yeji whispered, turning towards Hoon again and pping him harder than before.


    "That''s the spirit!" YuWon cheered loudly before heading inside the building. "Everyone form a line and continue hitting him till I''m back. All the best! Don''t disappoint me!"

 Chapter 30: Last Stand (1)

    Some were hesitant to hit Hoon, and their punches and ps were weak.


    Hoon smiled, thinking if that was all, then there was nothing he had to fear. However, his wishful thinking soon came to an end.


    Hoon was a cocky bastard and YuWon wasn''t the only one who had problems with him. YuWon knew this and that''s why he proposed such a condition to Yeji.


    The people who had problems with Hoon took the opportunity with a bit more enthusiasm. They approached Hoon with smirks, delivering ps and punches with a little extra force, thoroughly enjoying the task.


    "Sorry, Hoon, nothing personal," a student mocked before pping him hard across the face.


    Then another girl stepped up. Using her small stature, she pretended to aim poorly and missed.


    "Oops, missed the first time. Let me try again," she said before delivering another punch.


    Hoon just stood there, taking all the hits and humiliation. He was staring at Yeji, who had turned away from him. In his mind, this was all her fault.


    If she hadn''t pped him earlier, none of this would be happening. But he bit his tongue, knowing that speaking up would only make things worse for him.


    Just when it seemed like everyone had taken their turn, the ground beneath them trembled, followed by a strange ttering sound. Everyone forgot about Hoon and looked back.


    YuWon and the others were back, but that wasn''t all. Behind them was an army of skeletons. Most of the skeletons were goblins, but some were human, each wielding a weapon.


    YuWon and his team had been gone for over an hour and now everyone knew why. They had been raising the dead from around the college with Soo-Ah''s necromancy and Gina''s seemingly endless supply of mana.


    There must have been over three hundred skeletons walking out of the building. Everyone instinctively stepped aside for them.


    However, YuWon paid no attention to their reaction and walked towards Hoon. He looked at his swollen and bruised face, just like YuWon''s face had been after the first beating he took from Hoon and hisckeys.


    "Happy now?" Hoon mumbled.


    But YuWon didn''t reply and without warning punched Hoon''s stomach, causing him to double over in pain.


    "Why would I be happy? It was just a team-building exercise," YuWon said as Hoon crumpled to the ground. "Don''t look at me like that. I wouldn''t be a good leader if I didn''t join the team-building activity, right?"


    Before Hoon could retort, a skeleton approached him. A momentter, it raised its bony fist, intending to hit Hoon. At the moment, he was scared shitless.


    First, YuWon got everyone to hit him, but Hoon made it out with no major injury as a few people had held back. Now, YuWon wanted the skeletons to do the same?


    Hoon was worried because, unlike people, the skeletons wouldn''t hold back. Plus, there were more skeletons than humans, so he''d get hit way more and much harder than before.


    Noticing the look of horror on Hoon''s face, YuWon chuckled and asked Soo-Ah to stop.


    "Alright, that''s enough," YuWon said, shaking his head with a small smile. "As much fun as it would be to watch the skeletons take their turn, we don''t have time to waste."


    Mickey immediately retreated, and YuWon turned towards Yeji. "Go heal him up. I don''t want a burden on the team."


    Yeji didn''t react, just got up to heal Hoon. Meanwhile, YuWon informed the rest of his n. At least one of his ns, since he needed more in case they failed.


    ***


    An hour and a halfter...


    The road trembled as the goblin army moved. Over a hundred goblins marched in perfect formation around the goblin monarch''s carriage, being pulled by weary human ves. Their eyes had gone dull and lifeless from the torment they had endured.


    Twelve burly hobgoblins, each one was the size of a bear, marched next to the carriage. Two elderly goblin shamans followed closely behind the carriage, their hunched bodies concealed by tattered robes.


    Only a fool would dare to stop their pilgrimage, and so far, no one had dared to show up before them. However, it didn''t take long for things to change.


    The goblin monarch within the carriage let out a low, rumbling growl. The entire army came to an abrupt halt. Every goblin turned their eyes forward, searching for whatever had disturbed their leader.


    They didn''t have to look far as they noticed one of their kin standing ahead. Sensing her powers, the monarch growled again, more urgently this time, and several goblins went ahead to investigate.


    The monarch was always looking for powerful allies and wanted Gina to join them. However, as the goblins got closer, a volley of arrows rained on them from nearby buildings.


    The arrows killed a few of them. But it was just the beginning of their troubles. Mimicking the monarch, Gina also roared and hundreds of skeletons emerged from behind.


    They charged forward to engage the goblins. The goblin monarch roared in fury and the entire army rushed ahead to crush the skeletons. Seven of the hobgoblins broke away from the carriage, charging into the fray with their massive clubs swinging.


    Five hobgoblins and the shamans stood guard next to the carriage. But the shamans were unaware of the danger approaching them.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The shamans were strong, but they had one major weakness: in their pursuit of magic, they had sacrificed their eyes. But it wasn''t much of a problem for them, as they could sense even the faintest bit of mana from living beings around them.


    Their mana-sight allowed them to target their enemies even if they didn''t have eyes. But there was something they could not sense¡ªthe dead. They were unaware of the two skeletons slowly approaching them from behind.


    One hobgoblin saw something move from the corner of its eyes and turned to warn the shamans. But it was toote.


    Skullee grabbed one shaman and effortlessly ripped its head off while Mickey swung the de, severing the other shaman''s head.


    The hobgoblins roared in rage, but before they could react, the goblin monarch tore through the side of the carriage. It had sensed the death of the shamans and was infuriated.


    As soon as the shamans fell, humans rushed out from their hiding spots. YuWon had given them strict instructions to only engage with goblin scouts. But some were too eager to show off and charged directly at the hobgoblins and the monarch.


    Their craving for glory got them crushed like insects by the hobgoblins'' clubs. Even the monarch joined in and swung its broadsword, slicing through several humans in a single strike.


    The monarch was about to strike again, but then felt something strange. It was the presence of a human. However, this human was different. He was strong, stronger than even its generals.


    Troubled, the monarch scanned the crowd, and it didn''t take long for it to spot YuWon. YuWon had noticed the monarch too and tore through the goblins as if they were nothing.

 Chapter 31: Last Stand (2)

    The monarch growled, ordering the remaining hobgoblins to kill YuWon.


    One hobgoblin swung the club, but YuWon sidestepped the attack at thest second. Sadly, the goblin behind him couldn''t and got squashed.


    Just like before, YuWon quickly climbed up the hobgoblin''s arm to get the upper hand before the creature could do anything. He then punched the side of its head, deforming the head, and it fell to the ground, dead.


    The second hobgoblin roared in anger, but learning the lesson from his deadrade, swung the club horizontally. YuWon ducked and slid between the creature''s legs and kicked the hobgoblin''s knee, making it buckle and drop to one leg.


    "Soo-Ah!" YuWon yelled, not wasting time on the injured hobgoblin.


    "I got it!" Soo-Ah yelled back.


    A momentter, Skullee rushed to the hobgoblin. A momentter, Skullee rushed to the hobgoblin. He ran up and ram through the hobgoblin, forcing it to the ground, before stomping it to death. Then he kept going after the goblins.


    The third and fourth hobgoblins attacked together, approaching him from both sides. YuWon knew he couldn''t dodge both, so he made a split-second decision.


    He charged at the hobgoblin on his left, sliding under its legs as the creature brought its club down. The club smashed into the ground where YuWon had been standing, but he was long gone.


    YuWon got up from the ground, jumped, and clung on to the hobgoblin. The creature struggled to throw him off, but he quickly wrapped his arms around the neck before twisting his hands, breaking the hobgoblin''s neck.


    The fourth hobgoblin hesitated for a moment and that was all YuWon needed. He grabbed a fallen club and swung it with all his weight behind.


    The club hit the hobgoblin''s chest, followed by a sickening crunch. Clutching its chest, the hobgoblin stepped backwards. Not waiting for the creature to recover, YuWon delivered a punch to its side.


    The Hobgoblin leaned to its side, dropping its club. He ran up, grabbed the hobgoblin''s arm, and twisted it hard. The hobgoblin''s shoulder quickly snapped, and it howled in pain, dropping to its knees.


    Once the hobgoblin was down, YuWon kicked it in the face, breaking its skull and killing it.


    Not only the monarch, but even the humans looked taken aback by the strength YuWon disyed by crushing the hobgoblins one after the other.


    Now, only one hobgoblin remained. This one was different¡ªbigger, fiercer, and stronger. Strangely, it had no weapons, unlike the ones before. But before YuWon could ponder about it, the monster let out a furious roar and charged at YuWon.


    "Eager to die?" YuWon smirked.


    With that, he charged towards the hobgoblin as well. The hobgoblin swung both arms as if wanting to trap YuWon in a bear hug. But he ducked and then delivered a quick jab to the creature''s side.


    The hobgoblin grunted, staggering back, but it wasn''t down yet. It threw another punch, faster than before. But YuWon was quicker. He countered with a hit to the jaw, followed by a powerful kick to its knee.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    The hobgoblin roared in pain, its leg buckling under its weight. Even then, it wasn''t enough to make the creature kneel.


    "Just drop already!"


    He grabbed the hobgoblin by the shoulders and drove his knee into its face, shattering its nose. The hobgoblin stumbled back as blood gushed out of the broken nose, but it still refused to fall.


    The pain only fueled the hobgoblin''s rage as it charged YuWon again. As it swung its fist, YuWon ducked under the blow and before jumping up and hit its chin with an uppercut.


    Since nothing else seemed to work, YuWon went for the male''s universal weakness. Before it could recover, YuWon grabbed its shoulder and mmed his knee right into the hobgoblin''s crotch.


    The hobgoblin groaned in pain, its strength failing as it dropped to one knee.


    "This ends now," YuWon mumbled.


    YuWon kicked the monster''s neck with all his might. Following a crunch, the hobgoblin''s neck bent out of shape and a momentter, the hobgoblin''s eyes went nk, and it copsed to the ground, dead.


    Fighting the hobgoblins took longer than he thought. But he could finally deal with the monarch. He turned and there it was, in the center of the chaos.


    The monarch''s gaze locked onto YuWon, and for a moment, the world seemed to freeze as the two measured each other.


    But the next moment, the monarch smirked. It raised a wed hand and gestured for YuWon toe at him. YuWon didn''t hesitate and epted the invitation.


    Without a second thought, he grabbed a fallen club and charged at the monarch. Using the corpse of thest hobgoblin as a springboard, YuWon jumped into the air.


    The monarch''s eyes never left him as YuWon brought the club crashing down with all his strength. He heard a loud bang, but something was wrong.


    YuWon didn''t feel like his strike connected as intended. Landing behind the monarch, he spun to see the bastard holding the sword over its head.


    Then what was that bang...


    YuWon looked down and in his horror, it was the club that had shattered, not the monarch''s head. He had put everything in that strike, but the monarch hadn''t even flinched. It stood there, unfazed, with a disgusting smile that revealed its rotten teeth.


    "Damn it," YuWon muttered, dropping the club.


    YuWon had barely looked away from the monarch, but in that second, it was already before him. YuWon wanted to step away, but the monarch''s kick came faster than he thought.


    YuWon barely had time to react. He raised his arms in a desperate attempt to block the strike, but the force behind the monarch''s blow was strong. The monarch''s kick shattered YuWon''s right forearm, flinging him backward and causing him to crash into the ground several feet away.


    YuWon gasped, struggling to breathe. But he had no time to get better, as the monarch was already standing before him. With a smile, the monarch raised the sword over its head, ready to deliver the killing blow.


    It''s going to be a pain to start all over again.


    YuWon braced himself for his death and closed his eyes. After all, he had no way to block the next strike. But just as the de was about toe down, someone jumped before him, parrying the blow.


    "I didn''t think... you''d sleep in the middle of the fight, boss."


    Min-Joon''s voice startled YuWon and his eyes shot open. But Min-Joon wasn''t the only one there. Skullee and Gina were there too, pushing against the monarch''s de.

 Chapter 32: On The Verge Of Victory

    Watching them, YuWon realized he was stupid to think he could defeat the monarch alone. His overconfidence had blinded him and paid the price for it as his broken arm.


    I need to get up.


    Watching Gina and the others fight while he was on the ground frustrated him. YuWon clenched his teeth and tried to get up. But the pain was unbearable. As he winced in pain, Gina turned to look at him.


    "YuWon, stay down!" she said. "I''ll deal with this¡ª"


    But Skullee and Min-Joon had different ns. With all their strength, they forced the monarch back inch by inch. YuWon couldn''t believe his eyes, but Min-Joon ruined the moment with his words.


    "Sis-inw! Don''t worry about the ugly bastard," he said. "Just focus on getting Boss out of here."


    At the same time, Skullee turned and gave YuWon a thumbs up. The skeleton couldn''t smile, but YuWon knew it would have if it could. Gina, on the other hand, was thankful for their help, and rushed over to YuWon.


    "Husband, can you move?"


    YuWon shook his head. He had already tried, and it wasn''t fun.


    "It''s broken," YuWon groaned, nodding toward the arm.


    "I''ll figure something out," Gina said, looking around for anything.


    However, YuWon knew that there was nothing he could do about it. His broken arm made him a liability. Fighting was out of the question unless he could heal it.


    Just then, YuWon felt someone approaching from behind. He turned around, thinking it was a goblin, but it was something worse.


    "Came tough at me?" YuWon scoffed, but Yeji didn''t react.


    Instead, she got next to him and squatted next to him, gently lifting his hand. "Let me help you¡ª"


    "No, thanks," he retorted.


    But Yeji was just as stubborn as he was and grabbed his arm firmly. If YuWon could, he would have pulled his arm away from her. He looked helplessly at Gina, who nodded.


    Yes, keep her away.


    YuWon thought, but instead of driving Yeji away, Gina climbed on top of him to hold him in ce.


    "What do you think you''re doing?" YuWon yelled at her.


    "Husband, I sense no hostility from her," Gina replied, ignoring his re. "The human wants to help you."N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon kept ring at her, but Gina didn''t back down. At that moment, he could sense she feared losing him more than facing his anger. YuWon sighed and relented.


    A momentter, Yeji''s palms shone brightly and a cold sensation covered YuWon''s entire body. The aching pain all over his body faded away. Then everything felt warm and he could feel the bones in his arm piece themselves back together.


    "I know we don''t get along and probably never will," Yeji whispered. "But despite everything that''s happened¡­ I don''t want to lose you."


    YuWon looked at her, confused. She didn''t want him to die?


    This bitch got some nerve.


    That''s the first thing YuWon thought. Yeji and her boy toy had made his life hell the past year. They showed no remorse for what they did and now he was supposed to believe she didn''t think ill of him?


    Fucking hrious!


    YuWon immediately yanked his arm away once it was healed. Yeji kept looking at him for a response, but he was busy flexing his arm to test.


    I might not like her, but gotta give it to her. My hand feels as good as new.


    "YuWon..."


    Yeji called him again and this time he replied, but it wasn''t what she expected.


    "It''s toote for that, Yeji," he said, with no emotions. "Since you helped me, I won''t hurt you. But that doesn''t mean I''ll ever forgive or forget what you did to me over the past year."


    Yeji looked sad, but said nothing more. YuWon didn''t give her a second nce as he stood up. There were more important things to do.


    Gina stayed behind for a moment, looking at Yeji. She could tell that Yeji cared deeply for YuWon, but his harsh words and icy demeanor confused her. Why was he being so cruel to the human when he was so good to her?


    When Gina caught up to the others, YuWon had already jumped into the fray. Just like Min-Joon, he had picked a fallen sword and prepared to attack. Meanwhile, Min-Joon and Skullee nked the Monarch trying to keep its attention off YuWon.


    But the monarch was no fool. With a roar, it swung the massive sword in a wide arc, forcing them to step back. A goblin skeleton rushed to hit the monarch''s leg.


    However, the monarch noticed it and kicked it away, scattering the bones everywhere. Without wasting another second, the monarch charged toward Skullee.


    The monarch hit Skullee twice in quick session. The bone armor held study. But the monarch''s continuous attacks soon destroyed the bone armor. The hobgoblin skeleton was tough, but it could onlyst that long.


    Skullee fell to its knees, unable to defend itself. The monarch raised its de to finish it. But just then, it staggered forward as a sword struck its back.


    Angered, the monarch turned to find YuWon there. He had thrown the discarded sword like a spear, and it was now lodged in the monarch''s back.


    While the monarch was distracted, Skullee and Gina moved together. Skullee grabbed one of its legs while Gina shed the Achilles'' heel of the other. The monarch growled in pain as its leg gave away.


    "Soo-Ah, do it now!" YuWon yelled and suddenly dozens of goblin skeletons rushed at the monarch.


    The skeletons, wielding all sorts of weapons, began hitting the monarch. The scene was like that of a hive of bees attacking arger predator.


    YuWon knew it wouldn''t be enough to kill the monarch, but it was enough to weaken it. And sure enough, the monarchshed out at the skeletons. With each swing or the monarch''s, half a dozen skeletons were destroyed.


    Finally, the monarch stood up again. It was bruised and bloodied, but it was alive and found a new target... Soo-Ah.


    It charged toward her, only for YuWon to jump in front.


    "It''s rude to leave before finishing what you started," YuWon mumbled, motioning for the monarch to attack him first.

 Chapter 33: Kill Steal

    As the monarch limped towards YuWon, it was clear the earlier assault had taken its toll on it. But that didn''t mean it was easy to defeat. Even though the monarch wasn''t as fast or powerful as before, it was still a dangerous opponent.


    Everyone on the battlefield watched with bated breaths. The other monsters had been defeated, and now only the Goblin Monarch remained. If YuWon could defeat it, the hell they''ve been living in would end.


    The question was, could YuWon defeat the beast on his own?


    The monarch swung its golden de at YuWon, aiming to slice him in half. But YuWon was quick on his feet and ducked under, and rolled away as the sword whizzed past his head.


    But the Goblin Monarch didn''t give up. It lunged forward and threw a punch at him. Knowing the creature was weak, YuWon countered its punch with his own.


    Their fists collided with explosive force, unleashing a shockwave. The ground beneath them cracked, and debris flew everywhere. The spectators gasped and covered their faces as dust and small rocks rained down on them.


    How does this bastard still have this much strength?


    The exchange made YuWon''s hand ache, and he was surprised. Initially, he had thought it would be an easy fight, but that didn''t seem to be the case. The monarch still had enough strength to wreck them.


    The monarch seemed to realize the same and smirked. The next moment, the two began exchanging blows rapidly. To most of the low-level awakeners, their movements were hard to follow. All they could see were shes of movement and dust now and then.


    Only the skilled fighters in the crowd could keep up with the pace, and surprisingly, cheered YuWon on.


    "Come on, YuWon!" someone shouted from the crowd.


    "You''ve got this!"


    "Fuck that ugly bastard!"


    The monarch started strong. But soon, fatigue and frustration began clouding its mind. But the monarch wasn''t the only one getting frustrated.


    The usual weapons weren''t effective in YuWon''s hands, and he had no time to grab those scattered on the ground. He needed to think of something to end the monarch before things could worsen.


    Meanwhile, the monarch roared and swung the de again. YuWon dove past the monarch and then he noticed something. The sword he hit the monarch with was still stuck in its back.


    The de was stuck near the monarch''s spine, but it didn''t go in deep enough to finish it. But one could always fix that.


    Before the monarch could turn and attack, YuWon, and with all his strength, kicked the sword. The kick connected to the hilt, shoving the sword deeper into the monarch''s back.


    The monarch screamed in agony, dropping its gold sword as it leaned over. However, it wasn''t enough. It swung its arm at YuWon again, but it was a desperate move to make some distance.


    Just like before, YuWon dodged and kicked the sword again, forcing it deeper. Each time he kicked, the monarch roared louder and its strength drained away bit by bit.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    After having found the weakness he was looking for, YuWon kept repeating the process. The crowd watched in awe as he wore the monarch down.


    The monarch''s blood was everywhere and its movements got sluggish. Finally, it couldn''t hold on any longer and dropped to its knees. YuWon panted, but it was all worth it.


    He had the upper hand now, and the monarch was at his mercy. He clenched his fists, preparing to deliver the final blow to end it all. But just as YuWon was about to strike, a spear whizzed past him.


    Time seemed to slow as YuWon saw the spear hit the monarch''s head. The monster let out one final growl before copsing on the ground, dead.


    [You have helped hunt The Goblin Monarch! Exp +500%, Gold +1000]


    [You have helped y the Region Boss! Exp +300%, Gold +500]


    [You have leveled up to lvl 27!]


    [Unallocated Attribute points +16]


    [16 additional attribute points gained, because of the achievement .]


    Everyone was shocked and turned to see Hoon standing not so far away, smiling like he had won the lottery. His smug grin made YuWon''s blood boil. The bastard had stolen his kill and the rewards along with it.


    Gina, Min-Joon, and Soo-Ah couldn''t believe their eyes. Hoon''s actions enraged them. Surprisingly, most people there felt the same way. Even Yeji, who had been watching from a distance, looked surprised by what had just happened.


    Hoon, oblivious to the res and whispers, stood proudly, grinning from ear to ear. He casually walked over to the dead monarch to retrieve his spear and twirled it, unting his "victory," as if he was the hero of the battle.


    Hoon noticed the anger on YuWon''s face, and his smile widened.


    "What? Don''t look at me like that," heughed. "It looked like you were taking too long, so I decided to help."


    YuWon gritted his teeth. But then he calmed down. Instead of getting angry, he smiled. However, it wasn''t a smile of joy, but a calm, indifferent smile, like none of it mattered.


    After all, Hoon had given him a legitimate reason to kill him. As for the monarch, it would be a hassle, but he could respawn and do it over again.


    Unfortunately for YuWon, that wasn''t the case.


    [Tutorialplete!]


    [Auto-saving the Awakener''s progress.]


    [A new checkpoint has been created.]


    [All previous checkpoints have been erased.]


    As he read the notifications, a flicker of rage crossed YuWon''s face. An auto-save was thest thing he expected. But now that it had happened, there was nothing he could do about it.


    "YuWon?" Gina asked, sensing the change in his expression.


    YuWon''s jaw tightened, and his fists clenched. It wasn''t Hoon''s boasting that bothered him. But the fact he got yed like a fiddle.


    Before YuWon could act on the rising anger within him, the sky darkened. Everyone looked up, scared that they would get involved in another fight. Then a bright light pierced the dark clouds and from above, someone descended slowly.


    The woman was stunning and looked like an angel with white wings spread wide behind her. Aside from the thin gold crown resting on her forehead, she wore a white robe which was embroidered with silver patterns.


    The robe was long, almost touching the ground, but it didn''t hinder her movement as her porcin feet hovered above the ground.


    "Greetings, Awakeners," she smiled, floating above the ground.

 Chapter 34: [Bonus Chapter] Rewards And Retribution (1)

    Although the angel addressed everyone present there, her eyes remained on YuWon. Gina was the first one to notice it and immediately grabbed YuWon''s arm, puffing her chest out as if marking her territory.


    Meanwhile, the woman''s beauty had everyone in a trance. The men couldn''t tear their eyes off her glowing figure. As for Min-Joon, he was so captivated by her; he forgot to breathe.


    It wasn''t until Mickey poked him that Min-Joon snapped out of his dream-like state. He shook his head, regaining his senses. But he wasn''t the only one who reacted like that.


    Even the women had simr reaction and Soo-Ah was no exception. She wasn''t one to admire others, but even she was spellbound by her radiant beauty.


    "I appreciate your silent admiration," the angel chuckled, elegantly covering her mouth. "But I''m here to congratte all of you for clearing the tutorial."


    She continued when no one replied. "Since you are the first ones to clear it, you will all receive bonus rewards for your efforts."


    YuWon couldn''t help but roll his eyes when he heard her talking about rewards. Hoon immediately popped back into his head. Since the fucker had stolen thest kill, he would get more rewards than the rest, or so he thought.


    But before the angel could distribute the rewards, someoneughed. They turned around to see it was one of their professors, who appeared to have lost his marbles.


    "This is it, huh?" heughed. "Rewards? REWARDS!? Most of us died because of those monsters and this bitches up and offers us REWARDS!?"


    While no one dared to speak in such a tone, most of them had the same thought. What was happening suddenly? They wanted an exnation but didn''t dare ask.


    The man continued yelling, but the angel''s smile didn''t falter. She turned towards the man and snapped her fingers. A secondter, the angel teleported the man before her.


    "Ah," she said. "You want an exnation?"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    No one dared to say a word, not even the rowdy professor. While YuWon could have interrupted her, he didn''t. The reason was simple. The angel wasn''t anything like the monster he had faced.


    There''s no guarantee she can''t strip me of my powers.


    That was YuWon''s biggest fear. He thought he had received the powers from the angel and, as the one who gave him the strength, she could just as easily take them away without a second thought.


    "You are but mere pawns," the angel finally spoke, as if talking about the weather. "Pawns for the gods'' entertainment. The only purpose of your existence is to entertain them."


    The smile on her face that was once been radiant turned menacing when she saw the shock on the humans'' faces. The crowd shifted uneasily, talking amongst themselves.


    Just then, one of Hoon''sckeys jumped in and shouted, "The Gods want entertainment. Yeah, right! How can you morons believe a word she says?"


    What a fool.


    YuWon shook his head. It appeared Hoon''sckeys weren''t as cunning as their boss. Just for the sake of acting like a hero, the boy was endangering his life.


    As YuWon predicted, theckey barely got the time to regret his words. As he spoke, the angel''s smile disappeared and a split secondter, lightning struck the boy from the sky.


    People closed their eyes and covered their ears. And when they looked back, the boy had disappeared, leaving nothing but his bones behind.


    "Is there anyone else who wishes to nder my creators?" the angel smiled again, regaining her warm and polite demeanor.


    Everyone stared at the angel with fear but didn''t say a word. After all, none of them wanted to end up like the guy before. A momentter, the angel continued speaking like nothing happened.


    "As I was saying," she said with fake warmth. "The status of your has been deemed unfit for continued existence."


    "If you desire to live a long life, you''ll have to face the challenges the gods throw your way. That''s the only exnation lowly creatures like yourselves deserve."


    After saying so, she scanned the crowd. But no one dared to talk, move, or do anything, fearing they would lose their lives if they did. Satisfied by their response, she continued.


    "As reward forpleting the tutorial, each of you will receive a subss and an item," the angel continued, before staring at YuWon. "Except for you."


    YuWon, who had been quiet all this time, couldn''t hold back anymore. As far as he remembered, he had done nothing to warrant the angel''s anger. Then why was he being excluded from receiving rewards?


    "Have I done something wrong?" he asked.


    "Oh no, not at all," the angel said, floating around him. "It''s because you had the highest contribution toward clearing the tutorial. As a reward, you will receive two subsses instead of one."


    She flew away from YuWon and continued, "You''ll receive a special reward as well. As requested by your sponsor."


    However, before she could reveal the reward, their local Pinhio inserted his nose into YuWon''s business yet again.


    "Wait a minute! I killed the boss, not him!" Hoon yelled, despite Yeji telling him not to. "If anyone here deserves a bonus reward, it''s me!"


    "So you''re saying my decision is wrong?" She asked, floating over to Hoon''s position. "You stole a sponsored awakener''s kill. If anything, you should be thankful you''re still alive."


    Colors drained from Hoon''s face when he heard those words. But before he could say anything, the angel waved her hand, striking Hoon across the face.


    The p was so hard it made Hoon puke blood and stumble around like he was drunk. But that p was just the start of it.


    "Shameless monkeys like you deserve nothing," shemented. "All rewards you have received until this point will be revoked with immediate effect."


    Hoon couldn''t believe it and fell t on his ass. Everything he had gathered by engaging in immoral acts, including indirectly killing others, all of it was gone just like that.


    YuWon couldn''t help but smile, watching Hoon tremble in shock. It was then he noticed the angel smiling at him. Gina''s possessiveness kicked in and her grip around his arm got tighter, but even then YuWon only had one thought.


    That Angel is crazy, but she isn''t that bad.

 Chapter 35: [Bonus Chapter] Rewards And Retribution (2)

    "What do you mean by a ''sponsored awakener''?" YuWon asked.


    He thought little about asking her since she was acting somewhat friendly towards him. Besides, since she was talking about him, she shouldn''t have any problem informing him about it.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You''re too quick to catch on," the angelughed before turning towards him. "I should be careful around you."


    "...you don''t have to if you don''t want to¡ª"


    "Everyone who survives the tutorial gets a sponsor," she replied, cutting him off. "However, you don''t get to know or choose who your sponsor is."


    "Those with sponsors often inherit their sponsor''s traits and desires. If one follows these desires," the angel continued, "their sponsor may reward them. But that is the extent of their involvement in the game."


    YuWon nodded. He understood that these sponsors, or gods as the angel called them, were nothing more than beings who saw the humans as toys and would use them for entertainment, rewarding them now and then to keep the humans hooked.


    Strangely enough, he didn''t feel any hatred or animosity towards them. If anything, he felt thankful. Had it not been for them, he would have died without having his revenge.


    That reminds me...


    YuWon looked at Hoon, who was still on the ground. Deprived of his status and rewards, he became nothing but garbage to those nearby.


    Trash should always be put in its ce.


    With that thought, YuWon took a step toward Hoon but was stopped by the angel''s abrupt announcement.


    "I shall now bestow your rewards to you," she said.


    A momentter, several notifications popped up before their eyes. Some of them were pleased with their rewards, while some looked confused. As for YuWon, he didn''t know what to make of the rewards he got. The first thing he received was an ancientpass.


    [Gravewalker''s Compass]


    [Description: Shortly before death, thepass marks the enemy who killed the awakener and, upon respawning, disys the foe''s exact location and status for 24 hours.]


    [Effect: Upon sessfully hunting the marked enemies, the awakener would receive bonus stats up to 300% depending on the time taken for the feat.]


    Just like the [Phantom Bag], thepass was the perfect item for him. But he couldn''t say the same for the subsses he got.


    +++


    Subss Unlocked: Head Hunter


    The Head Hunter subss specializes in tracking down and eliminating specific targets.


    New abilities unlocked!


    ¡ª> Mark of Death


    ¡ª> Death''s Whisper


    ¡ª> Decoy Exchange


    +++


    [List ofpatible secondary sub-sses:]


    [¡ª> Battle Creationist]


    [¡ª> Soul Reaver]


    [¡ª> Sigil Master]


    [Please select a sub-ss within 12 hours or the system will auto-assign a subss based on the Awakener''s stat.]


    For the first time, YuWon realized having too many rewards wasn''t necessarily a good thing. Thankfully, he had time to ponder about the decision, or he would regret being hasty so quickly.


    "Is the reward up to your liking?" the angel asked.


    YuWon had gotten so engrossed in making a choice that he didn''t even notice when the angel crept up to him.


    "It''s... overwhelming," YuWon replied.


    He hoped the angel could help him pick a subss. But s, she floated past him.


    "I can''t help you with that," she said, her gaze shifting back to YuWon. "However, I can help you pick a special reward. You can ask anything from me. As long as it is in my power, I shall help you."


    Her nonchnce irked YuWon. At first, he enjoyed her attention on him. But now, he couldn''t help but feel the angel had some other motive. Why else would someone like her go out of her way to reward him more and more?


    It''s better not to ask her. I don''t want to lose my rewards and sses like Hoon.


    As for the reward, YuWon had something in mind. He was about to speak when the angel held up her hand and grinned.


    "Oh, and before you say anything, I''m off the market."


    YuWon looked at her and then shook his head. He couldn''t outright tell the angel that he had no interest in her. But Gina had no problems expressing herself and looked like she was about to lunge at the angel, but YuWon held her back.


    "I would not ask for a mighty being like yourself to be with me anyway," YuWon muttered. "But I have a question."


    The angel tilted her head with curiosity. She had expected him to ask for riches, or more abilities or weapons. But he wanted to ask some questions? The man was indeed strange for a mortal.


    "Oh? Go on."


    "First," YuWon began, his voice steady, "is the rule about no killing still in ce?"


    The angel''s smile widened, realizing what YuWon was up to.


    "The tutorial is over. Hence, there are no more restrictions. You are free to kill as you see fit."


    "Good. And second..." He paused for a moment before asking. "Who is my sponsor?"


    The angel smiled, leaning in closer as she smiled. "I''m afraid you will have to figure that out on your own."


    The next moment she turned to leave, but YuWon called her back.


    "What is it?" she asked.


    "I''m yet to ask for the reward," he replied.


    The angel raised an eyebrow, floating back towards him, and asked, "What reward? I have already answered your questions."


    Hearing her words, YuWon couldn''t help but smile. Did she think he would waste his opportunity for anything with pointless questions?


    "I never said I wished to know the answers," YuWon shrugged. "I just asked you some questions, and you willingly gave me the answers. You didn''t reward me, you just answered my queries."


    The angel''s mouth twitched in anger when she realized a mere mortal had yed her. If YuWon hadn''t been the favored participant of a certain pantheon, she wouldn''t have hesitated before killing him. But for now, she let it slide.


    "...I''ll ignore it, just this once," she said through gritted teeth. "The next time you pull a stunt like this would be thest time you''ll see my beautiful face."


    "My apologies," YuWon immediately bowed to soothe the angel''s anger. "I didn''t think things through."


    "It''s fine. Just tell me your wish already."


    YuWon smirked and without turning back pointed at Hoon. "Make him my ve."

 Chapter 36: Duel (1)

    When he heard her voice, YuWon couldn''t help but smile. She had always been like this, alwaysing to Hoon''s rescue even before what happened.


    Previously, every time Yeji asked him to stop, YuWon would quietly back down to maintain peace in the house. But things were different now, and he had no intention of backing down.


    "Enough?" he asked,ughing bitterly. "You''re telling me it''s enough?"


    Yeji knew she had overstepped by saying that, but she couldn''t just let YuWon do anything he wanted. Now that Hoon was defenseless without his ss and rewards, she had to step up and defend him.


    Suddenly, YuWon stopped and red at her. Everything she and her pretty boy had done to him came rushing back to his mind. He couldn''t forget how they pushed him to the verge of ending himself.


    It wasn''t enough back then, but suddenly she decided it was enough when it was his turn for revenge?


    "You never used that word," he hissed. "Not once did I hear you say it''s enough when they treated me like trash for an entire year. You stood by and watched, and now you decide it''s enough? Who the fuck do you think you are!?"


    Everyone went silent. But all of them wished to disappear from there. YuWon was the strongest among them, and Yeji wasn''t doing anyone any favors by irking him. To save their asses, everyone quickly turned against Hoon and Yeji.


    "YuWon is right!" Someone yelled. "Hoon made his life hell. YuWon deserves to punish him."


    "Hoon was always a troublemaker, but we turned a blind eye for your sake, Yeji," a professor chimed in. "But now that it hase to this, we can''t ignore his actions anymore."


    Yeji''s face fell when everyone began ming them. But YuWon smiled. It was something he had suffered through for an entire year. Even then, his treatment was way worse than anything Yeji would ever experience.


    Seeing as the iron was hot, YuWon turned and repeated his request to the angel. The angel continued to smile, but her words didn''t amuse YuWon.


    "As hrious as that would be," she said. "I''m afraid that won''t be possible."


    "What do you mean?"


    "While you were wasting your time airing your grievances," she exined, "Hoon gained a sponsor. Since one can''t im someone else''s pawn, I can''t help you. No matter how entertaining it might be."


    YuWon sighed. If he couldn''t have him as his ve, then he would cripple him for life.


    That won''t work. Yeji would heal him no matter what I do. There has to be something else.


    "However," the angel continued, "you two can settle your differences in another way. If your sponsors approve of it, that is."


    "How do I contact¡ª"


    "No need," the angel replied. "I already sent them my suggestion. As long as... the mortals ept, a duel shall happen and the winner will get a ve¡ª"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "I ept!"


    Hoon jumped up and the opportunity. He showed no hesitation as he did, probably because he thought the sponsor would help him. However, someone had to object.


    "Are you insane?" Yeji yelled at him. "What are you thinking? You don''t know how strong YuWon is! You¡ª"


    However, Hoon wasn''t interested. After having lost his powers, this was the quickest way to regain them. Besides, after ying the monarch, his levels shot up and he thought he was stronger than YuWon as long as he had his ss and achievements back.


    "I killed the boss, Yeji! I''m level 20 now!" he boasted, but reduced his voice to a whisper. "There''s no way YuWon can be stronger than me."


    "Even so¡ª"


    "Don''t worry," Hoon said, cupping her cheeks. "I''m the strongest there is!"


    Yeji nodded, but looked at YuWon. The calmness in his eyes made her ufortable. However, no matter how much he tried reasoning with Hoon, her words fell on deaf ears.


    Ignoring Yeji, Hoon turned to the angel and asked, "Before we start, can you restore my achievements and ss? Just to make things fair."


    The angel raised an eyebrow, unaffected by the request. She considered refusing Hoon, but after a moment, she nced up toward the sky as if listening to some unheard voice. She sighed after a minute and then waved her hand.


    "Fine," she said, sounding bored. "Your achievements and sses have been reinstated."


    Hoon smiled as he felt a familiar sensation spread all over his body.


    "Oh, yeah!" he eximed, summoning his spear. "Let''s get this settled once and for all!"


    Wasting no time, Hoon threw the spear at YuWon. But YuWon didn''t move, but merely tilted his head as the spear harmlessly whizzed past his head.


    "What the¡ª" Hoon blinked. "It was the unmissable shot! My unique skill can''t be useless!"


    "The skill isn''t useless," Hoon emotionlessly walked ahead, grabbing the monarch''s sword. "You are."


    As YuWon turned to face him, Hoon saw that indeed, the spear didn''t miss. The thin line of blood on YuWon''s cheek was proof it had hit him.


    "You intentionally got hit!" Hoon yelled, pointing at YuWon before looking at the angel. "I demand a restart¡ª"


    Hoon had bet everything on his unique skill. Now that it had failed, he needed some time toe up with something else. Unfortunately, he wouldn''t be given even a second of respite.


    "The duel started when you threw your spear," the angel said. "There''s no need to restart."


    Hoon gritted his teeth before summoning the spear back to him. However, YuWon grabbed the spear''s shaft, stopping Hoon from taking it.


    "Drop it!" Hoon demanded. "This isn''t fair¡ª"


    "Stop acting like a baby," YuWon retorted.


    Hoon, desperate to get the weapon back, lunged at YuWon. YuWon didn''t stop him either. But Hoon didn''t care and tried to pull the spear back, but it didn''t budge.


    "Is that all you''ve got?" YuWon asked.


    Hoon gritted his teeth and summoned all of his strength, trying to pry the spear out of YuWon''s grasp. But no matter how hard he tried, YuWon didn''t move an inch. It was like trying to pull the spear from under a mountain.


    "Let it go!" he yelled.


    "As you wish."


    Before Hoon knew it, YuWon swung the monarch''s sword, breaking the spear in half. Hoon stumbled and fell, staring at his broken weapon in disbelief.


    "Don''t worry," YuWon grinned. "I''ll break you more diligently."

 Chapter 37: Duel (2)

    "Fuck this shit!"


    Hoon got up and tried running away. But before he could, YuWon grabbed him by the nape and yanked him back.


    "I-It was my mistake!" Hoon yelled, trying to weasel his way out with words, as usual.


    Even though he didn''t expect YuWon would let him go, he had to try. But surprisingly, YuWon did. Hoon looked at YuWon, surprised. Unfortunately, it didn''tst for long as he threw a punch right into Hoon''s midsection.


    The impact sent Hoon flying backward, crashing into the monarch''s broken carriage. Yeji tried to move, but everyone apart from YuWon and Hoon couldn''t lift a foot.


    Frustrated, Yeji looked at the angel, who smiled and winked. To ensure a fair duel, the angel had restricted everyone''s movement so they wouldn''t interfere. It wasn''t out of goodwill, but because the sponsors told her to.


    Meanwhile, Hoon struggled to get back to his feet. The hit had knocked all the air from his lungs, and he gasped for breath. But YuWon was already on him.


    He swung the monarch''s de, and the hilt hit Hoon''s shoulder, popping it out of ce. YuWon kept at it, breaking, or dislocating the bones in Hoon''s right arm, the same arm he had used to hit him countless times.


    Hoon''s screams filled the air and Yeji couldn''t take it anymore. Even though she couldn''t move, she yelled for YuWon to stop. But he didn''t react, just like she hadn''t all the time when Hoon hit him.


    "You should have escaped when you had the chance," YuWon growled, as he stabbed the de into Hoon''s thigh.


    "Instead, you screwed me over again and stole the kill. Just looking at you makes me want to kill you, but not yet."


    Despite the pain, Hoon red at YuWon and spat on his face. At least he tried to, but even that couldn''tnd on him.


    "I''m not done yet, and I''ll ruin your life. You hear me! I''ll ruin your life!"


    "That''s where you''re wrong," YuWon replied. "You are done."


    With that, he began hacking away, stabbing Hoon''s leg over and over. Hoon yelled in pain, struggling to fight back. But no matter what he did, it wasn''t enough.


    With no way out, Hoon grabbed a fist full of dirt and threw it in YuWon''s face. YuWon was so engrossed in stabbing him he didn''t see Hoon''s cheap attack.


    "Bastard!"


    As the dirt blinded him, YuWon had to drop the sword to clean his eyes. At that moment, Hoon grabbed the sword and on one leg rushed to hack YuWon.


    However, YuWon''s smile made him stop midway. The sand in his eyes meant nothing to himpared to his revenge. YuWon forced his bloodshot eyes open and delivered a roundhouse kick to Hoon''s side.


    The impact sent Hoon flying again, this time crashing into a nearby tree. Hoon groaned in pain and slumped next to the tree, barely conscious. YuWon wiped the dust from his eyes before turning towards the angel.


    "Is it enough?"


    "Yes," the angel nodded, ncing over at Hoon. "It is more than enough. You''ve won the duel. The mortal is yours to im."


    YuWon smiled. Finally... he could start taking his revenge. But something distracted him. While they were talking, a faint glow appeared around Hoon''s head and it looked like a halo. The thing shined for a moment before disappearingpletely.


    Everyone was confused, but the angel looked pleased and looked at Hoon with disdain.


    "It seems the mortal has lost the sponsor''s aid," she said. "That makes my job easier."


    She snapped her fingers, and a metal cor appeared around Hoon''s neck. At the same time, all of his injuries got healed. As Hoon came to his senses, he weakly touched the cor, only to receive an electric shock.


    Pleased with her work, the angel turned to YuWon.


    "He is now your ve. The cor will ensure his loyalty. Should he disobey or refuse anymand you give him, the consequences will be¡­ well, let''s just say, quite unpleasant."


    YuWon stared at Hoon and nodded. They''ll have a lot of fun with the cor, and not the kind that would let Hoon sleep peacefully.


    Wait... I didn''t mean it that way!


    The angel then turned to Hoon and continued, "Be careful though, if the ve defies the master too many times, the cor will kill them and it won''t be a peaceful death."


    Just as YuWon was about to say something, Yeji rushed next to Hoon, holding him close.


    "YuWon... You can''t do this!" she eximed. "I admit Hoon tormented you and did horrible things, but he didn''t do it for himself. He did it for me! If you want a ve, take me instead!"


    Logically speaking, having Yeji as a ve was a better option. After all, she was quite an adept healer, and in an apocalypse, they were always in demand.


    But YuWon''s anger didn''t see logic. He didn''t even nce at her, nor did he care about her words. He had his eyes focused on Hoon, but since Yeji was so hellbent on protecting her beloved, he thought it was the right time to reveal the truth.


    "Tell everyone the truth about what happenedst year," YuWon instructed, looking at Hoon with disdain. "Tell them who took those photographs!"


    Hoon shook his head, trying to resist. But when he did, the cor activated and shocked him. The pain was even worse than before, and his entire body convulsed while he screamed in pain. After what felt like an eternity, the pain subsided, and Hoony still, panting and shaking.


    "I-I''ll tell you¡­" he stammered, looking at Yeji. "I was the one who took your nude photos from YuWon''s phone... and spread them."


    Yeji''s face went pale and her eyes widened with shock. She wasn''t the only one who reacted like this. Everyone else who had mistreated YuWon had the same reaction.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Meanwhile, Hoon coughed and continued.


    "I was jealous¡­ of him. He was better than me at everything. Everyone liked him. I couldn''t take it anymore and wanted to ruin his life."


    "So, I took the photos, nted them on his phone, and made sure everyone found out about it."


    Yeji covered her mouth, tears flowing down her face. From the moment Hoon told her about it, she had never questioned him. Even when YuWon groveled before her, she didn''t believe him and now... it was alling apart before their eyes.

 Chapter 38: Penance (1)

    He already told them before, he couldn''t care less about the truth. Even now, he only revealed the truth, since Yeji wanted to cling to Hoon so desperately. Other than that, he had no intention of getting involved with any of them ever again.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    While Yeji was remorseful, the reaction of those around him was different. They didn''t apologize, but they were terrified. None of them dared to speak because YuWon''s attention was thest thing they wanted.


    "You didn''t do it alone, did you?" YuWon kicked Hoon, and he continued talking.


    Hoon hesitantly nodded and told everyone about how Suhyun and Jaehwan were his aplices. Only for someone to inform them that Suhyun died during the fight.


    YuWon clicked his tongue. He was intending to kill her either way. So there was no point in wondering about it. At least he still had Hoon as his ve to torment.


    "Come on, let''s go," YuWon mumbled, looking at Gina. But before he could take a step, Yeji fell to her knees right in front of him.


    "YuWon¡­ please¡­ forgive me," she begged, tears covering her entire face. "I was wrong. I didn''t know¡­ I didn''t know the truth¡­"


    YuWon, however, didn''t care about her or her tears. His gaze remained as cold as ice. All the while, Yeji kept crying and apologizing. But watching her grovel snapped something in his mind.


    Without a word, he raised his hand and pped her across the face. Everyone around was stunned as Yeji fell to the ground, clutching her cheek.


    YuWon had never raised his hand to her before. He had always cared for her, always tried to protect her. But now that was all gone, reced with cold indifference.


    Thinking that was enough to convey his feelings, YuWon turned to leave, but once again, Yeji grabbed onto his leg.


    "Please, brother, hit me, punish me, do whatever you want!" she yelled, hitting herself with her other hand. "But please, forgive me! I was wrong. But I didn''t mean to hurt you!"


    YuWon took a deep breath before kicking her away.


    "Brother? What brother?" he yelled back. "I wasn''t your brother all this time and now suddenly you changed your mind? You disgust me!"


    "But... what about our parents¡ª"


    "Your parents are your concern," YuWon cut her off. "I have no family!"


    Yeji copsed to the ground. She had never felt so small, so powerless, and she only had herself to me. All those years she had ignored his suffering, and now, when she realized her mistake, it was toote to go back to how things were. But there was something she could do.


    "Take me as your ve then," Yeji said, quickly wiping away her tears. "I''ll do anything you want. Work me to the bone if you have to, but I will atone for my mistakes!"


    YuWon wanted Yeji to be miserable, and he had aplished that. There wasn''t any need to physically punish her. Besides, she had healed him twice, and even though it meant nothing, he didn''t want to kill her.


    But her offer is enticing. Besides, I have a n.


    YuWon looked at the angel and asked, "Is it possible?"


    "It is," the angel nodded. "As long as she wills it. It will happen, but you can only have one ve."


    Even though she didn''t tell YuWon about it, his sponsor was half a pantheon and they were quite interested in his antics. They had given the angelplete rein to do whatever, so YuWon''s request was nothing more than a minor inconvenience for her.


    YuWon scratched his chin, thinking about it. Hoon had already served his purpose, but YuWon still wanted the bastard to suffer. Suddenly, an evil smirk appeared on his face and he nodded.


    "Do it," he said. "I''ll take her as the ve instead."


    "As you wish," the angel sighed. "But don''t expect me to help you again. There''s a limit to how much I can favor you without looking bad."


    With a snap of her fingers, the cor on Hoon''s neck disappeared and appeared on Yeji''s. However, instead of worrying about Yeji, Hoon immediately got up and was about to run when YuWon grabbed and mmed his head on the ground.


    "Where do you think you''re going?" he snarled.


    "W-What do you mean?" Hoon screamed. "I''m free now¡ª"


    "Are you?" YuWon said, turning towards Yeji. "You said you''ll do anything, right?"


    Yeji''s gaze shifted between YuWon and Hoon. But she nodded. As much as she liked Hoon, he had caused her nothing but misery. As such, she couldn''t care less about him... or at least she thought she didn''t.


    "Take this then," YuWon handed her the monarch''s sword. "Sever his leg."


    Yeji stared at him in disbelief. He wanted her to do something so heinous... how could he? But then she remembered everything she and Hoon had put him through and realized it was his way of punishing them both.


    Yeji''s eyes moved from YuWon to Hoon, whom YuWon had trapped on the ground with his foot. While YuWon''s eyes were calm, Hoon was practically screaming in terror.


    "Please, Yeji, don''t!" Hoon screamed. "Don''t do it!"


    Hoon''s words froze her. Her head felt like it was about to burst open as her hands shook. But YuWon''s gaze remained fixed on her. Since she now had the cor, she had to obey hismand or she would get electrocuted.


    "Do it," YuWon ordered her.


    Yeji''s head spun, and she felt the ground beneath was slipping away. She couldn''t move. She couldn''t think. But then, something inside her shifted. She wanted YuWon''s forgiveness. She needed it.


    She craved it.


    She raised her head, and YuWon noticed the empty look in her eyes as she smiled like a crazy person.


    "If I do it¡­ YuWon will forgive me," she mumbled to herself, repeating the words like a mantra. "He''ll forgive me¡­"


    "Yeji! Stop! Please!"


    Upon noticing her expression, Hoon''s pleas got louder, more desperate. But it was toote. Yeji wasn''t listening anymore as she raised the sword over her head.


    She stared at Hoon''s leg and kept mumbling, "YuWon will forgive me¡­ YuWon will forgive me¡­"

 Chapter 39: [Bonus Chapter] Penance (2)

    The next moment, Yeji brought the sword down with all the strength she could muster. However, it wasn''t enough for a clean cut, and the de got stuck in Hoon''s leg.


    Hoon let out a bloodcurdling scream as blood gushed out of his leg, but Yeji didn''t stop. How could she when her job wasn''tplete? If she wanted YuWon''s forgiveness, she had to do everything perfectly.


    With that thought, she yanked the sword free and raised it again. Her eyes had a certain animalistic appearance. Her hands didn''t shake anymore, but her lips kept moving, chanting the same words.


    "YuWon will forgive me¡­"


    She swung the sword down again. Hoon screamed louder. The pain was unbearable, but Yeji didn''t flinch. She kept hacking at his leg, over and over, until finally, with a sickening crunch, the limb was severedpletely along with the bone.


    Blood spurted from the stump, and Hoon, unable to take it anymore, passed out from the pain. All the while, everyone kept staring at the scene.


    Some tried to flee, afraid that the same would happen to them. While others were too stunned to move. However, the angel was enjoying the show and forced everyone else from leaving, either.


    They had no choice but to watch the scene in horror. But none of them were as shocked as Soo-Ah and Min-Joon. They couldn''t believe YuWon was the same person who had helped them before.


    As for Gina, she simply didn''t care. Her husband could do anything he wanted and she would stay by his side like the dutiful wife she was.


    A pool of blood soon formed around Hoon. Even then, YuWon remained unmoved, watching as Yeji stood over Hoon''s body, panting, her clothes and face covered in his blood.


    But YuWon wasn''t done yet. It wasn''t enough to soothe his thirst for revenge.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "His arm," YuWon said. "Sever his arm next."


    Yeji blinked, but her crazed smile only widened as she turned her head to look at YuWon. She knew what he wanted. And without another word, she turned back to Hoon''s unconscious body.


    The sword felt even heavier now in her hands, but she didn''t care. She raised it again, aiming for his arm this time.


    "YuWon will forgive me¡­ YuWon will forgive me¡­"


    The de came down. Once. Twice. Hoon''s body twitched. He reacted even in unconsciousness, but Yeji didn''t stop until the arm waspletely severed, just like his leg.


    Yeji stepped back, panting, as her entire body shook with adrenaline. She turned to look at YuWon; her face covered in blood. Even then, her crazy smile didn''t fade away.


    "I did a good job, didn''t I?" she asked. "Brother, you will forgive me now, right?"


    YuWon stared at her. His gaze was just as indifferent as before. But as he looked at her, he realized something. Yeji had snapped. She wasn''t the cheerful person she had been before.


    Now, she was nothing more than YuWon''s puppet, a shell of her former self, broken by her need for his approval. However, he wanted to test her resolve more.


    "The job''s not done," YuWon said. "Heal him."


    Yeji blinked, confused for a moment, before nodding eagerly. If YuWon wanted her to heal Hoon, then she would do that with no question or hesitation.


    "Heal him¡­ yes, I can heal him¡­"


    She rushed to Hoon''s side, kneeling beside his mutted body. Her hands glowed with a soft light as she began healing him. But YuWon didn''t want her to heal himpletely.


    "Don''t reattach the limbs," he said. "Just heal that stump enough to ensure no one can ever reattach them."


    Yeji nodded obediently, like a well-trained pet.


    "Yes¡­ yes, I''ll do that¡­ No one will ever be able to help him."


    Slowly, her hands moved over the stumps of Hoon''s leg and arm. The bright light worked its magic to seal the wounds, preventing any future attempts to restore his limbs.


    When she was done, Yeji stood up. Using the sword and then her magic was too much for her, but even through her weakness, she smiled. After all, she had followed his orders to the letter.


    YuWon stared at Hoon''s limp body and smiled. That bastard made his life hell. Now YuWon would like to see how the bastard survived without an arm and a leg in the apocalypse?


    "Brother..." Yeji mumbled, fidgeting on her spot.


    "You''ve done your part," he said coldly.


    Yeji stood there, Hoon''s blood still dripping from her clothes. But despite everything, she smiled again. She had done it. She had done what YuWon wanted. And now¡­ maybe now, he would forgive her.


    But YuWon''s face showed no sign of forgiveness. He simply turned away, leaving her standing there in the pool of Hoon''s blood.


    "Good job," YuWon smirked.


    "Brother, will forgive me, right?" Yeji asked nervously.


    "Keep at it and I will," he replied. "You can''t forgive a year''s worth of wrongdoings with one good deed."


    "I see... I will keep working hard then!" Yeji''s smile widened as she stepped over Hoon to get close to YuWon.


    "Alright, enough of this drama." The angel pped to get everyone''s attention. "I already wasted too much time here, so let me tell you a few important things before I depart."


    She began talking about things that YuWon already knew, like how the time had stopped during the tutorial, and now with the tutorialplete, the time would flow as usual and they all could move freely.


    However, the only thing YuWon was interested in was how to use gold. He had over eleven thousand gold stacked and wanted to use it to get some useful things like food and water, or maybe to get weapons and other things necessary for survival.


    "Certain shops have been scattered all over the," the angel informed. "You will know how to use them when you get close to one. That will be all. I wish you all have an entertaining death!"


    The next moment, the angel disappeared. There was no grand exit like the grand entrance she did.


    "Let''s leave then," YuWon said, looking at Gina and Yeji.


    As they walked away, the skeletons Soo-Ah had raised through Gina''s mana copsed, leaving only a handful of them behind.


    For a moment, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon thought of following YuWon. But decided against it. They wanted nothing to do with someone unstable like him.

 Chapter 40: [Bonus Chapter] Keeping Promises

    YuWon and Gina walked side by side. Meanwhile, Yeji crawled ahead of them on all fours. Her knees and palms were bleeding from continuously scraping against the ground, but she kept moving.


    With each step, the pain would grow more intense, but even then she tolerated it all because YuWon had allowed her to show her sincerity towards him. As long as she didn''tin, he''ll forgive her and that''s the only thing that mattered to her.


    "Heal," YuWon instructed Yeji as she winced in pain again.


    Yeji obeyed. She had been continuously using the healing spell, and it was taking a toll on her. But she kept at it, not wanting to disappoint YuWon. Soon her wounds closed up, but it was only temporary relief.


    Yeji didn''t know or probably didn''t care, but YuWon wasn''t letting her heal the wounds of concern, but to make her punishment worse.


    The moment she finished healing, she would have to crawl again. The freshly healed skin would get torn again and the pain would return. Healing herself just made the paine back stronger, but YuWon didn''t care.


    Gina nced at Yeji with pity in her eyes. She hesitated, but after a second, she shook her head. YuWon wasn''t one to punish without reason. If he was making Yeji suffer, it was because she deserved it.


    "Where are we going, husband?" Gina asked to distract herself.


    "To the mall," YuWon replied, not looking at her. "The angel said we''re the first to finish the tutorial. So, I want to grab all the resources before the otherse running."


    YuWon''s decision made sense. They needed supplies to survive in this world. Soon the others would realize it as well and then they''ll all rush to hoard as many supplies as they could.


    But YuWon had another reason to go there. He wanted to use the [Phantom Bag] and check a few things, including its limitations. But as they continued walking, a prompt appeared before YuWon.


    [You are yet to select your second Sub-ss.]


    "I forgot about this," he sighed.


    The whole situation with Hoon and Yeji made him forget about his reward.


    He swiped his hand to open the menu, scrolling through the options avable. There were three choices, but two of them didn''t suit his fighting style.


    The Sigil Master ss straight-up seemed useless to him. It focused on symbols and runes and required a lot of practice and knowledge to perfect it. In other words, it wasn''t a shortcut to strength that YuWon wanted.


    The Creationist ss was better, but there was a catch. As a Creationist, he could only use weapons he made himself, and that would cancel out the bonus he got from using makeshift weapons.


    Even if it didn''t, creating weapons required resources and proper machinery. Where would he find a furnace and other materials in an apocalypse? For these reasons, it was a no as well.


    "I need abat sub-ss or something that could help me improve my stats."N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon''s fight with the monarch had taught him that lesson. As great as his respawn ability is, he couldn''t defeat all the opponents through stats only.


    He needed offensive skills toplement his stats, so he wouldn''t need to depend on anyone else for his fights.


    Just then, eyesnded on the Soul Reaver ss. As he read more about the sub-ss, the more appealing it felt to him.


    The Sub-ss essentially worked like necromancy, but without the annoying need to raise the dead. Instead, he could absorb souls directly to increase his stats and gain new abilities. The more he thought about it, the more he liked it.


    "I''ll take Soul Reaver," YuWon decided, clicking the option.


    +++


    Subss Unlocked: Soul Reaver


    The Soul Reaver is a dark and enigmatic subss that harnesses the power of absorbed souls to enhance their own capabilities.


    New abilities unlocked!


    ¡ª> Soul Absorption


    ¡ª> Ether Walk


    ¡ª> Soul Bind


    +++


    As soon as the notification appeared, a sharp pain red in his left hand. He looked down and saw a new mark being burned into his skin.


    The mark got engraved in the outer palm of his hand and glowed for a few seconds before it faded into a dark tattoo. YuWon frowned, raising his hand to examine the new tattoo.


    "At this rate, my whole body''s going to be covered in these," he muttered, shaking his head.


    Coupled with the tattoo for the phantom mark and the brand of ownership, the mark of the serpent''s skull was the third tattoo he received.


    He closed the prompt and turned his attention back to Gina because she kept tugging his sleeve.


    "Are you okay? Are you hurt from the fight?" he asked, concerned, since she kept fidgeting.


    Gina didn''t meet his eyes. Instead, she looked away shyly, her cheeks turning a faint shade of pink.


    "I''m fine," she whispered.


    "What is it then?"


    After a brief pause, she said, "Can we start the process now?"


    "Process?" YuWon blinked, confused.


    Gina''s hand moved down to her belly, caressing it gently. That''s when YuWon remembered. He had made her a promise to consummate their marriage. Now that the Monarch and goblins were out of the picture, Gina expected him to fulfill that promise.


    "I¡­ I didn''t forget," YuWon said, scratching his head.


    Gina frowned slightly, disappointed that her husband had forgotten about the most important thing for her. However, she would not wait any longer. Without warning, she grabbed his hand and dragged him toward a nearby alley.


    "Come on!" she said firmly.


    YuWon stumbled after her, surprised by how determined she was. Yeji hesitated for a moment, unsure of what was happening. She eventually followed them into the alley, but Gina shot her a sharp re.


    "No, stay back!" she snapped at her.


    Yeji looked at YuWon, who waved his hand, telling her to leave. She didn''t dare disobey him and stepped outside, deciding to guard the alley entrance instead. Meanwhile, Gina turned her attention back to YuWon, ripping his shirt open with no consideration.


    "Wait, Gina¡ª"


    Waiting was thest thing on her mind and she pushed YuWon, forcing him to fall on his back.


    Inside the alley, Gina pressed closer to YuWon, her hands roaming across his chest. Once again, she had straddled him and taken her top off. It was a d¨¦j¨¤ vu moment for YuWon, only this time, he didn''t have a way out of the mess.


    YuWon swallowed hard, trying to keep hisposure. But it was difficult. After all, his wife was a thing of beauty and he was a man with needs.


    "I didn''t think you''d want to do this here," YuWon mumbled.


    "With you... everywhere is the same," Gina looked up at him.


    As he stared at her, YuWon noticed her cheeks were flushed, and her hands trembled as they rested on his chest. Strangely enough, he could feel her heart racing just like his heart was.


    She''s nervous...


    It was only then he realized Gina was a virgin. As eager as she was to have intimacy, she had little knowledge to take the initiative. That''s why she was just sitting on top of him, looking shyly around.


    She''s too cute.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll take care of it," YuWon smiled, caressing her thighs.

 Chapter 41: Testing The Good Stuff

    42 minutester...


    "This ain''t good..." YuWon mumbled, staring at his torn shirt.


    Even though he sported a toned body, YuWon wasn''t an exhibitionist to roam around topless. But Gina had ensured his shirt wouldn''t be a barrier between them anymore.


    Meanwhile, Gina pulled her top back on. The blush on her cheeks hadn''t disappeared yet, but there was a content smile on her lips. She noticed YuWon staring at her and turned around.


    "Don''t look at me like that," she mumbled, acting all innocent. "That''s your fault for making me wait so long."


    "Of course it is..." YuWon smiled, shaking his head.


    YuWon had realized two things about them. First was that he was a beast in human skin. Although Gina was the one who started their bonding experience, by the end, he was the one acting deprived of affection.


    Second, Gina was insatiable when it came to intimacy. The more he gave her, the more she wanted him. That was why it took him over forty minutes to satisfy herpletely. But he wasn''t any better.


    Once they began, hepletely lost his mind. Probably because he was feeling such intense love from someone for the first time, or maybe he was too high on emotion and used the act as an outlet.


    What''s done is done. Now I need to get some clothes for everyone¡­ Nah, clothes for just me and Gina are enough.


    YuWon checked his mental list of things they needed. The first thing was shelter. But he didn''t think any ce was entirely safe from the monsters. One of them would have to be on guard while the others slept.


    The second thing was resources, primarily food and water. For now, the supermarkets would be enough. But once people hoard resources, that''s when the trouble begins.


    For now, he could empty a supermarket. All that food and water wouldst them for a while. But eventually, they would have to grow their food.


    We''d need more water for that.


    That was the primary source of worry for him. Water was the most essential thing for them. But packaged water won''tst them long. They needed an alternate source of clean water they could use for consumption and also farming.


    First things first, let''s go to the supermarket.


    Suddenly, Yeji came running on all fours. YuWon saw her and wondered if she was so desperate for his forgiveness she would degrade herself like that. But that thought was quickly interrupted when she spoke.


    "A monster is roaming around¡ª" she said, but YuWon cut her off.


    "What''s new about it?" he scoffed. "We live in their world now. Of course, they''ll roam around."


    "It looks... different," Yeji softly mumbled, not wanting to get scolded again.


    "Different, you say? Show me."


    Different monsters meant bonus stats. Since YuWon could no longer get additional stats from the [Survivor of Death] title, he wanted to get as many bonus points as possible by hunting new monsters.


    Besides, it''s an opportunity to see how Soul Reaver works.


    YuWon crouched and peeked in the direction Yeji pointed. He noticed a group of goblins running away from something. It was a strange feeling, watching the goblin who had caused them so much trouble fleeing like that.


    A momentter, YuWon noticed a towering figure, just a bit shorter than the monarch, rushing after the goblins. Its skin was like that of the goblins, but it was extremely muscr.


    A pair of sharp teeth, akin to that of an elephant, came out of its mouth as it smiled while wildly swinging the hammer. It didn''t take long for YuWon to recognize the monster. He had read enough novels and web toons to know what they were dealing with.


    "That''s an ogre," he mumbled.


    As he said that, the ogre roared and swung the hammer on the goblin that had tripped and fell. The poor creature didn''t stand a chance and got crushed under the hammer; its blood sttered all over the ground.


    Monsters hunting each other was good for them. But YuWon couldn''t help but wonder why. It didn''t look like the ogre was hunting the goblins for food. It was more possible it was killing others for fun.


    It''s possible. Since most humans are still struggling in the tutorial, the ogre decided to have fun with the goblins.


    Also, like Gina had told him before, the Monarch was the one binding all goblins together. With its death, the goblins fled the site. Without their leader, there was no one to protect them and they had turned into prey for others.


    YuWon was wondering if he should try to fight the ogre or not. But a momentter, he didn''t have a choice in the matter, as a skull mark appeared before its head.


    [Head Hunter Contract engaged!]


    [Target: Ogre.]


    [Threat level: Low~Medium.]


    [Known Weakness: None discovered.]


    [Reward: 200 gold]


    "So that''s how it works," YuWon mumbled. "It''s a good thing. Now I can test both the subsses together. But before that... let''s rearrange a few things."


    YuWon quickly opened the stat page and a lot of things were waiting for him.


    +++


    Name: Kang YuWon


    ss: Revenant


    Sub-ss: Head Hunter, Soul Reaver


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 27


    Experience: 92.2%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 545 / 545


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 175 / 175


    ¡ª Stamina: 25 / 30


    Core Stats:[+32 unallocated points]


    ¡ª Strength: 25


    ¡ª Agility: 30


    ¡ª Intelligence: 4


    ¡ª Defense: 20


    ¡ª Endurance: 17


    ¡ª Wisdom: 6


    ¡ª Luck: 20n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ¡ª Respawn Points: 1030/1000


    Abilities:


    ¡ª Passive Abilities:


    1. Respawn (Lvl 5)


    2. Mark of Death (lvl 1):


    Description: Generates a contract for the awakener to hunt.


    Cooldown: 12 hours


    Mana Cost: None.


    3. Soul Absorption (lvl 1):


    Description: Killing monsters and yers would store their souls within the soul storage.


    >> For every soul absorbed, Awakener''s maximum HP increases by 2 points and maximum mana by 1 point.


    >> For every 10 souls absorbed, Awakener gains 1 Unallocated Stat point.


    >> For every 30 souls absorbed, the Awakener can choose one ability from any of the captured souls for their freedom. The absorbed ability can only be used once.


    Cooldown: None.


    Mana Cost: None.


    ¡ª Active Abilities:


    1. Checkpoint (Lvl 3)


    2. Death''s Whisper (lvl 1):


    Description: The first attack against a marked target deals 150% damage, with a 7% chance of instantly killing non-boss enemies. On sessful assassination, the Awakener''s [Head Hunter skill] cooldowns are reduced by 50%.


    Cooldown: 10 minutes


    Mana Cost: 30 points


    3. Decoy Exchange (lvl 1): [Unavable. Buy some Decoys first.]


    Description: Swap ces with a decoy explosive for a surprise getaway or attack. Upon the sessful assassination of the target, the decoy will detonate, causing damage to nearby enemies.


    Cooldown: 2 hours


    Mana Cost: 40 points


    4. Ether Walk (lvl 1):


    Description: Temporarily grants the Awakener . This invisibility breaks if you attack or cast a spell.


    The Awakener''s first attack while invisible deals 1.1x more damage as True Damage to the target. True Damage ignores all resistances and immunities.


    Cooldown: 20 minutes


    Mana Cost: 30 points


    5. Soul Bind (lvl 1):


    Description: Attacking enemies makes them hallucinate, rendering them  for 3 seconds. During the hallucination effect, a soul can attach themselves to the enemy,pelling them to follow the Awakener''smands for a short duration.


    Cooldown: 5 minutes


    Mana Cost: 30 points


    +++


    It''ll take some time to get used to these new skills.


    YuWon mumbled, scratching his head. The sub-sses he got were good, but reading through their exnations was confusing.


    He also realized using the skills required mana. However, that was the one thing YuWon had invested no points in. Thankfully, he had more than enough stats points to correct his mistake.


    After dumping all the points to raise his mana and HP to 335 and 625 points each, YuWon used the remaining points to increase his base stats. With all that taken care of, he was ready to face the ogre.


    But as he was closing the screen, he noticed something. The stamina counter had changed. It was weird since nothing he did before made the counter budge. But now it was showing 15 points instead of a maximum of 30.


    The only thing I did differently was...


    He turned to look at Gina and realized what the counter signified.


    Ahem... I can do more research on itter. For now, let''s just focus on the Ogre.

 Chapter 42: That Was Easy

    She had seen how easily the ogre dispatched the goblins. Although she knew YuWon was strong, she was still worried about him.


    Gina, on the other hand, didn''t show any hesitation or try to stop YuWon. She knew he was strong enough to take down the ogre, or even a couple of them.


    "Shut it, and wait for me here," YuWon retorted, before pulling the monarch''s sword from his palm.


    However, when YuWon did that, he was surprised. The de had been almost as tall as him when he put it in his inventory. But now it was just a regr-sized sword.


    It doesn''t feel any lighter to me. Could it be the Phantom bag molded the de to suit my needs? Sweet!


    [Skill: Ether Walk activated.]


    YuWon couldn''t believe his eyes. The skill said it would make him invisible, but he thought it would make him translucent at best. But there was no false advertising. He could see through himself!


    Holy shit! Combat skills are the best! No offense to the respawn skill.


    Without wasting time, YuWon headed toward the ogre. Unfortunately, in all his knowledge about the ogre, he forgot a crucial part. However, by the time YuWon noticed something was off, it was toote.


    Suddenly, the ogre''s nostrils red up as he picked YuWon''s scent in the air. Before YuWon could do anything, the ogre swung its hammer right at his head.


    "Shit!" YuWon eximed, raising his sword over the head.


    As soon as the hammer connected with the sword, YuWon''s invisibility faded. Meanwhile, the force behind the hammer forced YuWon onto one knee, struggling to push the hammer off him. As he looked up, he saw the monster smiling at him.


    "And... here I thought I would never see anything more disgusting than your face," YuWon said and smiled back.


    If he couldn''t beat the monster with strength, then he would use what humans have been for thousands of years¡ªhis brain.


    YuWon quickly tilted his sword downwards just a little. The ogre, putting all its weight on the hammer, lost its bnce as the hammer slipped from YuWon''s de and crashed to the ground.


    Seeing the opening, YuWon wasted no time. He swung his sword, shing the ogre''s leg. The de sliced through the thick skin, and the ogre let out a roar of pain. Its massive body wobbled before it fell to one knee, mirroring YuWon''s earlier position.


    "Laugh now, bitch!" YuWon yelled, aiming for the monster''s head.


    But then the ogre swung the hammer again. However, YuWon was ready for it. As the hammer came rushing toward him, he used it like a stepping stone to jump.


    [Skill: Death''s Whisper activated!]


    YuWon raised the sword over his head before bringing it down on the ogre. The de cut through the ogre''s thick skull and body, slicing it clean in half. The ogre died before YuWon''s feet touched the ground.


    [One shot kill confirmed. The cooldowns for all  skills have been halved.]


    [You''ve hunted an Ogre Brawler! Exp +5%, Gold +30]


    [You''re the first Awakener to hunt a newbie monster! Exp +25%, Gold +75]n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    [Hunt sessful! The contract is closed. Gold +200]


    [You have leveled up to lvl 28!]


    [Unallocated Attribute points +2]


    [Current Exp: 22.2%]


    [Current Gold: 11,485]


    Ignoring the notifications, YuWon looked down, expecting to be drenched in ogre blood. But to his surprise, there wasn''t a single drop of blood on him. Not only him, there wasn''t any blood anywhere.


    Confused, he looked around. The ogre was dead. Then where was all the blood? Only when he lifted the sword to put it back in the inventory did he realize what happened.


    The sword had absorbed all the blood. The golden de wasn''t golden anymore, but had turned crimson.


    What the hell?


    But the surprises weren''t over yet. Before he could ponder further, a wisp of smoke appeared from the ogre''s corpse. The dark mist swirled in the air for a moment, like a lost child looking for its mother.


    A secondter, it zapped straight into the serpent skull tattoo on his hand, and a notification appeared before his eyes.


    [You have absorbed a Newbie Monster Soul.]


    [Max HP +2]


    [Max Mana +1]


    "So that''s how it works," YuWon mumbled, flexing his hand.


    The tattoo seemed to pulse for a moment before settling back to normal. YuWon stood over the ogre''s lifeless body. The fight had been easier than expected.


    After respawning so many times, defeating a new creature without respawning felt weird, but in a good sense. But his eyes shifted back to the sword.


    "I guess you like blood, huh?" YuWon said.


    Unlike before, he felt a strange attachment to the sword. As if it was his own, not the monarch''s.


    Gina and Yeji soon joined him, and as usual, Yeji was crawling. Gina looked at the ogre and then at him before smiling. Even Yeji let out a sigh of relief, breaking the healing spell she had already prepared just in case.


    Unfortunately, their reunion was interrupted by six ogres.


    "We just can''t catch a break, can we?" YuWon smiled.


    Although the ogres were a bit much, he was happy to see them. After all, he wasn''t satisfied with only taking one soul.


    "Gina, can you wield that?" he asked, pointing at the fallen hammer.


    Gina grabbed the hammer and lifted it effortlessly before swinging around. Watching her grip, YuWon was d he had led their ''first time'', or else she might have ripped his mini-me off.


    "Ahem," YuWon cleared his throat and his thoughts before turning towards Yeji. "Get up and go distract them."


    Yeji looked worried for a moment, her gaze darting between the ogres and YuWon.


    "What? You don''t want to?" He spoke sternly.


    "I-I''ll do it, brother!" she nodded hastily. "Please don''t get upset."


    YuWon didn''t show it, but he smiled inwardly. He didn''t know what he had done in his life to deserve such an obedient ve.


    Oh, I know. I Lived a miserable life for a year.

 Chapter 43: Shopping Time (1)

    The ogres took a whiff of the air and noticed the blood of their dead kin. They rushed over to the spot only to see a female human standing next to the corpse, her hands covered in the blood of their kin.


    The ogres let out a terrifying roar as they charged toward Yeji. The ground shook under their footsteps. However, just as they were about to hit her, a car''s horn caught their attention.


    They turned to see YuWon rushing towards them in an SUV. Half of the ogres quickly leaped out of the car''s way, while the rest reacted slowly and were swept off the ground by the car.


    Usually, the ogres wouldn''t have any trouble toppling the car, but even monsters couldn''t do much against a little thing called momentum. A momentter, the car, along with the ogres, mmed into a nearby wall.


    YuWon jumped out of the vehicle just in time, stabbing his sword into the ground to stop himself. He couldn''t help but smile as the notifications shed before his eyes.


    [You''ve hunted an Ogre Brawler! Exp +5%, Gold +30]


    [You''ve hunted an Ogre Enforcer! Exp +10%, Gold +40]


    [You''ve hunted an Ogre Brawler! Exp +5%, Gold +30]


    The ogres didn''t stand a chance. Their bodies were crushed and their blood sttered across the windshield.


    "Three down," he muttered, pulling the sword out. "Three to go."


    While YuWon earned three more souls, the ogres changed their target from Yeji to YuWon. They were angry, which was exactly what YuWon desired. Watching their rage-filled eyes, he smiled.


    "Now, Gina!"


    Onmand, Gina, hiding under the dead ogre''s body, jumped out with the ogre''s hammer. Before the ogres could notice, she had already struck an ogre in the head. Its skull shattered instantly, killing it.


    The sudden attack took aback the two remaining ogres. It was the first time they had felt overwhelmed by mere humans and a lowly goblin. In the blink of an eye, they had lost four of their brethren and didn''t know what to do.


    "Eyes on me, ugly bastards!" YuWon smirked, rushing toward the nearest ogre.


    A momentter, the ogre''s severed head rolled on the ground, joining its headless owner. Now only one ogre remained, but unlike the goblins they had faced before, this one didn''t back down.


    Instead, it roared in anger and charged straight toward Gina, raising its axe to cleave her in half. Just then, something strange happened. Yeji pointed his arms towards the ogre and it froze in its ce.


    Taking advantage of the situation, YuWon sliced both of the ogre''s legs as Yeji fell to her knees, having exhausted all her mana.


    Meanwhile, the ogre yelled in pain and fell face-first to the ground. Even then it tried reaching for the axe, only got Gina to kick it away. As the ogre stared at her, she lifted the hammer and smashed it on the ogre''s head, killing it.


    YuWon had taken a gamble when he found the opened SUV. Instead of using it to escape, he decided to use it as a weapon. But now he was regretting it.


    It would have been better to use it as transport, rather than as a weapon. Well, there''s no point in crying over spilled milk now.


    Gina went to check on Yeji, but YuWon kept looking towards the dead ogres, not caring about her.


    "She''ll be fine," Gina told him.


    "Hm..." YuWon replied, looking back and forth between Gina and the ogres.


    Their skin tones were the same and YuWon didn''t like it one bit. Not because of her skin, but because it was dangerous. They were in dangerous times, a time when people would kill someone first and ask questionster.


    Since Gina was technically a monster, YuWon didn''t want her to end up in a situation like that and wondered if there was anything he could do to help her.


    Once Yeji was awake, Gina left her side to be with YuWon. She noticed his expression, but before she could say anything, he mumbled something.


    "We need to do something about your appearance."


    "What?" Gina took offense and poked his chest with her finger. "I dare you to say that again."


    "Rx, I didn''t mean it like that," he said hurriedly. "I adore you as you are, but others might mistake you for a monster and attack you¡ª"


    "Oh, you don''t have to worry about that," she said, and a mask appeared in her hand. "I got something for that. Thanks to that beautiful wingeddy we met before."


    Before YuWon could ask any more questions, Gina wore the mask. As soon as did, her goblin features began to fade. Her green skin vanished, reced by tanned human skin. Her sharp ears and fangs were gone, and in just a few seconds, she looked like any other human.


    "Whoa¡­" YuWon mumbled.


    "What do you think?" Gina asked, striking a pose for him.


    "You look... amazing, as always."


    Even though he said that, he didn''t feel that way. She was pretty in her human form, no doubt. But for some reason, her goblin form was more appealing to him. Just then, a ridiculous thought crossed his mind.


    Could I be a furry or something?


    "Nope, not going there," he quickly mumbled.


    "Going where?" Gina asked, tilting her head.


    "...nowhere. Forget what I said."


    ***


    10 minutester...


    Soon, they arrived at the supermarket. Only to find the ce wrecked. The doors, window, pretty much everything was broken. But thankfully, the electricity was still up and running.


    "Gina?"


    "I can''t feel any monsters around," she replied, smelling the air.


    "Alright, let''s get what we need and leave asap."


    They stepped inside and headed straight towards the food and edibles section. Despite the chaotic state of the shop, most of the items were in decent condition.


    "Let''s take everything," YuWon said.


    Just then, he heard a screeching sound and swung his de, only to see Yeji bringing a shopping cart.


    "I-I thought we''d need this¡ª" she mumbled, but YuWon cut her off.


    "No need for that," he said.


    Yeji looked at him, confused. Ignoring her, YuWon waved his hand over the bread and canned food and a momentter, the items got sucked into his hand.


    He didn''t even feel the weight of the food in his inventory, as if they had simply ceased to exist. YuWon then summoned a piece of break out and tasted it.


    It tastes freshly baked, just like I expected. The Phantom bag isn''t a regr storage¡ªit improves everything I put in it to its highest quality, including food.


    "Brother," Yeji interrupted his thoughts pointing at something at a distance.


    He turned and saw a faint, holographic gold icon floating in the air near the entrance of the next aisle.


    "Could it be...?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

 Chapter 44: Shopping Time (2)

    YuWon walked towards the sign and instinctively reached out. The moment he touched the icon, the coin disappeared, reced by a slot machine.


    [You are the first to discover this Newbie Shop!]


    [You have earned a free reward spin!]


    YuWon couldn''t help but smile. It was the shop the angel had told them about. He quickly opened the status page and checked his luck.


    "24 points..." he mumbled, dumping the two unallocated points he had in there. "How much luck do you two have?"


    Gina looked confused and shrugged. It was then that YuWon realized the system indeed treated her like a monster. Gina didn''t have a system or stats like them, which made him turn to Yeji.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "45..." Yeji said, looking dejected.


    You got so much luck and still ended up in this shitty situation? It makes me wonder how bad I would be in her position.


    YuWon ignored the thoughts in his head and turned toward the machine. It looked like one of those slot machines in casinos. And since his luck has been pretty shitty, he wasn''t keen on using the machine.


    "Three wheels and eight symbols, so there should be 512binations," Yeji mumbled. "It''ll be foolish to expect the grand jackpot. But if we are lucky, we might get the minor jackpot, or at least a basic win."


    "How do you know all this?" YuWon raised an eyebrow.


    "...I used to visit some ces with Hoon."


    "The valedictorian was a gambler? Ouch! What will your parents think about you?"


    "I... I never yed, just gave Hoon some money to bet..."


    YuWon sighed. He had thought after what he had done to Hoon, the bastard''s name wouldn''t trouble him anymore. But he was wrong. The hate had diminished a lot, but remnants of it were still there.


    Let''s focus on the slot machine first.


    YuWon touched the lever, intending to use the free spin he got. But just then, a prompt appeared before him.


    [Please select a reward tier.]


    [¡ªBeginner Moron (1000 gold/spin)]


    [¡ªTalented Prot¨¦g¨¦ (3000 gold/spin)]


    [¡ªGambling Addict (5000 gold/spin)]


    [Note: Each tier has different rewards and punishments based on the selected tier. Awakeners can either use gold or free spin tickets to use the machine.]


    "Of course, there had to be a catch," YuWon sighed.


    The angel''s words echoed in his head. They were there to entertain the sponsors. How could they entertain them if they got handed rewards for free?


    The vending machine offered both reward and punishment. Using the machine could either spell a disaster or give them the greatest reward. The more YuWon thought about it, the less he wanted to use the machine.


    "...I can''t remove my hand now?"


    Unfortunately, when YuWon touched the lever, he attempted to use the machine. Now he had to y whether he got a reward for it or not.


    Not wanting to take the risk with the highest tier, YuWon selected the [Talented Prot¨¦g¨¦] and pulled the lever. The machine whirled into life with the three wheels spinning.


    The first wheel stopped at the symbol of a gold-filled bag. It was the same as the second. However, the third one stopped at the symbol of a skull.


    [You have won a minor payout!]


    [Hunt the golden goblin to receive your reward!]


    [Time limit: 15 minutes.]


    [Should the Awakener fail the hunt, 3000 gold will be deducted as disappointment cost.]


    "Just a goblin? It should be easy." YuWon smirked.


    After having hunted hundreds of goblins, hunting another wouldn''t make much difference for him. With a burst of blinding light, a small, golden goblin appeared in front of them, standing on the slot machine.


    "Alright, let''s get this over with," YuWon said.


    However, the moment YuWon took a step toward the goblin, it bolted deeper into the store. The three sprinted after the goblin, weaving through the shelves and fallen items.


    Even though the goblin had tiny legs, it was faster than all of them. Not only that, with its size, it could slip through the objects they couldn''t. Every time they thought they were close, the goblin either sped up or fooled them into a corner.


    "Too fast..." Gina panted, slowing down for a moment. "How are we supposed to catch it?"


    "We can''t keep up with it like this," YuWon replied. "We need a n. You two go left, and I''ll go right. I''ll chase it towards you guys. The rest is on you."


    "That''s... the n?" Gina mumbled.


    She had expected something grander from him, as always. But it seemed the time crunch had put him on edge. With no time to waste, they split up.


    YuWon ran to the right where the goblin had disappeared. After a second, he could see the goblin running between the clothes aisle. It asionally looked around, and when it noticed YuWon, it stuck its tongue out before running away.


    "...this fucking piece of shit monster!"


    Meanwhile, Yeji and Gina hid behind the checkout counters, waiting for YuWon. Soon, Yeji spotted the beast, followed by YuWon.


    "They are here!" she whispered.


    The goblin, unaware of the trap, continued running their way. Just as it was about to cross the counter, Yeji jumped, her arms outstretched. But the goblin wasn''t so easy to fool and stepped on her head to jump over the counter.


    "Ugh,e on!" she groaned but stayed down as YuWon did the same thing as the goblin. "...brother touched my head!"


    "Fucking weirdo," YuWon mumbled, looking at her before running after the goblin.


    Gina knew Yeji''s n would fail, so she already left the spot before the goblin appeared. Instead, she hid behind the crates and kicked them over to block the goblin''s path.


    As the crates came crashing down, the goblin skidded to a stop. It turned to the side, intending to run that way. But Gina was faster and threw more crates there. Frustrated, the goblin looked behind, only to see YuWon standing behind.


    "Nowhere to run now," YuWon said, grabbing the creature by its neck.


    The goblin squirmed and thrashed, but YuWon held on tight until it disappeared, leaving a gold pendant behind in his hand.


    [Hunt sessful!]


    [You have received your reward: Overseer''s Pendant!]


    Before he could see the reward''s details, the sound of screeching tires interrupted him. But what were cars doing there? Did another group clear the tutorial and have the same idea as them and loot the supermarket?


    "Stay close," YuWon mumbled, throwing the pendant into his inventory. "They could be trouble."

 Chapter 45: [Bonus Chapter] Shelter (1)

    YuWon and the girls hid behind shelves. A momentter, they heard a bunch of hurried footsteps entering the supermarket.


    "Combat boots," YuWon mumbled, gripping the hilt of his sword. "Military people."


    YuWon took a peek and, sure enough, they were from the military. Out of the thirteen, seven of them had guns in their hands while the others carried swords and melee weapons.


    Their uniforms had seen better as they looked grimy and soaked in blood. Whether or not it was monster blood remained to be seen. They looked around the supermarket, probably scanning the area for any monster.


    "Clear!" a soldier called out.


    Just like them, all of them headed towards the food section, only to find it empty. Even all the c was gone, and broken vending machines were all that remained


    "Major sir, the food section''s been cleared out¡ª" a soldier said, but got smacked.


    "I can see that, you idiot," the major retorted.


    The man was tall with a muscr build, a sharp jawline, and short ck hair. Had it not been for the scar on his left cheek, he could have acted as a supporting role in dramas.


    While they were talking, they noticed a sudden movement to the side and saw a man holding a crimson sword standing there with a couple ofdies.


    "No need to be rmed," YuWon said, raising his hand over his head.


    The major raised his hand, signaling his men to lower their weapons.


    "Who are you?" the major demanded. "What are you doing here?"


    "My name''s YuWon, they are Gina and Yeji," YuWon calmly replied. "We came here looking for food and water, just like you. But it was already gone when we arrived."


    The major narrowed his eyes. He was no fool to believe YuWon and the others just happened to be there before them and knew nothing about the food and drinks.


    "You expect me to believe that?" he scoffed. "If the ce was empty, then what were you doing here?"


    "Look at us. We don''t even have proper clothes. The food was gone, so we stayed to see if we could find something to wear," YuWon replied, not worried by the major and his soldiers.


    The Major looked at them, and it was true. One girl was barely wearing anything decent, while the other had torn and bloodied clothes. Then there was the shirtless Casanova standing in between.


    "When we heard youe in, we thought it''d be better to introduce ourselves before you mistook us for monsters and shot us," YuWon continued.


    The major didn''t reply but turned towards his men. He had his suspicions, and so did his men.


    "What do you guys think?" he asked.


    "How could civilians like them have made it here before us?" one soldier spoke up. "We''ve got weapons, training, everything. We should have been the first to clear the tutorial."


    "They must be lying," another one chimed in. "It''s hard to believe, but if they arrived before us, then they had to be the first ones to clear the tutorial."


    "Fools, were you all just gawking at the angel''s tits and didn''t hear a word she said?" the major retorted. "We''re the second ones to clear the tutorial. But we had the highest scores. They had to have gotten lucky."


    "That''s true... leave it to the major to be the voice of reason," the soldier nodded, and the rest followed.


    Even in the apocalypse, their habit was licking a superior''s ass didn''t change. Ignoring them, the major turned back to YuWon. No matter how pitiful they looked, the major couldn''t see a single scar on their body.


    They must be good at what they do. It''ll be a waste to let them leave here. Besides, the more powerful people we have, the higher our chances of survival are.


    "Where are you from?" the major asked.


    "We''re students from the local college."


    "Is that so?" the major nodded, looking at the girls and then back at YuWon. "Apart from resources, we''re also looking for survivors. If you want, you can stay with us at the base. It''s safer than wandering around."


    Fucking fool.


    YuWon smiled inwardly. He had been hoping for this, that''s why he presented themselves as pitiful survivors. After emptying the supermarket, he solved their food and water problems.


    However, looking for a suitable shelter wasn''t easy. When he noticed the military personnel, he knew they must have a base too¡ªa base for him to take over.


    "Thank you, we''d be d to join you," YuWon sighed in relief. "But can you give us a minute? I would like to get dressed before leaving."


    The major nodded. But YuWon didn''t move. He knew what men were like, especially now in their new chaotic world. Gina barely had any clothes on, and Yeji''s clothes were torn.


    The major might not do it, but the soldier would try to peek at them, or something worse. Gina was his wife and Yeji... was a ve. So, both of them were his responsibility.


    "You two go ahead and get dressed," YuWon said. "Bring me a shirt while you''re at it. I''ll stay here and keep the soldierspany."


    The major understood and didn''t argue. However, a soldier who had been smiling till then suddenly stepped up.


    "What are you trying to say, huh? That we''re perverts?" he yelled, waving his handgun.


    "I said nothing like that¡ª" YuWon calmly replied, but got interrupted.


    "Hah, you think you can stop us if we wanted to mess with your girls?" the man kept yelling.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "In a world like this, trust is a raremodity," YuWon scoffed. "Besides, think about it. You all are armed to the teeth, yet we cleared the tutorial before you. What does it say about me?"


    "You think you''re all that great? Let''s see how many bullets it takes to¡ª"


    The soldier was still speaking when YuWon rushed towards him and, with a sh of his de, sliced the handgun in half. The soldier, scared, fell on his ass with YuWon pointing his sword at the man''s neck.


    The rest of the soldiers quickly pointed their guns at him, but even they were too shocked to pull the trigger.


    "Unlike you, I don''t need to check how many swings it''ll take me to sever your head," YuWon said coldly.


    "Alright, that''s enough!" the major jumped between YuWon and the soldier. "Everyone, lower your weapons!"


    The soldiers did as told, but YuWon still had his de with him, eyeing the soldier before.


    "I admit it was my boy''s mistake," the major quickly replied. "But you should lower the de."


    YuWon looked at the major and nodded. "I''m doing this only because you''re helping us. Had it not been for that, you would have lost a soldier."


    After that, the soldiers didn''t dare speak. YuWon kept his sword drawn, while the major eyed him, thinking about something. After a few minutes, Gina and Yeji returned, now properly dressed. Gina handed YuWon a shirt, which he quickly slipped on.


    "All set?" the major asked, looking at the group.


    "Let''s go," YuWon nodded.

 Chapter 46: Shelter (2)

    Soon the military base came into view and they could see the high walls and several watchtowers around. The vehicles slowed down as they arrived at the gates, where the few guards were stationed.


    After a quick exchange between the guards and the major, they were let inside. The inside looked like a relief camp after a disaster had struck with rows of tents everywhere.


    The civilians moved about, working alongside the military personnel. Some of them had formed patrol teams while some were assisted the others with other minor tasks.


    Then there were those using their specialized skills. They were crafting items or repairing other structures using the abilities awakened during the tutorial.


    "Not bad," YuWon mumbled, looking out the window.


    At first, he was skeptical, but once they arrived, he realized the major wasn''t lying. They had been rescuing others from nearby areas.


    I wonder if the people from the college are here too.


    After the performance YuWon and Yeji did before the others, it would be troublesome for him if anyone from the college was there.


    "You said you were from the technical college, right?" the major asked as the cars stopped.


    "Yes."


    "Howe there weren''t more of you together?"


    "We got separated after the final boss fight," YuWon gave a definitive answer to not get bothered anymore.


    "Hm... I shouldn''t say this," the major sighed, ignoring the topic before. "But despite the organized structure you''re seeing, it''ll copse soon."


    YuWon raised an eyebrow, confused. The major saw him and shook his head before continuing.


    "The supplies we have, are nothingpared to the number of survivors. That''s why we were raiding the supermarkets. But in vain," he said. "Eventually, everyone will realize it and it''ll cause problems for us."


    YuWon didn''t need another hint. He already knew what the major wanted to say. In his eyes, most people in the base were just dead weights. That''s why he was searching for powerful people who wouldn''t think twice about doing what needed to be done when the time came.


    He might have liked me using my sword on that soldier... wait, that sounds wrong.


    Before they could chat more, ady came running towards the major. She had brown hair and mesmerizing green eyes, something that the soldiers around seemed to be infatuated with.


    "Brother, you''re back!" she said, hugging the major. "Are you hurt anywhere?"


    Yeji''s eyes shone when she saw the girl acting towards her brother. She nced at YuWon as if she was making a mental note of how to take care of him.


    "I''m fine, Yuna, don''t worry about me," the major replied, flicking the youngdy''s head.


    Yuna smiled and turned towards YuWon and the gang. "You brought some new guests. Wee! It''s not much, but it is safer than the outside."


    Despite Yuna''s sweet demeanor, YuWon could see right through her. He had met girls like her before and knew their true nature of being a leech.


    The major might not know it, or maybe he did, but didn''t want to think about it. Yuna was an opportunist. The only reason she was being sweet to everyone was because she probably knew about the shortage of resources.


    When the time came, she would use her kindness to win people over and get whatever she needed, whether it was food or something else.


    But that''s no reason to be rude to her.


    YuWon smiled and introduced everyone.


    "Yeji and Gina, wow, you are so pretty!" Yuna grabbed both of their hands. "Let''s do our best to survive this hell."


    "...sure," Yeji replied, no longer taking notes on Yuna''s interactions.


    Once the introductions were done, Yuna went back to the major to talk about a few things about the base and preparing a barrier. Since they were talking in hushed tones, YuWon couldn''t get what they were talking about, but Gina did.


    The more they talked, the deeper Gina frowned. As expected, the brother-sister duo was hiding something. But as much as YuWon wanted to know what, he would have to wait and ask Gina about itter.


    Once they finished talking, the major departed with the soldiers, leaving Yuna to guide them through the base.


    "Come on! I''ll show you people around," she said, grabbing YuWon''s hand.


    But the moment she touched him, a strange prompt appeared before him.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Park Yuna


    ss: Strategist


    Sub-ss: ??


    Allegiance: ??


    Level: 17


    Experience: 14.5%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 235 / 235


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 300 / 300


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 18n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    ¡ª Agility: 24


    ¡ª Intelligence: ??


    ¡ª Defense: 09


    ¡ª Endurance: 16


    ¡ª Wisdom: ??


    ¡ª Luck: ??


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile


    +++


    YuWon looked at the pendant hanging on his neck. But he had no recollection of putting it on. In fact, he vividly remembered throwing it into his inventory, but somehow it had ended up around his neck.


    Wait, that''s not the important thing. I can see other people''s stats?


    It didn''t take long for YuWon to realize the unfair advantage he had over people now. Although the pendant wasn''t perfect, it was better than nothing.


    Unfortunately, he didn''t notice the deadly res Gina was shooting at him. While he was busy staring at the prompt and smiling, the other saw something different. They saw Yuna holding his hand, and him smiling like an idiot.


    "Husband..." Gina whispered, snapping YuWon out of his trance. "What are you doing?"


    Only then did YuWon realize what was happening and pull his arm away.


    "Gina¡­ uh, it''s not what you think!" he hurriedly said whatever came to his mind. But Gina didn''t reply and turned her head away from him.


    "Oh my," Yuna covered her mouth, acting all shy. "I didn''t know you were married! What have I done? Sister, don''t get angry at him. It''s my fault for being careless."


    Just shut up before you make things worse for me...

 Chapter 47: Troublesome Siblings

    "Not all of us," Yeji immediately spoke up. "But we passed the tutorial thanks to my brother."


    Yeji wanted to butter YuWon up and show his best side to everyone. But she didn''t know that was thest thing he wanted.


    He was nning to turn the military base into his base. But if Yeji kept talking about him and his strength, everyone would be conscious of him. And it was thest thing he wanted.


    "Is that so? I''m d you''re here then," Yunamented, smiling sweetly at YuWon. "The base would be a lot safer with you guys around, seeing as our bullets don''t seem to do much harm to those monsters."


    "What do you mean?" YuWon asked.


    He thought their ammunition was why the military cleared the tutorial with the best scores, whatever it meant.


    "Our weapons are less effective on those monsters. It almost took an entire handgun magazine to kill a goblin."


    No matter how important the military was, having ammo and guns in their country was frowned upon. Because of that, YuWon didn''t think the military would have much ammo to use.


    But if they couldn''t spare so many bullets, then how did they clear the tutorial?


    YuWon wanted to ask Yuna about it when he noticed the look of everyone. As they walked around, the civilians kept shooting them dirty looks and it didn''t take a genius to figure out why.


    They are worried about sustenance.


    Minho was right. The crowd was getting anxious about long-term solutions. Even though they didn''t show it, with every new person added to the base, the others would suffer because there would be more mouths to feed.


    While the logic in their head prevailed for now, soon the hunger would make them lose their minds. Once that happens, strict measures would need to be taken to ensure order.


    That''s why Minho wanted us here. To act as enforcers should the need arise.


    Despite being a heartless bitch, YuWon didn''t want to do it for two reasons. First, he wasn''t someone who would kill others for pleasure. Second, why would he waste precious pawns and meat shields on trivial matters?N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The people would only rebel if they had a leader. Even though he didn''t want to implicate himself, guiding an angered crowd in the right direction was something he could do.


    Their hunger and anger would pave the way for him to take over the base. But before that, he would need to make some preparations and weaken the military without putting the base''s safety at risk.


    That way, I can put the food I took from the supermarket to good use.


    They continued their tour, but surprisingly, there wasn''t much about the base. Most of the ces were sealed or declined entry to civilians, with Yuna being the only exception.


    And the rest of the ce was a glorified refugee camp. The only thing YuWon and the others received was a room.


    The room wasn''t much, with a small table and andline phone on the corner of the desk. But it had a single bunk bed, meaning YuWon would have to share a bed with either Gina or Yeji. Still, it was better than fighting over tents.


    "That''s pretty much it," Yuna said as the three checked the room. "If you want any help, you can use thendline there. It''s the only thing that''s working, unfortunately."


    "It''s better than nothing," YuWon replied with a smile. "Please convey my sincere thanks to your brother for helping us."


    "Will do, Mr. YuWon."


    "You can drop the formality. Things like that don''t matter anymore."


    "So... I''ll call you Oppa¡ª"


    "No need. Just my name is enough." YuWon cut her off.


    He knew exactly what the sly fox was thinking. Right now, she was mooching over her brother, but what if something happened to him? Yuna needed someone else to be her fallback guy, and she had selected him as a prime candidate.


    Too bad I''m not interested. Having one ve is tiring enough.


    "I... see," Yuna smiled, trying to mask her true emotions. "My sincere apologies for being rude."


    "It''s fine. You don''t need to apologize. Now, if you don''t mind, can we have some rest?"


    Surprisingly, it was Yeji who spoke up. She had been quiet, but it seemed having Yuna call YuWon oppa triggered something in her.


    For a second YuWon thought he saw a vein bulge on Yuna''s forehead, but she quickly bit them farewell, not wanting to show them her ugly side. Yeji didn''t waste any time in closing the door either.


    "I hate her," she mumbled. "She has something¡ª"


    She stopped when YuWon motioned for her to be quiet. From what he had seen, he wouldn''t put it past the siblings to have added recording devices to the room.


    That was the first thing YuWon thought of when Yuna graciously offered them a room instead of a tent. While they could be genuinely grateful to have them, YuWon wasn''t a fool to trust people at their face value.


    He motioned for the girls to get behind him and raised his hand. A momentter, everything in the room but the walls got zapped into his inventory.


    Surprise, surprise. Would you look at that?


    There it was, a small voice recording device, hidden underneath the table thendline was on. How did he know what it was? Because the pendant showed him exactly that.


    YuWon carefully disconnected it from the socket before turning towards the girls.


    "Is that a recorder?" Yeji mumbled.


    "Looks like it," YuWon replied. "I knew something felt off about this ce."


    "What do we do now?"


    "Act like nothing happened," YuWon replied, before putting everything in ce, including the recorder. "If they want to record us, then we''ll give them a good show."


    As soon as he said that, both Gina and Yeji blushed. While Gina''s reaction was predictable, YuWon didn''t know why the ve was acting like that.


    "I mean... I won''t mind--" Yeji mumbled, only to get shocked by the cor. "Ahn~"


    "What the fuck!? Why the hell did you moan?" YuWon took a step back. "You know what? Don''t answer. I''m out of here!"

 Chapter 48: Hunting Season (1)

    YuWon was surprised to see Minho waiting for him outside their door. At first, he thought Minho got to know about their discovery and wanted to talk about that, but that wasn''t the case.


    "Did you sleep well?" Minho asked.


    "Pretty well, considering the situation we''re in," YuWon replied as the two walked around the base.


    "It seems you already know what I wanted to talk about."


    Minho smiled nervously. YuWon had to be blind or dumb to not know what he wanted to talk about. Minho said nothing, probably because he wanted to act like a desperate, yet thoughtful leader.


    Nah, it''s more like he wants a sacrificialmb to do the dirty work for him.


    "Things... have not been great," Minho finally spoke. "We have some food and water for now, but it''ll onlyst a few days. Things won''t be this bad if only¡ª"


    "You had people capable of fighting the monsters outside."


    "...that''s right," Minho mumbled.


    They had a few patrolling parties, but other than the soldiers, no one was willing to step a foot outside. At first, the soldiers obeyed, as it was their duty to protect others.


    However, as the people kept refusing to go outside, the soldiers were getting frustrated. They were taking all the risks and receiving a little reward in exchange.


    At the same time, the entitlement of the refugees was increasing, adding fuel to the fire. If they let things be, it was only a matter of time before fights started breaking out within their ranks.


    "You''re carrying too much deadweight," YuWon mumbled, looking at the people idling around.


    YuWon only said what Minho wanted him to say, even then he made an expression as if YuWon had cursed ten generations of Minho''s family.


    Tone down your acting a bit. Your sister was much better at it than you.


    YuWon thought, but kept a straight face.


    "Please, Mr. YuWon. Don''t call them deadweights. Everyone here is trying to do their best."


    "Look around," YuWon scoffed. "There are no kids who need to be spoonfed. They are adults, most of them are older than I am, for fuck''s sake."


    Minho said nothing. It was probably because YuWon was saying the exact things he wanted to hear. Still, Minho had to act his part, at least in front of the rest.


    Time to change the script.


    Once enough attention was on them, YuWon ced his hand on Minho''s shoulder. It was his time to be the savior and take the thunder away from Minho.


    "I get what you want and I''m prepared to do it," YuWon spoke loudly.


    "But killing¡ª"


    "I know. Killing monsters is difficult, but we can''t let the innocent suffer. I will head out to scavenge for supplies. Isn''t that want you wanted?"


    YuWon looked at Minho and so did the rest of them. However, only YuWon knew Minho wasn''t talking about killing monsters. The siblings were instead urging him to strike fear in everyone''s hearts and be their grim reaper.


    Unfortunately, that won''t happen.


    As much as YuWon didn''t care about others, he cared about his image. Yuna and Minho wanted the same, and that''s why wanted YuWon to do the dirty work for them. But YuWon threw water on their ns.


    "...thank you very much," Minho said, but his words didn''t match his expression.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You don''t need to thank me," YuWon smiled, walking past him. "I''ll leave with the girls and see what we can bring back."


    "Sure, take a car with you. It''ll be easier to carry the supplies back." Minho added, tossing him a car key.


    ***


    "And that''s roughly what happened," YuWon informed the other two.


    "They want us to kill innocents?" Gina mumbled, lost in thoughts. "Humans are more despicable than I thought."


    "Yes, we are."


    As they approached the garage, they noticed a few people squabbling with the soldiers. A young boy was crying as Yunaforted him.


    It seemed the boy had stolen something from the men and they wanted her to be punished. But Yuna was vehemently defending him.


    "What''s going on here?"


    "YuWon!" Yuna waved her hand.


    YuWon smiled before asking her what was happening there. Before Yuna could say anything, the man interrupted.


    "This... little boy stole two food cans from us and now he''s refusing to tell us where he hid them," he said.


    "I didn''t steal anything!" the boy replied, before hiding her face in Yuna''s arms. "Those were mine to begin with!"


    "Alright, that''s enough," YuWon interrupted, looking at Yuna. "Give them two food cans from our share and be done with this."


    "But YuWon¡ª"


    "It''s fine," YuWon interrupted Yuna. "We''re leaving anyway, so we can grab something to eat outside."


    YuWon already knew it was a ploy for the siblings. Minho might have told Yuna about the earlier incident and now the sister was trying to put them in a spot.


    It can''t be a coincidence she just happened to be quarreling in front of the garage. She is up to something, but what?


    "No, I can''t allow it!" Yuna replied, stomping her feet. "I can''t reimburse the food, but I can pay you back... physically."


    "Sorry, not interested."


    YuWon turned to enter the car when Yuna came rushing towards him.


    "I didn''t mean it that way, of course!" she eximed. "I meant I can help you with the hunt."


    Hearing her, the three soldiers with her also jumped up, agreeing to go on the scavenging hunt together. YuWon took a deep breath, finally realizing what she was after.


    Eavesdropping isn''t enough for her, so now she wants to check our skills? Fine, let''s put on a show then.


    "Do as you wish," YuWon shrugged, getting in the car. "Try not to slow us down."


    The soldiers already were fond of YuWon and thought it was an excellent opportunity to put him in ce. But even then, his words triggered them more. Unfortunately, Yuna''s words were about to sting them even more.


    "Alright, I''ll ride with YuWon," she said, jumping into the passenger seat.


    Gina almost lost it right there, but Yeji held her back, forcing her into the backseat.


    This will be fun.

 Chapter 49: Hunting Season (2)

    But the peace didn''tst for long.


    "Hey, uh, YuWon," Yuna began hesitantly. "Sorry if this is personal, but¡­ your neighbors, back at the base, said they heard¡­ how do I say this? They heard moans from your roomst night."


    Neighbors, my ass.


    YuWon thought, remembering about the recorder he found in the room.


    Still, I didn''t expect them to hear us all night.


    YuWon meant it when he told the girls to let Yuna and Minho listen to them. As ufortable as it was, he intentionally made Yeji moan through dull electric shocks, just to test how long would they listen to them. And it seemed they did for quite a while.


    But Yeji didn''t think the same. Her cheeks turned slightly red as she realized what Yuna was talking about. Meanwhile, Yuna continued.


    "They were just wondering if you could tone it down a bit. You know, with the atmosphere and everything."


    YuWon''s face immediately turned red, and he began coughing violently, almost swerving the car in surprise. He was thinking about what he should tell her when Yuna asked him another question and it nearly made him crash the vehicle.


    "Also, isn''t it ufortable? I mean, having Gina and Yeji both in the room? You know¡­ to get intimate in front of your sister?"


    YuWon mmed on the brakes, pulling the car to the side of the road for a moment to catch his breath. He was no fool to not understand what Yuna was implying.


    "Yeji is my step-sister!"


    Those were the first words out of his mouth. However, his words backfired, and Yuna assumed the two had something going on. After all, he said they were step siblings.


    "And what do you mean ''both in the room''?! I would never get intimate with Yeji! Logic aside, she and I are family!"


    The blush on Yeji''s face disappeared when she heard YuWon say that. She looked at herself, wondering if she was so ugly. But YuWon wasn''t done. He looked at Gina through the rearview mirror and continued.


    "And as for Gina... well," he mumbled. "With a wife like her, it''s hard to keep my hands off sometimes."


    His words turned Gina''s face beet red. She couldn''t look at him anymore and turned to look out the window, embarrassed and yet smiling like never before.


    "But then¡ª" Yuna wanted to pry further but was interrupted.


    "I just remembered something!" Yeji eximed, trying to divert the topic. "There''s a gas station nearby. Shouldn''t we get the fuel from there, since we are moving in cars?"


    "Good thinking!" YuWon nodded eagerly, grateful for the excuse to change the subject. "Maybe we''ll find something to eat there, too."


    Before things could get any more awkward, YuWon changed gears and headed toward the gas station.


    ***


    Soon they arrived at the gas station, only to find it crawling with goblins. It seemed like the goblins had made the station their refuge. Some goblins had huddled under the gas pumps, while others scavenged through the trash bins, looking for anything useful.


    A fewrger ones stood guard with their makeshift weapons. It was clear they had been driven there, probably fleeing from the ogres that had been hunting them.


    "Of course, it''ll be crawling with monsters," Yuna rolled her eyes.


    "Are you scared of them?" YuWon asked as Gina, and he stepped out of the vehicle behind him. "Wait for my signal and then¡ª"


    Unfortunately, the soldiers in the second car didn''t want to wait. They wanted to show off their skills to impress Yuna, masking their intentions behind words such as it was their duty to protect civilians.


    It almost made Yeji rip their throats off when they were the ones who started a fight with YuWon before.


    Just as YuWon was about to say something, Yeji peeked out of the window and her expression showed that she wasn''t pleased with the soldier''s antics. Of course, she was mad¡ªthey were messing up her n to test YuWon''s strength.


    "What word from YuWon could you people not hear?" she barked. "Get back in the car and wait for his signal!"


    "...right, our apologies."


    As the soldiers huddled back in the car, YuWon shook his head. He couldn''t help but wonder how so many of them survived, given how infatuated they were with Yuna.


    Half the army probably died protecting her or something. Fucking idiots.


    ***


    "Are my eyes ying tricks on me?" one soldier mumbled, watching YuWon kill a hobgoblin with ease.


    But that soldier wasn''t alone. Everyone was equally shocked. Dealing with the monsters had been tiresome for them, and they remembered their first encounter with a hobgoblin.


    Over thirty people and countless bullets were required to take the beast down, leaving only eight soldiers alive in the end. Yet there he was, killing the hobgoblin as if it was nothing more than a pest.


    "The girl too... I think she is stronger than even YuWon."


    Well, they weren''t wrong. While YuWon sliced the goblins with his sword, Gina was busy crushing their heads with her massive hammer. Their skill and coordination were wless, and it almost felt like they could read each other''s thoughts.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    While the others praised her brother, Yeji couldn''t help but feel proud and sad at the same time. Proud because of YuWon''s aplishments and sad thinking about how things would have been between them if she had believed him from the start.


    But then she noticed something. Yuna was smiling, watching YuWon and Gina. However, it wasn''t her usual sweet, innocent smile, but a sly, cunning grin.


    But Yuna''s twisted grin disappeared quickly, and she returned to her usual act, cheering YuWon and Gina like the others.


    "Your brother and sister-inw are amazing!" she eximed. "No wonder you people were the first ones to clear the tutorial."


    Before Yeji could reply, YuWon and Gina finished thest of the goblins, without a single scratch on their body. He then took a step back, ncing over at the group of soldiers.


    "All clear," he said. "Let''s fill the cars and get back on the road."

 Chapter 50: [Bonus Chapter] Bounty (1)

    [Head Hunter Contract engaged!]


    [Target: Berserking Ogre.]


    [Threat level: Low~High.]


    [Time Limit: 5 hours]N?v(el)B\\jnn


    [Known Weakness: None discovered.]


    [Reward: 400 gold]


    [Punishment: Wilderness Curse: Monsters will attack you every hour for 8 hours.]


    I was wondering when I''ll get another one of these.


    Even though YuWon was expecting to receive a head hunter contract, he was surprised to find the time limit and punishment sections. Thest time he got a contract, there were no such terms in ce.


    Thankfully, he wasn''t interested in all that. Why? Because he won''t fail the hunt. But before that, he''d need a reason to leave the gas station without Yuna breathing down his neck.


    Then he saw the can of beans in his hand and an idea popped up in his mind.


    This should work.


    With that thought, YuWon headed outside the building to find Yuna.


    "Let''s split up," he told her.


    "What do you mean?" she asked. "We were never together¡ª"


    YuWon ignored her childish attempts to coax him and continued.


    "Apart from the fuel, there isn''t much here. Those goblins must have consumed everything," he said, pointing at the store behind. "There are a few more stores here. It''d be a waste to not look for resources there."


    Yuna looked at him, wondering what YuWon was nning. In the end, she decided not to overthink everything and nodded.


    "I agree. Finding more food and consumables should be our priority. I''lle with you¡ª"


    "No need for that," YuWon raised his hand, looking at the soldiers. "Four of you wille with me. The other two will stay here with the girls and protect the vehicles."


    Gina, standing beside YuWon, wasn''t thrilled about being left alone. She felt the distance between her and her husband had been growing and didn''t want him to leave her.


    "But I can¡ªhm..."


    Gina spoke, but YuWon pulled her in and gave her a quick kiss before she could voice her objection.


    "I''ll be back before you know it," he smiled, patting her head. "So be a good girl and do what I say, alright?"


    Gina blushed and nodded. The resolve of her protest melted away in YuWon''s embrace. Yeji wanted to object as well but knew YuWon wouldn''t be as gentle with her as he was with Gina and didn''t want him to get angry with her.


    As for Yuna, she too wished to tag along with YuWon. But her intentions weren''t as pure as Gina''s or Yeji''s. She only wished to apany him to learn more about YuWon and his skills. However, the cars were her responsibility and she couldn''t leave.


    But unlike YuWon expected, the problem wasn''t the girls but the soldiers. The moment they realized only two of them could stay back with the women, they began a shouting match.


    "I have to stay because I''m better at defense!"


    "Like hell you are. You can''t even defend yourself. What will you do here?"


    "No way you''re staying here either! You were on patrol duty with Ms. Yunast time," another guy argued.


    YuWon''s eyebrows shook as he had had enough of their bickering. He drew his sword and mmed it into the ground. The nging sound made the soldiers jump and turn toward him.


    "We''re not on a pic, are we?" YuWon growled. "Plus, the ones staying behind have an important job. If Ie back and see even a tiny scratch on Gina or Yeji, I swear I''ll turn your manhood into womanhood."


    With YuWon''s warning, the soldiers immediately stopped arguing. But it onlysted for a second. Suddenly, none of the soldiers seemed eager to stay behind and began fighting to join YuWon instead.


    "I''m not staying here!" one of them snapped.


    "Why do I have to stay back?" another one yelled.


    "I''m not babysitting anyone!"


    YuWon looked at them and shook his head.


    I''m not cut out to be a leader...


    ***


    It didn''t take long for the soldiers to fill their backpacks with medicine, food, drinks, and other useful supplies. Other than the initial drama, YuWon had to admit these people were highly efficient when they put their minds on something.


    Unlike a certain dumbass.


    YuWon stared at the marker at some distance. It showed him the location of the Berserking Ogre. But the creature hadn''t moved for a while. And now that they had filled their backpacks to the brim, they had no reason to continue looking for more supplies.


    At first, YuWon nned to fool the soldiers into acting like his meat shields and fight the ogre. But that wasn''t possible any longer.


    "Alright, let''s leave¡ª" YuWon said, only to be interrupted by a deep growl.


    "What was that?" a soldier whispered, gripping his gun tightly.


    "I don''t like this," another muttered, looking around.


    YuWon smiled to himself. The ogre seemed to have sensed their presence and was finally on the move.


    "We should get out of here," one soldier said, stepping towards the gate.


    Rest in peace.


    YuWon had found his target. He felt bad about it, but every experiment required a sacrificial pawn. This time, it was the soldier''s turn.


    [Skill: Soul Bind has been activated.]


    As soon as the notification appeared before him, a pale, ghostly soul leaked out from the snake skull mark on his hand and slithered toward the soldier. The man had no time to react before the soultched onto him.


    The soldier stumbled backward, holding on to the door. Then he turned eerily straight, as if he was in the presence of a higher-up. In reality, he had turned into a puppet, waiting for the puppeteer to order him around.


    "Hey, you alright?" one of the other soldiers asked, reaching out for him.


    Go.


    Before anyone could stop him, the possessed soldier suddenly bolted out of the shop. But instead of heading towards the gas station, he ran towards the source of the sound.


    "What the hell is he doing?!"


    "We have to stop him!"


    The others rushed to the door only to see the soldier aiming his gun at the ogre. But it was no ordinary ogre. Unlike the sickly green skin, it had red skin marred with scars all over its body.


    "Don''t!" someone yelled, but it was toote.


    The soldier opened fire at the ogre, only for the bullets to bounce off the creature''s thick skin and hit the ground, causing no damage.


    Just then [Soul Bind] wore off, and the soldier grabbed his head. However, the man couldn''t live the rest of his time with a clear mind. When the soldier looked ahead, he saw the hulking creature and his legs gave out.


    "W-What am I doing here!?"


    The ogre roared and swung its massive spiked mace. The impact flung the soldier across the street, right at their feet. His eyes were wide in confusion, and his body was limp and lifeless.


    Sorry, not sorry.

 Chapter 51: Bounty (2)

    "Get back! Get back!" one soldier yelled.


    Now all of them would have to pay for the mistake of one person. They still couldn''t understand why one of them jumped the gun like that.


    Unfortunately, there wasn''t any time for them to think about the dead. After all, the ogre had turned its attention toward the rest of the group.


    The ogre let out a deafening roar and charged toward the shop as everyone rushed inside. They were soldiers, trained to be calm and collected in dire situations. But against a monster like that, they lost their cool and trapped themselves inside.


    "Ready your weapons!"


    No one cared who was giving them the orders. They just did as they were told and raised the guns. The ogre stood outside, curiously gazing inside before tearing through the walls.


    The soldiers opened fire. But like before, their bullets did not affect the ogre. Well, the bullets had an effect¡ªthey made the ogre even angrier.


    "YuWon can save us! Where''s YuWon?!" someone yelled, realizing their weapons were useless.


    But YuWon was nowhere to be seen. The soldiers could only think YuWon had abandoned them. All they could do was curse their luck and keep firing. Finally, the ogre had enough and raised its mace again, ready to strike them.


    However, just as the ogre was about to swing, the ogre screamed in pain. The mace slipped from its grip and fell to the ground. Nobody knew what was going on until they spotted YuWon standing behind the ogre.


    YuWon''s sword was buried in the ogre''s elbow. Although the sword hadn''t severed its armpletely, the wound was deep enough to cause significant damage.


    "Go!" YuWon shouted. "Get out of here! Now!"


    The soldiers didn''t hesitate at all. They grabbed their backpacks and ran out of the shop as fast as they could. Once the soldiers were gone, YuWon smiled, yanking the sword out of the ogre''s arm.


    Let''s have some fun, shall we?


    [Skill: Soul Bind has been activated.]


    YuWon raised his hand, and a soul slipped out of the mark, slithering towards the ogre. YuWon watched closely, expecting the same oue as with the soldier. But something felt off.


    The soul tried totch onto the ogre, but the monster roared in fury, before punching itself twice. The pain helped the creature resist the control, swatting away the invading soul like a fly. A secondter, the soul dissipated into the air.


    [Skill: Soul Bind has failed to possess the target.]


    [The skill is in cooldown.]


    "What...?"


    Since it was YuWon''s second time using the skill, he was surprised that it failed. Since it worked on a human, YuWon thought it would work on a mindless creature as well. But it seemed the ogre wasn''t about to be controlled by the soul of some lowly creature.


    "Tch," YuWon clicked his tongue. "Guess I''ll have to handle this the messy way first."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The ogre reflected YuWon''s emotions and grabbed the mace with its non-dominant arm. Watching the ogre drag the weapon behind it was a weird sight. Humans did not have such willpower. Well, most of them didn''t.


    As the 10-foot ogre swung the mace, YuWon jumped sideways, dodging the attack with ease. The ogre''s injured arm was giving it quite some trouble.


    Thanks to that, the ogre''s moves were sluggish. However, the power behind those swings had barely reduced. One direct hit and YuWon would be chatting with the dead soldier.


    "I need to slow it down more," YuWon mumbled, looking at the skill cooldown. "Three minutes to go."


    YuWon rushed towards the ogre, aiming for its leg. But the ogre wasn''t a fool. It immediately swung the mace downwards, barely missing YuWon as he rolled out of harm''s way.


    The ogre''s swings were slow, but it was quick on its feet despite its size. YuWon kept trying to attack it, but nothing he tried worked.


    This isn''t going to work for long.


    He raised his hand once the cooldown was up. Again, the pale soul emerged out of his hand. It hovered in the air for a second before rushing toward the ogre''s head.


    Once again, the ogre snarled, sensing the soul''s presence. With another angry growl, the ogre shook off the soul just as before, and the spirit faded away into nothing.


    [Skill: Soul Bind has failed to possess the target.]


    [The skill is in cooldown.]


    But this time, YuWon was prepared. While the effects of [Soul Bind] confused the Ogre, he rushed toward it and swung the crimson sword with all his might. shing away at the creature''s leg.


    Unlike the arm, the leg was easier to sh, and just like that, the ogre lost a leg. The ogre howled in pain before falling as blood gushing out of the wound.


    [Berserking Ogre''s weakness discovered!]


    "God, you''re loud," YuWon said, ignoring the prompt.


    While the creature withered in pain, YuWon walked over and stabbed his other leg, for good measure. The ogre tried to move, but with one leg gone and the other injured, it couldn''t even budge.


    YuWon looked at the cooldown timer. Three and a half minutes remained before he could use [Soul Bind] again. As he looked around, he spotted a chair, dragged it over, and sat just out of the ogre''s reach.


    "Guess I''ll just wait," he mumbled.


    The ogre felt humiliated. Being defeated in a battle was one thing, but YuWon''s actions were unbing of an opponent in the ogre''s eyes. Infuriated, it tried to drag itself toward him, only for YuWon to roll his eyes.


    "Yeah, yeah, keep trying," he said, leaning back in the chair.


    Once the cooldown was up, he raised his hand one more time. The soul floated toward the ogre again and struck its head. The ogre''s eyes widened once more, but this time, the ogre didn''t resist.


    It was probably tired and had given up on survival, or maybe the blood loss made it weak. Either way, the possession wasplete. The ogre''s growl stopped, and its body froze, much like that of the soldier''s from before.


    "Alright, let''s wrap this up," YuWonmanded. "Now, be a good boy and hit yourself with that mace."


    The ogre obeyed, striking itself. But once wasn''t enough, and it kept hitting itself repeatedly. After a few hits, the ogre could barely lift the mace anymore.


    "That''s it, huh?" YuWon said, getting off the chair.


    He climbed onto the creature''s chest, looking down at the ogre on death''s door. Without another word, he raised the de and buried it in the ogre''s neck. It flinched a bit before going still. YuWon twisted the de for good measure before pulling it out.


    [Hunt sessful! The contract is closed. Gold +400]


    [You have absorbed a unique monster soul.]


    [Max HP +20]


    [Max Mana +10]


    [Strength +7]


    [Endurance +3]


    [Defense +2]


    "A unique soul?"

 Chapter 52: Planning And Plotting (1)

    Meanwhile, somewhere close...


    The soldiers rushed everyone to the spot where they hadst seen YuWon. The soldiers were frightened, not because of YuWon, but because of the crazy girls who were following him, particrly Yeji.


    She grabbed one soldier by the cor, her red eyes ring at the man''s soul.


    "If anything happens to him," she growled, "none of you will leave here alive! Mark my words!"


    "We couldn''t do anything!" another soldier tried to intervene but was too scared to move. "YuWon told us to leave, so we did!"


    Gina stood nearby, equally furious, her fists clenched so tightly that her knuckles were white. But she didn''t put her hands on the soldiers, because she didn''t know if she could have controlled her anger then.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Besides, YuWon didn''t want her mask to slip, so Gina restrained herself, even if it took every ounce of willpower to do it.


    "Yeji, I know how you feel," Yuna intervened. "But we should look for YuWon first¡ª"


    The group was quarreling when a familiar voice interrupted them.


    "What the hell is going on here?"


    Everyone turned to see YuWon walking out of a trashed store, wiping some dust off his shirt. Although he looked a bit disheveled, there were no signs of injury on him.


    Yeji immediately pushed the guard away and ran towards YuWon, intending to hug him, but his re made her back away. It was expected, but Gina''s reaction caught him off-guard.


    She stood there, arms crossed, ring at him just like when she had severed his head. But somewhere there, there was a certain gentleness too. Ignoring everyone, YuWon walked up to her and was about to say something when she hugged him.


    "Idiot husband!" she snapped, burying her face in his chest. "You fought that thing alone? Did you even think what would happen to me without you?"


    YuWon blinked, surprised by her outburst. But at the same time, he felt a strange warmth in his chest. It was a distant but familiar feeling.


    "I, uh, handled it. You know I can take care of myself."


    "That''s not the point!" Gina shot back. "Why do you keep trying to do everything yourself?"


    YuWon was about to respond, saying that this was the first time he had fought such a monster without her. Which was true. But Yuna interrupted them.


    "Sorry to intervene," she said sheepishly. "But could you tell me where the monster''s corpse is?"


    "In there," YuWon turned, pointing toward the shop behind him.


    "Thank you!"


    Yuna nodded and rushed inside the shop. Intrigued, YuWon followed behind, only to see her kneeling beside the corpse. YuWon briefly thought of Soo-Ah, pondering if Yuna''s sub-ss had anything to do with necromancy.


    Shortly after, the ogre''s lifeless body disintegrated into tiny fragments that Yuna absorbed. YuWon raised an eyebrow. As she finished absorbing the ogre''s remains, she stood up and winked at him before walking past him.


    Their hands brushed for a moment, and Yuna''s status page appeared before him again. But this time, there were notable changes to it.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Park Yuna


    ss: Strategist


    Sub-ss: Devourer (New!)


    Allegiance: ??


    Level: 18


    Experience: 67.5%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 335 / 420


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 300 / 300


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 23


    ¡ª Agility: 24


    ¡ª Intelligence: ??


    ¡ª Defense: 17


    ¡ª Endurance: 20


    ¡ª Wisdom: ??


    ¡ª Luck: ??


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile


    +++


    Devourer... So that''s what she can do.


    Other than her subss, YuWon noticed the changes in her stats. Much like after he absorbed the ogre''s soul, Yuna''s strength, endurance, and defense were improved. Even her HP and Exp had increased by over a hundred points.


    As for the wink, YuWon didn''t know what Yuna was nning. But whatever it was, she had YuWon''s attention now.


    "Alright," YuWon said, walking back outside. "Let''s get out of here."


    ***


    Back at the military base, as soon as they arrived, all eyes were on them. Everyone wanted a share of the goods that they had nothing to get.


    No one cared about their messy clothes, and that the soldier didn''t return with them. They only cared about the heavy bags slung over their shoulders.


    Minho wasn''t far behind and ordered the soldiers to help them with the bags. It was clear Minho wanted control over the resources to distribute them among the crowd. After all, it was the normal procedure.


    But just as one of them was about to grab a bag, Yuna stepped in with her characteristic sweet smile. The soldier looked confused, but then she rified the strange looks.


    "Leave a bag for them," she said. "YuWon deserves it after saving the soldiers from that ogre."


    The soldiers hesitated for a moment before stepping back. Suddenly murmurs broke into the crowd and everyone began staring at YuWon with resentment.


    YuWon knew exactly what Yuna was doing. Letting them have a bag wasn''t a gesture of gratitude, but a carefully thought-out ploy. She had essentially painted a target on his back.


    Since YuWon now had roughly one-fifth of the haul just to himself, it was natural for the others to feel wronged. The people would see him as hoarding resources while they struggled, even though they had done nothing to help get the stuff.


    Well yed, Yuna.


    She was quite like him, clever and maniptive. As for why she would do it? It was quite simple. Istion can break anyone, no matter how strong they are.


    YuWon had experienced it firsthand, so he knew what Yuna was doing. She wanted to iste him, thinking Gina and Yeji would soon leave him. Then she would swoop in and make him hers.


    Most likely, YuWon''s fighting skills impressed her, and she wanted someone like that by her side. But since he had a wife, she couldn''t just seduce him, so she resorted to using underhanded tricks.


    YuWon smirked inwardly. Now that he knew her game, he wouldn''t fall into the trap. After he knew exactly how to deal with people like her. For now, he had to y along.


    "Thank you for your generosity, Yuna," he nodded. "I appreciate it."


    Thinking YuWon had taken the bait, Yuna smiled. YuWon could almost feel her smugness radiating off her. She probably thought she had him exactly where she wanted¡ªjust another man falling for her beauty and charm. She had no idea how wrong she was.

 Chapter 53: Planning And Plotting (2)

    As they walked towards their room, Gina couldn''t hold back.


    "That woman..." she said. "Can I kill her already?"


    Gina''s question made YuWon cough. She was a monster, a jealous one at that. He didn''t know why it surprised him she wanted to kill Yuna, who had been acting all chummy with him.


    "Not now," YuWon replied. "She can be a useful pawnter. Till then, can you please tolerate her, my lovely wife?"


    Gina huffed and turned away, but YuWon knew how to settle her heart. With no qualms, he lifted Gina, his hands wrapped around her waist, kissing her tenderly.


    Yeji blushed and turned away, not wanting to ruin their moment. A momentter, Gina was all smiles,pletely forgetting about Yuna. But YuWon knew it was a temporary fix.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Yuna wasn''t someone who would back down easily. She would keep up with her attempts at seducing him, and Gina wouldn''t tolerate it.


    If he didn''t want any explosionster, YuWon had toe up with a permanent solutionter.


    But that didn''t guarantee a solution to the problem. Yuna was ying tricks on them and YuWon wasn''t one to like that kind of thing. However, killing her would be a waste.


    That skill of hers is quitepatible with me. I can gain stats from their soul. The crimson de can drink their blood and Yuna can feed on the corpse. The perfect trio.


    YuWon knew if he uttered those words in front of Gina, she would kill Yuna right then and there.


    "Brother... we need to do something about her, though," Yeji mumbled.


    "Brother?" YuWon raised an eyebrow. "We''re siblings only in front of others. When we''re alone, you must address me properly."


    Yeji looked at him. There was a certain conflict in her eyes, but it soon disappeared, reced by a smile.


    YuWon could be harsh with her, but at least he allowed her to call him brother publicly. She was more than happy with that. As for addressing him properly, Yeji knew what YuWon wanted to hear.


    "M-Master," Yeji said, staring at her feet, blushing. "I... wanted to tell you about something regarding Yuna."


    He nodded, and Yeji told him what she saw while Gina and YuWon were busy fighting the goblins. It wasn''t anything YuWon didn''t already know. Even so, he acted surprised, patting Yeji on the head.


    "You did good," YuWon said, giving her a rare smile.


    For the next phase of his n, he needed Yeji''s help. The pats on the back and nice words were like a reward he would use to keep her on the best behavior, as it was crucial for his n to work.


    After all, ridiculing Yeji all the time might push her away, so he had to show her some affection to ensure she stayed loyal to him and only him.


    "Don''t worry," YuWon smiled. "With your help, I can take on anyone in this world."


    Yeji smiled as a tear rolled down her cheek. At that moment, her feelings for YuWon grew even stronger. Forget about harming Hoon. She would even fight the gods for him if that made YuWon happy.


    The next moment, YuWon took the bag off his shoulder and handed it to Yeji. She took the bag, looking confused.


    "Take this," YuWon exined. "Wait until it gets dark, then go around the camp and deliver the supplies directly to the people. Make sure it''s done quietly."


    "You want me to... distribute the supplies?"


    "Not only that. If you see anyone who is hurt, make sure to heal them. But don''t overdo it. Just a couple of times should be more than enough."


    Yeji wasn''t a fool and understood what YuWon wanted. Yuna wanted them to take all the heat from the people by publicly giving them a bag full of food and medicines.


    It was Yuna''s way of making YuWon dependent on her. She probably thought with everyone hating on YuWon, they would soon leave him and then Yuna would swoop in, saving YuWon and turning him into her loyal puppy.


    But if Yeji gave away those supplies to the people in secret, they''d be the ones who would grow dependent on Yeji, since Minho and Yuna were not giving them much.


    If I add some things from the Phantom Bag to that, it''ll be easier to influence public opinion.


    YuWon looked at Yeji. Even though she had been nothing but a heartless bitch to him, he couldn''t deny she had a certain innocent appeal.


    If someone could challenge the camp''s heartthrob, Yuna, it was Yeji. She had the looks and the kindness to outshine Yuna. The people were bound to warm up to her quicker than they would to someone like YuWon.


    "So, you want me to y the part of the camp''s saint?" Yeji asked.


    "You yed the part of the campus belle well," YuWon smirked. "This much shouldn''t be difficult for you. You''d have my gratitude for doing this¡ª"


    YuWon''s gratitude. That''s all Yeji had to hear to agree to the n.


    "I''ll start tonight." Yeji eagerly nodded. "I''ll make sure it''s done quietly."


    Yeji took the bag and held it close to her. The scene made YuWon scoff, but he held back. For the n to work, he had to ensure Yeji was in the best of moods.


    Besides, with Yeji out, it would give me some time with Gina.


    Gina had been acting out a lot more since Yuna came into the picture. Unlike Yeji, Gina had to hide a bigger secret, which took a mental toll on her.


    YuWon couldn''t take any risks with Gina identally revealing her identity, which is why he had to show his love to her that night and get her to calm down.


    Well... it''s not like I was looking for an excuse to get intimate with her again. But more than that, I''m looking forward to Yuna''s reaction tomorrow.


    YuWon smiled. He knew Yuna thought she was smarter than everyone else, but she wasn''t ready for him.


    He didn''t like being manipted, and he especially didn''t like people trying to control him. It was about time someone put her in her ce.


    "This is going to be interesting," YuWon grinned.

 Chapter 54: Seeds Of Rebellion

    As usual, Yuna was going about her routine. Minho was busy with the soldiers asking about the ogre they had fought the day before. So, she took it upon herself to make sure everything in the camp was running smoothly.


    She kept a close eye on the supplies, making sure nobody got more than they were supposed to. In other words, to ensure that the sibling duo had the most resources reserved for themselves.


    However, something felt off. As she walked around, she noticed some people had more supplies than they should have. Some people had more food than what had been given out in the morning, and others had bandages and medicines that were supposed to be reserved for the soldiers.


    Her eyes narrowed as she looked at everyone''s cheerful faces. She knew exactly how much each person was supposed to have. After all, she was the one in charge. But then how did they get more stuff?


    They couldn''t possibly steal anything. It must be something else.


    Curiosity got the better of her, and she walked up to the people. Since she was nice and fair, they would tell her what was going on. Once she figured out the source of the problems, she would deal with it right away.


    However, as she got closer, she stopped in her tracks. She noticed people rushing towards Yeji, thanking her for with smiles that Yuna thought were only reserved for her.


    What did this bitch do now?


    With a smile on her face, Yuna walked up to the crowd and asked, "Um... what is going on here?"


    "Oh, it''s nothing much," YuWon replied before anyone else could. "You gave us too many supplies, so Yeji thought it''d be a good idea to share some with the others."


    He continued, smiling like an angel, "That''s why people were thanking her, even when she said it wasn''t a big deal."


    Yuna froze, and her smile faltered for a second. They distributed the resources they had? With whose permission did they do it?


    She controlled the supplies so people would grow dependent on her. If everyone began distributing things, then their dependence, loyalty, everything would shift away from her. This wasn''t supposed to happen.


    "Why would you do that? Why didn''t you let Minho or me handle it?" Yuna asked, trying her best to maintain herposure. "We''re the ones in charge of the supplies."


    "I didn''t think it was a big deal. I didn''t want to bother you or Minho with something so trivial," YuWon blinked, innocently looking around.


    "Since the supplies were meant to be distributed, it shouldn''t be a problem, right?" Yeji chimed in. "I just thought we would lend a hand since you took us in so graciously."


    Upon hearing their words, Yuna clenched her fists, feeling the anger rise. She was about tosh out at Yeji. But then she realized they weren''t alone.


    Everyone''s eyes were on her, but this time those eyes weren''t full of admiration like they used to be. Instead, they were questioning her, wondering why she was so upset just because they got a bit more than usual.


    Watching them, Yuna quickly smiled again. She couldn''t let them see her lose control. If she showed any sign of anger, public opinion would turn against her. And she couldn''t afford that.


    "Oh, of course, that makes sense." She said, nonchntly waving her hand. "I was just surprised, that''s all. Since you took down the ogre yourself."


    "It''s our mistake," YuWon bowed. "I shouldn''t have interfered with how you run things here."


    "Next time, we will get your permission first before doing anything."


    Even Gina joined in and bowed along with Yeji. The more they showed their humility, the worse things would get for Yuna.


    Yuna was smiling on the outside, but on the inside, she was fuming. She wasn''t sure, but she had a feeling YuWon had yed her, and he had done it in front of everyone.


    She could feel the shift in the camp. They looked strangely at her and Yuna knew her grip over the people wasn''t as strong as before. And it all happened in a matter of hours.


    I need to keep a closer eye on them...


    Without another word, she walked away with a smile stered on her face. It was then she made a vow to herself. By the time she was done with YuWon, he would be on his knees, begging for her love and affection.


    Little did Yuna know, YuWon was nning for the same thing. But before that, he needed to loosen her grip more. After all, taking on the siblings would be tough if they stuck together.


    Time to dig deeper and see what skeletons they''ve been hiding in the closet.


    YuWon had some ideas about where to dig. After all, there were quite a few areas that he wasn''t supposed to ess. The other thing was theck of senior officers.


    ***


    As the day drew to a close, YuWon, Yeji, and Gina were bidding farewell to the people. Some came up to shake their hands, others simply nodded in gratitude. Overall, the mood of the ce wasn''t bad, considering the situation they were in.


    "Thank you, Yeji!" an older woman said, smiling as she took Yeji''s hand.


    Yeji returned her smile, though her eyes kept shifting towards YuWon, who was talking to some men, giving them pointers on how to use a spear. The woman noticed her gaze and smiled.


    "Your brother is a kind man," the old woman said.


    "I know," Yeji replied, smiling wanly. "He''s the kindest person I''ve ever known."


    Thedy was one of the few whom Yeji had healedst night. Ever since then, it seemed the woman had taken a liking to her.


    "Go on, this olddy won''t take more of your time."


    Yeji bowed quickly before joining Gina and YuWon, walking ahead of her.


    "So, what now? Do we keep giving out the supplies?" she asked, keeping her voice low.


    "No," YuWon replied.


    "No? Why not?"


    "We stop giving anything from now on." YuWon shrugged. "It''s not like we had infinite resources. How long do you think a bag of resources wouldst?"


    "But¡­won''t the people ask questions?"


    YuWon smiled wickedly. "That''s the n. They''ll start wondering why it stopped. And they''ll automatically think it''s because Yuna wanted us to stop."


    Yeji nodded, realizing YuWon''s intention. Even if they stop, the people won''te to them. They''ll go straight to Yuna for more. Soon desperation would kick in and the more desperate they got, the more they''d turn against her.


    "Besides, I won''t leave them high and dry. After all, I can''t let my foot soldiers starve."


    "...isn''t it dangerous? ying with emotions?" Yeji mumbled.


    "It''s only dangerous if you lose," YuWon whispered, raising her chin with a finger. "I don''t n on losing, do you?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Yeji shook her head, and YuWon let go of her.


    "That''s what I thought."

 Chapter 55: [Bonus Chapter] Spark

    [Checkpoint Marked.]


    [The Awakener will respawn here upon death.]


    It had been three days since YuWon joined the camp. Apart from the initial spat, Yuna had tried nothing to harm YuWon or Yeji. Instead, she was unusually cheery when around them.


    Yuna''s nature and ss as a strategist were big enough red gs, but the change in her demeanor was a bit concerning.


    She is nning something.


    That much was clear to YuWon. That''s why he told Yeji to be careful around Yuna.


    As for the other residents, things have been going ording to n. The crowd had slowly begun seeing through the disparity Yuna had. After all, she gave more resources to those close to her than to the rest.


    It was natural for everyone to resent those who got special treatment. But they couldn''t do anything. Since they also wanted more resources, the people had to act friendly towards her.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    But that wasn''t all. Whenever Minho picked up a party to scavenge resources, he deliberately excluded YuWon.


    "You''re strong enough to defend the base. Besides, if you go, the soldiers will start cking since you''ll deal with everything yourself."


    Those were Minho''s exact words. But YuWon knew Yuna was the one behind those words. If YuWon didn''t leave the base, he wouldn''t have had resources to share with the rest. That was probably what she thought.


    It was yet another one of Yuna''s tactics to iste him. After all, in a world where level and exp meant everything, not being able to hunt was nothing more than a curse.


    The bitch even began reducing our share of food. Subtly, of course.


    However, even then YuWon couldn''t help but smile. Yuna thought she was punishing him, instead, she was the one helping him. Thanks to not going outside, he had ample time to look around the base.


    Even if Yuna told the soldiers to monitor him, they couldn''t see him leave the room because of [Ether Walk]. Thanks to that, he could go to ces where he wasn''t allowed.


    In one such room, he discovered a hole was being dug by the soldiers with a bunch of corpses around. Minho or Yuna were burying people, but why? Because they were the superiors YuWon had been looking for.


    In the power struggle, the siblings must have killed the higher-ranking officers and were now burying them.


    "They weren''t in a hurry," YuWon exined to the rest. "After all, no one would ever see the corpses other than those already loyal to the siblings."


    "...those bastards!" Yeji cursed as they sat in a secluded spot.


    YuWon hadn''t seen the usually uptight Yeji lose her cool so easily. But he only smiled. Herpassion was the best weapon against Yuna and Minho, and even if it annoyed him, he didn''t mind as long as she got the job done.


    "The second thing I found was the barrier," YuWon continued. "They are just trying to fortify the base. But for some reason, only a few people work there."


    "But why? If they are making fortifying the base, wouldn''t it be better to have everyone help?"


    YuWon shrugged. He had stayed there for a while but couldn''t figure out a reason.


    Gina was curled up on YuWon''sp, fast asleep. As she shifted in her sleep, her hand instinctively grabbed his arm, pulling it close to her cheek. YuWon smiled and began caressing her face.


    Yeji looked at them before turning her gaze away. She too wanted his affection, but YuWon kept all of it for Gina, and in a way, she hated it.


    "The problem is the siblings," YuWon continued, not taking his eyes off Gina. "They are the perfect duo. Minho handles the things outside, while Yuna does everything on the base, from distributing supplies to assigning everyone work."


    "They got everything covered between themselves," Yeji nodded. "As long as they support each other, it would be difficult to conquer the base."


    "Who told you that?" YuWon''s eyes shot up, staring intently at Yeji.


    "I''m no fool, master," Yeji smiled back. "There''s a reason someone like you is doing all this."


    YuWon smiled. His sweet sister had changed a lot and didn''t even hesitate to call him master now.


    "You deserve a reward, don''t you?"


    He snapped his fingers and Yeji bit her lips as the cor shocked her. It wasn''t like the shocks before. It was less intense, but enough for Yeji to feel her body tingle.


    It''s easier for me too. I''d rather shock her than shower her with praises.


    Before they could discuss more, a soldier arrived there.


    "Excuse me," the soldier began, "Miss Yuna has requested Miss Yeji''s presence to discuss some work."


    Work my ass!


    YuWon narrowed his eyes as the soldier fidgeted a bit. After staying around the walls, YuWon had noticed something. It was always this guy who brought people to work on the barrier.


    Since he was there, YuWon already knew something fishy was about to happen. But he didn''t let it show. Instead, he gave a nod.


    "Alright," he said, "Yeji, go."


    With no hesitation, Yeji got up and followed the soldier. As soon as they were out of sight, YuWon gently moved Gina off hisp, activated his [Ether Walk] skill, and began following the two.


    It didn''t take them long to get to Yuna, who was busy preparing supplies for Minho''s expedition outside. When she noticed Yeji, she dropped everything and walked over to her, smiling all the way.


    "I''m d you came," Yuna said.


    "I would have if yourckey didn''t interrupt YuWon," Yeji mumbled under her breath.


    "Um... I couldn''t get what you said¡ª"


    "It''s nothing," Yeji said, waving her hand dismissively. "I heard you had some work for me?"


    "Ah yes. We need help with building the walls around the base. Since you''re the least busy here, I thought you could help. Of course, you''ll receive extra resources for it."


    "Of course, I''ll help."


    Yuna breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "Thank you so much. The soldier will guide you there."


    As they left, Yuna had a smug smile on her face, unaware that YuWon was watching her.


    So you have something going on in your head. Interesting.

 Chapter 56: First Trial (1)

    YuWon thought while looking at Yeji. At first, when Yuna called her for help, he was confident she was nning something. But it had been over an hour, and nothing happened.


    Yeji stood among the group of workers at the wall. Minho must have raided a cement factory before roaming around because they had everything needed to create a second wall around the base. Everyone was working diligently, and there seemed to be no problems.


    Except for that guy.


    The soldier who brought Yeji there had been hovering around her. Yeji had noticed it too, but said nothing. She figured it wasn''t worth the trouble.


    Being a campus belle, she was no stranger to creeps and a little attention didn''t phase her. Even so, the soldier wasn''t like the others she had dealt with before. YuWon guessed something was up and he wasn''t about to let his sister get caught in a trap.


    Who am I kidding? That''s the reason I''m here for.


    A sly grin crept onto his face as an idea formed in his mind. Even if Yuna and Minho didn''t mean any harm to Yeji, it wasn''t like he couldn''t lend them a hand.


    [Skill: Soul Bind has been activated.]


    The soldier blinked and stumbled slightly as the soul took control. YuWon felt some resistance, but he was in control.


    Grab her hand.


    Suddenly, the soldier stepped closer and grabbed Yeji''s hand. She was taken aback and was about to smack the guy when he said something that triggered her.


    "YuWon doesn''t care about you, you know. He''ll never forgive you," he whispered. "You should be with someone who can protect you. Someone who cares for you... like a man."


    The fuck?


    YuWon frowned. He hadn''t told the guy to yap about him in front of Yeji. But then YuWon realized it. The resistance he felt. Could it be someone was already influencing the soldier and [Soul Bind] caused the soldier to go haywire?


    Also, thement the soldier made. They were too personal and too specific. It was like someone knew the deepest desires of Yeji''s heart and was weaponizing it against her.


    It has to be Yuna. Can she read people''s desires? Fuck, I need to be more careful around her then.


    YuWon knew her ss, but he didn''t know what abilities she had. She might have influenced the soldier to say those things to Yeji and trigger her, forcing her to do something terrible and then use it against her.


    Meanwhile, the soldier kept talking ill about YuWon. But Yeji didn''t respond, lost in her thoughts.


    She knew it wouldn''t be easy to get YuWon''s forgiveness, but hearing it from someone else snapped something inside her.


    Before the soldier could react, Yeji snatched the chisel from the ground and aimed it directly at his eye.


    Not good!


    YuWon dropped the invisibility and jumped behind Yeji, grabbing her hand just as she was about to rip off the soldier''s eye.


    "Yeji!" YuWon yelled. "Calm down!"


    A momentter, she looked dazed, as if she had just woken up from aa. She dropped the chisel before grabbing her head and wincing in pain.


    "Oi, what''s wrong?" YuWon asked, kneeling beside her.


    "Headache... it''ll pass... I think..."


    Soon enough, the workers began gathering around. Because of Yeji''s kindness before, they were naturally concerned about her. Although it wasn''t what YuWon had in mind, the situation was enough for him to act out.


    Suddenly, he let go of Yeji and, without a word, grabbed the soldier by the neck and lifted him off the ground. The soldier struggled as if the effect of maniption had faded away.


    No, no, it''s too early for you to wake up.


    YuWon mmed the guy on the ground with full force. The impact was so hard; it cracked through the guy''s armor and might have even cracked a rib or two.


    The soldier gasped in pain, but YuWon wasn''t done. He raised his foot and stomped on the soldier''s arm, the same arm he had grabbed Yeji with.


    "How dare you touch my sister!" YuWon yelled.


    A sickening crunch followed YuWon''s words as the soldier''s fingers snapped.


    "What the hell are you doing?!" Yuna yelled, rushing towards them.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Yuna''s eyes widened as she saw the soldier clutching his hand in pain. But then she saw YuWon staring at her, as he stood shielding Yeji. His eyes filled with hatred and it felt like he was ready to tear apart anyone who came too close to him.


    "What... what is going on here?" Yuna asked again, trying to fool everyone.


    "What''s going on?" he repeated, approaching her. "Why don''t you tell me that?"


    "I don''t¡ª"


    "Drop the act," YuWon snarled. "If you or your brother have a problem with me, then take it up with me. Don''t go after the people I care about! This is because we gave some people food without asking you first, isn''t it?"


    "What? No, you''ve got it all wrong. It must be a misunderstanding¡ª"


    "Wrong?" YuWon cut her off again. "Your soldier lured her here and tried to force himself on her. How the hell is that a misunderstanding?"


    "That''s true. I saw the guy hovering all around Miss Yeji." Someone from the crowd said.


    "Me too!" Another one chimed in.


    "That guy is a creep!"


    Yuna''s eyes darted around. Everyone there seemed suspicious of her. But she continued to force a smile and reached out to YuWon, only for him to smack it away.


    "YuWon, I swear, I didn''t know¡ª"


    "I''m not interested in your excuses. Just stay away from us."


    Without waiting for a response, YuWon turned his back on Yuna and lifted Yeji in his arms before leaving. Yuna just stood there, stunned. Her smile faltered, and she nervously bit her lip.


    This wasn''t how things were supposed to go. It was true she had put the guy up to what he did. But he was only supposed to trigger Yeji into doing something.


    Since Yuna knew about the rtionship between Yeji and YuWon because of her ss''s ability, she tried to use it to her advantage. But it all backfired on her.


    "What are you looking at? Take him away," she ordered the remaining soldiers.


    This is just a setback... But I need to fix things with YuWon. I need to have him by my side.


    Yuna thought, staring at the prompt before her.


    [Quest: By His Side.]


    [Task: Tame Kang YuWon.]


    [Remaining Time: 2 days 21 hours 45 minutes 12 seconds.]


    [Reward: Unknown.]


    [Penalty for failure: Sponsored skills will get revoked.]


    How do I do this!?


    While Yuna was worried about her mission, everyone else got a notification as well.


    [Attention! The first trial will take ce in 3 hours.]


    [All awakeners must prepare themselves for the worst... a painful death.]


    [Enjoy yourst moments in peace.]

 Chapter 57: First Trial (2)

    But when three hours were up, something strange happened. Everything around them seemed to bend, and they had barely a moment to react before they found themselves teleported to a different location.


    They were standing in the middle of an endless desert. The sky was unnaturally red, and the ground beneath their feet was hot and dry, with endless dunes in every direction.


    "What the hell?" Yuna mumbled, pointing above.


    YuWon followed her gaze and looked at the sky to find three moons over their head.


    "Where are we?" YuWon mumbled.


    Before anyone could respond, a bright light appeared above them, and from it, an angel descended, the same one who had granted YuWon his wishesst time around.


    "Wee to your first trial," she said, fluttering her wings, before looking at YuWon. "Tell me, mortal, have you been using your gifts well?"


    "When I need to," YuWon shrugged.


    While everyone feared the angel, given their experience, YuWon showed no sign of it.


    "That''s what I expected," she mumbled.


    Without another word, she snapped her fingers, and the sea of sand parted, revealing a set of stepping stones. The stones formed seven rough paths leading toward a distant finish line and YuWon instantly knew what they had to do.


    "The rules are simple," the angel announced. "You must make it to the finish line by jumping from tform to tform. But be careful. The path isn''t as straightforward as you think."


    People raised their hands, expecting the angel to answer their questions. However, she ignored everyone and disappeared in a sh. As she did, a series of annoying notifications popped up before YuWon.


    [Auto-saving the Awakener''s progress.]


    [A new checkpoint has been created.]


    [All previous checkpoints have been erased.]


    ...I''m not even surprised.


    For a moment, everything was silent. No one said anything, as if they were waiting for someone else to speak first. They were looking at each other, but none dared to step forward.


    "So¡­ what now?" someone finally asked.


    "I''m not going first!" another person shouted, stepping back.


    Here we go again...


    YuWon shook his head as everyone began arguing.


    "You go first!"


    "No, you go! I''m not risking it!"


    "They''re just tforms! Just jump! It''s not that hard!"


    Soon, more people joined in, pushing and shoving each other towards the steps. If no one stepped forward, soon there''ll be an all-out war and they''ll die even before they have time to step on the stones.


    "Freaking morons," YuWon mumbled, crossing his arms. "I guess it''s time to take matters into my own hands."


    [Skill: Soul Bind has been activated.]


    He scanned the group and settled on one of the older men standing off to the side. The guy was too weak to do anything, so sacrificing someone like him wouldn''t matter.


    The soul quickly possessed the old man and, under YuWon''s order, the old man stepped towards the first tform of stones. Everyone suddenly turned quiet as they watched the old man jump on the leftmost stone tform.


    Everyone held their breath, but nothing happened. The old man was safe and so was the tform.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Meanwhile, YuWon instructed the man to jump again, this time to the left tform. Once again, nothing happened and the old man was safe.


    "That looks easy!" someone muttered from the crowd.


    "We were fighting for no reason!"


    "Watch me go!"


    Just then, a young man in histe teens jumped the gun. He wanted to receive bonus rewards forpleting the trial before anyone. Blinded by greed, jumped onto the first tform following the old man''s path.


    But just as his feet touched the stone, the tform beneath him crumbled, disappearing into the sand below. He screamed as he fell and the sand shifted beneath him.


    Suddenly, tiny worm-like creatures burst forth from the sand. The worms bit into the man''s leg, biting a massive chunk of flesh one after another.


    "Help me! HELP ME!"


    The man roared in pain and thrashed around. But the more he struggled, the more worms appeared, biting and tearing into his flesh. Eventually, he got pulled down by them, disappearing into the sand, never to be seen again.


    While everyone was stunned by fear, YuWon shook his head in annoyance.


    I was a fool to think it would be this easy.


    Gina looked at him and asked what was happening. Everyone had the same question, and no one had the answer. Even YuWon was clueless, but he had some theories he could test.


    "The tform disappeared when that guy jumped on it, but the old man is still safe." He mumbled, talking to himself. "That means there are two possibilities: either the tforms only support one person at a time, or they get randomized after each use."


    "So now what?" Yeji asked.


    "Now we need another volunteer," YuWon mumbled, looking around the crowd.


    Using another soul, he took control of another man in the crowd, instructing him to follow the same path as the first man. The guy jumped onto the same tform the old man had used, and to everyone''s surprise, the guy was safe.


    "That sucks," YuWon clicked his tongue. "The tforms randomize after being used. It''s not a pattern¡ªit''s utter chaos. Every time someone uses a tform, the entire pattern changes."


    "...how do we solve it, then?"


    YuWon shrugged. He had hoped it was anything but randomized tforms. To make things worse, he only had thirteen souls left. Which meant he had thirteen chances to find the right path.


    That''s not even the worst of it.


    Since the tforms got randomized after each use, even his [Respawn] ability was useless.


    As much as it annoyed him, YuWon knew he had to be smart about this. He couldn''t waste all the souls trying to brute-force his way through the trial.


    "Well, no point standing around," YuWon mumbled. "So who''s ready to jump next¡ª?"


    As soon as he said that, someone shoved him into the sand. Before YuWon could react, the sand around him moved. A momentter, the worms appeared, their sharp teeth sinking into his skin.


    "ARGH!" YuWon screamed, trying to push them off.


    But more worms swarmed him, ripping at his flesh. The pain was unbearable. He felt them tearing his skin off, gnawing down to the bone. He could hear people shrieking around him, but just then a worm lunged at his face.


    YuWon tried to shake it off, but it was toote. He could only scream in pain as the worm bit into his eye.


    Then everything went dark.

 Chapter 58: Strange Team-Up (1)

    Even though he had died countless times before, none of the deaths were as horrific as the one he suffered just now. The feeling of the worms ripping his flesh, gnawing on his bones, and plucking his eye out. All of it had shaken him to the core.


    Ignoring everyone around him, YuWon rubbed his arms frantically, as if he could still feel the worms crawling all over his skin.


    For the first time in a long while, YuWon felt genuine fear. The incident had taken a mental toll on him like he had never felt before.


    [The Gravewalker''s Compass had identified the one responsible for the awakener''s death.]


    A momentter, something shed before YuWon''s eyes and Minho''s face appeared before his eyes. The fear in YuWon''s eyes got reced with rage. He clenched his fist, ready to kill the bastard then and there, but he didn''t.


    If I kill him now, everyone will think I did so for no reason. I can''t let that bastard have that peace.


    But that didn''t mean he couldn''t provoke the bastard. While an evil n was taking its roots in YuWon''s head, Gina, Yeji, and Yuna rushed over to him.


    "Husband, are you okay?" Gina asked, cupping his face.


    Yeji kneeled beside him, cing her arm on his shoulder while Yuna stood a couple of steps away.


    YuWon didn''t reply and wiped the sweat from his forehead. As he got up, he could feel the eyes on him, waiting for an exnation, but he shrugged it off. He wasn''t in the mood to talk.


    "It''s nothing. I was just... tired," he mumbled.


    He lied because it wasn''t like he could tell them the real reason. A momentter, the arguing break out. While they were at it, YuWon picked up a small stone and threw it in the sand.


    It didn''t take more than a second for the worms to appear. They swarmed the stone, trying to devour it. Now everyone knew what would happen if they fell into the trap.


    Now no one wanted to start the trial. But YuWon smiled and turned towards Minho.


    "As the leader, Minho should go first," he said, and everyone turned toward him. "He''s the leader, isn''t he? It only makes sense. A leader should lead the followers to victory."


    "What are you¡ª?" Minho raised his voice but was interrupted.


    "Yeah, Minho, you''re the leader. You should go first."


    "YuWon is right! The soldiers and Minho get the biggest share of resources. It''s only fair they go first."


    Before Minho could object, everyone chimed in their thoughts. Since they had found a scapegoat, they''d force him to go first.


    Minho''s face paled instantly. The first thought in his mind was if YuWon knew he was nning on killing him.


    "Fuck this shit!"


    Minho yelled and drew his gun. The soldiers quickly followed, pointing their guns at everyone. The bullets might not work on the monsters, but they were still effective for humans.


    Suddenly, the voices that had been urging Minho to step up went quiet. No one wanted to get caught in the middle. Enjoying everyone''s reaction, Minho pointed the handgun towards YuWon.


    "You got a loud mouth, don''t you?" he snarled. "Now, you will go first!"


    Gina lost it and was about to lunge at Minho, but YuWon held her back. Yeji was also ready tosh out, but YuWon shook his head again.


    "Not now," he mumbled.


    However, a third voice erupted, protesting on YuWon''s behalf.


    "Minho, stop this! You can''t force YuWon to go!" Yuna yelled, walking up to him.


    "...this is what you want, huh?" Minho gritted his teeth. "Where was your voice when everyone told me to go ahead?"


    "It''s not like that¡ª" Yuna mumbled, walking towards Minho.


    Smack!


    Minho backhanded Yuna without a shred of hesitation.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Shut up, bitch!" Minho yelled. "Ever since that guy showed up, it''s been nothing but YuWon this, YuWon that. I''m sick of it!"


    The people were shocked, and their faces showed it. But Minho still had more to say.


    "You want to know our n?" he sneered, his gun still aimed at YuWon. "We were going to kill all of you. Slowly, we''d overwork you, make you weak, and then send you outside where you''ll die."


    He continued, "I was going to use your blood to get stronger, while Yuna here was supposed to feed on the corpses. But no, she just had to stick to monster corpses instead, like some kind of saint."


    YuWon raised an eyebrow. Now it made sense why the two of them were often talking in hushed tones. YuWon also realized that Minho had never intended to make him an ally. He just wanted to kill them for their blood.


    How lucky am I?


    If Minho had got his hands on YuWon''s blood, he might as well have gained the respawn ability. YuWon didn''t even want to imagine the shit Minho would have pulled then.


    But then Minho walked up, shoving his gun into YuWon''s face.


    "Get going, before I shoot you," he instructed.


    But instead of being scared, YuWon shook his head and agreed.


    "Fine, I''ll go. But on one condition."


    "What condition?" Minho asked.


    "Yunaes with me."


    Minho looked at YuWon, his eyes narrowing as he wondered what YuWon was up to. But since Minho wanted to get rid of Yuna either way, it didn''t matter to him if YuWon took her down with him.


    "Do whatever you want," Minho barked.


    Without a word, YuWon extended his hand toward Yuna, who looked confused. She hesitated for a moment before taking his hand.


    As she did, her eyes widened before they both smiled. Only the two of them knew why she was smiling. To the rest, it might seem like they were flirting instead.


    That''s what it looked like to Minho, who snapped his fingers angrily. Immediately, the soldiers stepped up, slowly forcing the two near the edge.

 Chapter 59: Strange Team-Up (2)

    "Not long," YuWon replied.


    YuWon''s n was the reason for Yuna''s smile. Her ability to read people''s desires was something she kept hidden. Even Minho didn''t know about it. Yet YuWon had figured it out and used it tomunicate his n without saying a word.


    When Minho pped Yuna, she could feel the raging emotions he had within. For a moment, it scared her. But then she realized he was nning to kill her either way.


    That''s why when she learned about YuWon''s n, she readily agreed to help. As for YuWon, he focused his gaze on Gina. It was time to y another trick on everyone.


    "Keep yourself and Yeji safe. If anyone gets in your way, kill them. I''ll deal with the consequencester," he instructed.


    Hearing him, Minho scoffed. "You think you can do anything? Keep bbing and I''ll kill them myself."


    "You can try," YuWon shrugged. "But let me just remind you. Gina is the strongest participant here. I''d suggest you don''t think about messing with her."


    Minho paid no attention to YuWon''s words. How could someone who looked so delicate be stronger than him? It was all nonsense. A pathetic attempt to trigger him, or so he thought.


    "Just get lost already," Minho barked, and the soldiers shoved them.


    "You won''t have a peaceful death," YuWon told the soldiers with a smile. "Mark my words, just like I''ve marked your faces."


    With that, the game began.


    As he approached the tforms, he lightly touched one with his foot. The Overseer''s Pendant he wore glowed faintly, confirming it was the real tform.


    Still, YuWon hesitated for a moment. The death had left a scar so deep he was questioning the pendant''s words.


    Fuck it...


    YuWon closed his eyes and jumped on the tform. Nothing happened. He was safe.


    Alright! I can do this.


    He then jumped to the second tform, only after confirming it with the pendant, of course. Once safely there, he turned to Yuna.


    "Jump on the tform left to the one I was on."


    "Are you sure?" Yuna asked but quickly obeyed when YuWon rolled his eyes.


    The two of them continued like this till the end. Once she was there, YuWon traveled back to get Gina and Yeji. However, as usual, Minho interrupted.


    "The soldiers and I will go before them," he said.


    "Sure, be my guest!" YuWon readily agreed.


    YuWon''s eagerness made Minho doubt him. But then he looked at his soldiers and then at Gina and Yeji.


    He knew as long as someone stayed behind, YuWon wouldn''t dare mess with them. If he did, they would kill the girls and that would be the end of it.


    "Let''s go," YuWon called to Minho.


    Confidently, he stepped onto the first tform, then the second, following YuWon''s words. Soon, Minho reached the final tform, ready to make thest jump, while YuWon stayed behind.


    Unfortunately for him, YuWon had other ns.


    When Minho was about to jump, YuWon jumped onto the tform beside him. Minho froze, his face contorting with anger. But before he could say anything, both tforms beneath them crumbled.


    "NO!" Minho yelled as his feet touched the sand.


    In seconds, the worms emerged to enjoy the feast. They began crawling up Minho''s legs, biting and tearing into his flesh. He screamed in pain, his arms iling wildly. The more he struggled, the faster he got dragged into the sand.


    As for YuWon, he jumped before the tform could disappear entirely. He then used Minho''s shoulders as a springboard,nding safely next to Yuna.


    "Yuna! Help me!" Minho yelled at the top of his lungs, clinging to the edge.


    Yuna nodded and rushed to his aid. Desperate, Minho trusted her and let go of the edge, extending his arm toward her. However, instead of grabbing the hand, she shoved him away from the edge.


    "You wanted to kill me?" she scoffed, turning around. "After everything I did for you? Maybe I should''ve left you to rot in that orphanage. People like you deserve it!"


    "FUCK YOU BITCH!!! I''LL KILL YOU REMEMBER THAT¡ª"


    "I''m sure you will." Yuna rolled her eyes before stepping back.


    Minho got devoured by the worms and his soldiers were left confused about what to do next. One of them raised the gun towards Yeji, but YuWon noticed it.


    "Don''t even think about it," he shouted. "I''m the only one who can help you get across. But if you even think aboutying a finger on them, I''ll make you wish the worms had eaten you instead."


    Upon hearing him, the soldier hesitated, but slowly lowered the gun. The others followed suit, realizing YuWon was their only hope of surviving the trial. But YuWon wasn''t satisfied just yet.


    The problem with dogs is that you need to train them thoroughly.


    "Drop your weapons," he said, pointing towards the pit.


    The soldiers exchanged nervous nces. They didn''t want to lose their weapons and have YuWon turn on them.


    "But... what if we need them?" a soldier spoke.


    "Your guns are useless against the monsters here," YuWon rolled his eyes. "They won''t help you, and you won''t be using them on humans either. So what''s the point of having them?"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The soldiers still hesitated, and YuWon sighed loudly. "Drop the weapons, or I''ll drop you in the pit. Is that clear enough for you morons?"


    Hesitantly, one soldier stepped forward and tossed his gun into the pit. The others followed, one by one, until all the worms swallowed the weapons.


    Damn, those worms eat everything.


    YuWon smirked, looking at the soldiers. "Fear is the greatest weapon indeed."


    "I didn''t think you''d be like this," Yuna mumbled, interrupting him. "But I''m d you are¡ª"


    "Hold that thought. We can discuss other things when we get back."


    With that, YuWon left to bring the others. After all, he wasn''t ready to abandon the meat shields without properly using them.


    One by one, everyone crossed the pit. YuWon wasn''t heartless and helped some soldiers, too. They were those who didn''t follow Minho''smand and were ready to serve someone new.


    It wasn''t long before most of the group had made it across. Everyone stood at the finish line, looking back at the shrinking number of soldiers still stranded on the other side.


    "Yeh, I think that''s enough," YuWon said, turning a blind eye to the remaining soldiers.


    The soldier who had raised his gun at Yeji immediately went to his knees and began begging for mercy. The others joined him, kneeling and begging.


    "You really thought I was going to help you?" YuWonughed, shaking his head in disbelief.


    "But... you helped everyone else!"


    "They didn''t point a gun at me or my sister, did they?" YuWon scoffed. "If you want to live, then figure this shit out yourself."


    The soldiers'' faces turned pale. They got yed like a fiddle. But no matter how much they begged, no one stepped up to help them.


    As they watched everyone leave one after another, the soldiers panicked. They tried figuring out the pattern YuWon had used. But without him, their attempts were useless.


    YuWon looked at them and shook his head. He knew what wasing next. As the soldiers rushed, the tforms began disappearing one after another.


    The soldiers, realizing they had no way out, tried to jump on the remaining tforms. But one by one, they fell into the sand, and the worms came for them, just as they had for Minho.


    "Tsk... so many souls got wasted," YuWon shrugged and crossed the finish line, satisfied with the oue.

 Chapter 60: Gangnam Style Hunting (1)

    As usual, no one had an answer. YuWon thought once they crossed the finish line, the trial would be over. But that wasn''t the case. They weren''t in the desert anymore. In fact, they were standing before a subway.


    But from one look, they knew they weren''t back in their world, yet. Even though the location was familiar to them, there was something different about the ce.


    "It''s way less crowded," YuWon mumbled, looking around. "But there''s no mistaking it. This is Gangnam station... or, well, a replica."


    Gangnam station was the busiest station in all of Korea. That''s why seeing it so empty was bizarre. But that wasn''t the only thing. As YuWon looked around, he noticed none of the people he had saved were with him.


    Besides Yuna, Yeji, and Gina, who all crossed the finish line together, everyone else was gone. Where? YuWon did not know.


    In their ce, we got these... foreigners.


    Three groups of four. All of whom looked different. First was YuWon''s group. A momentter, another group appeared beside them out of nowhere.


    It didn''t take long for him to recognize them as Westerners, probably Americans. Two tall, muscr guys stood there, wearing tank tops and cargo pants. One had short blonde hair, while the other had a shaved head.


    Beside them were two girls. One had dark brown hair in a ponytail, and the other had bright red hair with tattoos all over her arms.


    YuWon was looking at them when another group appeared. This group only had women, and they were speaking in Portuguese, or so Yuna told him.


    They opted for light clothing, unlike the Americans, possibly to move around quickly. One girl had curly, dark brown hair that bounced as she moved, while another had long, straight ck hair tied back in a braid.


    The third girl had tanned skin and a certain aloofness in her. While thest girl was shorter, but looked fierce, as if she had been fighting all her life.


    "Who are they?" Gina whispered, her fangs showing.


    "No idea," YuWon replied, watching the Americans and the Portuguese-speakers with caution.


    [Quest: Subway Surfers]


    [Task: Catch the train docked at ?? tform.]


    [Reward: Unknown.]


    [Penalty for failure: Unknown.]


    Once again, they got a simple task. But obviously, it would not be that simple. Everyone thought the same thing, so no one took a step toward the station, waiting for the other groups to step up first.


    "Let''s go," YuWon instructed.


    But as he walked ahead, the bubbly girl from the third group approached them. She said something, but YuWon couldn''t understand. That''s when Yuna stepped up and carried on the conversation.


    YuWon didn''t understand a word they were saying. But since they were smiling, it had to have been good. After a minute, the two shook hands and parted ways.


    "What was that about?" Yeji asked Yuna, still on edge around her.


    "Oh, nothing much." Yuna dismissively waved her hand. "She just wanted to tell us to stay out of their way. So I told her the same. That''s all."


    Yeji narrowed her eyes, wondering if Yuna was telling the truth. When she did, Yuna wrapped herself around YuWon''s arm.


    "Oppa~ Your sister is a meanie¡ª"


    Before she could evenplete the sentence, YuWon pushed her back, staring right at her.


    "Let me make two things clear. First, I hate that word," he said, retrieving his sword. "Second, get ready to fight."


    Just as he said that, loud footsteps echoed out of the subway. A secondter, three dozen ogres rushed out of the gates, straight toward them, with a dozen ogres heading for each group.


    The closest ogre swung its massive de, aiming straight for YuWon''s head. He dodged to the side with ease. They were ogres, but they were no berserking ogre.


    As the ogre rushed past him, YuWon shed at the ogre''s arm. Unlike before, this time, the de cut through the thick flesh, severing the ogre''s hand in a single strike.


    But he didn''t stop there. He shed at the creature''s leg. The ogre copsed to the ground. Since neither Yuna nor Yeji could fight them, it was up to Gina and him to deal with the ugly bastards and that''s what he was doing.


    Simultaneously, Gina grabbed the ogre''s fallen de and used the first ogre''s body as a stepping stone. While in the air, she swung the de in a wide arc, severing the head of an ogre. The head fell to the ground with a loud thud as the ogre''s massive body slumped lifelessly.


    "You take half, I''ll deal with the rest," YuWon instructed and Gina left, nodding.


    YuWon then turned to Yuna. Unlike Yeji, she had the talent to grow as a fighter, and right now, he needed all the hands he could get.


    "Absorb the corpses," he told her, finishing the first ogre. "I''m not carrying your ass through this trial."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Just so you know," Yuna replied, raising her hand. "If you ever want to carry my ass, I''d rock your world."


    YuWon looked at her brazen deration before rolling his eyes. He didn''t even bother replying to her as he rushed to kill another ogre.


    Meanwhile, Yuna''s hand glowed faintly as the dead ogres'' bodies disintegrated and their essence flowed into her. She closed her eyes as she felt herself getting stronger.


    "Oh, yeah... that''s the stuff. YuWon give me more!"


    "Stop ying around!" YuWon hissed back.


    Just then, another ogre swung its club at him, but YuWon ducked and shed the creature''s leg. Before the ogre could recover, YuWon quickly activated [Soul Bind] to control the damn creature.


    The ogre froze for a moment, unable to shake it off. Then it turned around and swung its club at one of its own. The other ogre didn''t have time to react. The club smashed into its side, sending it crashing to the ground.


    That was all it took for chaos to break out. Confused, the ogres started attacking one another. YuWon smirked as the controlled ogre swung again, forcing another fight.


    While the ogres were distracted, YuWon, Gina, and even Yuna started eliminating the ogres one after another. The infighting created the perfect opening for them to pick the monsters off with ease.

 Chapter 61: [Bonus Chapter] Gangnam Style Hunting (2)

    Either way, YuWon was happy to see all of them were safe. After all, the more of them were there, the more he could use them as shields. They shouldn''t mind it either way, as he had essentially saved them, whether they knew it.


    Life for a life. I like the concept.


    "Shall we go?" Yuna asked.


    YuWon nodded, and the four of them entered the subway station. The Americans and Portuguese followed. But contrary to their expectations, they found the entire ce deserted. There were no signs of humans or monsters.


    There''s no train here either.


    Confused, YuWon checked the quest, and sure enough, they were supposed to board a train.


    Don''t tell me I''d have to go bumping my head between tform numbers... I''m no wizard!


    The only thing there was a convenience store. It looked strange. There were no lights there, yet they could see the store was well-stocked. It almost looked untouched by time and monsters.


    Unlike before, the international friends didn''t waste any time and headed inside the shop to loot everything they could. Yuna wanted to leave, too. Resources, no matter how small, were a treasure in an apocalypse.


    However, YuWon held her back. Yuna turned and saw none of them were ready to make a move.


    "They''ll take everything¡ª"


    "Let them," YuWon replied.


    It wasn''t like YuWoncked any resources. He had food, medicines, water, and everything necessary stored in the Phantom Bag. Although he didn''t want to tell Yuna about it just yet.


    "Oh,e on!" Yuna rolled her eyes, trying to push YuWon''s hand away.


    However, YuWon''s grip only got tighter, and he mumbled, "If you want to work with me, then you follow every word I say. If not, you can leave any time."


    With that, he let go of her hand and stepped back while the other looted everything. Yuna stared at the store for a second before stomping her foot and quietly retreating to YuWon''s side.


    "If you weren''t handsome, I would never obey you!" she pouted, but her actions only made YuWon roll his eyes.


    She was supposed to be the same age as them, but from her antics, no one would ever guess it. At first, he thought it was a part of her charm, but now he could only cringe whenever she acted like that.


    "You''re a strategist," YuWon finally exined things to her. "You can''t be that stupid."


    Yuna didn''t reply as she saw the strangers filling their backs with goods... too much goods. Then it hit her.


    "Bait..." she mumbled.


    YuWon smirked and nodded. The Americans were carrying bags twice their size. While the Portuguese, at least, had some presence of mind and distributed things in small bags.


    They are more aware of the dangers.


    Carrying such bags would not only slow the carriers, it would also make them appear bigger to the monsters. It was natural for the predators to go for the bigger prey first.


    That''s why YuWon didn''t stop them or interfere with them either way. Plus, he wasn''t in a ce to judge them.


    Every zone had unique problems, and he didn''t know what their lives were like. But from the way they were hoarding stuff, it didn''t seem like they were having a good time.


    But then something weird happened. One of the American females, the one with red hair, took out some small vials and ced them on the counter.


    A secondter, the vials disappeared and a ghostly figure appeared behind the counter, standing where a cashier would normally be.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "What the hell?"


    Yuna expressed everyone''s emotions right then. Everyone but the Americans seemed surprised. As if noticing everyone''s gaze, the other girl smiled and waved at them.


    YuWon''s thought process was something else entirely. The woman''s actions were too arbitrary and sudden to be idental. She knew what she was doing, but how?


    Could she be like me?


    The strange thought crossed his mind. He wondered if that was the case and much like him, the woman too was a [Revenant]. YuWon wanted to confirm his doubts. He couldn''t let the matter rest.


    It''s not like I can ask her if she can respawn.


    Gina noticed YuWon''s worried gaze and held onto his arm. "Is something wrong, husband?"


    Snapping out of a daze, YuWon shook his head. He realized how stupid he was being. How could there be two respawners? How would something like that even work? If one of them died, then would they both respawn?


    For now, let''s keep an eye on them.


    However, it wasn''t only YuWon monitoring them. The Portuguese also took notice of them. But their behavior changed immediately.


    The woman was talking with the ghostly husk, trying to buy something. So the Portuguese turned to the men. They didn''t ignore them and one of them even wrapped his arm around a girl''s waist as they kept chatting casually.


    The two groups had joined forces, and now the men were eyeing YuWon and the girls. One didn''t need to be psychic to know what they were thinking.


    For a moment YuWon wondered if he should send Yeji or Yuna their way just to get the truth. But shook his head. It wasn''t worth the trouble. His eyes shifted back to the girl at the counter and his eyes went wide.


    How the hell...


    YuWon did not know how, but the woman got three Phantom Bags. The other Americans quickly took one each and shoved their packed bags inside. They would not be the decoys YuWon was nning them to be.


    However, that didn''t surprise him half as much as the woman did when she turned and smirked at him. Even Yeji was confused about why, but all the Americans were smiling at YuWon as if they were aware of something that they didn''t know.


    This doesn''t look good... at all.

 Chapter 62: Regressor

    YuWon hesitated for a moment before taking it. He opened it and saw the bag was filled with several makeshift Molotov cocktails.


    "What''s this for?" YuWon asked in Korean.


    Yeji opened her mouth to trante, but the woman raised her hand, stopping her, and smiled.


    "You''re going to need those if you want to make it to the train," the woman replied in Korean.


    With that, she turned to leave. But YuWon called her back.


    "How do you know so much about this ce?" he asked, his eyes narrowing.


    The woman didn''t bother to turn and just shrugged, walking away. YuWon watched her for a moment. Something about her irked him. Especially by the way she talked, it felt like she had known him for a long time.


    Just then, a notification appeared before his eyes.


    [Head Hunter Contract engaged!]


    [Target: John Switch.]


    [Threat level: Low.]


    [Time Limit: 16 hours]


    [Known Weakness: None discovered.]


    [Reward: Unknown]


    [Punishment: Unknown]


    YuWon blinked, staring at the notification. Eventually, he nced at the group of Americans, and the mark appeared over the short guy''s head.


    Something had been off about them and the sudden contract he got felt a bit too convenient. Then there was the woman, acting all mysterious. Everything about them yelled problem.


    But before he could dwell on it, a loud ttering noise brought him back to the present. Everyone brought their weapons out and moved towards the noise. Meanwhile, YuWon handed the bag to Yeji and moved ahead.


    Suddenly, arge, snail-like creature appeared ahead. At first, it moved slowly, like walking around the park, leaving a slimy trail behind. The snail was roughly three feet high.


    But then, when it noticed the onlooker, the snail rushed at them like a car. Its sudden burst of speed startled one of the Portuguese, and she fell. She tried to get up, but it was toote.


    The snail was already on her, sucking her under its weight. Her terrified screams were the only thing the rest of them heard as the snail devoured her. A few secondster... there was an eerie silence.


    "What the hell just happened?" Yeji mumbled, covering her mouth.


    To their surprise, the snail grew even more, now standing at four feet. When it moved again, there wasn''t even a trace of the woman left. The creature had swallowed her whole with bone and blood.


    Now it makes sense why this ce is so barren.


    The snail-creatures were the reason. They must have devoured everything¡ªevery human, every creature that was there. Even the ogres they had fought earlier were probably running from the snails.


    Suddenly, the redhead stepped forward, reaching into a bag and pulling out a Molotov. Without a word, she lit the fuse and threw it at the snail.


    The bottle shattered, hitting the snail''s back. Within seconds, it got engulfed in mes. It must have hurt, terribly so, but all of it was deserved.


    The snail twisted and turned, trying to extinguish the mes, but to no avail. Soon it shriveled up into a charred husk, nothing more. The woman then turned to YuWon and smirked.


    "I told you we''d need them," she said and moved ahead.


    Any doubts YuWon had about the woman disappeared in that instant. She was a respawner like him. Either that or she had foresight.


    As everyone left, Yuna tried absorbing the husk. But her ability failed. The creature was far too gone for her skill to recover anything.


    "This is bullshit!"


    Yuna cursed, but YuWon''s attention was on the woman.


    ***


    The group slowly moved deeper into the subway station. Strangely enough, they hadn''te across many of the giant snails¡ªonly seven had appeared, and they''d dealt with them quickly using the Molotovs.


    Still, there was no sign of the train.


    "This way," the redhead mumbled, taking them down another flight of stairs.


    All the while, YuWon was looking at her. She was quite useful, and he wanted to recruit her. It was also the reason he wasn''t in a rush to kill the guy next to her. Though he would have to kill him, eventually.


    As they were going down the stairs, they finally spotted it. A rusty old train was waiting for them on the tracks. They all sighed in relief, but none were happier than the Portuguese group that rushed ahead. But the redhead called them back.


    "Wait!" she yelled. "Don''t be stupid."


    "Why?" one girl asked.


    "Just watch."


    The redhead pulled out a chunk of meat from her Phantom Bag and threw it down the stairs. At first, nothing happened, but then the ground trembled.


    Out of nowhere, hundreds of the snail-like monsters emerged from nowhere fighting for the piece of meat. Wasting no time, she lit up the Molotovs and threw them at the snails.


    "Use these to make a path through the swarm!" she yelled.


    Everyone pulled out the Molotovs and began throwing them at the snails. Like before, they slowly turned into husks. However, they didn''t have enough Molotovs to kill them all. That''s why the redhead asked them to make a path instead.


    "Use the husks as stepping stones and run!" the redhead shouted. "Jump your way to the train! Go, go, go!"


    With that, the girl and the Americans rushed ahead, followed by the Portuguese. YuWon led his group as they jumped over the snails. Soon they were past the snail, ready to board.


    But not everyone was so lucky. Three people slipped, or the snails dragged them down. The redhead lost the other girl in her group, along with the tall guy. However, she didn''t even bother looking at them.


    As everyone entered, YuWon was thest to board the train. But a momentter, the redhead shoved him out of the train.


    "You''re noting with us," she smirked.


    "What the hell are you talking about?" YuWon shot back. "Move!"n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    But the woman didn''t budge, crossing her arms and looking down at him.


    "In my past life, I trusted you," she said. "It was the worst mistake of my life. But this time, I''ll make sure you never reach the next stage."


    Past life? Shit! I knew it!


    The moment the girl touched him, the pendant activated, giving YuWon her information. But his eyes were fixated on her ss: Regressor.


    Now it all made sense how she knew about the snails and the secret shopkeeper. She had lived this life before, gone through these trials.


    During one of those times, the future version of him had done something so terrible that she wasn''t taking any chances on him.


    Meanwhile, Gina and Yeji were trying to fight their way through, but were stopped by everyone inside. Even Yuna couldn''t move. YuWon had no choice but to wear his innocent face and beg for mercy.


    "I don''t know what happened between us in your past life," YuWon said calmly, "but I have done nothing to you in this one."


    The redhead scoffed, "I know, and you''ll never be able to do anything to me if I kill you first."


    With no other way, YuWon was about to use [Soul Bind] to make the woman move, but she read his face andughed.


    "Don''t bother, my dear," she mumbled. "Even your [Soul Bind] won''t make me move this time."

 Chapter 63: Penalty Zone (1)

    "Fuck!"


    YuWon tried forcing his way inside, but Anna, the regressor, stood firm. He put all his strength to stop the doors, but it only slowed them. It didn''t take long for him to realize he was fighting a losing battle.


    But he wasn''t going down without a fight. Just as the doors were about to close, YuWon retrieved the sword and threw it inside, aiming for Anna''s head.


    She dodged it, but the guy behind her wasn''t that lucky. The sword got buried in the man''s chest and he copsed on the ground.


    Anna''s expression turned sour. She looked at YuWon with rage, but stood firm, not letting YuWon board the train. However, as the man copsed, Gina got free and lunged at Anna.


    Yeji didn''t stay behind, and Yuna joined them, too. All three of them tried to pull Anna off the door. Unfortunately, they ran out of time, and the train zoomed into a tunnel.


    YuWon tried holding on, but an invisible force shoved him aside, and he fell on the tform. Even then, he wasn''t worried. Sure he failed this time, but he will respawn and when he does, he would figure out a way to deal with the bitch once and for all.


    However, a momentter, all his ns turned sour when a notification appeared before him.


    [Trial failed.]


    [As punishment, you will now be teleported to the penalty zone.]


    [May you rot in hell for all eternity.]


    YuWon''s heart sank for a second as a strange mist surrounded him.


    ***


    YuWon clutched his head as the mist finally dissipated. He was lying in the middle of the road, and not in the subway station anymore.


    A momentter, another notification appeared before his eyes. Only this time, the screen flickered and appeared to be broken.


    [Quest: Penalty Zone]


    [Task: Kill the Charred Ghoul]


    [Reward: You''ll regain your status as an Awakener.]


    [Punishment for failure: Death.]


    [Quick saveplete!]


    [You can ess earlier checkpoints after leaving the penalty zone.]


    [Till then, you can only respawn at this location.]


    "Well, Fuck me..."


    YuWon closed the prompts and sighed. He was in some deep shit this time. No wonder that Anna was so confident that he won''t respawn.


    ...fuck that bitch, too!


    After a deep breath, YuWon calmed down a bit. It wasn''t Anna who got him there, but his foolishness. There were a lot of things he could have done to survive, but he panicked and now he was stuck in a strange ce.


    He looked around himself to find where he was. The area looked familiar to him, as if he had been there before, but the ce had changed a bit. It took him a couple of seconds to figure out where he was.


    "The park near the college..." he mumbled.


    Yet the ce was different. It didn''t have the buildings that were located around the park, and naturepletely overran the few buildings that were there.


    It was as if he got teleported hundreds of years into the future or a post-apocalyptic world. Not to mention, everything was exceptionally dark there. Had it not been for some flickering lights, he would bepletely blind there.


    Not like it would be a bad thing. I already know theyout of this ce by heart.


    The park was a ce YuWon often used to visit after being shunned by everyone. But he wondered why was it a penalty zone?


    However, he couldn''t think about it for long. He heard the sounds of someone running behind him. But by the time he turned around, whatever the thing was, it had already vanished into the darkness.


    "Come on... what are you waiting for?" YuWon clenched his fists because he stupidly threw his sword away.


    He could feel he wasn''t alone there. However, thanks to the dark, he couldn''t see anything as he walked into under the flickering streetlight.


    [A ghoul has caught on to your smell.]


    "Ghouls? Great... now I''m fighting zombies."


    Suddenly, YuWon noticed something from the corner of his eyes and jumped back. What he saw scared him shitless. The creature was covered in blood and decaying flesh, but there was no question about it.


    "Jaehwan?"


    YuWon asked as the creature stood at the edge of the streetlight''s range. The creature looked like Jaehwan, yet it had clear animal-like traits, like long fangs that stuck out of its mouth, simr to a saber-toothed tiger.


    The body was covered in blood and ash, with parts of flesh rotting away and falling apart. The ghoul also had ws in ce of fingers, which once again were like that of the feline species.


    "Even in death you fucker won''t leave me alone, huh?" YuWon scoffed as he recognized the two ghouls behind Jaehwan.


    Suddenly, all three of them rushed at him. YuWon kicked the nearest ghoul in the chest. Seeing their ally fall, the two remaining ghouls immediately charged ahead, but stopped as YuWon stepped back into the light.


    "They hate the light... I could use it to my advantage."


    But that was easier said than done. He didn''t have any weapons to use, and they would not step into the light. It was a stalemate and a situation YuWon hated the more.


    He looked around and noticed a concrete block with a steel rebar sticking out of it, lying a few feet away from the ghouls. It was the only thing he could use as a weapon for now.


    Without hesitation, YuWon rushed ahead, leaving the safety of the light. The ghouls swung their ws at him as he rushed past them.


    He ducked under one swipe, barely missing the sharp ws, and then rolled out of the way as another ghoul reached to grab him. He reached the concrete block and grabbed the steel rebar sticking out of it.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Hmph!"


    [Title Effect: You killed a monster with that!? has been activated.]


    [The awakener will deal bonus damage.]


    With a grunt, he lifted the makeshift weapon and swung it with all his strength. The heavy block mmed into the side of the nearest ghoul''s head and crushed its skull, killing Jaehwan''sckey again.


    "Tsk, you''re even weaker in the afterlife," YuWon mumbled, looking at the other two. "Who''s next?"

 Chapter 64: [Bonus Chapter] Penalty Zone (2)

    YuWon panted heavily. Taking out the ghouls wasn''t all that easy, especially when his weapon was on the verge of breaking.


    There was a little concrete left on the bloodstained weapon, but otherwise, it was as good as gone. But YuWon didn''t care. His focus was on the screen before him.


    [You have unlocked an achievement!]


    [Ghoul Killer]


    [Description: Surviving in the penalty zone is no joke. But it feels like one to you.]


    [Effect: Strength +10, Endurance +10, Defense +10, Agility +10. It also increases damage dealt to humanoid monsters by 10%.]


    YuWon blinked twice to ensure his eyes weren''t ying tricks on him. Just one title increased his stats by forty points and improved his damage by 10%.


    Although he had received achievements before, this was something else. It was most likely because the penalty zone was no joke, and getting an achievement there was even harder. Danger lurked in every corner of the ce and one misstep could have dire consequences.


    Maybe I should get more achievements while I''m here.


    His eyes shifted toward the park in the distance. The ce was eerily quiet, much like the rest of the area. Since he had gone around, killing the ghouls, he knew his ticket to the world of living was inside the park.


    Within minutes, YuWon stood in front of the entrance. The park was just as rundown as the buildings surrounding it. He took a deep breath and kicked open the door.


    He expected the rusty door to make a lot of noise, but surprisingly, it didn''t. Still, he waited for another couple of minutes to make sure that he wouldn''t get ambushed as soon as he entered.


    He was sure he had killed most of the ghouls outside the park, but one could never be certain about such things. Once he had cleared his mind, he stepped inside the park.


    Suddenly, the air around him felt heavier than before. It was absurd to think of it like that, but it felt like the air was begging him to turn away and run. But YuWon had never listened to anyone, much to his dismay.


    As he looked around the park, he realized all rides were out of order. The broken swings were dangling like a pendulum. The slide was flipped upside down. Everything inside had already broken or was on the verge of breaking.


    What the hell is that...


    Till then, everything was scary but manageable. But when he saw the gruesome sight, it almost made him puke.


    The ground beneath him was drenched in blood. Bones were strewn all over the ce, and these were no ordinary bones... they were human skeletons.


    Far away, he could also see a pile of mangled corpses. As YuWon got closer, he recognized some of them. They were the corpses of people he had seen before during the tutorials and trials.


    Minho... even that bastard is here. Wait, is that...


    YuWon''s eyes widened in fear when he saw his face among the corpses. There wasn''t just one, but dozens upon dozens of them. He was seeing his own corpses there!


    "This can''t be..." YuWon mumbled, slowly walking towards the mountain of rotting corpses.


    He couldn''t believe it, but it was true. He could see his corpses there. But how could it be? He was a [Revenant], he would always respawn. Death shouldn''t have a meaning for him.


    Every time I died... Did I die for real?


    YuWon pped himself back to his senses. Maybe he was being yed with the tricks. But it didn''t matter... or so he kept telling himself.


    Although he didn''t want to admit it, he was scared shitless for the first time since all the weird crap started. For a moment, he thought of leaving. Not to run away, but to get stronger by finding and killing more ghouls.


    But then an idea hit him. Since they were his corpses, could they have his weapons, too? Right now, the rebar was no good to him and would break at any moment, so it was better to look for something else.


    After covering his nose to dispel the foul smell of rotting flesh, YuWon got to work and dragged out a corpse from it. He searched and searched, but all he found were broken weapons. Until he found the crimson de again.


    "Finally... Now I stand a chance to make it out of here... what''s that?"


    YuWon suddenly felt something wet drop on his shoulder. He absentmindedly touched whatever the fluid was.


    The transparent liquid had a gooey texture, almost like one of those stress-reducing thingies they sold online. But the stench was horrible.


    "Weird... it almost feels like," YuWon''s eyes widened as he realized what it was. "Saliva."


    He quickly tried to jump away, but the creature behind him was faster. With just a kick, YuWon got sent flying across the park, rolling and tumbling until he crashed against a tree.


    But the force was so strong that even the tree got uprooted from its ce before he stopped. Within the cloud of dust and gravel, the sound of YuWon''s painful groans echoed.


    He felt as if he was overrun by a truck as blood dripped down his head. His ears were ringing continuously and everything in front of his eyes was blurry apart from the notifications that just appeared.


    [Domain Boss: Charred Ghoul has appeared.]


    [The park has been sealed. Defeat the Charred Ghoul to secure a passage back to Earth.]


    [You''ve been affected by the Curse of the Charred.]


    [From now on, every time the Boss hits you, you''ll get one stack of ''Bleed.'']


    [Bleed Effect: Makes the target lose 1% of their maximum HP per second for the next 10 seconds. This effect can be stacked 5 times. It has a cool-down period of 5 seconds.]


    This is bad...


    Just one kick shattered him, and it would have been even worse if he didn''t raise the sword in time to block the attack.


    "Fresh... food..." the ghoul snarled as the dust settled down.


    Great! It can speak too. I felt a little lonely here since I had no one to talk to. But the system took care of that too.


    The charred ghoul was unlike any ghoul he had seen so far. It was tall, standing at eight feet even with a hunched back. Its body hadpletely mutated to a point where it had two razor-sharp des in ce of its arms.


    Its legs were also quite muscr. No wonder its kick was so strong and fast. But the thing that caught his attention the most was its dangling tongue that almost touched the ground. But it was no ordinary tongue.


    Are those teeth on his tongue?N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon looked up, hoping to see a set of eyes staring at him. But the ghoul didn''t have any eyes. Red tumors covered the ce where its eyes should''ve been. It was no ghoul, but an abomination.


    I''m about to die here, aren''t I?

 Chapter 65: [Bonus Chapter] Penalty Zone (3)

    Now, I''d have to respawn and figure this shit out.


    With that, he closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable. Just then, the traveler''s bracelet on his wrist glowed, and a notification appeared before him.


    [Conditions met: Get a negative status effect.]


    [The hidden potential of the Traveler''s Bracelet is revealed.]


    YuWon opened his eyes in shock. The next moment, a warm sensation spread through his body. All the pain in his body disappeared, and even the bleeding stopped.


    [Special Effect: Curse Negation activated!]


    [Negates any  status effect once every 10 minutes.]


    [Bleed Curse Negated.]


    "Kill... Kill... KILL!"


    The ghoul noticed YuWon healing and roared before lunging at YuWon. Thankfully, there was quite some distance between them and he rolled out of the way.


    The charred ghoul, however, couldn''t control its momentum and ended up exposing its back to YuWon. Not wasting the opportunity, YuWon swung the de to sh the creature''s bony back.


    [ achievement effect activated! Damage to humanoid monsters increased by 10%.]


    [ achievement effect activated! Awakener''s stats have increased by 20%.]


    The ghoul snarled before swiping its ws. But YuWon was nowhere to be found. But just them, YuWon dispelled the [Ether Walk] skill and stabbed the creature in the stomach.


    "RAWR!"


    The ghoul roared again, but this time in pain. It swiped its ws again, but YuWon rolled out of harm''s way.


    Is this guy stupid or what?


    YuWon had been repeating the same thing, yet the ghoul kept falling for the same trick. Duck, dodge, hit the ghoul, repeat. That''s all he did, but the charred ghoul kept falling for it.


    Even the normal ghouls he fought outside the park showed more intelligence than the so-called domain boss. But then his eyes fell back on the pile of corpses.


    If the charred ghoul was a fool, then he could have killed so many people. Even if those awakeners didn''t have a proper fighting experience, since they made it to the park, they should have been somewhat skilled.


    Something feels off.


    As he hit the ghoul again, something changed. The ghoul roared and stomped its feet on the ground, creating a shockwave that pushed YuWon away.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    [You have enraged the Charred Ghoul. The ghoul is transforming in its second form.]


    However, the ghoul still had its back towards YuWon and he wanted to use the moment to deal significant damage to the ghoul and maybe sever its head. But before he could even move, the ghoul let out a bloodcurdling scream.


    YuWon fell on his knees, covering his ears. The wailing was too loud for him to even focus on keeping his eyes open. The pain he felt was unlike anything he had ever experienced before.


    His head began throbbing in pain, but even then, he knew he was in a vulnerable position. If he didn''t move now, he could end up dead within a matter of seconds.


    YuWon didn''t believe in gods, but he found himself praying to one. Praying to make the wailing stop as blood drizzled out of his nostrils and ears. Just when he was about to copse, the wailing stopped.


    Thank god...


    YuWon was relieved for a second, only to panic the next moment. If the wailing had stopped, then the ghoul was up to something.


    He frantically opened his eyes. But the ghoul was gone. He cautiously walked up to where he hadst seen the ghoul. But all he saw was a massive hole there.


    "That is going on here," YuWon mumbled, peeking inside the hole.


    Because of the darkness, he couldn''t see anything inside the hole. Just then, a massive hand ripped through the ground beneath him, trying to grab his legs.


    YuWon jumped in time to avoid getting hit. When hended, he noticed the ghoul crawl out of the hole, but it looked different.


    Its de-shaped hands were reced by that of humans, but they were as big and muscr as its legs. It had also grown razor-shape nails. It really looked like the ghoul had crawled out of the depths of hell.


    "Just when I thought it couldn''t get any uglier," YuWon shook his head. "Alright, little freak. Let''s see what you got."


    With the de in his hands, YuWon charged at the ghoul. The ghoul let out a growl and swung its nasty-looking tongue toward him. However, YuWon slid under the whip before swinging the crimson sword to slice the tongue in half.


    As its tongue was cut in half, the ghoul screeched in pain and took a step back. For the first time sinceing to the park, YuWon could sense a tinge of fear in the ghoul, as rotten blood gushed out of its mouth.


    "Try screaming now, bitch," YuWon smirked, stomping on the severed tongue.


    The ghoul looked at its severed tongue before charging at YuWon on four limbs.


    "You''re all so predictable."


    After fighting so many gargantuan monsters, YuWon could read them like the back of his hand. Just like he predicted, the ghoul jumped over him, intending to crush him.


    But YuWon rolled to the side, before thrusting his sword into the back of the ghoul''s knee. The ghoul couldn''t react in time and fell on its knees.


    "Not so fast now, are we?" YuWon taunted.


    In its first phase, the charred ghoul had been quite agile but didn''t have many brain cells. But in its second form, it had gained some intelligence along with those chunky arms.


    However, with the excess weight of the hands, its agility had dropped considerably. The drop in agility was the reason the ghoul attacked him using his tongue, unlike when it was in its first form.


    The creature didn''t want YuWon getting anywhere near it, as it was difficult to keep him at bay. But with the tongue gone, YuWon was now feeling quite confident he could take the monster down.


    That being said, the monster wasn''tpletely helpless either. It had a monstrous amount of resilience. Even though YuWon kept attacking it, the monster showed no chance of dying.


    "Just die already, for fuck''s sake!"

 Chapter 66: True Boss Of The Penalty Zone (1)

    "Not so scary now, are you?"


    Once it was down, YuWon tried using [Soul Bind] on the creature. However, the ghoul ate the soul like a popcorn.


    "What the fuck?"


    [ skill is incapable of possessing a target that is considered .]


    ...of course, any other bullshit rule you got for me?


    Since [Soul Bind] was of no use, he rushed toward the monster and kill it the old way.


    This sudden change in YuWon''s tactic confused the ghoul, but it couldn''t move, its leg just wouldn''t allow it. However, just when YuWon got within the range of its ws, the ghoul swung both of its arms at YuWon, wanting to inflict twice the damage in one hit.


    YuWon, however, ducked before jumping up, using the ghoul''s arms as a tform and smashing its mutated face with his knee.


    The ghoul couldn''t keep his bnce anymore and fell on its back. But YuWon wasn''t done yet. He grabbed his sword with both hands and mmed it hard into the ghoul''s head. Rotten blood sshed all over YuWon as the ghoul screamed in agony.


    However, even that wasn''t enough to kill the beast for good.


    [Charred Ghoul has lost all sense of self because of the unbearable pain.]


    [The Ghoul is transforming into its ultimate form.]


    "Not again!"


    The ghoul started wailing again and YuWon quickly covered his ears before the ghoul backhanded him away from itself. Even then, he kept his eyes on the ghoul.


    He couldn''t afford to make the same mistake of closing his eyes again, no matter how much he wanted to. Who knows what would the ghoul do this time if he didn''t keep his eyes on it?


    He got lucky thest time. He might not be so lucky again. Thus, even against the cries of his body, YuWon forced his eyes open, but his vision had gone blurry.


    He wasn''t in any position to think why, but he had failed to notice that the multiple blood vessels in his eyes had popped.


    Coupled with the wound he had just received when the ghoul backhanded him, it was difficult for YuWon to watch the ghoul.


    Through his blurry vision, YuWon watched as the ghoul''s body twisted and turned in pain and agony. Soon, its body changed once again. Two bony wings ruptured through its back along with an equally obnoxious-looking tail.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Slowly, the ghoul got back to its feet. Giving YuWon a soul-draining stare, as if it was telling YuWon that his time was up.


    [Ultimate boss: Frenzied Ghoul has appeared]


    Right when YuWon thought it couldn''t get any worse, he realized his troubles had only just begun.


    [Frenzied Ghoul is using the skill ]


    [The park''s deceased inhabitants have been revived as loyal minions of the Frenzied Ghoul.]


    "...can it get any worse?"


    To YuWon''s horror, the mountain of corpses he had seen earlier came back to life. All of them, including his dead selves, were now standing between him and the weakened ghoul, like its meat shield.


    I''ve killed myself enough times. I can kill them again... but fuck, it feels weird.


    [Frenzied Ghoul''s soldiers are offering their blood to their master.]


    [The Ghoul is regenerating its lost health.]


    [Kill the minions of Frenzied Ghoul to stop it from regenerating before it''s toote!]


    [Minion ghouls killed: 0/25]


    For the first time since starting this weird quest, YuWon felt defeated. Even in his prime condition, it took him ten minutes to kill 20 ghouls. And now, with his injuries and barely any visibility, he had to deal with 25 ghouls and the boss?


    Even if he could see properly, by the time he would get rid of the minions, the frenzied ghoul would''ve healedpletely. And only God knows how overpowered it would be by then.


    Just moments ago he was waiting for the Ghoul to trigger his third form so that he could kill it. But now... he felt cheated. The ce wasn''t called the penalty zone for nothing.


    Still, how the hell was he supposed to deal with such an overpowered boss? Was there even any sense to keep fighting anymore? What should he do now? Give up?


    "Nah, fuck that," YuWon mumbled, forcing himself back to his feet. "I''ll kill it without respawning once."


    He raised his sword as the minions charged at him, waiting for the minion ghouls to get within his reach, when an unexpected notification popped in front of him.


    [You''re the first awakener to witness the ultimate form of the Charred Ghoul.]


    [Additional Exp will be provided. Exp +200%]


    [You''ve leveled up! Current level: 30]


    [Your HP has been fully restored.]


    The text''s appearance instantly healed all of his opened wounds. But more importantly... He had a chance to fight back. It wasn''t much, but it was better than nothing.


    But the surprises weren''t over yet.


    [New ss ability unlocked: Load.]


    [New Sub-ss ability unlocked: Soul Grapple.]


    [New Sub-ss ability unlocked: Death''s Embrace.]


    YuWon changed his mind about confronting the minions. He first wanted to see if there was anything useful about these skills that could help him take down the Frenzied ghoul easily.


    +++


    Load (Lvl 1): Allows the Awakener to select a respawn point to respawn at, after or before death.


    Cooldown: 20 hours


    Respawn Points Cost: 100


    +++


    No need for this. What''s next?


    +++


    Soul Grapple (Lvl 1): Simr to [Soul Bind] skill. The only difference is that the awakener uses their soul instead of a stored soul, and no one can resist this skill.


    During the duration of the skill, the awakener''s body will be vulnerable. If someone kills the body, the awakener would forever be trapped inside the target''s body.


    Cooldown: 1 day


    Mana Cost: 275


    +++


    This is somewhat useful... But I don''t know if it''ll work on undead creatures. Besides, I can''t leave my body for the minions to feast on.


    +++


    Death''s Embrace [Passive Ability]: The awakener''s attacks deal 20% bonus damage to targets with less than 40% of health. Killing a target with this skill restores 10% of the awakener''s HP.


    Cooldown: None.


    Mana Cost: 75


    +++


    None of the skills were game-changers against the boss. But they were enough for YuWon to see things through. Since the [Death''s Embrace] skill allowed him to kill the minions faster, he could deal with the boss before it recovered all of its lost health.


    Let''s do this.

 Chapter 67: True Boss Of The Penalty Zone (2)

    There was only one way to kill the boss, kill its minions first and fast. The longer YuWon took, the more healthy Frenzied Ghoul would regain.


    Having no other choice, he had discarded the idea of defending himself and hoped his body would hold against the minions.


    From a distance, it looked like a ferocious mob was beating the living hell out of a poor soul. But when you looked closely, the beating wasn''t one-sided.


    Sure, YuWon was getting hit, but he was taking them down too¡ªpretty brutally. Every time he swung his sword, he took another life.


    "I always wanted to live through a zombie apocalypse. Look at me now¡ªMotherfucker¡ª" YuWon cursed out loud while shing the minion who just bit him.


    When YuWon was fighting against the ghouls outside the park, even the biggest ghouls could only deal with minor damage to him. They never attacked YuWon head-on but always tried to outsmart him and then try to kill him.


    But they were quite weak if he got them cornered. These elite frenzied minions, however, had all the qualities they possessed during their lifetime.


    In other words, YuWon was fighting against several versions of himself from different times. Some were easy to kill, while some always had him on edge.


    That''s not the key problem though...


    His dead selves were smart enough and perfectly coordinated their attacks to deal maximum damage to YuWon. Also, they were agile and always retreated quickly after biting into YuWon''s flesh.


    They were sessful in getting away most of the time, and their bites hurt more than any other usual type of ghoul. They were like a pack of witty hyenas, and he was a lone wolf.


    Because of these reasons, he had only killed five minions when a notification shed before his eyes.


    [Frenzied Ghoul has recovered 200 HP.]


    "How much HP does it have?" YuWon cursed at the notification while shing the beasts nonstop.


    Even after absorbing a few souls before being thrown into the penalty zone, YuWon only had 703 max hp. Even that HP was gradually being reduced as the minions kept attacking him.


    [Frenzied Minion killed! Exp +1%]


    The game of death tag between him and the minions continued when another minute passed and YuWon killed 5 more minions.


    [Frenzied Ghoul has recovered 150 HP.]


    The crowd of minions was thinning, but their attacks got more vicious with every passing minute. Not only the minions were dealing more damage, but killing them was getting more and more troublesome.


    YuWon could no longer one-shot them. In the end, he abandoned the idea of using only his sword to kill them.


    He grabbed one minion by the head and mmed it on the ground so hard that its head exploded, smearing him with rotten, gooey flesh and blood.


    YuWon was continuously punching, shing, and kicking the minions, but as time passed, he began tiring out. His arms had gone heavy from all the shing and punching he had been doing.


    Now, even lifting his arms felt like a Herculean task. He could feel the pain from bites and cramps all over his body. Yet he kept going, fighting and shing until all the minions were dead.


    [You have killed all the minions.]


    [Frenzied Ghoul can''t regenerate anymore.]


    [Total HP: 1083/1083]


    [An autosave was created.]


    [Prepare for the final phase.]


    Frenzied ghoul finally moved from its spot to face YuWon. Everything about its physique remained as YuWon remembered. The only difference was that the ghoul now had eyes. Terrifying ck eyes.


    "At least it doesn''t look disgusting anymore..." YuWon mumbled, wiping the sweat off his face. "But I''d rather have it looking disgusting than terrifying."


    As the traveler''s bracelet healed him, YuWon could feel the fatigue leave his body. Yet, his gaze remained fixed on the opponent''s HP. Killing it won''t be easy. Even then, YuWon smiled and fearlessly took a step to confront the boss a final time.


    He did what he could to abuse the second chance he got. He no longer had any doubt in his mind that the ghoul was stronger than before. But so was he.


    The ghoul snarled, but since YuWon had already sliced its tongue off, it couldn''t express its desire to kill the human in front.


    Still, the Frenzied Ghoul screamed incoherently while pping its torn wings as it rushed toward YuWon. Its ws were stretched out, ready to rip him apart.


    As the ghoul''s ws shed down, YuWon ducked and raised his sword just in time to block the attack. As the two harmless slid past each other, he used his sword to steady himself, skidding to a stop.


    Then YuWon spun around and rushed to attack the ghoul''s back. But after falling for the same move so many times, the ghoul knew what to expect and pped its wings to rise over the ground.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Although the wings made of flesh were tattered and weak, they were strong enough to lift the ghoul, just out of YuWon''s reach. The creature looked down, expecting to see the human''s helpless face, but got greeted by his smile.


    "You think your wings will save you from me?" YuWon asked, cing the sword between his teeth since he couldn''t use the phantom bag.


    A momentter, YuWon pounced on the ghoul''s bone-like tail. He wrapped both of his arms around the tail and, with all his might, began pulling the ghoul back to the ground.


    At first, the ghoul wanted tough at YuWon''s foolish and desperate attempt. But it soon realized YuWon wasn''t the fool. It was, as the human began pulling him down.


    The ghoul pped its wings rapidly, trying to lift YuWon or to make him let go of its tail. But the wings were barely supporting the creature''s weight. That added to YuWon''s weight. The wings couldn''t hold and the ghoul came crashing down on the ground.


    YuWon didn''t waste any time. He had to act fast before the ghoul gathered itself. But then the ghoul''s tail shot towards him.


    The tail sprung at him like a javelin, and he didn''t have any time to defend himself, since he had foolishly run towards the ghoul.


    "Checkpoint!"


    [In the penalty zone, the use of the  skill is not permitted.]


    "Fuck!" YuWon cursed.


    Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down as blood gushed out of his mouth to see the ghoul''s tail had pierced through his chest.


    [You''ve died.]


    [Because of restrictions of the penalty zone, 500 respawn points will be deducted instead of the usual amount.]


    [The Awakener will lose 30% of their HP upon respawning.]


    Kill me already...

 Chapter 68: Victory?

    Fortunately, he wasn''t thrown back to the start, but to the beginning of thest stage.


    [The Awakener can only respawn after 5 hours.]


    [If the awakener dies before the cooldown finishes, they won''t respawn.]


    A third of my HP gone and now this? Fucking Penalty zone.


    YuWon was upset but had no time to show it. After all, the ghoul was already eyeing him. He had one chance to do it right. If he failed, then that was it.


    Goodbye cruel world. Nah, fuck that shit.


    Taking a deep breath, YuWon readied himself. But things were different this time. Instead of flying towards him, the ghoul flew upwards. Once in the air, it looked down upon YuWon and smiled.


    Don''t tell me it knows...


    As if reading his thoughts, a notification shed before his eyes.


    [The Domain boss knows everything that has happened in its domain in the past and the present]


    "Of course it does."


    The ghoul screeched and suddenly dove toward YuWon. The ws were once again stretched towards him. But at thest moment, the ghoul turned and kicked YuWon in the chest.


    YuWon had been expecting the ws to hit him and was taken aback by the sudden change. However, there was no respite for him.


    As he fell to the ground, the ghoul grabbed him by the neck. YuWon grunted in pain as the ghoul''s ws dug into his skin. But he couldn''t do much about it.


    Dust and debris shot up as the ghoul kept dragging him across the ground. The force ripped off his shirt, and the pain of being dragged even worse.


    Every bump and rock on the ground made YuWon groan in pain as he fought back. But as he struggled, the ghoul''s ws only tightened around his throat.


    "Ugh!" YuWon grunted.


    Suddenly, the ghoul lifted him, still holding him by the neck. It carried YuWon in the air for a few moments before swinging its body and hurling him back toward the ground.


    Blood shot out of his mouth as YuWon hit the ground. First, his back was bleeding and now his insides were a mess from the impact. While he was struggling to get back on his feet, the ghoul circled above, preparing for another attack.


    "Fucking... piece of... shit..."


    YuWon gritted his teeth, pushing himself up onto his feet despite the pain. He couldn''t afford to stay down, not when the ghoul could kill him at any moment.


    Everything he had depended on his [Respawn] skill to save his ass. But now that it would not happen, desperation kicked in.


    As the ghoul dived in again, YuWon''s hands tightened on the sword. The creature screeched, ready to take him for another ride. But this time, YuWon lifted the de at thest second.


    The ghoul couldn''t stop and YuWon shoved the de further towards the ghoul, cutting into its side. The creature shrieked in pain as it hit the ground.


    YuWon watched as the ghoul rolled over a few times beforeing to a stop. As the dust settled, he noticed that one of its wings had snapped. Despite that, the ghoul forced itself back on its feet.


    They were both on theirst leg. Yet, none of them were willing to back down. They both stood there, panting and staring at each other.


    Both of them wondered how the other was still alive. But none of that mattered anymore. Both of them knew that this would be thest time they''d face each other¡ªeither YuWon would fall, or the ghoul would.


    With a sudden screech, the ghoul charged. It jumped forward; the ws extended as usual. YuWon didn''t hesitate. He readied his sword. Everything he had would go into this strike.


    Just as the ghoul was about to catch his neck, YuWon ducked, swinging the de, cutting through the other side. But that wasn''t all.


    As the ghoul trailed past him, YuWon reached up and grabbed the ghoul''s tail. The creature screeched in surprise before frantically pping its only wing in a desperate attempt to pull away from him.


    But YuWon dug his feet into the ground and held on. The next moment, YuWon swung the sword with his free hand and every ounce of little strength he had left.


    The de sliced clean through the ghoul''s tail, severing itpletely. Blood sprayed into the air as the ghoul let out a high-pitched wail of pain as it stumbled and fell.


    "Try hitting me... now," YuWon panted, throwing the tail away.


    Suddenly, YuWon couldn''t take his weight and fell to one knee before leaning on his sword for support.


    "Come on... not yet... a few more... minutes..." YuWon muttered, feeling his vision turn hazy.


    He could feel his exhaustion creeping up on him. But he forced himself to stay focused. The ghoul was on itsst legs. He couldn''t copse now that victory was in his sights.


    The ghoul thought the same thing and forced itself back on its feet. But much like YuWon, the ghoul too was disoriented as it dove toward him. YuWon rolled sideways, then shed upward, cutting deep into the ghoul''s chest.


    The ghoul took a few steps before copsing beside YuWon. Its limbs twitched, showing its weakness, but YuWon didn''t take any chances and kept his eyes on the ghoul as he walked up to it.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "This is it..." YuWon mumbled, raising the de.


    With a final thrust, he drove the de into the ghoul''s neck. The creature let out a weak, pitiful sound before it finally went still. Its body slumped to the ground, lifeless.


    YuWon stood there for a moment, leaning over the sword as it absorbed the creature''s blood. But just as YuWon turned to leave the park, something caught his eye.


    A secondter, the severed tail shot towards him. YuWon tried to catch it, but it slipped past his grip and mmed into his shoulder.


    "Ugh!" YuWon grunted as he stumbled backward.


    The force of the tail sent him crashing on top of the fallen ghoul. After everything, YuWon couldn''t move any longer. He could feel the blood draining from his body as his vision blurred.


    He tried to pull the tail out, but he didn''t have the strength. As hey over the ghoul''s corpse, something green appeared before him.


    "Gi...na..."


    YuWon barely touched whatever was before him as his vision went dark.

 Chapter 69: Love Has No Bounds: Dryad Edition

    But now... everything was different. The park, which had been covered in gore and filth, no longer existed. He was still there, but the only difference was the trees and flowers everywhere.


    The chirping of birds and the fresh air took him back. YuWon ran his hand through the grass beneath him, realizing he was lying on a flower bed.


    "What''s going on here?"


    As he remembered more details about his fight, his hand moved toward the shoulder where the ghoul''s tail had hit him. The wound had long since been healed and only a faint scar remained.


    How is this possible¡ª?


    YuWon thought, but stopped upon noticing something else. He had an overgrown beard, thick, but it wasn''t unkempt. Even his hair felt as if someone had recently washed it. But his focus was on the beard. How long had he been unconscious for it to grow so much?


    Just then, the rustling of the leaves caught his attention, and he jumped up, curling his fists for a fight.


    "Please, savior of the forest," a soft feminine voice echoed through the ce. "I wish you no harm. If I had any ill will for you, you would never wake in the living''s world."


    Suddenly, a figure stepped out of the trees. It was a woman, but she didn''t look like any woman YuWon had ever seen. She was dressed in a gown made entirely of leaves and flowers.


    The woman''s waist-long ck hair was decorated with gands, and her skin was as white as snow, glowing in the sunlight. She looked like something out of a dream and the realization made YuWon pinch himself.


    The woman chuckled and offered him her hand to see if she was real. But YuWon didn''t want to, fearing his touch would ruin her delicate appearance.


    "What¡ªI mean... who are you?" he asked.


    "I am called Lysandra, a forest dryad," Lysandra replied. "The protector and nurturer of this forest. And you are my savior."


    YuWon raised an eyebrow, confused. How was he her savior when they were meeting for the first time? Lysandra noticed YuWon''s gaze and smiled.


    She continued, "You are my savior, as you freed me from that curse."


    "What are you talking about?"


    "The ghoul you fought... that was me. I was cursed after failing a quest long ago and trapped in this penalty zone." Lysandra replied. "Over time, the curse twisted me into that creature, and I lost myself."


    Lysandra suddenly kneeled before him and looked at YuWon with the eyes of a devoted to their god. YuWon, ufortable with the disy, tried to pull her back up, but she didn''t budge. After a moment to gather herself, she continued.


    "But when you defeated the ghoul, you broke the curse that bound me, and I was freed."


    "How... is that even possible?" YuWon shook his head. "I''m sure I killed that thing¡ª"


    "But you didn''t receive any reward, did you, Savior?"


    YuWon blinked, surprised. It was true he had received no rewards for killing the frenzied ghoul. Even the rewards he received for killing the other ghouls and minions were negligible.


    "This is too confusing," YuWon said, shaking his head.


    "You didn''t receive a reward because what you killed wasn''t a veritable monster," Lysandra exined. "The system doesn''t reward you for killing a cursed creature. But it wouldn''t ignore your aplishments, either."


    After saying so, Lysandra waved her hand, and a notification appeared before YuWon.


    [You''re the first to clear a Penalty Zone. Please ept the following reward.]


    [Mythical Store Ticket x1]


    Just then, the said ticket appeared in his hand. The moment he touched it, the Overseer''s pendant told him about it.


    [Item: Store Ticket]


    [Grade: Mythical]


    [Use: Can be used at any store to draw a mythical reward of the awakener''s choice.]


    YuWon''s eyes widened. It was a great, but befitting reward. It wouldn''t have been that great of a reward, but the option to select a mythical weapon of choice was overkill.


    Finally... I might have a way to deal with Anna. That fucking regressor bitch.


    Suddenly Lysandra''s voice interrupted his thoughts.


    "There''s another reward for you, savior," she said, still kneeling in front of him. "ording to the system''s terms, since you have freed me from the curse... I am now yours, in body and soul."


    "Woah, woah, woah, hold up a moment! I didn''t sign up for this shit!" YuWon vehemently shook his head. "Besides, I already have a wife. If she saw me with someone else, she''d have my head and probably yours too!"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    YuWon''s words did not bother Lysandra at all. In fact, when he mentioned a wife, her smile widened.


    "There''s nothing either of us can do about it, Savior," she said, raising her head. "As for your wife, you can keep her. I don''t mind."


    "...but she does!"


    "She might be your wife, savior. But I am bonded to your soul. I''m your soulmate. It''s a bond that goes beyond any mortal rtionship you could have with anyone else."


    "You don''t get it..." YuWon sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Soulmate or not, she will kill both of us¡ª"


    "I understand that this maye as a shock to you, but these are the system''s rules," Lysandra replied, holding onto his hand. "I am bound to you. There''s nothing anyone can do about it."


    Before YuWon could object again, a series of familiar notifications shed before his eyes.


    [Achievement Unlocked!]


    [Love has no bounds: Dryad edition.]


    [Description: Form a romantic rtionship with a Dryad.]


    [Effect: Being around nature would slowly heal the Awakener of all wounds and curses. Creatures with a close rtionship to nature won''t show any hostility towards the Awakener.]


    ...I never had a choice, did I?


    As YuWon sighed in defeat, another thought crossed his mind.


    "Wait¡­ how long have I been unconscious?"


    Lysandra met his gaze with a hint of sadness and replied, "Two months."


    "That''s not long¡ª" YuWon sighed, thinking he could still catch up to the regressor, but Lysandra spoiled his ns.


    "Time flows differently in the penalty zone," she continued. "It has been two months here. But an entire year has passed in the real world."

 Chapter 70: Despair (1)

    "A year?" YuWon mumbled in surprise.


    "Yes. I kept you in a deep sleep to speed up your healing." Lysandra nodded. "But time outside continued to move forward."


    Hundreds of questions erupted in his mind altogether. He had been missing for an entire year? What happened to Gina and Yeji? What happened to the regressor? What was going on in the world?


    He clenched his fists. Everything he had nned had been rendered useless by Anna. He couldn''t even imagine what the regressor would have done to Gina and Yeji.


    Since she knew about my ss, she''d definitely know about Gina''s true identity. Fuck! I can''t even think straight.


    "I need to get out of here. I have to find out what''s happening in the real world." YuWon informed Lysandra, hoping she could help him.


    Lysandra stood up slowly, her eyes never leaving YuWon.


    "If the savior wants to know what happened, then I can help you," she said and closed her eyes.


    A momentter, the ground in front of YuWon rippled like water. Slowly, the ground split open and a mirror surrounded by leaves and tree roots appeared out of the crack.


    "Look into the mirror," Lysandra informed YuWon.


    YuWon nodded and peered into the mirror. For a moment, he could only see his reflection, but then the scenery changed and he could see the aftermath once he fell off the train.


    Inside the train, Gina was furious and lunged at Anna. But no matter what she did, Anna dodged her every attack, moving like she had already seen it all before.


    "You really think you can beat me?" Anna sneered as she struck back.


    Using YuWon''s sword, Anna hit Gina with the hilt. Clutching the back of her head, Gina copsed, but Anna was already on her and stabbed Gina in the shoulder.


    "You took him away from mest time," Anna snarled, pulling Gina''s hair back. "So this time, no one will have him. Not me, not you, and especially that angel bitch."N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Anna wasted no time to deal with Gina while she was down. She reached into her phantom bag and pulled out a ve cor. She was about to put the cor on Gina when Yeji shoved her and the cor slipped out of her hand.


    Yeji tried reaching out for the cor, but Anna backhanded her. Yeji tried to fight back, but if Gina couldn''t do anything to Anna, how could she? With a kick to the chest, Yeji was left gasping for air.


    Before Yeji could get up, Anna took the cor and ced it around Gina''s neck. The cor glowed for a moment before turning into a brand of envement and her owner was Anna.


    After that, Anna turned to Yeji and sneered, "Try anything, and I''ll kill her. That''s not what your dear brother would want, right?"


    Yeji knew what Anna meant. Absolute submission. Anna was every bit of evil Yeji could think about, and she didn''t want to test Anna. Not when she had Gina under her control.


    "Fine," Yeji whispered, tears welling in her eyes. "I''ll do whatever you say. Just don''t hurt her."


    Anna smiled. Since YuWon had already ced a cor on Yeji, she couldn''t enve her, but with Gina as her puppet, Anna didn''t need to. Gina had turned into the cor to keep Yeji in control and exploit her abilities.


    That was all Lysandra could show him. As the scene faded from the mirror, YuWon couldn''t control his anger anymore and punched the mirror with all his strength.


    The ss shattered and flew everywhere, piercing YuWon''s skin. But thanks to his achievement of being Lysandra''s soulmate, the wounds got healed instantly. However, the wound in his heart remained.


    "What about Yuna?" YuWon asked, after calming down a bit.


    "The girl... jumped after you."


    "... probably because of her quest or something."


    Although YuWon said that, he still couldn''t believe Yuna would do something so reckless. She was most likely dead, so there was no point in wondering about her.


    However, when the sight of Anna turning Gina into her ve shed before his mind, the anger returned, along with the feeling of helplessness.


    Lysandra stepped forward, holding his hand between hers.


    "I know this is difficult, but you mustn''t lose hope," she said. "Since you''ve cleared the penalty zone, you can rejoin the trials. You can face her again and take your revenge."


    "Revenge... yeah," he mumbled. "That''s easier said than done."


    He was fighting a regressor. Merely killing Anna won''t solve his problems. After all, for people like them, death had little meaning.


    If he killed her, she would go back in time and fix her mistakes. She''de back stronger. He can''t let that happen, but how could he stop that bitch for good?


    He needed something else¡ªsome way to stop her from resetting the timeline, or better yet, a way to break her cycle of regression.


    As he thought that, his eyes shifted to the ticket in his hands. A couple of momentster, a smile appeared on his face.


    Any mythical reward that I want...


    As he repeated the words in his head, he turned towards Lysandra. Since they were soulmates, she won''t turn him away. No matter how ridiculous his demand was.


    "Lysandra," YuWon said. "Can you take me back to the real world?"


    "I can help you," she nodded. "But... I must warn you, savior. The world you wake up to may differ greatly from the one you left behind. A year is a long time for the apocalypse to take hold."


    "It''s fine," he said. "I don''t n on staying in this timeline for long. Just take me out of here."


    "As you wish..." Lysandra nodded and, with a wave of her hand, opened a portal for him. "This will take you to your desired location."


    "Thank you. I''ll return for you¡ª"


    "No need, savior," Lysandra smiled. "I aming with you."


    YuWon didn''t bother arguing. The more allies there were, the easier it would be to deal with Anna. But one thing had been pestering him.


    He didn''t know what he did for Anna to loathe him and everyone associated with him. But frankly, he didn''t care. Anna crossed the line when she sent him to his death.


    And putting that cor on Gina... She''ll pay for doing that. Besides, she wanted me, now she can have my undivided attention.

 Chapter 71: [Bonus Chapter] Despair (2)

    They were the best of the best. People she had carefully selected and trained.


    YuWon had a keen eye for talent.


    During her first life, she had left recruiting members to YuWon. Anna had gone around recruiting the same people he had.


    No matter how much she hated him for what he did, Anna had to admit that YuWon had an eye for talent. It was one thing they bonded over in the past and got too close.


    As Anna closed her eyes, she remembered his smile when he taught her to speak Korean. Or the little pranks he pulled on her.


    But those times were gone.


    If only he had cared about the world more than this bitch.


    Angered by YuWon''s image in her head, Anna yanked the chain. Gina was at the end of that chain, being dragged like a dog.


    Her eyes, once bright with love and determination, were now empty. Scars and injuries from the battles and punishments over thest year covered her once delicate skin.


    Beside her was Yeji, but she too looked nothing like the person she had been. Her eyes were dull.


    At first, she had tried to fight back, holding on to the hope that YuWon coulde and save them.


    But every time she went against Anna, she would remind her of the cor around Gina''s neck and that would deal with her rebellious nature.


    YuWon was gone. He had disappeared that fateful day and there had been no sign of him for an entire year. That was the bitter truth.


    "Alright everyone," Anna announced. "Take positions. Just like we practiced."


    As she said that, other portals opened, and people came spilling out into the arena one by one. All of them were the leaders on the trial boards. People who had cemented their ce in the apocalypse.


    It''s a shame most of them will die here.


    Anna''s lips twisted into a smirk. These fools didn''t stand a chance against the enemy they were about to face.


    She was certain of her victory. After all, she had been through the same thing over a dozen times. Each time she incurred some losses, but she always came on the top.


    But then she noticed something. Her smile faded as she counted the portals again. Eight groups should''ve been here for the trial. But there were nine portals.


    In all her regressions, there had never been nine portals in the 21st trial. She had a feeling something that wasn''t supposed to happen would happen there.


    After all the trouble I went through to get rid of YuWon... No. I can''t afford for anything to go wrong.


    Meanwhile, Yeji nced at Anna. The sudden change in Anna''s demeanor did not go unnoticed by her. But she remained silent, knowing better than to speak. As for Gina, she was on the ground and didn''t even look up.


    "I must be imagining things," Anna shook her head.


    She didn''t have time to dwell on this. She had a trial to win, and whatever this ninth portal meant, she would deal with itter. Despite her thoughts, she remained fixated on thest portal.


    But to her shock, no one appeared out of the portal and it copsed in on itself. A secondter, another portal appeared from above and a massive, three-headed dragon emerged out of it.


    It was their trial. They had to defeat the three-headed monstrosity called Tiamat. However, only Anna knew about the dragon and had trained her people as such.


    The dragon wasted no time inunching its attack, fire spewing from one of its heads while another head snapped its jaws at the nearest group. All the while, the third head watched in amusement.


    "Everyone, spread out!" Anna ordered.


    Her team moved immediately before charging at the dragon with their weapons drawn. The other groups, too, began their assault, but it was clear from the start that this fight would not be easy.


    Tiamat wasn''t just any dragon, but the queen of dragons. Its attacks were brutal and relentless. Even the strongest of the fighters were struggling to hold their ground.


    Meanwhile, Yeji was working overtime as she healed the wounded with no rest. Even though she was a priestess, once the bodies piled up around her, she could barely keep up.


    "Come on, we need to focus!" Anna shouted.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    She was fighting fiercely. In fact, she was the only one able to fend off the dragon''s attack thanks to the crimson de. Arrows flew, and magesunched spells at the beast, but its thick scales deflected everything.


    "Focus on its legs!" Annamanded.


    As the awakeners rushed in, Tiamat swung its tail, knocking soldiers aside like rag dolls. Another head let out a gust of freezing wind, immobilizing them, before breaking them into pieces.


    "No!" Anna growled.


    She rushed ahead, closing the distance between her and the dragon. With a powerful swing, she cut deep into the tendon, causing the beast to stumble.


    Enraged, Tiamat opened its third mouth to st them with poison. But as it did, Anna gave the signal, and the head was bombarded with hundreds of Molotovs. A momentter, there was an explosion, and the head was blown into pieces by them.


    Since Tiamat''s poison mainlyprised methane, even a little spark could cause an explosion. That was the reason the dragon never used fire and poison breath together.


    Once the central head got blown away, everyone roared and charged with renewed vigor. It only took another hour to get the second head.


    YuWon''s tricks always work. Too bad he turned his back on humans for a mere goblin.


    "Come on, people! Onest push!" Anna yelled, rallying the troops.


    Little did she know, someone was observing her. Trying to find the right moment to throw her into despair.

 Chapter 72: [Bonus Chapter] Despair (3)

    Just when Anna thought they had it, a sudden sh of light blinded everyone for a second. By the time they recovered from the sh, the dragon''sst head was severed. The beast''s body crashed to the ground, and the battlefield fell silent.


    "W-Who did this!?" Anna yelled, but no one stepped forward.


    Anna''s rage didn''t subside as she looked around. The dragon had been nearly dead, but she had already told her team to let her get the kill. Then who dared to steal her kill?


    Damn it!


    The one who killed the dragon would receive plenty of rewards. The dragon''s core was especially important for the uing trials. But now she had lost everything.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Come out, damn it!" she yelled, losing her grip.


    But to her annoyance, no one did. All of them looked just as confused as she was, ncing around as if looking for the culprit. Anna gritted her teeth, her hand clenching into a fist.


    "Who did it?" she growled under her breath. "I''m asking for thest time!"


    She waited for a minute for someone to step forward. But no one did.


    "Fine, have it your way!"


    Anna opened the rewards tab and searched for the name of the person who had stolen her kill. But she saw it. Her haughty demeanor disappeared in an instant.


    Kang YuWon...


    All the color drained from Anna''s face.


    "No... that''s impossible," she whispered.


    She felt her chest tighten as the name sank in. Kang YuWon couldn''t possibly be there. No one could make their way back from the penalty zone. The angel had confirmed it herself. Then how was YuWon''s name on the list?


    "This must be your doing!?" Anna snarled, pointing at Yeji. "You dare y mind games with me? You dare test me, bitch!?"


    "I-I don''t know what you''re talking about¡ª"


    Yeji pleaded, but Anna wasn''t hearing a thing. Her grip on Gina''s chain tightened so hard that her knuckles turned white. Gina whimpered quietly but didn''t resist, wearing the worst.


    Even though Anna said it had to be Yeji''s doing, she knew following the system wasn''t possible.


    Anna''s heart raced as she tried to make sense of what was happening. How was he here? How had hee back? It didn''t make any sense. None of this had ever happened in any of her regressions.


    Her anger quickly turned to fear. If YuWon was back, everything was at risk. He was the one thing she hadn''t ounted for, the one person who could ruin everything for her.


    "YuWon¡­" she mumbled. "Show yourself!"


    For a moment, there was silence.


    Then, out of nowhere, Anna gasped and jerked forward as pain shot through her back. Her teammates were equally shocked as she fell to her knees, gasping for breath.


    "Careful what you wish for," YuWon smirked as his invisibility dissipated. "You might not like it when ites true."


    Anna turned her head slightly to see YuWon standing behind her. His hair had grown long, and he sported a beard, but there was no mistaking it. It was him.


    "You..." Anna mumbled, but YuWon wasn''t paying any attention to her.


    He was looking at Gina and Yeji. The sight of them broke something deep inside him. Meanwhile, Yeji''s eyes widened in disbelief.


    She blinked and pped herself, thinking it was a hallucination. But it was no dream or hallucination. Her brother was there, right before her eyes.


    "It''s really... you?" Yeji asked as tears welled up in her eyes.


    Before she could hold back, tears poured down her cheeks like a dam had burst. She covered her mouth with her hands, sobbing uncontrobly as thousands of emotions overwhelmed her.


    All the grief, the guilt, the hope she had buried for so long came rushing out in that moment.


    "You did well... sis," YuWon smiled, finally letting go of all the anger he had towards her. "Just hold on for a little longer. It''ll be over soon."


    But Gina¡­ she was different. She stared at YuWon as if her mind couldn''t register what her eyes were seeing. Anna had tortured her to the point of no return, unable to distinguish between reality and dream.


    YuWon couldn''t bear the sight of her. He had returned for them, but it was toote.


    Anna saw YuWon''s helpless expression andughed. "Haha! Do you feel that helplessness, YuWon? That''s what I felt when you turned your back¡ª"


    Anna was in the middle of speaking, but YuWon backhanded her. His face turned dark and anger surged in him like never before. Without a word, the souls he had stored left one after another.


    It shouldn''t have been possible. He should only be able to release one soul at a time, but something had broken inside of him and so did his abilities.


    [Warning!]


    [Warning!]


    [Warning!]


    The system kept warning YuWon to recall the souls. But he didn''t give a rat''s ass about it.


    The souls targeted the survivors, turning them mad. Some tried to resist, but most couldn''t, and in an instant, Anna''s carefully assembled army turned against each other.


    Anna, still kneeling on the ground, looked around in horror. She raised her hand, trying to use some ability. But the next moment, a sharp pain shot through her body and she copsed back on the ground.


    A crimson screen shed before her eyes.


    [The awakener has been impaled by ]


    [All inherent abilities have been sealed permanently.]


    [y the dagger''s owner to revoke the weapon''s effect.]


    Anna couldn''t believe it. All her abilities were gone. It meant she couldn''t even ess her regression ability. No matter what happened now, she couldn''t turn back time.


    If she didn''t kill YuWon, this was it. She''d lose everything. But she didn''t understand one thing.


    "How... did you get your hands on it?" Anna snarled, staring daggers at YuWon. "Mythical artifacts shouldn''t... exist in this world. Not yet."


    YuWon squatted down to her level and grabbed her hair before pulling her head back. Anna''s enraged and confused eyes made him chuckle. She realized what a terrible position she was in and yet she wanted to act all high and mighty.


    "I''d have to thank you for that," YuWon pped her, drawing blood. "That''s all you''ll ever know."


    "You bastard¡ª"


    Smack!


    "You wanted to make me feel helpless? Push me into despair?" YuWonughed. "And here I thought you knew me. Tsk, tsk, tsk. To think I ever had anything to do with you. Just the thought makes me sick."


    With that, he shoved her to the ground before pulling her head up by the hair and forcing her to watch herrades kill each other.


    "I''ll show you what true despair feels like."

 Chapter 73: Soul Grapple (1)

    "Nuh-uh," YuWon shook his finger before her eyes. "You don''t get to move."


    Anna growled, wanting to force YuWon off herself. She had a year to be stronger than him. Her stats alone were enough to overwhelm him, and soon it happened.


    Even though YuWon put all his weight on her back, Anna pushed herself off the ground, ready to fight.


    But before she couldpletely overpower him, she felt something wrap around her waist and pull her back to the ground. Anna looked down, and it was a vine. She was confused, but a calm voice interrupted her.


    "Savior," Lysandra spoke. "Leave her to me. You can leave to gather the souls you need."


    "Thank you," YuWon said, stepping off Anna''s back.


    "You bastard¡ª" Anna yelled, trying to chase after him.


    "No, you won''t," Lysandra smiled and waved her hand around.


    In an instant, thick vines broke through the ground and wrapped themselves tightly around Anna''s limbs and torso. The more she struggled, the tighter the vines got until she couldn''t move an inch.


    "Let go!" Anna hissed.


    "We both know that''s not happening," Lysandra replied, summoning a chair to sit and enjoy the show.


    Anna was helpless and yelled variousmands at her team. But her subss of amander was nothingpared to the control YuWon''s souls had on her people.


    Meanwhile, YuWon went about collecting as many souls as he could. He already had the dragon''s soul. But if he wanted to make good use of it, he required more souls.


    In a desperate move, Anna turned to Gina and smirked.


    "Gina! Kill him! Now!"


    YuWon''s eyes darted back to Anna, and Lysandra quickly covered her mouth. But it was toote. The master issued themand and the ve would have to obey it.


    "Kill... YuWon?" Gina mumbled.


    For the first time, her eyes showed some sign of life. She finally realized YuWon was there. But the moment was short-lived as her body jerked violently.


    The cor sensed her unwillingness to attack YuWon and shocked her. Gina screamed in pain as tears streamed down her face. But despite it all, she remained steadfast, unwilling to fight YuWon.


    But her struggles made the shocks worse. The cor was pushing her to obey. YuWon watched her and his heart shattered into a million pieces. The despair he wanted Anna to feel had returned to haunt him.


    "Yu...Won..." Gina mumbled, taking a step towards him.


    Even though she was being tormented, she kept smiling. How could she not when her love had returned to her? She was happy and at peace.


    YuWon''s grip tightened around his sword. He knew what he had to do because it was the only way to end her misery.


    Even if he knocked her out, the cor would keep electrocuting her. Eventually, the cor would force her to fight until herst breath. As such, there was only one way to end her suffering.


    "Forgive me..." YuWon whispered.


    As Gina stumbled towards him, YuWon shoved the de towards her. The de pierced her chest, and for a moment, Gina''s eyes widened in shock. Then, her body went limp, and she copsed into YuWon''s arms.


    YuWon gently lowered her to the ground, holding her close. YuWon''s vision blurred with tears as Gina touched his face. She smiled at him as if she had achieved everything she wanted in life.


    "I-I''m d... I met you," she smiled ast time and closed her eyes.


    The hand caressing his face fell. Gina was gone. For a long moment, he just sat there, holding her lifeless body. A stray tear fell on her face as he kissed her forehead.


    "I''ll see you soon."


    YuWon gentlyid Gina''s body down on the ground and stood up. There was still more to do, especially with some of Anna''s subordinates rushing at him. They were desperate to take him down at his weakest moment.


    However, they didn''t realize one thing. Gina''s soul was thest soul he needed. Suddenly, his eyes glowed as he summoned one of Tiamat''s skills and a stream of hellfire gushed from his body.


    The next moment, mes engulfed everything. The smell of burning flesh and screams filled the air. By the time YuWon stopped, everything was burned to a crisp, and not even their bones remained.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    A few people remained on the other side of the arena. But even they were being ughtered by YuWon''s controlled puppets.


    Anna could only watch in horror as everything she had spent thest year building was gone in an instant. The people, her ns, all of it was gone.


    However, it wasn''t until YuWon turned that she felt genuine fear in all of her regressions. He walked up to her, each step causing Anna''s heart to burst with rage, fear, and despair.


    Without saying a word, YuWon grabbed her by the hair and yanked her head back, forcing her to look at the charred ground where once her people stood and fought beside her.


    He wanted to say something, but using a dragon''s skill from a human body had its effect. YuWon''s throat had turned to toast. He coughed, trying to say something, but couldn''t.


    Just then Yeji ran towards him and ced a hand on his neck. Within a few minutes, she had healed his throat and YuWon quickly thanked her before turning back to Anna.


    "I wondered what the difference was between a regressor and a respawner," he mumbled. "Then I realized I don''t lose my skills or stats when I die. Unlike you, who has to start over again, every single time."


    YuWon leaned forward and continued, "That''s why, no matter what you do, I''ll alwayse out on top to kick your ass."


    Anna couldn''t speak with the vines in her mouth, but her gaze remained as defiant as ever. If she was going to die, she would die with no fear.


    "As stubborn as ever..." YuWon shook his head, cing his hand on her head. "It''s alright. I got a remedy for that."


    [Skill: Soul Grapple has been activated.]

 Chapter 74: Soul Grapple (2)

    The dryad then removed her vines, letting Anna free. YuWon was now in control of her body. It was a strange feeling, being inside someone else''s body. But overall, he could control her body like his own.


    [Soul Grapple sessful.]


    [The Awakener will return to their body in 5 minutes.]


    "Five minutes is more than enough," YuWon mumbled in Anna''s voice. "Protect my body. I''ll be back in five minutes."


    "As you wish, Savior." Lysandra bowed and gently covered YuWon''s body in a cacoon of vines.


    Once in control, YuWon threw a couple of punches, getting used to Anna''s superior stats.


    "No wonder you were so confident," YuWon said, looking at her stats. "Too bad all of it will go to waste."


    "Please don''t do this..." Anna''s voice echoed in his mind. "If you have a problem, then kill me¡ª"


    "You should have thought about it before the things you did. Besides, I used so many souls. I need to recover my losses, don''t I?"


    YuWon cut her off and picked up both crimson des, one that Anna used and the other that he had brought from the penalty zone. With two des, he would be more efficient at dispatching the bastards.


    Without hesitation, YuWon walked toward the allies. They were overjoyed to see her return and YuWon''s corpse lying on the side. Little did they know how wrong they were.


    They thought Anna was there to help them subdue the people suddenly attacking them. But the de came crashing down, killing one of hermanders who hade to update her on the situation.


    They didn''t even have the time to react before several heads rolled down to earth. Their bodies fell, their blood mixing to form a pool of blood.


    "No! Stop this! I''ll do anything, just don''t kill them!" Anna begged.


    However, no one could listen to her. The one who could hear her was the one responsible for her misery. One after another, her closest allies fell at her hand, believing she was the one who had betrayed them.


    Anna made him kill Gina, so it was only fair she got a taste of what it felt like. Since she took everything from him, it was her turn to lose everything she cared about.


    ***


    YuWon, still inside Anna''s body, stood on the blood-soaked battlefield. Dead bodies of Anna''s allies were scattered everywhere. Blood dripped from the swords, adding to the pool of blood underneath her feet.


    "Got nothing to say?" YuWon asked, but once again, there was no reply.


    It had been a while since Anna stopped begging him. It was strange. He thought his actions would trigger Anna to fight back harder. But that wasn''t the case.


    So boring...


    YuWon sighed and walked back to his body. Lysandra and Yeji were waiting for him there. As he arrived there, Lysandra didn''t waste any time wrapping Anna up in vines.


    A momentter, YuWon''s soul returned to his body. His head throbbed in pain, probably because it would take him some getting used to the skill. But otherwise, he waspletely fine.


    Eventually, his eyes shifted to Anna, expecting her to throw a tantrum. However, her once fierce eyes were empty. She had the same expressionless face Gina had when YuWon first saw her.


    "Anyst wishes?" YuWon asked, raising his sword.


    Anna stared back at him. She opened her mouth to say something before she shook her head. With the dagger sealing her abilities, there wasn''t much she couldn''t fight back either way.


    "I thought so."


    With no hesitation, YuWon brought the sword down on her, severing Anna''s head from the rest of her body.


    Just like that, it was over. Anna, the regressor, would never return to haunt him.


    He thought killing her would bring him peace. But that didn''t happen. Gina was gone, and the world had turned to shit. There was nothing left to do for him.


    Lysandra, sensing the turmoil in his heart, walked up and ced a hand on his shoulder.


    "Do what you have to, savior," she said. "I''ll be waiting for you."


    But YuWon didn''t say or so anything. He just ced the swords in his phantom bag before looking at the sky above.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    There''s still much left to do.


    [Skill: Load has been activated.]


    [Please select a checkpoint to respawn at.]


    [-> Penalty Zone: Autosave.]


    [-> Gangnam Station: Autosave.]


    [-> njas Worm Pit: Autosave.]


    Gangnam Station.


    As YuWon selected the saved location, everything went dark before him. Unlike using [Respawn], the [Load] skill was different. Respawning was a quick process, but loading felt like he was being teleported to somewhere at an astonishing speed.


    Through the void, a voice called out to him. YuWon knew it was Gina''s voice and when he opened his eyes, she was the first one he saw.


    "Gina¡­" YuWon choked up.


    She was alive and standing right in front of him. There were no scars on her body, no soulless eyes. She was his Gina. Without thinking about anything, he pulled her into his arms.


    Gina let out a surprised gasp as he hugged her tightly, burying his face in her shoulder.


    "Husband... what''s wrong?" Gina asked, but YuWon didn''t say a word.


    He just kept holding her tightly, as if she would disappear if he let her go. Gina wasn''t the only one confused. Yuna and Yeji too looked at each other, confused.


    Anna, standing further away, was more surprised than any of them. She remembered the scene of YuWon first meeting her. But never in her regressions had she seen him act so affectionately towards Gina.


    Something felt off about it, and the look YuWon gave her confirmed her fears.


    He knows!


    However, before Anna could act, the sudden rumbling of the ground alerted everyone. A momentter, the ogres appeared again. People were taken aback, but after everything YuWon had been through, the ogres seemed nothing more than insects to him.

 Chapter 75: Together In Another Life

    "Don''t worry about them," YuWon smirked and charged towards the monsters.


    Everyone followed suit, preparing to fend off the ogres. However, just then, YuWon turned to the side and swung the sword. But he wasn''t aiming for the ogres.


    "Argh!"


    One of Anna''s teammates let out a cry of pain as his hand got severed. He was the one who had held Gina back while YuWon struggled to get on the train. Since his hands touched her, it was only right that he lost it.


    Everyone thought they had to work together to stand a chance against the ogres. But YuWon? He didn''t care. The ogres weren''t his target. Anna''s team was.


    "What the hell are you doing?!" Anna shouted in Korean.


    "Do I have to tell you the reason?" YuWon retorted.


    The look YuWon gave Anna confirmed her fears. YuWon had respawned, somehow, and now he knew about her and her n to trap him in the penalty zone.


    "Stop him! Don''t let him get close!" Anna yelled, pointing at YuWon.


    If YuWon knew about her regression, he would stop at nothing to end her. She had to act fast and regress.


    However, before she could regress, a dagger hit her square in the chest. Anna stumbled backward and noticed [Medusa''s Fang] buried in her chest. The de would never kill its target, but it would seal their abilities, and that was a death sentence in itself.


    Upon noticing the de, Anna wondered how much ahead in time YuWon had gone to get a mythical weapon. Just then, one of her subordinates rushed towards her.


    "I''ll pull it out¡ª"


    "No!" Anna pushed her back. "If you pull it out, I''ll die."


    "What?"


    Her subordinate appeared confused, but Anna wasn''t lying. If anyone pulled out the dagger, the rebounding curse would kill her. Once someone got bitten by [Medusa''s Fang], there were only two ways to negate the curse.


    First, they would need to kill the fang''s owner, and second, if the owner removed the dagger themselves. Anna didn''t see any way for thetter to happen, leaving them with the choice to kill YuWon.


    But even that won''t work.


    Anna bit her lips in frustration. Even if they killed YuWon, he would just respawn and do it all over. It was a lose-lose situation. She scanned her memories, hoping to remember something that would help her in this situation.


    If only I could get my hands on that Goblin...


    Gina was YuWon''s lifeline. As long as they captured her, they could force YuWon to pull the dagger out. Then Anna could have him to use the dagger on himself and kill him.


    Unfortunately, they didn''t have the time to do either of those things. Anna''s team wasn''t strong enough to fight on two fronts simultaneously. On one side, YuWon was attacking them, and on the other were the ogres.


    But unlike the ogres, YuWon wasn''t in a hurry. He was methodical, taking his time as he dismantled Anna''s team piece by piece.


    "Fuck!" Anna cursed loudly.


    Anna knew her teammates couldn''t stop YuWon. He was stronger than them and, by the looks of it, also had memories of the future. That was enough for Anna to know YuWon was unbeatable in their situation.


    "We can''t hold him!" one of her teammates yelled.


    Meanwhile, YuWon incapacitated another one of Anna''s teammates. Even then, his cold eyes were focused on her, like a predator closing in on its prey. Now only one person remained between YuWon and Anna.


    But instead of defending Anna, the girl tried to run away. However, YuWon wasn''t in the mood to spare anyone. As the girl ran past him, he grabbed her hair, yanking her back.


    "Where do you think you''re going?" he snarled, his eyes never leaving Anna.


    The girl mumbled something in English, but YuWon couldn''t understand her, and neither did he try. He casually tossed the girl towards the ogres, who turned the girl into minced meat.


    Anna clutched her chest. In all her regressions, YuWon hadn''t been so cruel, not so open at least.


    I pushed him too far...


    Anna shook her head before picking up her teammate''s spear and charged at YuWon. She had lost, but she wasn''t going down so easily... at least that''s what she thought.


    As she rushed towards him, YuWon ducked and swung both his des. A momentter, Anna fell on her face... her legs severed. But instead of crying out in pain, Annaughed. It was a bitter, painfulugh.


    "You''re still the same... YuWon," Annaughed, wiping away her tears. "Doing anything for the ones you love and going just as far for revenge."


    "I don''t know what kind of person I was," YuWon replied. "But the one before you is nothing like the one you loved... if you ever did."


    Anna''s face changed as soon as she heard YuWon''s words. The hysteria was reced by anger and she sat back up.


    "If I ever did!?" she yelled. "Do you have any idea how much we have gone through together? You were the only one I ever loved¡ª"


    "You got a funny way of showing it."


    YuWon scoffed, and Anna dropped her head and sobbed. For once, YuWon realized she wasn''t pretending anymore. Everything she said was the truth.


    But even then, he couldn''t help but wonder why she would try to kill him if she loved him so much.


    "I didn''t have a choice..." Anna continued and fell back.


    She had lost too much blood and was struggling. But even then, she couldn''t leave without clearing her conscience and having thatst conversation with YuWon that she never had.


    "That angel bitch... she gave me a choice. To save the world, I had to kill Gina or the angels would destroy everything... starting with you."


    "Bullshit¡ª" YuWon said, but Anna wasn''t hearing him and continued.


    "With you trapped in eternal slumber, I had no choice... those bitch angels, they love ying with us. The only way to wake you up was to kill Gina. But no one could know about it."


    She continued, "So... that''s what I did. I killed her to save the world and you. But the angels... they tricked me. You woke up right before I killed her and saw me doing it.


    And those angels¡­ they messed with your mind."


    "...I don''t believe a word you''re saying," YuWon shook his head, but Anna didn''t care.


    "Grief-stricken, you... destroyed everything. That''s why I couldn''t risk it and wanted to trap you in the penalty zone... forever."


    "Destroying the world..." YuWon mumbled, looking at Gina fending the ogres. "Yeah, that sounds like something I would do."


    "...I know," Anna chuckled, gesturing for him to get closer. "There''s something else... I want to tell you."


    YuWon thought for a bit, wondering if she had an ulterior motive. However, curiosity got the better of him and he leaned in to hear herst words.


    As he leaned closer, Anna''s trembling hands suddenly shot up, and she pulled him closer. Before he could react, she pressed her lips on his.


    Even though she was dying, there was a strange intensity in thatst moment, as if she had been waiting to do it for a lifetime.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Maybe... we''ll get a happy ending in some... other timeline..."


    For a moment, everything stood still. Then Anna''s grip loosened, her eyes nkly staring at the sky above as she smiled. Her chest rose onest time, then fell... she was gone for good this time.


    "..."


    YuWon stood there, speechless, before he turned and left, forgetting about the regressor after onest look.

 Chapter 76: [Bonus Chapter] Safe Travels (1)

    Yeji, standing further, could only watch. It was strange. Her brother had been affectionate towards Gina from the start. But ever since they got there, he was behaving even more lovingly towards her.


    Am I that despicable?


    Yeji thought and lowered her gaze. But just when she did that, she felt a stinging pain in the head. Rubbing her forehead, she looked up and saw YuWon smiling at her.


    Before she knew it, he gave her an awkward side hug, mumbling something in her ears.


    "You did good too," he said.


    Yeji couldn''t reply and choked on air before nodding. YuWon looked at her and smiled. After everything happened between them, YuWon''s smile was thest thing Yeji expected to see.


    "Hey, I fought too!" Yuna interrupted.


    "And you got stronger because of it. You should thank us, not the other way around," YuWon retorted before turning towards the subway.


    As he looked around, YuWon noticed two of the Portuguese also survived. But that was it. Even then, they were hesitant to follow him.


    Good, I don''t need to babysit them, at least. However...


    YuWon remembered the girls had died to the slugs before and wondered if that was all Anna''s n. After all, she could have warned them about the slugs, but she didn''t.


    She must have a reason to do what she did. But what could it be?


    YuWon could get a hint about them as long as he touched them. Not inappropriately, obviously. The pendant would show him their sses, and he could think about the future possibilities of having them alive.


    Ultimately, YuWon decided to leave them to their fate. Or so he wanted to say, but losing out of pawns wasn''t his style.


    "You want my thanks, then trante for me," YuWon said, dragging Yuna along.


    When the girls saw him moving towards them, they got startled and even raised their weapons. It wasn''t until YuWon raised his hands that they rxed.


    "I won''t ask you to understand me," he said. "But I had good reasons for what I did."


    Yuna tranted his words, but it didn''t seem the girls were taking his words seriously. YuWon sighed and then brought out his ultimate maniption weapon.


    "I killed them because they would betray uster," he sighed. "I''m an oracle. As such, I can see snippets of the future."


    Obviously, the girls didn''t believe him and asked why they should believe anything he said. On the outside, YuWon looked annoyed, but on the inside, he wasughing. Those girls had fallen into his trap.


    "You have a tattoo of a bird on your back," YuWon said, pointing to the younger girl.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The girl looked surprised and nodded. She indeed had that tattoo, but it was a small one, easily concealed.


    YuWon had noticed it thest time they were inside the store, while excitedly showed it to one of the Anna''s guys.


    However, Gina didn''t look pleased with his antics and loudly cracked her knuckles. On one hand, he loved showing affection to her, and on the other, she was looking at other girls. It was uneptable.


    "Sis-inw, forgive him!" Yeji yelled, holding Gina back.


    YuWon unbothered, continued, "As for you... you are into field sports."


    Now this was a hunch, but while they were jumping over the slime to get to the train, the taller girl was taking long and urate leaps. From one look, he could tell she had to be an athlete.


    The girl looked at YuWon strangely before nodding. She was indeed a former athlete and although she still had the body for it; she didn''t think anyone would randomly guess about it.


    Besides, she wasn''t a famous yer, so there was no way YuWon could have seen her on TV. In her eyes that meant he was telling the truth.


    "Do you believe me now?" YuWon asked, extending his hand toward the girls.


    The girls looked at each other before nodding and took his hand.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Isabel Santos


    ss: Bulwark


    Sub-ss: ??


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 17


    Experience: 61.5%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 335 / 692


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 100 / 100


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 21


    ¡ª Agility: 16


    ¡ª Intelligence: 17


    ¡ª Defense: 48


    ¡ª Endurance: 25


    ¡ª Wisdom: 9


    ¡ª Luck: 12


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile


    +++


    There''s nothing extraordinary about her.


    Isabel, the shorter girl, had average stats for someone of her level. But the one thing that caught YuWon''s attention was her ss. Bulwark, so it meant she was a wall or a shield.


    She''d be a good addition to the group since we don''t have anyone to tank for us.


    YuWon then turned to shake the other girl''s hand, and that''s when things got a bit more interesting.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Helena Pires


    ss: Falcon


    Sub-ss: ??


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 19


    Experience: 23.09%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 300 / 321


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 60 / 71


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 10


    ¡ª Agility: 56


    ¡ª Intelligence: 11


    ¡ª Defense: 16


    ¡ª Endurance: 31


    ¡ª Wisdom: 9


    ¡ª Luck: 2


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile


    +++


    Never in his life had YuWon seen such mismatched stats. Agility and endurance were the only things Helena had going for her. The rest of the stats weren''t just below average, but abysmal for someone at her level.


    YuWon got confused about her ss. But if he thought about it like Falcon the bird, Isabel''s ss probably had something to do with assassinations. After all, Falcons were birds of prey, proficient in hunting.


    Even then, he didn''t think she could kill anything with that strength of her. However, there was something in her gaze. There was a hunger to prove her worth, probably stemming from herpetition days.


    At the moment, only her subss would decide if she''s worth keeping around or not.

 Chapter 77: Safe Travels (2)

    As for thest step, YuWon and Gina dragged an ogre''s corpse from the entrance and threw it down the stairs. Soon enough, the snails were upon it. But since the ogre''s corpse was quite big, they could kill more snails per molotov.


    Using their ashes, everyone made their way safely to the train. However, YuWon didn''t board the train. Gina and Yeji stared at him, wondering what was going on inside his head.


    "Husband, what are you doing?" Gina asked, extending her hand, thinking YuWon needed help.


    "Yes... brother," Yeji chimed in. "This isn''t the time to fool around."


    "You guys go ahead," YuWon replied. "I have something else to do."


    Since he had found a loophole to milk the Mythical Store Ticket, he wasn''t going to pass on that opportunity. Besides, he also wanted to save Lysandra.


    Despite having no offensive abilities, her support abilities were quite good. With someone like her on their team, things would get easier for them.


    But I can''t tell Gina about her... not yet. Or else she would forcibly drag me into the train with her. Then there''s also this girl...


    YuWon turned around to see Yuna fidgeting behind him. He wondered why she had jumped off the train in the previous life. And the only answer he coulde up with was a mission.


    Yuna wasn''t one to forsake her life for others. If she did something, there had to be a reason behind it, just like she was acting clingy to him for a reason.


    Whatever that mission was, the punishment would be harsh enough for her to disregard her life.


    That was the only situation YuWon coulde up with for Yuna to jump off the train after him. But making her talk about it would not be that easy.


    "You got a quest, don''t you?" YuWon asked.


    "Quest? What quest¡ª" she replied, not wanting to reveal her cards, and have her ns backfire.


    "It''ll be easier for both of us if you didn''t lie."


    But she remained stubborn, so YuWon grabbed her arm and pushed her against the train. His eyes locked with her, like a scientist studying a strange phenomenon. A momentter, he stepped back, sighing.


    "Just so you know, I won''t be around for a while," he shrugged. "If you have a time-dependent mission, you''ll fail. When you do, you''ll be useless to me and I hate carrying useless weight around."


    Upon hearing his words, Yuna hesitated before sighing in defeat.


    "It''s a quest to gain your acknowledgment..." she mumbled, rubbing the back of her neck.


    "So that''s why you were acting so clingy," YuWon rolled his eyes. "No wonder."


    "If I can''t get you to acknowledge me, I''ll fail the quest, and¡­ well, lose my abilities."N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It was an annoying quest indeed. He thought the sponsors only wanted them to fight and survive. But it seemed some of them enjoyed forcing the humans to form a rtionship.


    A survival soap-opera? Just when I thought things couldn''t get any worse.


    Although, he wasn''t interested in getting with Yuna. He only wanted her to break the bond between her and Minho. But with him gone, there was no need for him to get involved with her.


    However, this is an excellent opportunity.


    YuWon might not like Yuna, but she was a capable woman. As a strategist, she was bound to shine in the future. Not to mention her devourer ss. As long as he could cultivate her, she would be useful to him.


    "You want my acknowledgment, that''s it?" YuWon mumbled.


    Yuna nodded and reached out for a hug. But YuWon stepped back, avoiding her. If it was his acknowledgment, then there was no need for them to get physical.


    With an awkward smile, he patted Yuna''s back and said, "That should be enough for now."


    Yuna blinked, clearly taken aback by YuWon''s hesitance to embrace her. But he was right. His pat had cleared her quest, even though she hadn''t tamed him as it was asked of her.


    She raised her head and wanted to say something else. But before she could, YuWon turned her around and kicked her butt, shoving her inside the train just as the doors closed.


    "Ow!" Yuna frowned, caressing her buttcheeks.


    She turned around only to see YuWon waving them off. Once the train was gone, YuWon''s smile faded. He closed his eyes, wondering how he would deal with the charred ghoul again.


    When he opened his eyes, he was back in the penalty zone. But something was different. Instead of the gruesome movie set he expected to find, YuWon was in the middle of a lush forest.


    "Well... this is unexpected."


    YuWon scratched his head. Despite his respawning, the penalty zone remained as it was after he cleared it once. But he didn''t get time to remain lost in his thoughts as someone appeared before him.


    "I''ve been waiting for you, savior," Lysandra whispered.


    "You remember me?" YuWon asked, confused.


    Since he had basically gone back in time, YuWon had naturally assumed everyone would forget about him, including Lysandra. But that didn''t seem to be the case.


    "I won''t be a good soulmate if I forget you, will I?" Lysandra smiled, caressing his cheek.


    "But how¡ª?"


    Before he could finish, Lysandra leaned in and kissed him. Unlike the time he kissed Gina and Anna, kissing Lysandra felt... different. It was a weird sensation, like he was kissing the wind after a soft rain.


    Lysandra continued after pulling away, "The rules don''t bind me the same way as mortals. I am always aware of the past and present. No matter how many times you respawn, I will always remember you."


    There goes my opportunity to be overpowered.


    YuWon scratched the back of his head. He was hoping to kill the ghoul and milk the system for the mythical choice ticket. But this time, the system was a step ahead and dealt with his greed before things got out of hand.


    While he was lost in thought, Lysandra linked her arms with him and opened a portal.


    "Savior, it''s time for us to go home," she said, leaning against his chest.


    "Yeah... let''s go," YuWon sighed, wondering what he would say to Gina now.


    ...having a mythical gear could''ve saved my life. But now... I''m cooked.

 Chapter 78: [Bonus Chapter] Two Wives!?

    "There he is!"


    "Took you long enough!"


    "We thought you got lost or something!"


    Strange faces greeted him like they had known YuWon all his life. At first, he got startled. But then he realized the reception he was getting was probably because he had saved them from the worms during the first trial.


    He just smiled and carried ahead, with Lysandra clinging to him like a newlywed wife.


    I can''t say that isn''t the case.


    Before returning to the real world, Lysandra had wanted something from him. YuWon agreed without a second thought and only then she showed him an altar.


    Lysandra smiled giddily and dragged him to the altar where they got married, with nature as their only witness. Hell, they were even wearing identical rings made of vines.


    While smiling, YuWon was wondering how would he exin everything to Gina. But he didn''t have to wait long as she came running towards the gates only to see him next to Lysandra, and her smile dropped.


    The dryad, as beautiful as ever, was linking her arm with YuWon''s. And that was enough to set Gina off. But miraculously, she remained somewhat calm, only shooting daggers at Lysandra.


    YuWon knew she could go off at any moment, but he didn''t want any drama in the public so he quickly hurried towards Gina. But Lysandra didn''t let go of his arm. After all, she knew who her love rival was, and much to YuWon''s dismay, she wanted to show Gina her ce.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "I can exin," YuWon said. "Let''s just go somewhere private first¡ª"


    "I hope you''ve got a good one," Gina muttered, and crossed her arms, clearly not in the mood for jokes.


    The group, excluding Yuna, went to a secluded spot where YuWon exined everything to Gina. He didn''t want Yeji there either, but Gina insisted, so YuWon had no choice.


    At first, he wanted to tell Gina about his ss and abilities. But since it would have raised questions from Yeji, he decided against it. Instead, she stuck to the cover-up story he told Soo-Ah.


    "Well, since I''m an oracle," YuWon began. "I saw Lysandra in a future vision. Since she was in trouble, so I went to rescue her and one thing led to another¡ª"


    Lysandra stifled augh. Unlike them, she knew about his ability, but she was impressed with his talent to talk his way out of any situation. So she just smiled, letting YuWon fool the others.


    "You saved her, but that doesn''t exin why she''s clinging to you, husband," Gina snapped. "I don''t care what vision you had. Why do you have another woman by your side? Did she coax you? Just say the word and I''ll deal with her¡ª"


    Now Lysandra couldn''t hold back any longer. She got into Gina''s face even though she had promised she would let YuWon handle her.


    "I didn''t coax him," she said. "YuWon saved my life from a miserable future. What''s wrong with me being grateful to my savior?"


    "That''s not gratitude," Gina growled. "You''re making moves on my husband, you wench!"


    Before Lysandra could retort, Gina lunged at her. Her sharp ws swung at her face. YuWon tried to intervene, but Lysandra pushed him out of the way before summoning a thick wall of tree roots to block Gina.


    But Gina wasn''t giving up, and her ws tore through the barrier. She then continued her attack on Lysandra. But the dryad kept dodging her attacks and smiled.


    "This is fun," Lysandra teased, dodging another swipe from Gina. "Do you want to make a bet?"


    "A bet with you?" Gina scoffed, continuously attacking her.


    "Whoever wins gets to sleep with the hubby tonight," Lysandra announced. "And the winner will also be his first wife."


    "You''re on!" Gina agreed.


    "I''m notfortable¡ª" YuWon tried to intervene, but got silenced by the women.


    "Shut it!"


    They yelled together and continued fighting. Soon themotion attracted attention, but Yuna and the few soldiers under her stopped the crowd from seeing anything while she ran inside.


    "What''s going on here?" Yuna asked, wondering why the women were fighting with each other.


    "Apparently, my brother is quite popr..." Yeji shrugged. "So they decided to fight for his attention."


    Yeji turned to YuWon and yelled, "Why are you standing there? Shouldn''t you stop them!?"


    "Nah, they''ll be fine," YuWon shrugged. "They came up with this way to establish a hierarchy. Let them fight it out. It''s not like I would treat them any differently just because they made a bet."


    Yeji and Yuna exchanged a look, then sighed. They both knew YuWon too well. He was enjoying this. Watching two beautiful women fight over him wasn''t exactly something any man would refuse.


    "Men..." they said.


    ***


    Back in the fight, Gina wasn''t having any luck getting through the barrier Lysandra kept erecting. So she borrowed a technique from YuWon and faked a kick aimed at Lysandra''s head.


    Lysandra naturally reacted to protect her face. But as a barrier formed around her head, Gina ducked and delivered a powerful kick to her stomach.


    Lysandra got flung backward, but as she did, vines shot up from the ground, wrapping around Gina and dragging her along for a ride.


    Gina tried to rip them off her, but more vines kept appearing, restricting her limbs. But eventually, she broke through and the fight continued.


    This will drag on forever...


    YuWon sighed. From the moment they began fighting, he knew they''d end in a stalemate. Lysandra was a defense expert, while Gina excelled at offense. No matter what they did, overpowering each other was next to impossible.


    After making up his mind, he rushed between the two, grabbed their arms, and pulled them in for a hug.


    "That''s enough," he said in a strict tone. "You had your fun. Now stop fighting before I make you stop."


    Gina and Lysandra both red at each other over YuWon''s shoulders, but none spoke a word. Sensing their hesitance, he used his trump card.


    "If you keep this up, you both of you can sleep alone tonight."


    Gina growled while Lysandra kept smiling. But both of them were far from done with each other. However, they agreed to stop for YuWon''s sake.


    "Fine," Gina muttered.


    "It was a good fight," Lysandra smiled and dropped the topic. "But I suppose we can call it a draw."


    "Thank you," YuWon sighed in relief.


    He was about to let them go when the two nced and each other and locked arms with YuWon. He knew they were up to something not so good.


    "Wait, what''s going on?" he asked.


    "You said we couldn''t fight each other," Gina said, smirking.


    "So we''ll just share the reward," Lysandra smiled wickedly.


    "Uh, hold on, maybe we should¡ª"


    With a wave of her hand, Lysandra covered his mouth with vines and the two dragged him to the room. Yeji and Yuna stood by, wondering if they should do something. But ultimately decided against it.


    "I guess he asked for this," Yeji muttered, shaking her head.


    "Definitely," Yuna nodded.

 Chapter 79: Train Ride (1)

    [The Awakener''s stamina is critically low.]


    [Please avoid any strenuous activity for 4 hours.]


    Try telling that to these two...


    YuWon sighed and looked down. Gina was resting her head on his shirtless chest, her white hair was all over his torso. She had her arm wrapped around his stomach as if she had no intention of moving anytime soon.


    Further down was Lysandra, nestledfortably between his legs, hugging his waist.


    When the goblins first appeared, YuWon couldn''t have dreamed of leading such a life. Even now, he wondered what Gina and Lysandra saw in him. He was just an average guy, but he wouldn''tin about how his life turned out.


    "Morning¡­" Gina murmured, looking at him with sleepy eyes.


    "Morning," YuWon smiled, brushing a hand through her hair.


    Their voice woke up Lysandra, and she stirred before kissing YuWon''s thigh and tightening her hold on his leg.


    "Still not done yet?"


    YuWon shook his head, and Lysandra smiled but didn''t open her eyes. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the time to stay idle. Slowly prying off the girls of him, he got up and dressed.


    Once done, he kissed his wives on the forehead and walked outside. But as he walked outside, he heard loud noisesing from nearby. As he walked towards the entrance, he saw a crowd gathered there.


    Yeji and Yuna were in the middle of the group, trying to calm people down, while a handful of soldiers stood in a circle around what looked like¡­ a crack in the air.


    "What''s going on here?" YuWon asked.


    The crowd parted a way for him as soon as they heard his voice. Just then, an olddy, one YuWon vaguely recognized as someone Yeji had helped before, grabbed his hand and fell to her knees before him, begging for his help.


    "Please, save him! My grandson¡ª" her voice trailed off and YuWon looked at Yeji for an exnation.


    Yeji hurried over, kneeling beside thedy and helping her to her feet. While Yuna informed him about the situation.


    "Her grandson fell into the crack thing... whatever it is," she said. "I got the soldiers to form a barrier around it before anyone else fell inside."


    Without a word, YuWon turned his attention to the crack and saw something floating over it.


    "1/5... what does it mean¡ª"


    "It''s a dungeon."


    Lysandra''s voice interrupted his thoughts.


    "A what now?"


    "A dungeon," Lysandra exined calmly. "Those numbers hovering over show how many people can enter it. If they clear it, everyone who went in will return. If they fail... the dungeon will disappear, trapping them inside."


    "You were trapped in one of these, weren''t you?" YuWon asked.


    Lysandra nodded, her characteristic smile disappearing momentarily. "The system probably created this dungeon as a recement for the penalty zone you cleared. That''s why it appeared here."


    YuWon massaged his temples, looking at the crack and then back to the crowd.


    "So, we either clear it, or that kid''s trapped in there forever," he mumbled.


    Although he said that, he had no intention of risking his life for a kid. Was it brutal? Yes. But the risk was too high. He had witnessed the horrors of the penalty zone firsthand and didn''t want to go through it again.


    I barely made it out of there the first time. Like hell I''m going through that again.


    But making a decision wasn''t that easy. Not when so many eyes were on him. They should have been grateful that YuWon saved them once, but they looked at him like he was a monster for hesitating.


    "It''s too dangerous to go in there."


    Yeji was the first to speak, shocking everyone. The usual calm and helpful Yeji was asking them to abandon a kid. However, YuWon knew what she was doing.


    People will me someone else for their weakness. They were eyeing YuWon to take the me for taking a logical step. But by suggesting they should abandon the kid, Yeji took the me on herself.


    The olddy had been clinging to Yeji, but she suddenly pushed her away before pping Yeji. YuWon took a step toward the woman, but Yeji stopped him before looking at the woman.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I know it''s hard for you, and I won''t ask you to forgive me," Yeji replied, smiling as kindly as ever. "But the danger outweighs the benefit. Instead of saving your grandchild, we could lose more people¡ª"


    The woman once again raised her hand to p Yeji, but YuWon stepped up, grabbing her hand. Till then they had only seen the caring side of him. But right now, his eyes were burning with rage.


    "Take another swing, and saving your grandson would be thest thing on your mind," YuWon hissed.


    Everyone was shocked to see him getting angry, but it was just the start. He turned to Gina and asked her to take Yeji away from there. As they left, YuWon turned towards the crowd, scrutinizing everyone.


    "You want to save the kid, right?" he asked.


    However, no one uttered a word.


    "I said, YOU WANT TO SAVE THE KID OR NOT?"


    "I-It''s the right thing to do," a man stepped forward.


    "Good, then you can do it yourself."


    Before anyone could realize what was happening, YuWon grabbed the man and dragged him to the crack. Just when he was about to throw him in, the man began yelling for him to stop.


    "P-Please! I was wrong!"


    YuWon looked at the man with disgust before kicking him back into the crowd. Then, he asked them the same thing. But no one, not even the kid''s grandmother, stepped forward.


    "It''s quite easy to pressure someone else to do the dangerous work, isn''t it?" he scoffed. "You see a problem and think, ''Oh, someone else will handle it.'' But why don''t you try doing something for once?"


    Upon hearing his words, the crowd shifted ufortably, turning their eyes away from YuWon.


    "You expect others to risk our lives for you over and over," YuWon shook his head. "But what have any of you done to help?"


    "You sit around, eating the food we provide, living in safety while we go out there and hunt!, and yet, when ites time to contribute, you do nothing but leech off others."


    The crowd got even more quiet. Some of them looked offended, but none dared to speak before YuWon.


    "That charity you have gotten used to, stops today. From now on, only those who contribute will get anything. If you don''t fight, if you don''t work, then you get nothing. No food, no shelter, nothing."


    The crowd gasped, realizing the implications. Some tried to backtrack their statements, but it was toote. YuWon wasn''t in any mood for their bullshit.


    "And if you can''t contribute? Then die," he added. "Because at least in death, we could use you as a lure than wasting precious resources on you."


    With that, he turned around and left to check on Yeji, not caring if the crowd felt insulted or hurt.

 Chapter 80: [Bonus Chapter] Train Ride (2)

    It was the first time strangers ridiculed her, and she naturally took it hard. YuWon sighed, looking at Gina and Lysandra.


    "I need to talk to Yeji alone," he said. "If you don''t mind."


    The girls nodded before leaving the room. Once they were gone, YuWon locked the door behind them and sat beside Yeji. It had been a while since they were in such a situation.


    "I remember thest time you were this sad because I got scolded by your father," YuWon smiled. "You broke the vase, but since I was the rowdy one, they immediately took me as the culprit."


    Yeji smiled half-heartedly and YuWon continued, "You kept saying it was you, but they didn''t believe either of us, and I got grounded. I missed a game, and you got all sad and angry at your father because of it."


    "Those were good times..." Yeji nodded, looking through the window.


    For a moment, neither of them said anything. But then YuWon broke the silence again.


    "Why did you do that?" he asked, his voice gentle but firm. "Why did you tell them we wouldn''t save the kid and take the heat on yourself?"


    "You''ve already had enough hate tost a lifetime, brother," she mumbled. "I would not let you go through that again."


    "I''m used to it by now. It doesn''t bother me as much anymore." He shrugged, sighing again. "But I get it. I know you were trying to protect me."


    Yeji nodded, her smile disappearing. YuWon hesitated for a moment before reaching out and gently pulling her close. She rested her head on his shoulder, and he patted her back, just like the old times.


    "You don''t have to keep doing this," he murmured. "You don''t need to keep carrying that guilt, because you feel bad about what happened in the past. I already forgave you."


    "I know..." Yeji sniffled, wiping a tear from her cheek. "But I did you wrong and... even if you say you forgive me, I don''t know if I''m¡ª"


    "We were both fooled, got it? Could we have done things differently? Yes. But does it matter? No. We''re still together.


    That''s more important than anything."


    Yeji nodded, but didn''t say a word. He didn''t want to do this, but it was the only way to cheer her up.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "How about this? Tomorrow we can search for your parents, if you''d like?"


    On hearing him, Yeji looked at him and frowned. YuWon already knew what wasing and scratched his cheek.


    "Our parents," she corrected. "They''re your parents too."


    "Just because I forgave you it doesn''t mean I''ll forgive them, too," he shook his head. "They''ll have to earn it, just like you did. But even then, it''ll take time¡­ if it ever happens at all."


    Yeji looked down and nodded. She had just received his forgiveness, so she didn''t want to argue with him. Besides, YuWon was right. It was his choice to forgive someone, not hers.


    "Get some rest today," YuWon said, ruffling her hair. "I''ll take care of the residents. You don''t need to worry about them."


    "Hm..."


    ***


    In the middle of the night...


    YuWon stirred awake with a sudden urge to go to the washroom. But as he walked out, he noticed Yeji''s bed was empty. YuWon''s heart skipped a beat.


    Maybe she went out to get some air... either way, I should check things out.


    As he walked outside, his eyes went to the glowing crack in the air. But something was off. The soldiers were supposed to be stationed there, but there was no one protecting the crack.


    "What the hell is going on¡ª?"


    YuWon stopped mid-sentence when he saw a group of people. The old woman who had begged for his help was there, along with some other men. But they weren''t alone, they were dragging someone.


    "Yeji!" YuWon shouted, but it was toote.


    Before he could do anything, they threw Yeji into the crack and the counter went up to 2/5.


    On hearing his voice, the old woman and the men turned pale and tried to run away. But a secondter, vines erupted from the ground, trapping them to their spot. Gina and Lysandra were standing behind YuWon.


    The men panicked and kept struggling against the vines. The woman showed no fear at all. She evenughed when YuWon approached them.


    "This is what you people deserve!" she yelled, spitting in YuWon''s direction. "If you wouldn''t help my grandson, then you deserve to die¡ª"


    At that moment YuWon lost it. He grabbed the old woman by her hair and yanked her close, his face inches from hers.


    "Do you have any idea what you''ve done!?" He yelled.


    However, even then, the old woman kept smirking. YuWon couldn''t hold back anymore and punched her square in the face. A loud crunch echoed in the night as the woman''s head snapped back.


    Everyone looked at YuWon in horror. Hearing the noise, everyone rushed to the site to find the woman knocked unconscious.


    "YuWon! What''s going on?" Yuna asked, arriving at thest.


    YuWon didn''t look at her, his focus still on the old woman.


    "Where are your soldiers?" YuWon asked.


    "What do you¡ª" Yuna mumbled, realizing no one was there to guard the crack. "Fuck! I swear I do not know."


    "I don''t care," YuWon snarled, grabbing her by the neck. "If anything happens to Yeji, mark my words, I will make death seem like a dream for all of you."


    Yuna was stunned. She had seen YuWon angry, but never this enraged. Something was off, but she knew nothing she would say would get through to him.


    A momentter, he shoved her aside and ordered, "Lock them up. I''ll deal with them when I get back."


    With that, he turned towards the crack.


    "Lysandra, Gina, we''re going in."


    Before jumping into the crack, YuWon paused for a moment and quickly marked a checkpoint, just in case.

 Chapter 81: Train Ride (3)

    "Argh... do you two mind getting off?" YuWon mumbled, trying to pull his arms back.


    But when he tried, he heard a familiar sounding from Gina. He tried moving the other and Lysandra reacted the same.


    Only then did YuWon realize the awkward situation they were in. His one hand was stuck deep in Gina''s cleavage while the other was up Lysandra''s dress.


    "Now... is not the ce..." Gina mumbled, her face flushed.


    "Honestly, savior, you should control yourself." Lysandra cleared her throat before swatting his hand away. "Now is not the time to think with the wrong head!"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon was about to defend himself when he realized they were intentionally teasing him. Those vixens, his sister was missing, and they were focused on teasing him.


    "It''s not like I did it on purpose," he muttered. "Not that I won''t do it again."


    YuWon ignored their smiles and giggles and looked at their surrounding. The scene looked familiar, and it didn''t take more than a second for YuWon to know where they were.


    "We''re on the damn train," he sighed.


    It was the train the others had boarded during their trial. He wasn''t expecting to see it again, but there they were. But before they could say anything more, YuWon''s eyesnded on something ahead.


    "Yeji!" YuWon eximed, running towards her.


    Gina and Lysandra dropped all pretense of fun and ran behind him. YuWon kneeled beside Yeji and gently pressed two fingers to her neck, checking for a pulse. Thankfully, it was fine, and she was breathing normally.


    YuWon breathed a sigh of relief, but no matter how much he tried, she wasn''t waking up.


    "What did they do to her?" he snarled. "I swear I''ll kill them all once I get my hands on them."


    "Savior, let me try something."


    With that, Lysandra kneeled beside him and ced a hand over Yeji''s forehead before whispering something. Her hand glowed and a momentter Yeji''s eyes shot open. She looked at them, confused.


    "W-What''s happening?"


    Before anyone said anything, YuWon flicked her forehead lightly. Gina and Lysandra couldn''t help but chuckle at Yeji''s reaction.


    "What was that for!?" sheined, rubbing her forehead.


    "For being reckless, that''s what!" YuWon reprimanded her. "What were you thinking, wandering alone at night?"


    Yeji looked at him, confused, before memories started flooding back.


    "The old woman..." she began slowly. "She said she wanted to apologize. But I didn''t trust her, so I took the soldiers to meet her. But when we got there, she did something. I remember feeling sleepy... and that''s it."


    "Hope you had a good sleep when they threw you in here," YuWon said, rolling his eyes.


    "Wait, so we''re... inside the crack? That sounds so wrong... let''s call it dungeon from now on," Yeji said, epting YuWon''s arm.


    "Call it whatever you want. It doesn''t change the fact we''re trapped here," Gina shrugged.


    "This is all my fault. I shouldn''t have trusted that woman," Yeji sighed.


    "Forget about it, none of it matters now," YuWon waved off her apology. "What''s done is done. We''ve got more important things to deal with. Like figuring out how to clear this dungeon and get back home in one piece."


    Lysandra noticed Yeji''s expression and patted her back. "Don''t beat yourself up about it. Everyone makes mistakes. Your brother would know¡ª"


    However, a sudden sound of footsteps interrupted her. The doors on both ends of the carriage were thrown open, and before any of them could react, people armed with crude weapons barged in from both sides.


    How are there so many of them?


    YuWon quickly counted the intruders. There were 10 people apart from them. The dungeon had a limit of five people and, including the kid; the quota was filled. So how could these extra people be here?


    There are more cracks. I should have known.


    The strangers didn''t give him time to think or do anything. Without hesitation, they charged at them. But something felt off.


    The group didn''t look angry or cautious. Instead, their eyes were wild with hunger. They licked their lips and drooled, as if YuWon and his group were food to them.


    "Don''t reason with them," YuWon instructed them. "Just kill them."


    "Great. More lunatics." Gina shook her head.


    "Leave the other side to us," Lysandra urged, standing before YuWon.


    YuWon jumped ahead, drawing his twin crimson des. He met them head-on, swinging the des. On the other side of the carriage, Lysandra had summoned her vines, turning them into sharp needles.


    With a flick of her fingers, the vines shot forward like missiles. The vines impaled the attackers with deadly uracy. One after another, they fell to the ground, groaning in pain.


    "They''re too weak," Lysandra said. "Their hunger makes sense now."


    "Less talking, more killing," Gina mumbled as she ran past her.


    She lunged at the nearest attacker, her sharp ws gouging the guy''s eyes out. Blood sttered on the floor, but Gina didn''t stop and kept swiping away, finishing those who were on the ground.


    "These guys are annoying," Gina growled. "What kind of dungeon is this?"


    What started as ten enemies soon became dozens. They kept killing them, but more of them kepting for more. Suddenly, a quest notification popped before YuWon''s eyes.


    [Mission: Protection.]


    [Task: Protect the train till the next stop.]


    [Remaining time: 10 minutes.]


    [Reward forpletion: None.]


    [Punishment for failure: Death.]


    "You saw that?" YuWon yelled back, ensuring they all knew what they had to do. "Keep it up for ten more minutes."


    Just then, another attacker lunged at YuWon, but he sidestepped and severed the man''s head before kicking him away.


    "This is easy," Gina smirked, wiping blood off her face. "A good way to get rid of pent-up anger."


    "Keep at it!" Lysandra chimed in, using her vines to im another life... if it could even be called that anymore.


    Unlike them, Yeji could only think about one thing. The child... he was already dead. She had no doubts about it.

 Chapter 82: [Bonus Chapter] Station Of Horrors (1)

    With ast swing, thest attacker fell to the ground, dead. The entire carriage was littered with corpses, and the floor was stained with blood. The sight appeared to be straight out of a horror movie.


    Thankfully, they didn''t have to endure the attacks for much longer as the train came to a halt. The doors opened again, but this time, no one came rushing in.


    [Last stop: Hongik University Station.]


    An automated voice called out. Suddenly, the train shook violently and then copsed as if something was crushing it from above. YuWon could feel the air turning cold.


    "Run!" he shouted, grabbing Yeji''s hand and pulling her toward the exit.


    Lysandra and Gina were already ahead, with Lysandra using her vines to try and stop the train from copsing, but in vain. YuWon threw Yeji towards the door and Gina jumped in, grabbing Yeji as he jumped towards the exit.


    YuWon barely escaped as the train''s walls caved in before disappearing, leaving them stranded at the station.


    "What the hell was that?" YuWon asked, panting.


    "More importantly, where are we?" Yeji asked and YuWon looked at her as if he was seeing her for the first time.


    "I''d have asked that too if they didn''t make an announcement!" YuWon rolled his eyes. "Are you still sleepy?"


    Unfortunately, YuWon couldn''t make fun of her anymore. After all, they weren''t alone there. Just like them, several others had jumped out of the train and were eyeing everyone carefully.


    They had spent thest ten minutes or so killing other humans, so it wasn''t strange that they were wary of each other. YuWon was the same and drew his swords, ready for a fight.


    Gina and Lysandra stepped up beside him, covering Yeji in the middle. Gina''s ws were out, and Lysandra''s vines were slithering next to her feet. But no one made the first move.


    "YuWon? Is that you?"


    A familiar voice broke the silence. Slowly, he turned around and noticed someone standing behind a group of skeletons.


    "Soo-Ah?" YuWon asked.


    "Yeah, it''s me!" Soo-Ah smiled, waving her hand.


    But she wasn''t alone. A tall and muscr guy was also there, holding a curved de. He had a scar on his face and his hair was a mess. But YuWon recognized him too. It was Min-Joon.


    "...surprise seeing you here," Min-Joon mumbled, looking strangely at YuWon. "How have you been, boss?"


    Other than the initial shock, YuWon had no reaction to their sudden appearance. Instead, he pointed at the other group at some distance.


    "Are they with you?"


    Soo-Ah shook her head.


    "Do you know what we have to do here?" Yeji asked.


    "No idea. There wasn''t any notification about it either," Min-Joon replied.


    However, YuWon had his eyes on the other group. If he included Soo-Ah and Min-Joon, there were six of them in their group, excluding the skeletons.


    The other group, on the other hand, had seventeen people. They couldn''t enter the dungeon together. They probably found each other and made a bigger group.


    In that case, it''s only a matter of time before they approached us.


    Just as YuWon thought, a man with a charming smile walked up to them. However, he wasn''t looking at him or Min-Joon, just the girls. That''s when YuWon noticed the group only had five men, the rest were all girls.


    YuWon didn''t even have to speak a word, and Min-Joon understood everything.


    "Hello, I''m Kye¡ª" the man spoke to Yeji, but she cut him off.


    "Not interested."


    "What? I think you misunderstood me, miss¡ª"


    "I said, not interested," Yeji shook her head before linking arms with YuWon. "Please do not act friendly towards a stranger. Not with those bloodstained hands, at least."


    The man looked at his hand andughed.


    "This is nothing," he said. "We had to fight those crazy humans earlier. That''s why I got blood on my hands. It won''t damper your beauty¡ªArgh!"


    As the man extended his arm towards Yeji again, YuWon took it and gave it a gentle squeeze. But even that was too much for the pretty boy.


    "Oh, my bad," YuWon smiled, letting go of the man''s hand. "I forget I have a firm grip. I hope you''re not hurt!"


    "N-Not at all," the man forced a smile, shaking his hand. "Everyone needs to be strong here... haha... I''m Kye, by the way¡ª"n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Gay? That''s an unusual name."


    "No, Kye! As in the letter K!"


    "Oh, my bad, Mr. Kye. What brings you here?"


    Kye cleared his throat and said, "Since we are all stranded here, I was wondering if we could all be together. I mean, work together? It would be easier to deal with whateveres next."


    YuWon looked at Kye, wanting to decline the offer. But just then, the ground shook and the silent speakers throughout the station made a loud screeching noise.


    Everyone covered their ears beside Lysandra, who erected a barrier around them. As for YuWon, he grabbed Kye''s cor and lifted him in the air.


    "I''m tired of people trying to screw me over."


    Kye''s eyes widened in fear, but before he could say anything, YuWon threw him sideways, and he collided with someone invisible and both fell over.


    "Being invisible doesn''t cover your footsteps, fucking morons," YuWon snarled, shing away. "You think I didn''t notice your people disappearing one after another?"


    The invisible assassin''s head rolled off the tform. As if on cue, two more of Kye''s group members emerged from the shadows behind YuWon, ready to strike him down.


    But just then Lysandra''s barrier exploded, pushing them off. Min-Joon and Gina burst forth, killing both of them.


    Kye realized their ambush had failed and tried calming YuWon down.


    "It''s not what it looks like! I swear!"


    "Save it," YuWon rolled his eyes. "You shouldn''t waste yourst words like this."


    "Wait, wait! This wasn''t my idea! I swear, man, I didn''t¡ª" Kye backed away.


    Unfortunately, YuWon had run out of patience and, with a swing of his des, took the guy''s life.

 Chapter 83: Station Of Horrors (2)

    Since they didn''t know how long they would be stuck inside the station, it was better to clean up the surroundings to avoid any unnecessary attention from monsters or hunger-driven maniacs.


    The rest realized what YuWon was doing and joined in. They threw the lifeless bodies out one by one. It wasn''t a pleasant job, but it had to be done.


    Once that was done, they gathered around, discussing what to do next. They had three options. They could either explore the station, search for an exit, or wait for another train to appear.


    However, as they did that, YuWon noticed something strange. He nced at Soo-Ah and Min-Joon. It wasmon for people to change in the world they lived in.


    But it had only been a couple of weeks since everything began and YuWon didn''t think it was enough time for someone to abandon their moralspletely.


    Thest time I saw Soo-Ah and Min-Joon, they weren''t killers. Although they never explicitly told him about it, YuWon knew they didn''t want to follow him because of what he did to Hoon.


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon believed in surviving without resorting to murder and cruelty against fellow humans. But just now, they had killed many people like it was their second nature.


    It''s different for me, who has lived and died many times. I had to turn into a killer because of necessity. But Soo-Ah isn''t someone who''d kill humans without a second thought.


    Are they really Soo-Ah and Min-Joon? Or... are they someone else? That was the question in YuWon''s head.


    "Either way, we don''t know how long we''d be stuck here," Soo-Ah said, getting up. "I suggest we should scavenge and stock up supplies¡ª"


    "No need for that," YuWon waved his hand.


    Everyone turned to look at him and he pulled out some food, water, and first-aid kits from his hand. But something weird happened as soon as the items came into contact with the moonlight.


    The food rotted away right before their eyes. The bread crumbled into dust, and the fruits turned ck. While the water inside the bottles became murky, like sludge. A momentter, everything turned into rotten flesh.


    "What the..." YuWon mumbled, looking at Lysandra.


    However, she seemed as shocked as he was. She sprouted a vine and poked the flesh with it. Thankfully, nothing happened. Everyone was wondering what happened. It wasn''t until Yeji pointed above that they realized something was amiss.


    The soft glow of the moon had turned red. As for the moon, it looked like someone had dumped a ton of blood on it. YuWon got up and stepped out of the shade to get a better look at the moon.


    But when the moonlight touched his feet, YuWon copsed on the ground, crying in pain. He looked down at his leg, and his eyes widened in horror. Blisters were forming on his skin and spreading quickly throughout his leg.


    "It''s the moon!" Lysandra shouted, raising a barrier to protect everyone.


    However, even her vines were no match for the moon''s blood thirst. All life got drained from the vines and fell apart like twigs. Thankfully, it was enough time for Gina to drag YuWon back to safety.


    YuWon panted as the explosive pain in his legs subsided. The blisters stopped spreading, but the ones already on the leg didn''t heal themselves.


    Lysandra and Yeji concentrated on healing him, while Gina stayed by his side, alert. However, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon were standing in the open, staring at the moon as if it had mesmerized them.


    "Hey!" Gina called to them. "Get over here before you burn!"n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    However, they didn''t listen. Their faces were nk, almost lifeless... just like the ones who had attacked them on the train.


    Suddenly, their bodies start to twitch and turn. Before they could know what was happening, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon snapped their heads and crumpled to the ground.


    "Are they... dead?" Yeji asked.


    "Get behind me," YuWon urged, pushing Yeji behind.


    As he said that, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon got up, their eyes mirroring the moon above. Then, without a warning, they lunged toward YuWon and the others.


    YuWon grabbed his sword, but Gina was faster. In an instant, she leaped forward and shed across Soo-Ah''s chest, and then Min-Joon''s throat. Blood sprayed out of their wounds as the two fell to the ground.


    But Gina wasn''t done. To ensure they were dead, she severed their heads and stomped on them for good measure.


    "What... what just happened?" Yeji asked, her eyes wide in horror.


    "Isn''t it obvious?" Gina said as she retracted her ws and wiped the blood off her hands. "They turned into those hunger-driven, mindless creatures from before."


    "The moon changed them..." YuWon mumbled. "It turned food into rotten flesh and turned humans into... hunger-driven maniacs."


    Suddenly, everything made sense. With the food they were used to turning into rotten flesh, the hunger would drive anyone mad. Soon, they would have no choice but to consume the rotten flesh or... turn to cannibalism.


    But that only exins why those on the train had gone mad.


    However, that didn''t exin everything. Unlike the folks on the train, Soo-Ah and Min-Joon hadn''t been hungry for long. Which meant there was something else responsible for the crap-show.


    The moon...


    Before YuWon could think more about it, a red notification, simr to the one he encountered in the penalty zone, shed before their eyes.


    [Error detected in the system!]


    [Unknown entity has breached the trial!]


    [Dungeon has been cleared by Awakener: Ann¡ª]


    [Dungeon will close immediately.]


    Before YuWon could even finish reading the name of the Awakener, the entire world around them swirled. A crack appeared before them and began pulling them inside.


    One by one, they got pulled into the portal. Just as YuWon was about to be sucked in, he noticed something. Someone was standing at some distance.


    YuWon squinted and saw someone tall with long red hair waving at him. Thedy mouthed something while looking at him, but he couldn''t make it out before getting sucked into the portal.


    The next time he opened his eyes, he was back at the base. The crack had closed and soldiers were standing at bay. But the first thing YuWon saw was the crimson moon above them.


    [The second phase of Awakening has begun.]

 Chapter 84: [Bonus Chapter] Second Awakening

    That was the first thought in YuWon''s head. There was no mistaking it. It was the same moon hanging over their heads. But something was different. It wasn''t red, but pink.


    Even so, people were staring at the moon, but none of them were turning into maniacs like Soo-Ah and Min-Joon did. They were... normal.


    The change in the moon took surprised everyone. Couple that with the announcement of the second phase of awakening, whatever it was. They were shocked, but no one was transforming into hungry maniacs.


    But the peace onlysted a minute before the camp got shrouded in gasps and yells. YuWon and the others rushed toward the camps and met with the stench of rotten food.


    "Huh? What?" Yuna asked. "What do you mean, all the food went bad?"


    But they weren''t the only ones. Everyone''s food rotted as soon as they stepped under the moonlight. That''s when YuWon and the rest came rushing in.


    "What''s going on?" Yeji asked.


    "The food... it''s all gone bad in a blink of an eye!?" someone yelled from the crowd.


    "All my food is gone too!"


    "I''m gonna kill whoever did this!"


    Everyone freaked out. But for YuWon and the rest, they knew exactly what was happening.


    "Have you checked the pantry?" YuWon asked Yuna.


    "Not yet¡ª"


    "Yeji, Gina, go with her and check if everything is fine there," YuWon instructed. "Everyone else, take what food you have and hide it out of the moonlight''s reach."


    Everyone looked at YuWon as if he had gone mad. But seeing as Yeji and others were hurrying, they didn''t bother arguing and did as they were told.


    At the same time, YuWon ordered the soldiers to close all the windows and doors. No moonlight should enter the buildings. The soldiers didn''t argue and followed YuWon''smands.


    Meanwhile, YuWon looked at his watch and frowned.


    Two weeks... this isn''t a coincidence.


    At that moment, he remembered of the angel''s words. They existed to entertain the sponsors or the gods. Since they were slowly gettingfortable in the new reality, they threw a curveball at them.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    People were learning to coexist. Not to mention, most people would have formedrger groups, thinking their numbers would protect them from the monsters. But now those numbers would backfire on them.


    What would happen if all their food was to disappear? How long will the so-called entertainers keep their sanity and maintain unity?


    The answer was simple: they couldn''t.


    Just when I thought we won''t be driven into insanity from hunger.


    Unlike inside the dungeon, the moon wasn''t blood-red yet. Thanks to that, people were sane. But YuWon knew once the moon turned crimson, monsters wouldn''t be their only concern.


    A minuteter, Yuna, Yeji, and Gina came running back. They didn''t speak a word, but YuWon knew what had happened. It seemed protecting food from moonlight wasn''t enough.


    "Apart from water... everything is gone," Yuna informed him, gritting her teeth.


    This isn''t good.


    YuWon sighed and shook his head. They could have figured out ways to protect the supplies from the moonlight. But if it didn''t matter, then... they were all doomed.


    Food and water were necessities for survival. They had water... for now. But without food, he didn''t even want to think what chaos it would bring to the world.


    Just when I thought establishing amunity would do me good. FUCK!


    The bigger themunity one had, the bigger the problems would be. Soon, people would begin fighting over what little remained, and there would be no way to stop them.


    Not to mention, we can''t stock up on food anymore.


    Just then YuWon thought about everything he had stored in the phantom bag. In the dungeon, the food and water, everything turned bad the moment he put them on the ground.


    He wanted to check and see if the same would happen there, but didn''t. There were too many eyes on him. The tests would have to wait... but what should they do for now?


    While YuWon was lost in thought, a soldier walked up to him.


    "Um... we could cook that," he said, pointing at the far end of the base.


    YuWon looked up, thinking the guy was talking about goblins and ogres and was about to reprimand him for that. But then he noticed the creature.


    It looked like a rabbit. Only it had four arms and four eyes and was about the size of a motorcycle.


    "What is that?" YuWon asked, walking closer to get a better look.


    It was the first time he had seen the strange monster, so he obviously had questions.


    "We''re not sure," the soldier shook his head. "But since it looks like a rabbit, I thought we could cook it."


    He wants to cook a monster? What an absurd yet great idea.


    But before YuWon could agree, he wanted to know more about the monster. After all, it wasn''t there before. Yuna sensed his mind and answered.


    "That thing appeared shortly after you guys went inside the crack," she said. "It wasn''t the only one either. We saw a bunch of them hopping around, feasting on the leaves."


    "There''s more of these?"


    "Yeah, not just rabbits, either. There were other animals too. All bigger and more ferocious than normal."


    YuWon scratched his chin. It all made sense to him now. He was wondering why they weren''t getting any more sses or other rewards after the second awakening announcement.


    After all, they received their sses when the first awakening notification appeared before them. But nothing of that sort happened this time.


    The first awakening was aimed at the humans. Could it be the second one is for the animals?


    It made sense why monsters they hadn''t seen before suddenly appeared before them. But that wasn''t all. If animals were evolving, it meant everything was about to get much worse.


    They had barely survived fighting against monsters, and now they would have to face evolved beasts as well. Also, to force their hand and fight the evolved beasts, the second awakening took their food from them.


    "We''ll have to hunt those beasts to make up for what we lost..." YuWon mumbled. "First kill monsters to survive, then kill evolved beasts to continue surviving¡­ fucking hell!"

 Chapter 85: Let The Hunt Begin (1)

    I''ll think about our water problemter. First, I should deal with them.


    He nced around at the group of over a hundred people. Most were nonbatants, but even those with suitable sses had grown entitled after being spoon-fed.


    As for those with other sses, their attendance meant little. While useful in different fields, they were incapable of hunting or fighting effectively. The gist of it was that they had more mouths to feed than they had hands to work.


    YuWon sighed, massaging his temples. The situation had turned into a headache, and the more he thought about it, the worse it got.


    At first, he thought about leaving the base and going the nomad route. But the base was a safe ce, and he didn''t have any intention of leaving the ce just yet. That left him with one option.


    Should I kick them all out?


    He had already told them there would be no freeloaders. If they wanted food, they would have to work. But that alone won''t be enough. With their supplies gone, they would need to hunt... a lot.


    Even if people contributed to the base and hunt, there wouldn''t be enough food for everyone. The obvious choice was eliminating people based on their usefulness. But that would lead to another problem.


    Once I kick them out, they might go around, find other groups, and tell them about the base.


    With everyone losing their food source, it was a matter of time before people began raiding each other''s bases. In such situations, it was best to silence the troublemakers.


    Killing them here would be troublesome. But¡­ anything can happen outside these walls.


    YuWon smiled, noticing the light at the end of the tunnel. With that thought, he returned to the crowd, waiting for them anxiously.


    "Alright, listen up!" YuWon began. "As you know, we have run out of food. Thankfully, we have a way out of this mess."


    Everyone sighed in relief at hearing it. But they wouldn''t like what YuWon said next.


    "From now on, we''d have to hunt evolved beasts to survive," he said. "No more freeloading. If you want food, then you have to work for it."


    People stared at each other. With one nce, YuWon knew they weren''t in the favor of working.


    Not only that, they had lived afortable life so far. Because of that, stepping out of the base seemed like an absurd thought to them. It was then a man stepped up to YuWon, staring into his eyes.


    "Are you saying we have to leave the safety of the base? We don''t even know what''s out there! It''s suicide for weak people like us!"


    Encouraged by the man, a few more people stepped up, protesting against YuWon.


    "I''ll never step outside! It''s the duty of the strong to protect the weak!"


    "Yeah! That''s right! Why should we have to risk our lives?"


    Soon everyone was yelling as if their words would have any effect on YuWon.


    Do they think their tantrums work in this world? How cute.


    YuWon sighed before smiling. It had been two weeks and these fools still thought they were living in the old world where the voices of the weak mattered.


    YuWon wasn''t their leader because he got elected to be one. He was their leader because he chose to be one. But he could easily turn into a tyrant if he wanted.


    "It looks like I gave you people the wrong impression," YuWon mumbled, and everyone went quiet.


    Gina, Lysandra, Yeji, and Yuna were the only ones aware of his true nature. It was time YuWon reintroduced himself to the rest.


    He stepped toward the guy, who started the rebellion and swung his sword. The de stopped mere inches from the man''s neck. Feeling the cold metal next to his neck, the man copsed to the ground in fear.


    The crowd gasped and stepped backward. They had always seen YuWon as a righteous person who protected those who couldn''t protect themselves.


    They thought his kindness was why he saved them during the first trial. Little did they know, YuWon viewed them as nothing more than worker ants.


    YuWon believed if he threw enough scraps at them, they would happily work for him. Only now he realized his mistake.


    In a forsaken world, strength was the only thing that mattered. If one had enough strength, they wouldn''t need to ask for anyone''s help. The others would rush to please them.


    YuWon looked down at the man, his de inching closer to the guy''s face.


    "It is the duty of the strong to protect the weak?" he scoffed. "A world like that never existed. It always has been a world where the weak have to please the strong, or they''ll be left behind."


    The man gulped down his saliva as YuWon leaned in closer and smirked.


    "If you can''t even do something as simple as hunting for food, then what use is there in keeping you alive?"


    The people there might have heard such words in movies, but hearing them now had a profound effect on them. All the voices of protests were strangled to death in an instant.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "I-I''ll go!" he stammered. "I''ll hunt for food, water... anything you say! Please, don''t hurt me!"


    YuWon smiled and put the sword back.


    "Good, boy," he said, patting the man''s head. "I expect you to perform exceptionally well."


    Then YuWon''s eyes turned to the crowd. They immediately nodded, agreeing with his terms, and formed groups preparing for the hunt.


    "Divide yourselves into two groups," YuWon announced. "Half of you will stay here to guard the base. The other half will go out and hunt. When the first groupes back, the second group will go. Is that clear?"


    Everyone nodded in agreement, but none dared to speak a word. YuWon couldn''t help but shake his head. If only he had used fear to control them earlier, he wouldn''t have had to deal with their stubbornness this whole time.


    Oh well, it''s never toote to learn a lesson.

 Chapter 86: [Bonus Chapter] Let The Hunt Begin (2)

    "Where do you think you''re going?" Gina asked, her arms crossed. "You''re not thinking of going out there alone, are you?"


    "You should take someone with you. It''s too dangerous to hunt on your own." Lysandra nodded in agreement, her vines moving around her feet.


    YuWon could get why Gina was acting up. But Lysandra too? She knew he could respawn, but still urged him to take someone along. Only then did it click for him.


    Both of them were his wives. Since Gina was acting all worried, Lysandra didn''t want to lose to her. So she joined Gina, acting the part of a devoted wife despite knowing the truth.


    "I need you two to stay here and protect the base," he said, caressing their cheeks. "Don''t worry. I won''t be gone long. Just need to check a few things here and there."


    "You bettere back in one piece," Gina narrowed her eyes, not convinced by his argument but letting him go either way.


    "Really?" YuWon replied. "You think some random beast will kill me?"


    Lysandra said nothing, but cleared her throat loudly.


    "...alright, I''ll be careful," YuWon shot her a look before walking away.


    Even though he said that, only he knew how many times he had his head severed or died in the open. However, hunting wasn''t the only reason for him to leave the base.


    He needed to check his Phantom Bag and see if the items inside were still good to consume. If not, he would empty everything rather than fill the space with useless goods.


    ***


    YuWon found a secluded alley, his back resting on the cold brick wall. With a sigh, he opened the phantom bag again and pulled out some raw meat he had stored before.


    At first, the meat remained fresh, in its prime state, ready to be cooked. But soon enough, the fresh meat got discolored. Eventually, it turned slimy and gooey, rotting right before his eyes.


    "It''s the same shit again," YuWon sighed, dumping the meat onto the pile of discarded goods. "As soon as it touches anything outside the bag, it goes bad."


    YuWon sighed and began dumping everything out. But then a wild thought entered his head.


    "What if... I need to try this."


    He squatted down and grabbed some rotten meat and ced it into the phantom bag. He waited for a moment, then reached in again, taking the meat out.


    YuWon didn''t expect the trick to work, but it did. The rotten meat had turned fresh, as if it had never been rotten. Although it was a brilliant discovery, the joy didn''tst long.


    It doesn''t matter if it''s fresh. It''ll rot away soon.


    The only solution was to eat the meat raw while itsted. But that wasn''t possible. Even raw meat needed some prep and if he bothered to get it ready for safe consumption, it would rot away.


    "Even with an endless supply of food, I can''t do much if I can''t even prep it." YuWon sighed, scratching his head.


    He looked at the meat again, turning it over in his hands before it started rotting again. He shoved it back into the Phantom Bag before getting up.


    While hunting was the way to go, YuWon wanted to have some secondary source of food that didn''t leave him at the mercy of the gods or sponsors or whatever they called themselves.


    "Wait a minute..." YuWon smiled, shaking his head. "Maybe the stores have something to help me?"


    It took him a while, but he eventually found another a store. Although someone had already found it before, so he won''t get the additional free draw.


    Inside, the store was mostly bare. The shelves were knocked over and everything else was scattered across the floor. But at the back of the room was the slot machine he was looking for.


    ***


    "For fuck''s sake!"


    YuWon gritted his teeth as he got another trash item from the slot machine. It was a book where if he wrote someone''s name, they would get a lot of food.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon wrote his own name, but instead of food, all he got was a pile of rotten flesh. He threw the notebook in the phantom bag and continued.


    The notebook was the reward from his seventh draw. Earlier he got some gold from the machine and some stat points, so he was fine with having them.


    But since thest four draws, his luck had taken a nosedive. First, it was an indestructible umbre. It couldn''t be broken, burned, or cut. But that was about it.


    It was indestructible, which made it a perfect shield. But it was useless. Why you ask? Because it could only be used during rain, since it remained closed until it was raining, making it useless.


    Then was a coin that one could never lose. When someone did, it would teleport back into his pocket. That was it. The coin had no actual value either, so he couldn''t use it for trading or anything.


    The third thing was a pillow that was as heavy as a boulder but turned into a soft, harmless pillow when it touched anything. And finally, was the notebook.


    It almost felt like the machine was ying a cruel joke on him.


    Onest pull... then I''ll return no matter what it gives me.


    YuWon closed his eyes and pulled the lever. The machine whirled into action. A momentter, there was a thudding sound, like someone had dropped something heavy on the floor.


    YuWon opened his eyes and found a ck cooking pot next to his feet. He picked up the pot and looked at it.


    [Item: Iron Pot]


    [Rank: Umon]


    [Effect: Cleanse]


    [Cleanse: Can cook rotten flesh into edible food. Taste is poor, but safe to eat.]


    "Well, it''s not exactly what I wanted, but it''s better than nothing," he said, keeping the pot inside the phantom bag. "I guess that''ll have to do for now."


    However, as he was about to leave, he heard some footsteps headed his way.


    Fucking hell! This shit again? It feels like I''m stuck in some third-rate novel!

 Chapter 87: [Bonus Chapter] Let The Hunt Begin (3)

    YuWon heard a feminine voice speak and peeked from above. Five people were there, three girls and two guys. The girls were clutching the skinny guys while the bald, burly looking guy cursed at them.


    "We barely got our hands on some food and an hourter everything turned bad?" the bald guy snarled, kicking away an empty shelf.


    "I''m sure that fucking trader did something to the food," one girl clicked her tongue.


    "Let''s first catch that trader!" another one chimed in. "They must have more food to spare."


    "Forget it!" the bald man waved his hand, looking at the store icon. "We can get something from here. Oi, brat!"


    When the bald guy yelled, the girls pushed the skinny guy ahead. The guy fixed his spectacles and nervously trotted ahead. The bald guy put his hand on his shoulder before smiling.


    "You want to get lucky tonight, don''t you?" he said while pointing at the girls, who blew kisses toward the skinny guy. "Then use some of that luck you got and get me something good and they will show you some loveter."


    "I-I can try," the skinny guy forced a smile on his face. "But... I only have gold to do three pulls¡ª"


    "Then you better get it done in three pulls!" the baldy mumbled, pushing him ahead.


    The guy nodded and reached for the lever. Meanwhile, the baldy stepped back, and the girls were immediately all over him.


    "Boss... you won''t make us sleep with that weirdo, will you?" a girl pouted, tracing the man''s chest with her finger.


    "Who do you think I am? A green hat enthusiast?" the baldy chuckled, grabbing the girl''s ass. "I''m just using him. Once he is done, we''ll leave him to rot."


    "Big boss is a big meanie!" the girls smiled.


    Meanwhile, the guy kept fiddling with the slot machine, unaware of what the others were plotting. YuWon, who had turned invisible, couldn''t help but shake his head.


    The skinny guy reminded YuWon of his old self. Weak and worn out, existing to be used by everyone else. But there was something else.


    I don''t want some nosy neighbors.


    Since the baldy and rest had walked to the store, they had to live nearby. But since the military base was also close, YuWon thought he should keep an eye on them.


    But the more he heard, the more eager he was to kill them. They weren''t the kind of people YuWon wanted to live around, knowing they would cause trouble for himter.


    "This machine is broken," the geek said, fixing his spectacles.


    "What do you mean?" the baldy groaned. "It was fine a couple of days ago."


    "I-I don''t know, but someone must have hit the machine. The lever is bent and the wheels have been tampered with."


    "Wait... didn''t the boss say he got the jackpot from this machine a couple of days ago?"


    "What do you want to say, bitch?" the baldy roared. "You think I broke the machine?"


    The baldy''s expression slightly scared the girl, but then she looked at the skinny guy as if begging for help.


    Don''t do it, kid...


    YuWon hoped he would use from brain and not interfere. Unfortunately, he was wrong. The skinny guy looked at the bald guy and lunged with something in his hand.


    A secondter, the baldy had his hands around the geek''s neck, choking him. The guy''s eyes were fixed on the women. He attacked the boss for their sake. If they helped him, they could take him down.


    However, the girls just looked at him and scoffed.


    "Then what do you want us to do? Fight him?"


    "¡­"


    The geek clenched his teeth at those words. He had realized his mistake of thinking he meant something to them. But it was toote to repent. The girls were scared and wanted to stop the baldy, but they kept their thoughts to themselves.


    Every person had a limit and if they went past the boss''s limits, then they couldn''t expect what would happen. He could kill the like he was about to kill the geek. No matter what, their boss was the strongest among them.


    YuWon shook their head. What happened to them was none of his concern. However, just when he was about to leave, a bounty notification appeared before him.


    It wants me to kill him, huh?


    YuWon looked back at the guy, remembering what the others said about his high luck. It would be a waste to let go of such a guy.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The way he craves female attention, if I get him together with someone from the base, it would get even easier to control him.


    With that, YuWon made up his mind. Still invisible, he walked up to the guy and tapped on his shoulder. The guy grunted, thinking it was one of the girls, and did nothing.


    But the second time, he swung his hand only to get caught by YuWon. As his invisibility got dispelled, the girls gasped and jumped behind the shelves.


    "It''s not good to bully the weak," YuWon smiled. "Unless I''m the one bullying them."


    With that, YuWon swung his sword, cutting the hand that held the geek. The baldy roared in pain and fell on his back, staring at YuWon.


    "W-Who are you!?" the man yelled, crawling away from YuWon. "Why are you¡ª?"


    The man''s words got cut short when YuWon stabbed his leg with the sword.


    "Argh!? Do you... have any idea... who I am?"


    "Why are you asking me that? Did your parents forget to sign the birth certificate?"


    "You... I''ll kill you!"


    YuWon sighed and stabbed the guy''s other leg.


    "I don''t know you, and I couldn''t care less about your curses," YuWon yawned squatting next to the guy. "If I want to kill you, I''ll kill you. That''s all there''s to it. No need to make this ugly."


    "S-Sociopath! You''re a sociopath!"


    "Bitch, give me some respect," YuWonughed, staring into the man''s eyes. "At least call me a psychopath!"

 Chapter 88: Destinys Favored

    "Hey! Hey! Help me, please!"


    But the girls remained unmoved, looking at the bald man. They hesitated for a moment but then got up, only to abandon him as they ran. The bald man roared in rage as he saw them flee the store in haste.


    "You bitches!"


    "They didn''t give a shit about you, did they?" YuWon shrugged.


    The baldy turned. The arrogance in his eyes had long since left him.


    "Brother! You saw them, right?" he mumbled. "I have other women like them. I got the variety, you know? As long as you let me leave, all of them will be yours!"


    YuWon sighed and lowered the swords. The man must have thought he took the bait. Unfortunately for him, that wasn''t the case.


    "You dare offer your sluts to a married man?" YuWon cursed, stomping on the man''s injured leg. "You''re lucky they aren''t here or they''d gouge your eyes out and y marbles with them."


    "It''s my fault, brother!" the bald guy cried in pain. "I''m sorry, I''m sorry!"


    "Fine, I''ll let you go," YuWon replied. "On the condition, you tell me where your base is."


    The bald guy panicked. Although he acted like a big shot, he wasn''t the boss of the base, but a pimp. He supplied girls to the actual boss before everything went to hell and used those connections to establish himself.


    However, if he told YuWon about the base and he got to know about it, everything would turn to shit.


    "¡­"


    Without a word, YuWon lifted the sword and was about to crush the other man''s leg when he baldy yelled back.


    "I''ll say everything I know!"


    The baldy thought as long as he was alive, he could talk his way out of any hardship. If worsees to worse, he could join YuWon and be his dog instead. Any kind of life was better than no life.


    At those words, YuWon smiled.


    "Good choice," he said. "Tell me everything and I might even take you in."


    The baldy was like a dog. As long as YuWon tossed him a biscuit, he would tell him everything. Besides, if his words could solve the problems, then there was no need to dirty his swords.


    I''m still going to kill him. I can''t fail a contract after all. But he doesn''t need to know.


    The guy began babbling and sure enough, their base was close by. It wasn''t close enough for YuWon to worry, but the ce they chose as a base was quite... unique.


    "You chose a nightclub as your base?" YuWon raised an eyebrow.


    "Yeah... I mean we got girls, booze, and weapons, what else does one need?" the baldy smirked as if he wanted to sell YuWon the ce. "The girls aren''t bad either. Their plump¡ª"


    YuWon slightly increased the pressure on the man''s leg, and he stopped.


    "How many fighters do you have?" YuWon continued.


    "Over two hundred. We worked with local mafia so..."


    "Alright, that''s good enough," YuWon said, stepping off the man''s feet.


    "Thank you! Thank you!"


    However, the baldy''s smile faded away a momentter. Before he could react, his head flew off.


    A thousand gold for this? Not bad.


    YuWon turned and saw the geek looking at him. When he saw YuWon heading his way, he panicked and tried to crawl away. But YuWon was faster and grabbed him by the cor and lifted him off the ground.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Lee Hojin


    ss: Destiny Jester


    Sub-ss: ountant


    Allegiance: ??


    Level: 13n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Experience: 67.5%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 176 / 220


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): ??? / ???


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 3


    ¡ª Agility: 9


    ¡ª Intelligence: 33


    ¡ª Defense: 7


    ¡ª Endurance: 2


    ¡ª Wisdom: 56


    ¡ª Luck: 999


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile


    +++


    What the hell?


    It was the first time YuWon had seen a three-digit stat, and that too on luck. In his awe, he dropped the Hojin, who fell on his ass and winced in pain.


    "Ouch!"


    But YuWon didn''t show any concern. He was still taken aback by the luck the brat had. With all that luck, how could he end up in such a shitty situation?


    Wait... could it be his luck that I was here?


    As absurd as that thought was, YuWon knew it had to be the truth. Looking down at Hojin, YuWon shook his head and changed his demeanor.


    "Are you hurt anywhere?"


    "N-No," Hojin replied timidly.


    "That''s good," YuWon smiled, sighing in relief. "By the way, what''s your name?"


    "H-Hojin," the boy replied, ncing nervously around the store.


    "So, what do you n next?" YuWon said, turning around to hear the distant noise of the monsters.


    "I-I don''t know," he admitted. "But I don''t want to bother you anymore. I can manage on my own."


    Like hell you would.


    YuWon cleared his throat before giving Hojin a once-over and shook his head.


    "No offense, but you''re not exactly built for this," he said. "One hit from an ogre and you''ll be dead."


    Hojin''s cheeks flushed slightly in embarrassment, and he looked down, avoiding YuWon''s gaze. The more YuWon talked with Hojin, the more useless the guy felt. But for the sake of his luck, YuWon couldn''t let him go.


    "I''ll tell you what. I''ve got a base. It''s rtively safe, and you can stay there until you figure out what you want to do."


    Hojin hesitated for a moment, his hands fidgeting nervously. Finally, he nodded, still looking down.


    "Okay... if it''s not too much trouble."


    YuWon smiled inwardly. Hojin was like a golden goose, but this time its owner wasn''t a fool.


    "Good choice," YuWon said, ncing over at the boy. "Just stick close, and you won''t have to worry about a thing."

 Chapter 89: Befitting Reward

    As they entered the camp, YuWon handed the carcasses to the soldiers and showed Hojin inside. But a momentter, Gina came rushing towards him. She stopped, looked at Hojin, and crossed her arms, clearly angry.


    YuWon wondered why she was behaving like that, but Gina didn''t make him wait for long.


    "Husband..." she smiled forcefully. "Did you leave to find another sister for me?"


    "Another girl? What are you talking about?" YuWon blinked, confused by the sudden usation.


    However, his words infuriated Gina even more than she pointed at Hojin.


    "Just because I agreed to share you with Lysandra, it doesn''t mean you can just go around collecting girls like some hobby!"


    "Gina, you''ve got it all wrong. Hojin''s not a¡ª"


    YuWon paused and looked at Hojin. The store was dark, so he didn''t get a good look, but now he realized Hojin had some feminine features. The boy''s blonde hair, freckled cheeks, and slight, skinny frame made him appear more like a girl than a guy.


    "Um..." Hojin''s cheeks flushed, and he meekly pointed towards Gina.


    YuWon cleared his throat and turned to Gina, "Hojin''s a guy. Not a girl."


    Gina blinked before narrowing her eyes to look at him more closely. "Oh... Your scent was... off."


    "Well, I see how you could have been confused."


    YuWon shook his head and turned to Hojin, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.


    "Sorry about that, Hojin. Don''t take her words to heart. It was a misunderstanding."


    "It''s okay..." Hojin looked down, blushing slightly as he nodded. "It''s not the first time someone mistook me for a girl."


    "I''m sorry..." Gina looked at Hojin before mumbling an apology. "I shouldn''t have jumped to conclusions."


    "It''s fine¡­"


    "Come on, I''ll introduce you to everyone else."


    They walked up to the makeshift workstation the girls had set up while he was out. Some people were working there, prepping the beast meat to cook while some were making fire.


    The first one toe up to them was Lysandra, who weed YuWon after his sessful hunt.


    "This is Lysandra," YuWon said. "She''s my wife."


    "Your¡­ wife?" Hojin''s eyes widened a little, surprised. "I-I thought Ms. Gina was your partner?"


    "Yeah, she''s also my wife," YuWon nodded, not borating further.


    After hearing YuWon, Hojin looked even more confused, but nodded politely.


    YuWon pointed at Yeji, who was sorting through some supplies, "That''s Yeji, my stepsister."


    Finally, he pointed toward Yuna and wondered what to say about her.


    "That''s Yuna. She just... hangs around us."


    Yuna looked at YuWon with her mouth wide open.


    "Excuse me? I ''just hang around''?" she asked, cing her hands on the hips. "That''s the best you coulde up with?"


    "She also helps with various tasks around the base." YuWon cleared his throat.


    Yuna shot him an irritated look but didn''t push it further. After all, they had more important matters to discuss.


    "How did they do?" YuWon asked, pointing at the people in some distance.


    "Some people came back with food," Yuna shrugged. "But... not everyone made it back. Some died while some went missing."


    "If they died, then they weren''t strong enough to live in this new world. It''s as simple as that."


    Although he said that, it felt awkward. After all, he was the one who couldn''t even kill a goblin and died.


    That''s all in the past...


    "Is that so?" Yuna shrugged. "But losing so many people isn''t a good thing."


    YuWon heard her but didn''t have any reaction. Those who didn''t make it weren''t strong enough to survive. That was all. Besides, he wanted to sort the weeds out.


    That was the primary reason he sent everyone on hunts. YuWon wanted to know who was strong enough to stay on the base without being a burden to the rest. His n was a sess, so why would he feel sad about it?


    YuWon''s demeanor surprised no one. Well, Hojin was, but he said nothing. Suddenly, YuWon brought the iron pot out and handed it to Yeji.


    "Here, use this to cook the rotten meat."


    "What will you do with that?" she asked, wondering what was going on inside her brother''s head.


    "It''s not an ordinary pot," YuWon replied. "The meat won''t taste good, but this pot will make it edible. Serve that to the people who returned with nothing. The other meat would go to those who brought something back."


    "So¡­ we''re rewarding failure with awful food and sess with good food?"


    "Not necessarily," YuWon smirked. "Failure would be to not step out at all. Those people won''t get anything."


    Yeji understood what YuWon wanted and nodded. For those who did nothing, not receiving anything would be punishment. While those who couldn''t contribute would get foul-tasting food.


    It would make them do better next time. Some people would resent them, but they were powerless to do anything. YuWon was turning into a necessary evil for people to grow.


    That''s what the devoted sister thought about her brother. In reality, YuWon was doing this to build an army and teach them they would get rewards as long as they kept following his orders.


    Yuna looked at YuWon and smirked. She knew exactly what was going on inside his head. But there was one thing she wanted to know.


    "And what will you do if someone objects?"


    "If anyone has a problem with it, round them up. I''ll have a ''chat'' with them." YuWon shrugged without a hint of hesitance.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Will do," Yuna smiled.


    "While you''re at it, show Hojin around. He''ll be staying with us for a while."


    Yuna raised an eyebrow. On the one hand, he was sending people away to hunt or die. But then he was bringing someone who looked so weak into the base?


    She gave Hojin a long, piercing look. But she trusted YuWon. He wouldn''t recklessly bring someone useless with him. Hojin must have something special about him, and she wanted to know what.


    "Alright," Yuna finally said with a small smile. "Come on, I''ll show you around."

 Chapter 90: [Bonus Chapter] Massacre (1)

    "I only serve the best food to my savior," Lysandra winked and continued stirring the pot.


    Since Lysandra had a close rtionship with nature, YuWon thought she would frown upon the idea of eating meat.


    But to his surprise, she volunteered to cook for him, iming that as his wife, it was her duty and wish to provide for him in every way she could.


    YuWon wasn''t sure before, but after tasting the food, he couldn''t help but ask for more.


    "I didn''t think it was possible for me to love you more," YuWon said, gulping down another bowl. "But I certainly do now!"


    "I''m d you like it," Lysandra chuckled.


    "I thought YuWon was exaggerating... but if anything, he''s doing the opposite!" Yuna joined the praise train.


    "Agreed! This is amazing," Yeji followed.


    "It''s really delicious, Lysandra... thank you."


    Even Hojin, who had been sitting quietly on the edge, couldn''t help but sing her praises. He shyly lifted his bowl, asking for more.


    Lysandra beamed from the praises. Since they had be YuWon''s family, their praises seemed even more important to her. But not everyone was happy with the praises.


    Gina suddenly put the bowl down and got up. Before anyone could say anything, she marched towards the massive cooking pot.


    "I could cook something just as good!" she announced.


    Lysandra looked over her shoulder and smiled. She understood why Gina was acting up, but before she could say anything, Gina grabbed the cooking spoon and was about to churn the pot.


    But the sudden motion of the spoon tilted the pot to one side. The bubbling stew sshed over and Gina instinctively raised her arms, closing her eyes and bracing for the pain.


    But the pain never came.


    When she slowly opened her eyes, she saw YuWon standing before her. The hot liquid had sshed on his back instead. It must have hurt. Even so, his eyes were focused on her.


    "Are you hurt?" he asked, worried about her more than anything else.


    Gina was speechless and covered her mouth as tears welled up in her eyes. She understood even though he praised Lysandra for her cooking; it didn''t mean he loved her any less.


    "YuWon!"


    By now, Lysandra had dropped what she was doing and rushed over. Yeji was quick on her feet as well. The two of them hurriedly tugged at his shirt, trying to get it off to check the damage.


    "Let me see," Yeji said urgently.


    As soon as his shirt came off, their eyes fell on his red back. The boiling stew had left its mark on his body. However, while everyone was looking at the injury, Yuna was busy staring at his ripped physique.


    "Damn..." she mumbled.


    Yeji shook her head, ignoring Yuna''sment. She pressed her hand against YuWon''s back. Once she used her healing ability, the red mark slowly faded, and the skin returned to its normal color.


    YuWon had winced once when the stew sshed on him. But now that he was being couldn''t hold back and dug his fingers into the thing he was holding... Gina.


    However, Gina didn''t care about it and kept caressing YuWon''s face, attempting to soothe his pain. Once done, YuWon let out the breath he was holding and turned back to Yeji.


    "Thanks."


    "It was nothing..." she said, before shyly pointing at the ve brand on her neck. "If brother wants to thank me... he can... I mean... it''s been a while since you''ve... um...


    praised me."


    YuWon looked at her and rolled his eyes. It had been a while since hest used the ve brand. Honestly, he had forgotten about it after the mess with Anna.


    "As you wish."


    With a quick snap of his fingers, the brand on Yeji''s neck glowed faintly, sending small, tingling shocks through her body. Yeji bit her lip, a soft gasp escaping her as the pleasant sensation washed over her.


    But then she quicklyposed herself as she realized he wasn''t alone. She cleared her throat awkwardly and stepped back, her cheeks red.


    But before anyone couldment on anything, a bunch of soldiers came running towards them. But they weren''t the only ones. Some people were running ahead of them.


    "You petty bastards!" a woman yelled. "How could you eat so leisurely while we suffer with empty stomachs?"


    The soldiers grabbed the woman and were about to drag her, but YuWon stopped them.


    "Let her go," he said. "Petty? How is eating what I hunt petty?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Y-You should share with the rest! Didn''t your mother teach you anything!?" another guy chimed in.


    Yeji gasped as soon as the man mentioned YuWon''s mother. Her eyes shifted towards YuWon, who didn''t say a thing but kept smiling.


    "She did," he replied. "But life taught me something else. To take what you want and hell with everyone else."


    "...then what if we take what we want?" the man spoke, eyeing the food pot.


    "I don''t know," YuWon shrugged and stepped back. "I guess you''ll have to find out yourself."


    Soon a crowd gathered at some distance, but no one dared to move. Most of them received the prepared rotten flesh and, despite its bitter taste, they ate their fill and didn''t want to rock the boat.


    Only those who got nothing were busy causing trouble. The man was one such person. Feeling bold, the man took a step towards the food. He thought YuWon wouldn''t hurt him in front of so many people.


    But the woman behind her wasn''t so sure. As the man walked towards the pot, she felt a chill down her spine. She looked at YuWon and noticed him smiling. But it was a maniacal smile.


    "No, don''t!" she yelled, but it was toote.


    Everything happened in a sh. One moment, the man was looking at the pot full of food, and the next he was on the ground. Pain caught up to him a momentter, and he screamed.


    YuWon had severed both of the man''s legs.

 Chapter 91: Massacre (2)

    No one cared how YuWon''s sword cut through the legs like a knife through butter. They were scared because hemitted such a heinous act.


    He chopped a man''s leg just because he took a step towards him. How could he do that? Did he have no concern for their well-being?


    Unfortunately, YuWon didn''t care and swatted down next to the man.


    "You should take what you want," he smiled. "But only if you have the strength to enforce your desires on the weak. Just like I do."


    The man couldn''t hear YuWon''s words. But he didn''t have to. After all, YuWon wasn''t necessarily speaking to the man, but to the crowd. They were free to rebel, but only if they were willing to bear the consequences.


    Meanwhile, the man kept groaning in agony. His eyes were fixed on the crowd.


    Soon enough, another man stepped up and yelled, "You severed his leg just for some food!?"


    Curious, YuWon looked up.


    A tall man with sleek ck hair was standing before the crowd. YuWon didn''t recognize the man, but he knew he was the instigator and had to have something to do with the other guy''s behavior.


    Before the hunt, YuWon had made one thing clear to everyone. He wasn''t someone to trifle with.


    Back then, the resident quietly obeyed and went out to hunt. That''s why it didn''t make sense why they would suddenly start causing a stir, knowing what was at stake if they messed up.


    Still, it was understandable those with empty stomachs would give in to the provocation. But what about those who had been fed by his generosity? Why would they join in their rebellion?


    Unless someone has a skill and uses it to provoke them.


    "Just think about it!" the man yelled. "Do you think that someone who does this to someone hungry would let you live once he gets stronger? If we don''t fight back now, we''ll forever be stuck under this tyrant!"


    "This bitch¡ª"


    Yeji was the first to react, but YuWon held her back. He was amused and wanted to see what the guy had nned for him.


    Besides, I can just kill them all. It would be difficult to maintain the base without them, but I can get more souls out of them. In the long run, I''d be better off without them.


    Meanwhile, YuWon could see the wheels in everyone''s heads turning. The man wasn''t lying. YuWon was already too strong. If someone didn''t reign him in then what would happen to them?


    At the moment, he had control over their food. But what would happen next? He would own and control them. They would have to obey his every whim. How could they live a life like that?


    "We have the numbers!" the man continued yelling. "If we can take down the beasts, then taking down a human wouldn''t be much difficult!"


    Suddenly the atmosphere shifted, and people took a step toward YuWon. But they weren''t the only ones to pick a side.


    The soldiers brandished their weapons as well. They knew if the fools could turn against YuWon, then they would turn against them as well. Besides, it was an opportunity to prove their loyalty to YuWon.


    "Stand down," YuWon said, stepping up. "No one will interfere."


    "But¡ª"


    Gina and Lysandra wanted to argue, but YuWon cut them off with a smile. If they were so eager to die, then he wouldn''t want to lose a single soul.


    But watching YuWon step up, their will faltered. They had hoped YuWon would realize his mistake and calm them down. But that didn''t seem to be the case.


    A few people instinctively backed down. Unfortunately, YuWon didn''t care. They had signed their death certificates the moment they took the first step.


    The first few people reached him, wildly swinging their crude weapons. YuWon ducked under a hammer and swung his de, slicing through his chest. The man dropped instantly.


    Without pausing, YuWon spun around, cutting down two more who came at him from behind.


    "Is this all you got?" he muttered, shaking his head. "I expected more from all of you."


    The remaining people hesitated after watching YuWon cut down theirrades. But knew there was no backing down now. Afraid, they grew desperate and reckless. Still, they kept attacking.


    However, it didn''t matter how many of them came at him. They all died by YuWon''s hand.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Suddenly, the confidence they had when they first charged at YuWon vanished, reced with pure terror. They turned around and ran towards the gates.


    The instigator was the first one to run out of the gates. But before too many of them could get away, thick roots and vines shot up from the ground, forming a wall to block their path. YuWon looked at Lysandra and smiled.


    Now trapped with YuWon, the people fell on their knees, begging for mercy. But YuWon looked at them coldly. He was angry but at himself.


    He thought he would raise them as pawns. That''s why he helped them. Only to realize how pathetic his ns were. Thankfully, he had the time to correct his mistakes.


    "Isn''t this what you wanted? Why bother begging for mercy now?" he said.


    A secondter, he ran his de through the man''s chest. The others screamed, trying to push against the wall of vines, but in vain. One by one, YuWon cut them down with no mercy.


    ***


    The sun rose to greet the survivors. But as the light shone down, all they could see was a man standing before a mountain of corpses, drenched in their blood. But YuWon''s eyes were focused on the screens shing before him.


    [Achievement Unlocked!]


    [Soul Devourer]


    [Description: Kill and absorb the souls of a hundred humans in a short time.]


    [Effect: For every soul absorbed, increase all base stats by 0.1%. Stacks indefinitely.]


    Not bad.


    However, the achievement wasn''t the only thing he got. After all, another notification was waiting for him.


    [Crimson Swords have had their fill.]


    [The Awakener can now upgrade the Crimson Swords.]


    "Upgrade the swords?"

 Chapter 92: Allegiance

    All of their faces were pale and their eyes had a certain fear of YuWon. They were the ones who had fought through the temptation and stayed back. Not joining the rebellion, as YuWon called it.


    But as for their fear, there was nothing he could do about it. YuWon didn''t me them for being scared. Hell, he rejoiced that they feared him.


    It was a side of him they had never seen before and probably never will again.


    "Clean up the mess," YuWon said, pointing to the soldiers and the others. "The corpses will attract monsters if you leave them here."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Not waiting for a response, he turned and walked away, leaving bloodied footsteps behind. As much as he enjoyed killing them, he wasn''t enjoying their blood all over his body.


    A shower would be good...


    Only when he was alone did his pace slow. He nced at his blood-stained hands. For a moment, a doubt flickered in his mind. But he shook it off.


    "What''s done is done," he said, stepping inside the room.


    ***


    The stream of water wiped the red off YuWon''s body, swirling beneath his feet before disappearing down the drain. Although the shower could fix his outer appearance, he was still worried about something.


    With a wave of his hand, a system prompt appeared before him. The same words shed before him. However, the text only confused him.


    I can upgrade the sword, but how?


    Apart from the words, there was nothing else. There were no instructions on how to upgrade them. No list of materials and no special procedure to follow to strengthen his weapons.


    "I guess I''ll figure it out eventually," YuWon sighed, closing the prompt as he stepped out of the shower.


    There he found Gina, Lysandra, and Yeji waiting for him. Except for Lysandra, the other two had the same grim expression. YuWon massaged his temples, knowing a headache was about toe his way.


    Without bothering to get dressed, with only the towel around his waist, he plopped between Gina and Lysandra while Yeji sat in front, on the spare bed.


    "Was I that scary out there?" he asked, looking at Gina. "That''s why you all are here, right? You want to see if I have lost my mind or something?"


    But suddenly, Yeji slipped from the bed and fell before him. YuWon was shocked but didn''t leave his spot, wondering if the others had something to say.


    "I... I killed them..." Yeji mumbled, revealing her blood-stained hands.


    YuWon looked at her, and then at her hands, wondering what Yeji was talking about. It was then Lysandra informed him what had happened once he left.


    "After you left, some people you killed were alive. Barely so, but alive," she exined. "When Yeji saw them... something changed in her. Sheughed as they reached for her to save them and then she killed them."


    YuWon nodded and turned toward Yeji, who was staring at her blood-stained hands. At first, he thought she was feeling guilty. It made sense. After all, she was a healer, not someone like him who would kill without a second thought. But Gina corrected him.


    "It''s not just guilt," she said. "She''s worried about her subss."


    "What?" YuWon asked, looking at Yeji.


    It was an absurd thought that someone could get so upset about a subss. Curious about it, he crouched down beside her and took Yeji''s hand in his.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Kim Yeji


    ss: Divine Healer


    Sub-ss: Blood Mage


    Allegiance: Sekhmet


    Level: 20


    Experience: 15%


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): 720 / 720


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): ??? / ???


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: 33


    ¡ª Agility: 29


    ¡ª Intelligence: ??


    ¡ª Defense: 37


    ¡ª Endurance: 20


    ¡ª Wisdom: 41


    ¡ª Luck: 45


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile


    +++


    "Blood mage? What is that?" YuWon asked.


    "That''s what we want to figure out," Lysandra continued. "I have never seen a ss like it and, ording to Yeji, it wasn''t supposed to be her subss."


    "You mean it changed?"


    "It evolved... from a simple mage to a blood mage," Gina continued. "That''s our guess, but we can''t know for sure."


    Ignoring their words, YuWon took another look at Yeji''s profile and noticed something else.


    "Allegiance?"


    No sooner did YuWon speak the word, than Yeji''s eyes shot up at him. She knew something and was hiding it.


    "Yeji... what did you do?" he asked, caressing her cheek. "I promise I won''t be angry, so speak freely."


    Yeji looked up at him, her eyes full of tears, before burying her face in his chest.


    "I-I didn''t mean to! I swear I didn''t!" Yeji rambled, looking scared. "She appeared in my dream... one where you had died and someone had taken Gina as a hostage..."


    Yeji continued, "The woman said if I epted her, she could help me... so I did and she gave me this subss... I''m sorry! I didn''t know what to do..."


    YuWon shot a look towards Lysandra. Only the two of them knew it was no dream that Yeji saw. Sekhmet, whoever she was, had deliberately shown her the timeline where YuWon got trapped in the penalty zone and used that to force Yeji to ept her.


    But it led to many questions. Someone with such powers could only be a god or a sponsor. But why would they do such a thing?


    Allegiance... I don''t know what to think about this... Sekhmet woman.


    Then his eyes fell on Yeji. After a long minute, YuWon sighed and smiled.


    "It''s fine, Yeji. You did well," he said. "But, you should kill more people from now on."


    "What...?" Yeji asked, her eyes widened in shock.


    "You heard me," YuWon smiled, patting her head. "We need to learn more about your new subss and it is the best way."


    "YuWon, what are you saying?" Lysandra asked.


    But YuWon raised his hand, stopping her. He kept looking at Yeji with his unfaltering smile.


    "Isn''t it better to know about your subss? You epted the subss for me, didn''t you? So you should do as I say."


    "I... I¡ª"


    At first, Yeji looked horrified. But then the fear was reced by something dark as she smiled. It was the same smile she had while dismembering Hoon.


    "I''ll... kill for you," she said, her eyes glowing red. "I''ll do whatever you ask."


    "That''s my Yeji," he murmured.


    YuWon''s smile widened, and he patted her head again, but this time the gesture felt more affectionate, like someone was petting a cat.

 Chapter 93: Final Trial? (1)

    A massive eagle dove towards Yeji, and she jumped away, trying to make some distance. But the bird was relentless and kept chasing her, its sharp talons were aimed at her head.


    Yeji gritted her teeth. She didn''t want to lose again. But she was out of her depth.


    "Help!" she yelled through gritted teeth.


    No sooner than those words had escaped her mouth, a sword shed the bird in half. Yeji didn''t bother looking up as YuWon gave her a hand.


    "I failed... again," she mumbled.


    "You did well," YuWon said, pinching her cheeks. "But you get distracted too easily."


    Behind YuWon were Gina and Lysandra. The two had trapped various monsters in a cage made of Lysandra''s vines and were looking for another beast to send their way.


    It had been a day since the massacre and their talk. Since then, they have been going out trying to locate their parents. Simultaneously, YuWon and the rest were teaching Yeji how to fight. Since they wanted to know more about her abilities, it was the quickest way.


    Unfortunately, things have not been going the way they envisioned. Till now, she hadn''t killed a single monster and always called for help when she knew she couldn''t win.


    Even then, Yeji was getting stronger. Her stats had improved thanks to hitting the monsters once or twice before others killed them. Even though she killed nothing, she was receiving some exp and improving her stats.


    "Heal up," YuWon said, before turning back. "She''ll release a dire wolf this time¡ª"


    However, just as he said that, something strange happened. YuWon and Yeji both heard a voice... the angel''s voice.


    [All Awakeners are requested to gather at their nearest subway station.]


    Again with the subway... this can''t be good.


    Lysandra and Gina, standing a few feet away and didn''t know why YuWon suddenly gestured for them to stop.


    "What''s wrong?" Gina asked, hurrying towards them.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "It''s time for the next trial... probably," YuWon replied, running a hand through his hair. "Didn''t you hear the voice?"


    "What voice?" Lysandra asked.


    "You didn''t hear it?" Yeji asked back, confused.


    Till now, Gina had been a part of every trial. That''s why YuWon assumed it would be the same this time. However, that wasn''t the case.


    Maybe it was a mistake on the angel''s part before.


    Since many people were alive back then, the angel might have teleported everyone instead of just choosing the awakeners. But now that quite a few were gone, maybe only the awakeners could take the trials.


    "What do we do now?" Gina asked, grasping YuWon''s hand. "I''lle with you."


    YuWon could only smile at her before shaking his head.


    "Not this time," he said. "With everyone else gone. I''ll need you two to protect the base¡ªOi! Don''t cry! I was kidding."


    Just like that YuWon''s n to prank them had failed. He didn''t expect Gina to get all teary-eyed. But no sooner than he agreed to bring them along, did Gina grin.


    "You''re not the only one with tricks, dear husband," Gina said, sticking out her tongue at him.


    Beaten at his own game, YuWon rolled his eyes. "You''ll have to pay for that."


    "What are you going to do?" Gina mumbled, throwing her arms around his shoulders. "Spank me?"


    "Why would I give you something you like? It''s supposed to be a punishment," YuWon winked at her. "No more spanking for you."


    Gina wanted to say something, but YuWon slipped past her and began heading towards the base. It would be easier to get to the subway station by car rather than on their feet.


    ***


    Sometimeter...


    "I didn''t expect so many of us would live this long..." Yuna mumbled, ncing at the crowd before.


    YuWon didn''tment and stopped the car. "We''ll continue on foot."


    Everyone looked at him strangely and YuWon sighed.


    "Showing off our cars would make us themunity''s target. You want that?"


    No one had anything else to say and quickly got out. YuWon looked around and saw quite a few menacing-looking people there. One group there had to be the people from the nightclub.


    But while he was looking, Hojin suddenly stopped and hid behind Yuna.


    "Woah... what''s wrong?" Yuna asked.


    But Hojin didn''t reply and kept staring ahead. YuWon traced his line of sight and saw a figure headed towards them... along with the girls he had seen with the baldy before.


    YuWon gave the man a once-over. He was tall with broad shoulders. His slicked-back hair shone under the sunlight, just like his golden rings.


    "Hojin, my boy!" the man shouted. "It''s so good to see you alive!"


    The man''s attention then turned towards YuWon, and his smile widened, showing his rotten teeth. They had probably been feeding on the rotten flesh or drank booze to fill their stomach. Either way, the man looked disgusting.


    "Where are my manners? I am Lim Joon, Hojin''s caretaker," he said, extending his hand. "Thank you for taking care of my boy for so long. Don''t worry, I''ll be taking him now."


    Upon hearing those words, Hojin took a step back, while tightening his grip on Yuna''s hand.


    "Lim Joon, was it?" YuWon smiled back. "It doesn''t look like Hojin wants to leave our side. So how about you take a hike?"


    The people standing behind Joon gasped. To that day, no one had seen anyone speak so brazenly to their boss. Lim Joon, however, simply chuckled.


    "Ah, to be young and hot-blooded. I miss those days," Joonmented, cing a hand on YuWon''s shoulder. "I''ll forget about your little tantrum."


    He continued, "But if you don''t step aside, not only will I take Hojin, but I''ll also enjoy countless nights with those lovely girls flocking behind you. Now that I think about it, a green hat would suit your face."


    The people behind Joonughed along. But a momentter, their smiles disappeared. Instead of using his words, YuWon used his fist and hit Joon with all his strength.


    A sickening crack followed before Joon went limp and hit the ground. One punch... that was all it took for YuWon to snap their boss''s neck.

 Chapter 94: Final Trial? (2)

    A crowd gathered around them, but before anyone could say anything, YuWon scoffed and kicked the corpse over. However, it wasn''t a corpse but a... rag doll that rapidly faded away and turned to dust.


    "What the¡ª?" Yuna gasped, stepping back in shock.


    She wasn''t the only one. All of them were surprised except YuWon and a few of Joon''s people.


    "I killed him, right?" YuWon looked at Joon''s people and smiled. "Do you mind exining what this is, then?"


    When ''Joon'' touched his shoulder, the pendant told YuWon what was happening. Joon wasn''t there, but he was controlling a puppet. It was his ss. That''s why YuWon didn''t hold back and hit the puppet with all his strength.


    The girls he had seen with the bald guy must have told Joon about him. He must have thought of YuWon as someone who could cause him trouble. That''s why he orchestrated the act.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Hojin was just an excuse. Joon wanted to brand YuWon as the public enemy since he couldn''t defeat him alone. But his n backfired. Meanwhile, YuWon took a step toward Joon''s group and smiled.


    "Next time your boss wants something," he said. "Tell him toe and talk face to face. Not hiding behind his puppets like a coward."


    Not saying another word, Joon''s group hastily stepped back. But as they did, YuWon heard someone p and looked above. The angel was looking at him with an amused expression.


    "It''s good to see you''re using your gifts wisely," she said. "The sponsors often remark how entertaining it is to watch your performances."


    YuWon smiled and gave her a curt nod. He knew nothing good woulde from entangling with her. However, his reaction seemed to please the angel even more.


    "Silent, as always," she teased, before turning to the crowd. "Greetings, everyone! It''s always a joy to witness our hardworking entertainers work even harder!"


    The angel waited for apuse that never came, but continued unbothered by theck of enthusiasm.


    "This will be yourst trial!" she yelled.


    Suddenly, the dull eyes of the people were on her. They had only dreamed of the nightmare to end, but now they could see a way out of the mess.


    She''s ying with us.


    YuWon sighed. Everyone could see the angel was ying with them. But in front of hope, they ignored the fact. As for the angel, she enjoyed crushing their hopes with despair, and that''s what she did.


    "This will be yourst trial... on earth," she continued.


    In an instant, the hope that everyone had got crushed. If only that much were enough to send them into despair, the next announcement would plunge them into madness.


    "I''ll exin about yourst trial now... hehe."


    The angel couldn''t control herugh as she waved her hand. A secondter, a massive cage appeared before them and inside... was a humanoid beast. It was fast asleep, but that wouldn''t be the case for long.


    "Do you know what it is?" YuWon asked Lysandra, who nodded.


    "Fire giant... but right now it''s just a baby," she replied.


    "...that thing is a baby?" Gina mumbled. "It''s almost twice YuWon''s size!"


    Gina''s assumption was generous, considering the creature wasn''t even standing. If it did, the thing would be over thirty feet tall... roughly five times YuWon''s height.


    "That''s not all," YuWon said, looking around them.


    "What do you mean?" Yeji asked.


    "We''re trapped in here," Lysandramented. "The moment that cage appeared, a force field appeared around us. We can''t enter or leave this ce now."


    "What!?"


    Yuna rushed to the other end, only to get pushed back by an unseen barrier. A soldier tried next, but the result remained unchanged.


    "It looks cute while sleeping, doesn''t it?" the angel said, floating next to the cage.


    The next second, she kicked the cage, and the sleeping giant stirred. The giant opened its fiery eyes and rushed to its feet. A momentter, it ran ahead and mmed its head into the metal bar before getting pushed back.


    Enraged, the giant began trashing around the cage, trying to break free. Soon, it had bent a couple of metal bars out of shape. Just as it seemed the giant would break through, the angel snapped her fingers.


    Suddenly, the fire giant slowed down, struggling to stay awake. Following the futile struggle, it fell back into a deep sleep. The angel looked at their scared expressions and smiled.


    "The baby giant fell asleep again," she said and looked upwards, tapping her lips as if thinking something. "I wonder how long he''ll be asleep for? Or if that flimsy cage would be enough to hold it back?"


    That exins the barrier around us.


    The cage was on the verge of breaking. It felt like even the gentle breeze would pull it apart and if the creature woke up then... they''d all get eaten with nowhere left to escape.


    "There are two ways to put the baby to sleep again," the angel continued, her smile widening. "You could sing it a luby¡­ in anguage the fire giants understand, of course."


    It was impossible. The humans didn''t even know such creatures existed, so how would they know their darnnguage? It left them with the second method... which none of them would like.


    "Or," the angel said as her eyes shone with a sadistic delight, "you could feed it. A baby with a full stomach would love to sleep than do anything else."


    YuWon looked around. At most, there were a hundred people. He didn''t care how many he had to feed to the beast, as long as his team could stay alive.


    "How many?" YuWon asked the angel, shocking everyone.


    "That''s for you to figure out... hehe. But know this... if you make it angry, there''ll be no saving you," the angel said before flying above. "By the way... you only have fifteen minutes to decide.


    Have fun!"


    "...we have to feed it!" someone yelled as soon as the angel disappeared.


    "Oh yeah? Why don''t you volunteer then?" another one replied.


    "All hell is about to break loose..." Gina sighed, watching people fight and argue.


    Meanwhile, YuWon stood there, his arms crossed. At times like these, he remembered Anna. If only she weren''t a crazy bitch, the two of them would have conquered any trial together.


    No point crying over spilled milk now.


    While he was lost in his thoughts, someone called out his name. It was a voice he hadn''t heard in over a year, but he knew who it belonged to.


    "YuWon...? Is that you, son?"


    YuWon''s entire body stiffened. Yet, he didn''t turn around. He couldn''t even if he tried because it felt as if his feet were buried in the ground. His parents were thest people he wanted to see in that ce.


    But even then, there was a strange part of him that was d they were alive. But the rest of him... he couldn''t care less.


    "Mom! Dad!" Yeji called out.


    Unlike YuWon, she instantly rushed towards them, wrapping her stepmother in a hug. Her father stood nearby, watching YuWon with a stern face like he didn''t want him there.


    "YuWon... it''s me," his mother called out again.


    He didn''t want to turn around. He didn''t want to face her¡ªany of them. But then... he didn''t want to drag things out. After all, he had to focus on the trial as well and had little time to spare.


    With that thought, he turned around. His mother looked disheveled, and no longer had the well-kept appearance he remembered. But it was her.


    "...it''s been a while, isn''t it?"


    She forced a smile on her face and stepped forward, raising her arms as if she were expecting a hug. But what she got was a re that made her stop in her tracks.


    She had never seen her son look at her like that. His gaze was full of disdain and hate. Understanding it wasn''t the union she had expected, she lowered her hands, fidgeting awkwardly.


    For a moment, no one said anything. Yeji, as usual, was quick to notice the tension and stepped between the mother-son duo. She then smiled nervously at YuWon, as if begging him to stay calm.


    But Yeji''s father didn''t care about all that and scoffed, walking straight toward YuWon.


    "Even a piece of shit like you survived this far, huh?"


    Everyone froze. Yuna and Lysandra exchanged wide-eyed nces, stunned by what they had just heard. The soldiers around them shifted ufortably, unsure of how to react. As for Gina... she looked like she was about to kill him.


    "Dad, please¡ª" Yeji quickly stepped forward to stop the situation from escting further, but her father didn''t want to listen.


    "Step away, Yeji!" her father barked. "I''m not talking to you."


    Yeji opened her mouth again, but YuWon shook his head, stopping her. He was eager to listen to what the pathetic excuse of a man had to say about him.


    "You should be grateful your mother even acknowledged you after all the things you''ve done," he said, crossing his arms. "And instead of groveling for forgiveness, you dare look at her like that?"


    "He''s dead..." Yuna muttered under her breath.

 Chapter 95: Strength Rules (1)

    At first, YuWon thought he must have done something. But the more time they spent, the clearer it got. His stepfather just hated him for being his father''s son. There was no other reason.


    But his mother, afraid of angering her husband, never spoke a word in his support. That''s when YuWon began despising his mother. Now the two were back, and it didn''t seem the apocalypse had any change in their personality.


    "What? Did you forget how to speak?" the stepfather retorted.


    But then, YuWon couldn''t hold back andughed. Even the usually cold and stern stepfather had to take a step back when YuWon covered his eyes and keptughing.


    "Oh, man... it''s been a while since Iughed that much," YuWon said, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Kim Seok, did you forget what you told me before kicking me out?"


    Seok was stunned to hear YuWon call him by his name. He gritted his teeth, his face turning red with anger.


    "You should watch your mouth, boy."


    "And you should be more aware of the situation," YuWon replied, staring straight into Seok''s eyes.


    Yeji couldn''t help herself and rushed between them. Although it seemed she was trying to protect YuWon, it was the other way around. She didn''t want YuWon to lose his temper and kill her father, or worse.


    "Dad, please..." she pleaded.


    For a moment, YuWon looked at Yeji and scoffed. Without saying another word, he turned to leave. But as he was stepping away, Seok called out to him.


    "As expected... the apple doesn''t fall far from the tree. You''re a worthless bastard, just like your father!"


    Yeji saw red and pushed Seok away. All the while, she kept her eyes focused on YuWon. As for him, he didn''t turn and massaged his temple as if he was about to explode.


    "Talk to your parents," he finally spoke to Yeji. "I''ll wait for you ahead."


    As soon as he said that, Seok grabbed him by the shoulder and growled loudly. "I did not give you the permission to leave!"


    "Permission?"


    YuWon snapped and pulled Seok''s hand off his shoulder, twisting the old man''s arm. Seok yelped in pain, but YuWon didn''t care and kept twisting the arm.


    "Has age caught up to you? Is that why you can''t hear what I said?" YuWon snarled. "I told you to stop bothering me, didn''t I?"


    "Let... go..." Seok muttered through gritted teeth, but YuWon ignored him.


    "Just because I am tolerating you, it doesn''t mean I won''t throw you inside that darn cage if I wanted."


    With that, he shoved Seok back, sending him stumbling before falling next to Yeji. YuWon didn''t even nce back as he continued to walk away. But sure enough, when he dealt with one person, someone else had to annoy him.


    "YuWon, you can''t talk to your stepfather like that¡ª!"


    "Shut the fuck up!" YuWon couldn''t hold his annoyance anymore. "Kang Min-Ji..."


    His mother, Min-Ji, looked stunned, her mouth opening and closing as she struggled to find something to say, but the words wouldn''te out.


    "You were the one who said you didn''t have a son like me, remember? So you have no right to lecture me now." YuWon continued. "Stay away from me, both of you. Because next time, I won''t be so kind."


    ***


    While YuWon was having a family reunion, the others were focused on the most important thing... the sleeping giant. They had made the obvious choice to feed the giant.


    But the big problem was... how would they choose who should die and who should live?


    "We should make it fair," someone suggested. "Let''s draw lots. The five losers will have to enter the cage and we can continue it¡ª"


    However, while the man was exining, someone else interjected with a crisp voice.


    "Fair? Nah, fuck that. There''s a much simpler way to decide things."


    Everyone turned to see Joon and his gang joining the conversation.


    "And what would that be?" the man from before crossed his arms.


    "Logic," Joon smiled. "The strong get to live and the weak die."


    Just like before, no one seemed to object. In fact, everyone had that thought in their head, but their morals didn''t let them speak their mind. After all, it was in oppression. Just then, a notification popped before their eyes.


    [5 minutes till the giant wakes up.]


    "We don''t have much time left."


    "How do we know who is the weakest?"


    "There''s so many of us! Five minutes isn''t enough to know everyone''s level!"


    As the crowd panicked, Joon remained calm and took out a magnifying ss. But it wasn''t an ordinary ss. If looked at someone using it, it would show their levels and highest stat.


    Joon had used it to recruit some important people, including Hojin. Unfortunately, the boy had slipped through his fingers. But it also allowed him to take revenge.


    "I can use this to look at anyone''s level," Joonmented.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    However, people were skeptical of him. Some people scoffed, while others exchanged worried looks. The idea of someone being able to see their level without permission was unsettling, and no one wanted to believe him.


    "You don''t believe me?" Joon shrugged. "Fine, I''ll show it to you."


    So he used the magnifying ss on the man standing in front.


    "Level 18, not bad."


    The man''s eyes widened. Joon was telling the truth, but having his level out in the open was equivalent to him being stripped naked.


    With their doubts quelled, Joon got to nning his revenge. One of Joon''s girls began noting down everyone''s level as Joon said.


    Suddenly, Joon noticed a scuffle happening around YuWon and his eyes fell on Yeji. He smirked, having found his target.


    Yeji wasn''t the weakest among them by a long shot. However, since he couldn''t target YuWon directly and say he was the weakest, he decided to pick someone close to YuWon to teach the brat a lesson.


    "Her," Joon announced, pointing directly at Yeji. "She''s the weakest one here. Let''s capture her before it''s toote."

 Chapter 96: Strength Rules (2)

    I didn''t think they would find a target so soon.


    YuWon had thought his harshness with Joon would have knocked some sense into their head. After all, that was why he showed off his strength to them. He wanted to scare them so they won''t dare take a step against him.


    He turned around, only to see the people eyeing someone behind him. YuWon looked back from the corner of his eyes.


    Are they going for Yeji?


    It didn''t matter if they were going for her or someone else on his team. He would not let them touch anyone.


    "Everyone... get ready," YuWon mumbled, bringing out his swords.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon was the first to move. He grabbed one attacker by the neck, lifting him off the ground like a rag doll. The man gasped for air, his hands wing at YuWon''s grip.


    The next moment, YuWon mmed the guy''s head on the ground, knocking him out.


    The man groaned in pain but was still alive. YuWon didn''t want to kill anyone yet. After all, he needed them to feed the baby fire giant. It would wake up soon, and if they didn''t fill its belly in time, all hell would break loose.


    The awakeners saw YuWon and their steps faltered. They knew little about him, but they weren''t fools.


    They had survived many days in the apocalypse, and their survival instincts had developed. They knew YuWon wasn''t someone to trifle with. But the threat of the baby eating them was much scarier.


    Hence, they kept moving ahead, their eyes locked on Yeji. As they got closer, the rest of YuWon''s group sprang into action. Gina was the first to join the fight and knocked an attacker away with a single punch.


    "Stay back!" Gina shouted.


    Lysandra, too, was quick to defend Yeji. She moved her hands, trapping as many people as possible in her vines. Even then, the people kept rushing towards them as if someone had possessed them.


    "It''s that bastard again," Yuna muttered, pointing at the guy next to Joon.


    YuWon looked up and recognized him. It was the same guy who had orchestrated the rebellion back at the base. The guy must have joined Joon''s group after fleeing that night.


    Joon stood by the man, watching the chaos with a smug grin. The two of them were behind the mess.


    Joon knew YuWon was strong, but no one could fight forever, and he had been counting on that. His n was simple: tire YuWon out, then strike when the time was right.


    But Joon had underestimated YuWon. But one couldn''t me him for his oversight. After all, the oracle''s ss could only show him someone''s level and stats, not their skills.


    "He won''t escape this time around," YuWon mumbled.


    A wisp of a soul slithered out of his hand and attached to the nearest guy. The man turned and hit the person behind. But things didn''t stop there. He kept hitting people randomly.


    Soon, their nned assault had fallen apart and turned into a full-blown riot. Joon watched in disbelief as his n fell apart. His confident smile disappeared as he turned to the man next to him and grabbed his cor.


    "What''s happening?!" Joon yelled. "Why the hell are they fighting with each other instead!?"


    "I-I don''t know!" Daeshin shook his head. "Someone else must be messing with their heads--"


    But before Daeshin could say anything, there was a thudding sound, and he crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Joon looked at Daeshin lying on the floor, wondering what had happened.


    "Looking for someone?"


    Just then, YuWon appeared before him as [Ether Walk] ability faded away. The smug grin on Joon''s face earlier was long gone, since he was face-to-face with the one person he had hoped to avoid.


    "You¡ª!" Joon''s eyes widened.


    Panicked, he threw a punch at YuWon. But YuWon was faster, YuWon caught Joon by the arm and pulled him closer.


    Using the momentum, YuWon swung Joon around, mming him into the ground. Before Joon could recover, YuWon reached down and grabbed Daeshin''s limp body as well.


    "Let go of me!" Joon yelled, thrashing wildly once he realized where YuWon was headed.


    Unfortunately for him, YuWon''s grip wasn''t that easy to pull away from. Besides, with all his men trying to calm the people, there wasn''t anyone to save him.


    YuWon dragged both men across the floor. Behind them, the people kept fighting, ensuring Joon''s bodyguards didn''t have the time to save his ass. He looked up and saw the baby giant stir.


    Just a couple more seconds...


    As they reached the cage, YuWon tossed Joon and Daeshin into the cage with no hesitation.


    "This was your big n?" Joon smirked, noticing the giant wasn''t awake. "I can just... do this!"


    A momentter, Joon''s body turned to dust and scattered across the floor.


    "Tsk... the bastard jumped bodies again," YuWon clicked his tongue, looking around. "Doesn''t matter. I won''t tire of killing you. Let''s see how many bodies you have. But where will you run?"


    YuWon turned his attention towards Daeshin, groaning in pain as he woke up. But the baby giant also woke up at the same time. The creature sniffed the air, its nostrils ring, and then its gaze fell onto Daeshin.


    "No... no, no, no!" Daeshin scrambled back, pressing himself against the bars. "SOMEONE HELP ME¡ª!"


    But there wasn''t anything anyone could do as the baby giant grabbed Daeshin by the leg. The man screamed, struggling to free himself, but it was all in vain.


    The giant''s grip tightened around his other leg as it pulled Daeshin closer, drool dripping from its massive jaws.


    "YuWon, help me! Please, I¡ª"


    The man''s words got cut off as the giant bit down, tearing into him. Blood sttered across the cage as the creature ripped him apart, piece by piece.


    Even YuWon couldn''t help but close his eyes at the sight. After finishing the meal, the baby giant let out a satisfied burp, curled up on the floor, and closed its eyes, falling back asleep.


    [The baby is full and fell asleep.]


    [It will wake up again in 3 hours.]


    "Three hours..." YuWon whispered. "That should be enough time to find Joon."

 Chapter 97: [Bonus Chapter 1/2] Truth Comes Out (1)

    "Since you, morons fought and lost to us," YuWon said, surveying the group. "Whether you live or die depends on me."


    Fear shed in everyone''s eyes, and some even tried to protest. However, as they moved, the soldiers struck them down. They weren''t people anymore, but YuWon''s prisoners, and he didn''t tolerate any defiance.


    But there was someone else they couldn''t silence.


    "YuWon, you can''t do this!" Min-Ji yelled.


    On Yeji''s insistence, YuWon had let them be. But when Min-Ji heard the horrifying wordsing out of her son''s mouth, she couldn''t hold back anymore.


    First, he killed a person by throwing them inside the cage, and now he was acting as a dictator, picking the next target. She couldn''t take it and stepped forward to reason with him.


    But as usual, YuWon ignored her and continued addressing the group as if she hadn''t spoken at all.


    "As you know, in three hours, the giant will wake up again and we''ll have to feed it," he said, looking at the prisoners. "So to make it easier for all of us, I''m looking for brave volunteers who will turn into food for the giant."


    Silence followed YuWon''s words. Not one person dared to move or speak, fearing the maniac would throw them into the cage if they did.


    "No one?" YuWon asked, his eyes scanning the crowd. "Well, that''s a shame."


    "That''s enough!" Min-Ji yelled as she rushed towards YuWon, her hand raised to p him.


    Unfortunately, YuWon wasn''t the kind son she used to know. As she swung her hand, YuWon caught it in mid-air. Min-Ji was stunned, but soon her eyes widened as his grip tightened.


    "Try interrupting me again," he snarled, staring straight into her eyes. "And you''ll be the first one I''ll feed to the sleeping ugly."


    Before Min-Ji could react, YuWon shoved her back. Seok red at YuWon from where he stood, but that was all he could do. Unlike Min-Ji, he had understood that YuWon had all the power in the situation.


    "You should be thankful to your only child," YuWon emphasized the word only with a smirk, "offered her life for yours. Otherwise, you''d be down there with the rest of them."


    Upon hearing those words, Seok''s eyes widened in disbelief. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Finally, Min-Ji mumbled first.


    "What do you mean, Yeji gave her life?" she asked, looking even more frightened of her son.


    YuWon smirked and looked at Seok before saying, "She''s my ve. That was the price for your lives."


    "Lies! My Yeji would never¡ª!" Seok yelled but got cut off by YuWon.


    "Go on Yeji, tell him," YuWon shrugged. "Tell him about those photos and ourpromise."


    Since YuWon had three hours to spare, he decided to use them to put an end to their family drama once and for all.


    Yeji confidently nodded before turning towards Seok.


    "Those photos... YuWon wasn''t responsible for taking them," she said. "It was all Hoon''s doing. He framed YuWon and¡­ I willingly became his ve to pay for my indiscretions."


    "What...?" Min-Ji mumbled, staring at YuWon.


    She looked like she had aged ten years in ten minutes. But at the same time, there was some relief on her face, as if an enormous burden had been taken off her.


    However, YuWon wasn''t looking at her. His eyes were fixed on Seok''s reaction. Despite the revtion, his face remained stone-faced. Unlike Min-Ji, there was no turmoil or remorse in his eyes.


    But he was avoiding YuWon''s gaze like a kid caught sneaking around with candy. Seok''s shoulders slumped ever so slightly, and his nose red up.


    Over the years YuWon had picked up on Seok''s habits when he was nervous or lying. At the moment, all those signs were present.


    "You knew," YuWon growled, pointing his finger toward Seok. "You knew about everything."


    "How dare you¡ª?" Seok said, shaking his head.


    But for YuWon, it was clear he was lying, and he wasn''t the only one who noticed his reactions. Min-Ji had once found those small habits of Seok endearing. But now she could only stare at him in disbelief.


    However, she forgot about Seok when her eyes met YuWon''s. She rushed towards YuWon, still on her knees.


    "Please, son! You have to believe me!" she begged, holding onto YuWon''s hand. "I didn''t know about it."


    But YuWon didn''t respond. His jaw clenched as he brushed past her, walking straight toward Seok. His eyes burned with fury as he grabbed his stepfather by the cor and lifted him off the ground.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You were the one who put Hoon up to it, weren''t you?" YuWon snarled as his fingers tightened around Seok''s neck.


    Yeji''s eyes widened in shock as she rushed forward, trying to pull YuWon away from her father.


    "No! Please, brother, don''t do this!" she begged. "It must be a misunderstanding."


    But this time, YuWon didn''t hold back. He backhanded Yeji across the face. The brother who had protected her a few minutes ago was nowhere to be seen.


    "Stay out of this!" YuWon shouted at her.


    Yeji clutched her cheek, tears welling in her eyes as she looked up at YuWon. Seok saw it too, but he couldn''t do anything as he gasped for air. Seok''s eyes bulged as YuWon lifted him higher.


    "Answer me!" YuWon roared. "Did you put Hoon up to it?"


    Seok choked, but still shook his head.


    "Liar," YuWon spat, throwing Seok to the ground.


    Seoknded hard, gasping for breath, but even then he had the energy to smirk. Meanwhile, Min-Ji sobbed on the sidelines, and so did Yeji. But YuWon didn''t spare them another nce.


    "Fine... I got other ways to make you talk," YuWon said, turning his icy gaze towards Yeji. "Confess to what you did, or your precious daughter will suffer in your stead."


    Perhaps Seok thought YuWon was bluffing, so he didn''t speak. Little did he know he coulde to regret the decision.


    "Fine," YuWon snapped his finger. "You forced me to do this."

 Chapter 98: [Bonus Chapter 2/2] Truth Comes Out (2)

    "I thought you had changed, but I was wrong," YuWon said, shaking his head. "First, you protected Hoon, and now this? Like father, like daughter. You''re all the same¡ªa bunch of backstabbers."


    Yeji flinched upon seeing the coldness in his eyes. It was only then she realized by stopping YuWon; she had made a terrible mistake. Even so, she didn''t want to believe her father could do something so heinous...not till he had confessed.


    "He... he hasn''t admitted to anything," she cried, holding on to YuWon''s leg as she looked at him, pleading. "This could all be a misunderstanding¡ª"


    "A misunderstanding," YuWon scoffed. "Sure, let''s clear everything, shall we?"


    A momentter, YuWon brought out a sword and pointed it directly at Seok''s head.


    "You love your father, but does he love you?" YuWon said coldly, "If he does, he''ll confess the truth. Won''t you, beloved stepfather?"


    However, even with the sword aimed at him, Seok didn''t speak a word.


    "I knew you wouldn''t," YuWon said, looking at Yeji. "That''s why I wanted to do this."


    Without another word, YuWon snapped his fingers. The ve brand around Yeji''s neck red up. Yeji''s eyes widened in shock, and she immediately let go of YuWon''s leg.


    A secondter, her body convulsed, and she fell to the ground, whimpering in pain. Seok averted his eyes, unable to watch, but he couldn''t ignore his daughter''s, and soon he couldn''t take it anymore.


    "Stop!" Seok yelled. "Yes! I was the one behind it all!"n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    As soon as the words left his mouth, Yeji stopped convulsing. Slowly, she stood up, her body steady, as if nothing had happened.


    Seok''s eyes widened as Yeji stared at him. There wasn''t a hint of pain in her. She waspletely fine. Only then did Seok realize Yeji had pretended to be in pain and tricked him into confessing.


    "How could you¡ª?" Seok said, wanting to call her out.


    But Yeji had other ns and pped him hard across the face. Seok staggered back, clutching his cheek in disbelief. Unable to hold back, Yeji rushed to YuWon, burying her face in his chest as tears flowed down her eyes without stopping.


    "I''m... sorry..." she sniffed between sobs.


    "You did good," YuWon mumbled, patting her head while his eyes remained fixed on Seok. "The bastard would have never confessed without your help."


    YuWon nodded at Gina and Lysandra. The two stepped up and took Yeji away from there. No matter what kind of rtionship the father-daughter had, she wouldn''t want to see what would happen next.


    YuWon took a step towards Seok, who was on his knees with his head hung low in defeat. He knew it was the end for him since the only two people who could stop YuWon weren''t on his side anymore.


    However, YuWon would not kill him. No matter how much he wanted to. More than Seok''s death, YuWon wanted answers.


    "Why?" YuWon demanded. "Why did you do it?"


    As Seok realized he had nothing to lose, he let out a bitterugh.


    "Haha, you want to know?" heughed. "I will not tell you jack shit, ungrateful brat!"


    "It was because of my father... was it?"


    Seok''s confidence wavered for a moment. He could see YuWon''s indifference, and it unsettled him. But then he realized something.


    Even if he was going to die, he wanted to see YuWon''s desperate face again. The same face YuWon had made when he got thrown out of the family.


    "I did it because I wanted to get rid of you," Seok said,ughing maniacally. "Just like I got rid of your father."


    YuWon''s face turned expressionless. Then he felt his heart stop for a moment. He had always believed that his father had abandoned them, leaving for America, and never returned. But if that was the case, then what did Seok mean?


    "What did you do?" YuWon growled, his fists shaking with rage.


    "Do I need to spell it out for you?" Seok grinned like a madman.


    Min-Ji gasped as all colors were drained from her face. Like YuWon, she too believed that her husband had simply left them. After all, that''s what it said in the letter he had left behind.


    But now she fell to her knees, clutching her chest as if she had been struck by a physical blow.


    "I got him killed!" Seokughed. "I killed him because that bastard stole Min-Ji from me! That bastard knew I loved her, yet he took her from me. How could I let it go?"


    He continued, "So I did what any lover would. I waited for my turn and slowly manipted for his business to fail. Then I lured him in, dangling the carrot of an investment before him."


    "He came to discuss the terms of coboration, only to be drugged and kidnapped! I will never forget his screams, as I had him tortured and killed."


    YuWon was too stunned the speak. The father he had hated for leaving him behind had never left. But was... killed by Seok. However, the bastard wasn''t done yet. YuWon wanted to know the truth, so Seok would tell him everything.


    "I paid some men to do it," he said, his voice dripping with malice. "They tortured him for days before dumping his body in the sea. No one ever found him."


    He turned to look at Min-Ji, who was staring at him with hatred. "And those letters you got? The ones saying he left for America? I wrote those. It was so easy to get someone to copy Jihno''s handwriting."


    As Min-Ji red at him, Seok couldn''t help but take another jab.


    "Seeing Min-Ji curse his name while she was with me was the best revenge ever. She kept ming him for leaving her, not knowing her name was thest thing Jihno spoke... It was the best feeling."


    Min-Ji covered her ears, not wanting to hear anymore. The man she had loved, the father of her child... he hadn''t abandoned them. He had been murdered, and all these years, she had cursed him, never knowing the truth.

 Chapter 99: The Last Night (1)

    "I would''ve done the same to you," Seok said, staring at YuWon. "But your mother kicked you out before I could. I was going to poison you and make it look like youmitted suicide out of guilt for those photos of Yeji. No one would''ve suspected a thing."


    "Enough," YuWon growled. "I don''t want to hear another word from your mouth!"


    However, in his madness, Seok thought his words were working and YuWon would soon be filled with despair. So he opened his mouth to continue rubbing salt on his wounds... for thest time.


    "Why stop now? Don''t you want to know your father''sst words¡ª?"


    Before he could say anything more, YuWon grabbed Seok''s neck. He kept smiling, but the smile faded when YuWon pried his mouth open and shoved his hand inside. Seok''s eyes widened in terror as YuWon''s fingers gripped his tongue.


    "You were better off with your mouth closed," YuWon mumbled.


    YuWon suddenly pulled the tongue with all his strength, ripping it out. Blood sprayed everywhere as Seok screamed as blood flooded his mouth. Seok fell to the ground, crying as YuWon threw the tongue down before stomping on it.


    "Good news, people," YuWon announced. "You won''t have to worry about feeding the baby giant for now. My stepfather has graciously volunteered himself for the task."


    Seok looked at him with fear when YuWon grabbed him by the hair. Seok groaned, but he couldn''t scream. His eyes darted towards everyone, but after the recount of his tale, no one dared to step up.


    Besides, why would they help him and risk angering YuWon? In fact, they were hoping for more of YuWon''s enemies to appear so none of them would have to die.


    As YuWon dragged Seok across the ground, his garbled screams were the only sound there. As YuWon pulled him past Min-Ji, their eyes met for a moment.


    Seok looked at her, hoping she would have some sympathy or a small sign of love she once had for him. But all he saw was pure hatred.


    YuWon kept dragging him without pause, heading towards the giant''s cage. Seok tried to resist, but he was no match for YuWon''s strength.


    "Lysandra," YuWon called out, throwing Seok inside the cage. "Bind him inside."


    Lysandra nodded and a momentter, the vines tightened around his wrists, ankles, and chest, forcing him against the cage. Seok struggled but in vain as the vines held him firmly against the cage so that he would be the first the giant would see when it woke up.


    "You deserve worse than this," YuWon pulled Seok''s head back and growled. "But this will do for now."


    With that, he let go and looked at his watch. Two and a half hours remained before the baby giant''s feeding time.


    "Enjoy yourst moments, bastard."


    ***


    As soon as YuWon turned away from the cage, the adrenaline and rage that had been fueling him faded away. He slumped to the ground, grabbing his head with both hands.


    Every time he had cursed his father, every time he had med him for abandoning them... he was cursing a dead man. Someone who died because he wanted to make their lives better.


    YuWon''s chest tightened, and he closed his eyes, trying to control his emotions before they got the better of him. Gina gently reached out for his arm, while Lysandra ced a hand on his shoulder, but neither said a word.


    "I need to be alone for a while," YuWon mumbled, nodding towards Min-Ji. "Take care of Yeji and... her."


    ***


    Somewhere far away from any mortal''s reach...


    In a grand star-studded chamber, a womanzily lounged on a gold ornate throne. The goddess had a figure that could only be described as... perfection.


    Even with herzy posture, she was desired by both gods and mortals alike. Yet none dared to approach her. Her long, flowing silver hair cascaded over her shoulders as she wore a ck dress that clung to her curves, without revealing too much.


    Her bronze legs dangled from the edge of the throne, giving off a subtle air of seduction. But none of that mattered to her, as her eyes remained on the massive mirror before her.


    But the mirror didn''t reflect her. Instead, it showed her the other world... earth. In it, she watched as the tired YuWon walked away from the chaos.


    "Interesting¡­" she whispered, before yawning, her expression contradicting her words.


    Just then, a light appeared behind her, growing brighter until an angel appeared. The angel immediately bowed down after all. She wasn''t dealing with a mortal, but a being who could erase her on a whim.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Mydy, Ereshkigal," the angel began, clearing her throat. "Your sponsored awakener is causing waves in the mortal realm... and a few gods... are objecting to the abilities you''ve given him."


    Despite the angel''s words, Ereshkigal, the Goddess of Reincarnation and ruler of the underworld, did not turn her gaze away from the mirror. Her gaze was fixed on YuWon aimlessly roaming around.


    The angel hesitated for a moment before speaking again. She was worried that the goddess might kill her for interrupting her. However, she had a duty to perform, so the angel didn''t have a choice.


    "However, some other pantheons have taken notice of him. They have already begun moving to sway the awakener towards themselves."


    "Is that so?" Ereshkigal''s smile widened. "They think they can im him?"


    The angel remained silent as Ereshkigalughed and finally turned her gaze away from the mirror to look at the angel kneeling before her.


    "They want him because they have seen the power of his blessing... not the curse," Ereshkigal said, leaning back into her throne. "By the time they see it, no one will be able to handle him but me. Tell them that."


    "Of course, mydy," the angel replied, bowing her head deeper. "I will do so."


    With that, the angel got up and was about to disappear when Ereshkigal spoke again.


    "Why did you lie to the mortals? Feeding the baby giant would only make things worse for them. But you didn''t tell them that."


    "Lady Ereshkigal," the angel began. "It was a request from the other gods... they wanted to make things a bit more fun, considering it had been a while since the rules were changed."


    "Is that so? Hm... you can leave," Ereshkigal waved her hand dismissively.


    The angel bowed onest time before disappearing in a sh of light, leaving Ereshkigal alone once more. The goddess shifted in her seat, uncrossing her legs and leaning forward slightly to peer into the mirror again.


    "I can''t say it won''t be interesting," she mumbled, looking at YuWon. "I''m curious to see how far you''ll go before you break..."

 Chapter 100: The Last Night (2)

    Since YuWon had already tied Seok to the cage, they were living carefree... for the moment. As for Yeji and Min-Ji, they had stopped crying, but their faces looked worse than YuWon remembered.


    YuWon looked at them and sighed. While he could understand their pain, he didn''t feel the need to console them. Perhaps he would help Yeji, but he had no interest in getting entangled with Min-Ji.


    Ignoring them, YuWon looked at the cage. Seok''s breathing was unsteady, but he was alive... for now.


    It should happen any moment now.


    Sure enough, the baby giant stirred. Seok was already on the verge of dying from the blood loss. But even then, a hint of fear shed in his eyes as the baby giant yawned and sat up.


    A momentter his eyes fell on Seok, who couldn''t even scream anymore. The giant''s hand reached for Seok, yanking the vines away before lifting him in the air.


    Seok dangled above the giant''s mouth before thetter dropped him. Seok fell into the creature''s mouth and, following a sickening crunch... died.


    ...that wasn''t satisfying.


    YuWon thought he would feel something when Seok died. But there was nothing. It felt like Seok''s life or death didn''t matter to him. However, with the bastard gone, YuWon''s work was done, and he turned to leave, only to hear a loud bang.


    He expected the giant would eat and fall asleep again. However, that wasn''t the case, as the creature kept banging against the metal bars.


    "What the hell?"


    YuWon couldn''t understand why the giant wasn''t asleep and neither could anyone else. Last time, the giant had been calm after eating. It had gone back to sleep like a well-fed child. But now, it seemed enraged after eating Seok.


    "Something isn''t right..." YuWon mumbled and hurriedly stepped away from the cage. "I don''t think people''s personality has anything to do with their taste."


    Unimpressed by his joke, the baby giant roared and mmed its fists against the metal bars, trying to grab YuWon.


    Does it want more food?


    That was the only reason YuWon could think of. The next moment, his eyes darted to the prisoners nearby. They knew what was about to happen and tried to run away, but Lysandra''s vines held them in ce.


    With little thought, YuWon reached out and grabbed one man at random. The man struggled to free himself, but YuWon tightened his grip, dragging him toward the cage.


    Just as YuWon was about to toss the man into the cage, a portal appeared before him.


    "What the¡ª?"


    Before YuWon could say anything else, a red-haired woman jumped out of the portal, wearing a hoodie and a mask that covered the lower half of her face.


    "Don''t feed it anymore!" the woman yelled.


    YuWon blinked, staring at the woman who was doing everything she could to avoid making eye contact with him. Although YuWon couldn''t look at her face, he remembered that voice.


    "Who the hell are you?" YuWon demanded to know.


    "...you won''t let this go, will you?" the woman crossed her arms and shook her head. "Fine... but don''t lose your crap."


    Slowly, the woman reached up and pulled back her hoodie, revealing her face. YuWon''s eyes widened in surprise and immediately reached for the [Medusa''s Fang].


    "How are you alive!?" YuWon yelled, staring at Anna.


    "Woah! Rx, crazy Romeo!" Anna yelled back, raising her hand. "This is how you''ll thank me after I saved your ass back at the station?"


    YuWon narrowed his eyes and realized it was her, the one who closed the dungeon. But even then, it didn''t answer his question. He had killed her twice. Then how the hell was she still alive?


    "Look, I know it''s hard for you to ept. We can discuss it once we''ve dealt with the baby over there!" Anna tried to make YuWon.


    "Let me feed it then¡ª"


    "That''ll only make things worseter! The more you feed it, the stronger it''ll get!"


    "So what do you want me to do!?" YuWon yelled back, losing his patience. "The fucker is on the verge of breaking out of the cage!"


    "Fight it, what else?" Anna said, bringing out her crimson sword. But her de looked different from his. "Help me kill this thing and I can help you upgrade your swords, too."


    YuWon narrowed his eyes. He didn''t trust her after everything that went down between them, and the look in his eyes made it clear to Anna.


    "I''m not asking you to trust me," she urgently replied. "But if you keep feeding that thing, it''s going to break loose and kill everyone here¡ªincluding you."


    "I can just respawn¡ª"


    "No, you can''t! Did you forget about the negation zone... wait, maybe you don''t know yet."


    "Don''t know what?"


    "The barrier! It prevents you from leaving. You won''t be able to jump timelines even if you die¡ª!"


    "What timelines¡ª?"n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "There''s no time to exin!"


    Before YuWon could say anything more, the baby giant let out a deafening roar and mmed its body against the cage onest time. The bars bent, then slowly snapped. The entire cage burst open, and the giant, now free from captivity, turned its gaze toward YuWon and Anna.


    "Dammit!" YuWon cursed, throwing the man away, and drew his swords.


    "So?" Anna asked urgently.


    "Fine," he muttered. "We''ll fight it together¡ªfor now."


    "Good boy¡ª" Anna said before quickly covering her mouth. "Forget what I said... force of habit!"


    Just then, mes erupted from the baby giant as it roared. With each step it took, it left scorched footprints behind. Despite all that, the beast was extremely agile.


    YuWon and Anna exchanged a nce and kicked each other, pushing the other out of the giant''s path. The creature was quite far away from them, but the heating out of it was unbearable and hence they kicked each other away to create even more distance from the giant.


    We can''t even get close to that thing. How are we supposed to defeat it?

 Chapter 101: The Last Night (3)

    "Dammit!" she cursed, tearing the hoodie off herself and threw it aside.


    With her hoodie gone, her toned body was revealed. Her body was riddled with scars. Some probably ran even deeper, concealed by her sports bra. YuWon noticed the scars but didn''tment.


    Thest time he had checked, she didn''t have those scars, and it confused him. Until he remembered what she told him.


    Alternate timelines... my ability might not be as simple as I thought.


    Unfortunately, YuWon didn''t have any time to spare pondering over his thoughts.


    "I assume you know a way to defeat this thing?" YuWon asked, getting back on his feet.


    "Plenty," Anna replied, throwing a marble at him. "Depends on how difficult you want it to be."


    YuWon caught the marble, and it felt like he was touching ice. "What''s this?"


    "Keep it in your mouth," she replied, gulping a marble. "Don''t chew or swallow it... unless you want to freeze to death."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    YuWon looked skeptical, thinking it might be her way to kill him. Thankfully, the pendant showed him exactly what it was.


    [Item: Boreas''s1 Eyes.]


    [Effect: If used correctly, it can freeze any fire. Even the mighty hellfire is nothing in front of this relic.]


    "Where did you get a relic--?"


    "Fewer questions, more action!" Anna yelled, lunging towards the giant.


    YuWon looked at the frozen eyeballs for a moment. He couldn''t believe he was about to put someone''s eyeballs in his mouth. But he had no choice.


    Fuck it!


    YuWon shoved the icy eyeball into his mouth. A freezing chill surged through his entire body as it touched his tongue. The fire giant''s suffocating heat disappeared in an instant. But that wasn''t all.


    ...it feels too cold.


    YuWon realized why Anna jumped towards the baby giant. The coldness might fight the fiery mes, but if he stayed too far, he might freeze to death.


    "Aim for the Goldilocks zone," Anna called out. "You can''t get too far from the little baby now."


    ***


    Meanwhile, the baby giant mmed its fist at Anna. But instead of dodging, she bravely swung her sword, making a deep cut in the creature''s arm.


    The baby giant was taken aback and howled in pain, stumbling backward. But Anna didn''t let the creature rest. She jumped, reached for the giant''s face, and kicked its jaw. Despite being staggered, the creature didn''t fall.


    "Resilient fucker," Anna clicked her tongue before shing at the creature''s torso, making a deep wound.


    She didn''t lie when she said they could defeat the baby giant. Normally, it would have been impossible, and letting the beast out of its cage meant certain death.


    As for the feeding strategy, it only worked for a while. Eventually, feeding the beast would backfire on the awakeners, as feeding it meant strengthening it.


    First, the baby would eat one, then two, and then its hunger would keep increasing. By the time they would realize their mistake, it would be toote.


    Without enough numbers to fight the creature, it would tear through the awakeners, killing everyone. Their only respite was to hide in the beast''s cage once it was out and hope the angel would activate the portal and summon them to the Otherworld.


    But there was a way to kill the baby giant. A method only Anna knew as a regressor. Unfortunately, it wasn''t easy as it required killing Boreas... a literal god. But there was another way.


    I got lucky this time.


    Anna thought, staring at the baby giant clutching its stomach.


    While killing Boreas was impossible, killing the awakener he sponsored was easy. That''s why Anna cultivated the guy and helped him get his sponsor''s blessing, before taking his eyes for herself.


    Was it wrong for her? Yes. But it was necessary. Their timeline was already doomed since YuWon had died in it. But Anna could use the eyes and save YuWon in a different timeline... one where he had killed her.


    It''ll be a headache to exin it all to him. But YuWon needs to live, or else... no one will be able to control that bloodthirsty bitch.


    As Anna thought that, her eyes drifted towards Yeji. All the survivors and huddled in a corner with Lysandra and a few others casting a barrier to protect them from the heat.


    I can''t kill her. But as long as YuWon lived, I wouldn''t have to deal with her.


    "Watch out!" YuWon yelled, rushing to stop the giant''s blow with his swords. "You''re daydreaming at a time like this?"


    "...sorry!" Anna mumbled, stepping aside and making another cut, this time in the creature''s leg.


    The baby giant growled and stumbled backward. But this time, YuWon noticed something else. As the baby giant''s wounds healed, its size got smaller.


    "Now you know what we have to do," Anna smiled, noticing YuWon''s gaze. "Keep attacking it and we''ll win."


    The baby giant growled and suddenly the mes emanating from its body disappeared, gradually reappearing in its mouth.


    "Get ready," Anna said, looking at YuWon. "This is our ticket to victory."


    She didn''t say another word and YuWon knew what they had to do.


    As the swirling mes calmed down in its mouth, the baby giant sneered before spitting the darn thing toward Anna and YuWon.


    The two of them raised their swords in unison, with no intention of dodging the attack. The fireball smashed into their des but didn''t explode.


    But the fire was intense, and YuWon wondered if their des could tolerate the heat before melting. As for them, Boreas''s eyeballs absorbed most of the heat, protecting the duo.


    "Come on!!!" Anna roared, pushing the fireball away.


    With a final push, they sent the fireball back to its owner. Before the giant could do anything, the fireball mmed into the giant''s face. The creature yelled out in pain and clutched its face before falling to the ground.


    The creature rolled on the ground in agony, trying to extinguish the mes. But it got no relief as it kept shrinking until only a blue ming orb remained.


    ***


    Author''s Note:


    [1] Boreas is the Greek god of the cold north wind, storms, and winter.

 Chapter 102: Different Worlds (1)

    [You have aplished an inconceivable achievement.]


    [You have be the first to kill the  in this round.]


    [Please wait while the appropriate reward is generated...]


    [Level restrictions have been lifted for you.]


    [You have reached level 40!]


    [You''re the first to reach humanity''s limit during the trials!]


    [You have absorbed a mythical soul!]


    [Your attributes have increased.]


    Countless more notifications popped open before YuWon, but he shrugged those off. It was a headache to go through all the notifications and waved his hand to mute them.


    YuWon then turned his de toward Anna, who looked at him and smirked. She had already expected it would happen and had no intention of fighting YuWon.


    However, the next moment she was shocked when YuWon turned the hilt towards her. Anna was confused and looked at him. Only then she remembered her promise.


    "Upgrade it," YuWon said, looking at Anna.


    "What about the other one?" Anna asked, eyeing the second de.


    "I''ll do it myself after you show me how it''s done."


    "Fine."


    With that, Anna lifted her hand, casually tying her hair in a ponytail. Once done, she took the de from YuWon and walked to the remnants of the baby giant.


    Even the faintest bit of fire that was left radiated immense heat. Thankfully, they still had the eyeballs in their mouths, so sweating was all the two did.


    "This is the purest form of hellfire known to me," she said, hovering the de over the mes. "In the right hands, it can forge any weapon one could think of. Unfortunately, this is the only time one can get it. People regretted missing their chanceter."


    YuWon kept looking at her, only half listening at first. Only then did he realize everything Anna said could be precious. After all, she was a regressor and began listening seriously.


    Soon, the crimson de glowed as it absorbed the fire. The me coiled around it like a snake wrapping around its prey, sinking into the metal. It seemed like the de intrigued the fire and reshaped it before pulling back.


    The once crimson de had turned ck, and the hilt now looked like a snake''s mouth. Once pleased with her work, Anna handed the de back to YuWon.


    "Give it a swing," she said.


    YuWon took the sword from her, surprised by how much lighter it feltpared to before. Then, as requested, he swung the de... straight toward Anna''s neck.


    The de stopped before touching her skin, but Anna didn''t flinch. Her eyes remained on YuWon''s as if she already knew what was going on in his mind.


    YuWon smirked, lowering the de. "You knew."


    "Of course I did," Anna replied, crossing her arms. "You want answers and I have them. But first..."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Anna extended her hand to YuWon. He looked at her, wondering what she wanted, and reached to grab her hand, only for her to smack it away.


    "Give me the eyeball, idiot," Anna shook her head. "You''ve had it long enough."


    YuWon scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. He quickly took it out, wiping it on his shirt to clean it before handing it over to her.


    "You don''t need to wipe it," Anna mumbled to herself. "We''ve shared more than saliva in the past... or should I say, future?"


    YuWon sighed. She had whispered, so only he heard what she said. But Anna didn''t mind. She pulled the other eyeball out of her mouth and crushed the eyeballs over the fire before it could burn her.


    A momentter, the mes froze and solidified into a crystal. Anna picked it up and handed it to YuWon.


    "If you break a small shard and throw it on the ground, it''ll turn into hellfire," she said. "Then you can use the fire to forge another weapon or just enjoy the warmth."


    YuWon looked at the frozen crystal in his hand, but before he could say anything, there was a bright sh of light. A momentter, the angel appeared before them, massaging her temples.


    "Why do you always have to make things difficult?" the angel said, crossing her arms and ring down at him. "Did you have to kill it? Surviving till the end would have been enough."


    YuWon raised an eyebrow, confused. Sure killing the giant wasn''t easy, but it wasn''t impossible. Besides, he wasn''t even the one to kill it. It was all Anna''s doing.


    The angel hovered next to him and sighed, looking at him. "You killed it and made my job harder."


    "What''s the problem now?" YuWon asked casually.


    The angel rubbed her temples before answering.


    "Don''t you see? You''ve done something that shouldn''t have happened!" she said. "Now I have to reward you. But the... sponsors won''t be happy about it."


    "So you''re saying I don''t get a reward because it will upset some gods?"


    "I didn''t say that," the angel said and paused, looking for the right words. "What I mean is, I''ll have to discuss this with the other angels."


    She continued, "We''ll need to figure out something appropriate for your reward for you, without making the sponsors upset. You''ll get something, but not right now."


    YuWon was about to say something else when the angel waved her hand, uninterested in hisints.


    "Whatever you want to say can wait," she said, summoning a portal. "For now, take your friends and leave before the third awakening."


    "Third awakening--?" YuWon was about to ask when Anna grabbed his hand and dragged him away.


    As they walked away, YuWon nced over his shoulder, noticing Gina, Lysandra, and the others emerging from their makeshift barrier.


    They rushed towards him and recognized Anna. Though she looked older and scarred, it was the girl they had fought in front of Gangnam station. But how was she alive?


    Surprisingly, Lysandra stepped up, shielding YuWon behind, as she was the only one who knew the entire truth about them.


    "Rx, flower girl," Anna shrugged. "I''m not here to hurt him. But we should step into the portal right now!"


    No one was convinced by her words, but a secondter, a massive fissure opened behind them. mes erupted from the crack, engulfing the area where they had been fighting moments ago.


    "What''s happening?" YuWon asked as everyone entered the portal.


    "The third awakening..." Anna replied, jumping into the portal. "Earth is about to change... for worse."

 Chapter 103: Different Worlds (2)

    As people entered the ce, they were worried and felt out of ce. Maybe that was what the angel wanted them to experience.


    "Where even are we?" Yuna mumbled.


    But no one replied. They were all as confused as her.


    Yeji and Min-Ji stood at some distance, their face gloomy and... detached. Gina was with them while Lysandra and Yuna, along with the soldiers, tried to maintain some sort of order.


    Why? Because they were now free to revolt and take revenge on YuWon. After all, he was ready to sacrifice them to the giant and would have followed through had it not been for the red-haireddy.


    YuWon could sense their eyes on him and was about to step up and deal with them when Anna grabbed his hand.


    "We need to talk," she said, dragging him back. "Now, before you kill someone."


    "Kill someone? I have some control--"


    "Really?" Anna crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    YuWon couldn''t argue with that and followed her away from the others. Still, he was alert, not trusting Anna just yet.


    "Alright, what is it?" YuWon asked.


    "First thing, you need to stop killing people?"


    YuWon raised an eyebrow. He wasn''t a serial killer, unnecessarily killing people. He only killed those who wanted to kill him, and he would not stop doing that anytime soon.


    Except for that one time on the base. Even so, they deserved to die.


    "Look, I know you only kill people in retaliation... most of the time," Anna sighed. "But you have no idea what happens when someone dies and you''re involved."


    "What do you mean, what happens?" YuWonughed. "They''re dead. End of story."


    "Can you be serious for a moment?" Anna said firmly, stepping closer to him. "When you kill someone, there''s a chance that they''re not really gone."


    YuWon rolled his eyes. If they aren''t dead, then where were they? Busy having an afterparty in the afterlife, cing bets on what kills him? Anna looked at him and knew what was going on in his head.


    Anna sighed and took a deep breath, as if preparing to exin somethingplex to a child.


    "Listen, there''s only supposed to be one version of someone in any timeline. But when you kill someone in this timeline, their counterpart from another timeline could take their ce."


    YuWon stared at her but said nothing, so Anna continued.


    "You must have heard about the concept of parallel worlds. Every time you make a decision, it creates an alternate world--a new timeline where you made a different choice."


    "Yeah, I''ve heard about it," YuWon said, remembering the corpses of himself he saw in the penalty zone.


    It was the first time he thought things weren''t as simple as he thought. But having Anna confirm his thoughts troubled him.


    "You already know, don''t you?" Anna asked and YuWon nodded.


    "The gist is that every time you die, you''re shifting between timelines instead of going back in time. Every time you die, you shift between timelines instead of going back in time."


    She continued, "This is what your  skill does. It creates a safe point through the multiverse and if you die, you''re sent to a timeline where you''re still alive."


    Anna looked at YuWon, hoping he would show some surprise or shock. But that was far from the case. He calmly stood there, taking every wording out of Anna''s mouth.


    "So," YuWon started slowly, "when I kill someone..."


    "That person dies in this timeline. But because the multiverse exists, another version of them remains alive and could step into this one. Just like I did."


    YuWon nodded, finally understanding what Anna wanted to tell him since the beginning.


    "So you mean..."


    "Yes," Anna said, scratching the back of her head. "The Anna you killed wasn''t me. I''m from a different timeline. After she died, I could step into this timeline with no restrictions."


    "And if I keep killing people, there''s a chance their persona from a different time could enter this timeline and cause problems?"


    Anna nodded. "It''s difficult to do so, but it''s not impossible either. One would have to know exactly what to do and have a hell of a luck. But yes... anyone you kill cane back to ruin your ns."


    YuWon''s stomach churned. The idea of people he thought had gone for a good returning wasn''t a pleasant one. But he still had a question.


    "What does it have to do with me killing anyone?" YuWon mumbled. "People die every day, but I don''t see them making any time jumps."


    "That''s the thing I haven''t figured out yet," Anna sighed. "But I know it has something to do with the blessing and curse duality."


    "...why does it feel like I''m in a boring physics ss?"


    Anna smiled and continued exining to him. But the gist was that every ss they getes with a hidden drawback, and the risk of getting jumped by strangers of different timelines was the curse of his ss.


    "Then what do I do? Stop fighting as I might end up killing someone?"


    "No," Anna said. "I''m not saying don''t fight. But think before you act. You can''t keep ughtering your way through every problem without thinking about what happens next."


    YuWon was silent for a moment, then spoke up again.


    "Why should I worry so much about this? As a regressor, you should know what happens--oh right, I forgot about the timeline thing."


    Anna''s face darkened slightly, and she nodded. "The more we make decisions, the more we change this timeline. Soon, it''ll differ from anything I remember."


    She continued, "Every time something major happens, the timeline changes in subtle ways. Eventually, we''ll change things so much that everything I remember will be useless and we''ll be in the same position as everyone else."


    "And why should I believe you?" YuWon asked thest question.


    "Because... you have to."


    "That''s not a great--"


    Before YuWon could say anything, their lips connected. But there was something else, as if something had tied them together. A momentter, a notification appeared before him.


    [You''re bound to another awakener with the thread of fate.]


    [Should the other party betray you in any manner, they''ll get executed and their soul will be eternally confined in hell with no possibility of redemption.]


    "You--!" YuWon wanted to curse her out, but Anna chuckled and turned around, teasing him.


    "What? You always told me we were bound by fate, so I just did what the future you wanted," she said, running away. "See youter..."

 Chapter 104: Different Worlds (3)

    YuWon''s hand itched as he scratched his hand. Medusa''s fang was still with him. But he couldn''t use it like before. The dagger he got wasn''t the original dagger, but a replica.


    Damn these stupid rules. If I had the original stuff, my life would''ve been a breeze.


    The replica had all the functions of the original dagger, but could only be used thrice. YuWon had already used it twice, which meant he only had one use left. Hence, he didn''t want to use it unnecessarily.


    YuWon sighed, wondering if he was making the right decision. But the invisible thread between them brought him some peace. There was no need to kill her as long as they were bound by the thread.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    With that problem out of the way, YuWon opened his status te and was surprised by the changes.


    +++


    Name: Kang YuWon


    ss: Revenant


    Sub-ss: Head Hunter, Soul Reaver


    Allegiance: None


    Level: 40


    Experience: 87.2%


    Primary Attributes:


    -- Health Points (HP): 635 / 1203 (increases 10 points/level, 10 points/Endurance)


    -- Mana Points (MP): 340 / 499 (increases 5 points/level, 10 points/Intelligence)


    -- Stamina: 30 / 30


    -- Souls: 118


    Core Stats: [+35 unallocated points]


    -- Strength: 64


    -- Agility: 50


    -- Intelligence: 20


    -- Defense: 54


    -- Endurance: 65


    -- Wisdom: 6


    -- Luck: 24


    -- Respawn Points: 1630/1000


    +++


    Upon absorbing the baby giant''s soul, his stats shot up. But that was just because of the soul. He still had 35 unallocated points to spend as he wished.


    All this and I''m yet to receive my reward for ying the baby giant.


    YuWon flying understood why the angel looked so annoyed. Apart from Hojin''s 999 luck, he was the one with the highest stats, and giving him any rewards could break the bnce of the game the gods wanted to y.


    YuWon shook his head. It doesn''t matter what the reward was, because he knew it would be good. Not wanting to idle there, YuWon walked towards the rest.


    Yuna and the rest had everything under control. As usual, Hojin was clinging to Yuna like his shield as people threw curses at YuWon''s group. YuWon ignored them and headed towards Yeji, sitting beside her.


    After what happened with Seok, YuWon wanted to console Yeji. But the moment she saw him, she turned her head away from him. But even then, YuWon knew she felt guilty because of her useless father.


    "Since when did we start being in cold wars?" YuWon mumbled.


    But Yeji didn''t respond. She didn''t even look at him. She just stared off into the distance. YuWon was trying to be patient, but her silence was getting under his skin.


    "Yeji, stop it," he warned, but she still didn''t acknowledge him.


    That''s when YuWon forced things. He grabbed her neck with one hand, his thumb resting gently on her cheek, forcing her to face him. The sudden move caught her by surprise and her eyes widened.


    "Don''t forget who you are," YuWon reminded her in amanding tone. "You might be my step-sister, but you''re also my ve, and I didn''t give you permission to act like this."


    Yeji''s face turned bright red when YuWon said those words. Her brain was overloaded with sensations, partly from his grip but also from the proximity of his face to hers.


    YuWon continued. "You don''t get to be sad or avoid me. If you''ve got something to say, then say it. Don''t make me angry by ying this silent game or you''ll end up embarrassing yourself again."


    Yeji still didn''t reply, too busy feeling his breath on her skin. She hadn''t expected him to be so direct, so forceful, but she enjoyed this side of YuWon more. All because he only showed this side of him to her.


    She was the only one YuWon treated like that. Not Gina, Lysandra, or anyone else and it made her happy, as if she owned a part of YuWon that no one else did.


    What am I even thinking!?


    Yeji quickly turned her head away, not wanting to have such indecent thoughts about YuWon. But her actions only made YuWon angry, and he forced her to face him again.


    "Still want to y this game?" YuWon sighed. "Do you not understand your position, Yeji?"


    For a moment, Yeji stared at him, her heart pounding in her chest. Complex emotions rose in her heart -- fear, guilt, and something that she desperately didn''t want to admit. But the next moment, everything went quiet, like a switch flipped inside her head.


    "I understand," she smiled, slowly shifting his hand to her neck. "I won''t cause you any trouble."


    YuWon looked at her, wondering what she was cooking. But a desire for submission was all he saw in her eyes.


    "Good girl," YuWon said, leaning in.


    Yeji''s eyes widened, but she quickly closed her eyes and leaned in as well. For a second, she thought he was going to kiss her on the lips. Part of her had been ready for it, even wanting it. Perhaps she thought getting closer to YuWon wouldn''t be a bad thing.


    But the next moment, Yeji felt YuWon pull her head down and kiss her on the head like he had hundreds of times before. The interaction barely took a second, but for Yeji, it felt like hours.


    When YuWon pulled back, he noticed Yeji''s pursed lips but ignored her reaction and smiled.


    "From now on, you''re not allowed to think about your father," he told her firmly. "Your attention is mine, Yeji. All of it belongs to me. Your only focus should be on me and on fulfilling my wishes. Nothing else. Is that clear?"


    Yeji didn''t know how to reply, so she hastily nodded. But in her mind, she couldn''t help but overthink things. She wondered if he meant what she thought or if there was something deeper and more personal behind his words.


    "Remember what I said," YuWon said and got up, not bothering to look back at her.


    As he walked away, Yeji instinctively reached to touch the ce YuWon had kissed her and more questions erupted in her head.


    Was this just part of their twisted rtionship? Was YuWon feeling something for her? Something more than just familial concern?


    Yeji shook her head, trying to push such strange ideas away. But the more she pushed, the more she wondered if YuWon desired her, and wanted something beyond obedience from her.


    Little did she know YuWon had intentionally sowed those thoughts in her head. That way to make her stop thinking about Seok. He felt a bit guilty about it, but he knew her obsession with him was the only thing that could get past her grief.


    But what do I do about her?


    YuWon thought, looking at his mother, if one could call her that.

 Chapter 105: Back To Square One

    But when the walls fell, everyone''s eyes widened. They found themselves in a dense forest, wild and untouched by humanity. But from the trees to the shrubs and grass, everything looked different, like they were on an alien.


    "This... doesn''t look like Earth," YuWon muttered, taking out his sword, just in case.


    However, Anna quickly corrected him.


    "We''re still on Earth," she said. "But this is an awakened Earth."


    "So this is the third awakening," YuWon mumbled.


    The first awakening was for humans. The second was for the beasts and other creatures, and now the third awakening was for the itself. No wonder everything looked different. They even had two moons now.


    I don''t even want to think how having two moons would affect the climate. Maybe it yed a role in all these changes.


    Meanwhile, Anna continued her lecture.


    "It''s earth, but not the one we left," she said. "That earth is gone, rebuilt from scratch."


    "But how is that possible? We were only gone for a day at most?" someone yelled from the crowd.


    "Yes! This seems... excessive," another one added.


    "Wait... then what about my pets!?"


    Everyone looked strangely at the third guy. They were thinking about life and death and there he was, wondering about his pets. How was he sure they survived the monsters?


    After ignoring the man, everyone turned back towards Anna. But all of them had the same doubt. How did she know about the changes? After all, she was in the same room as them.


    However, Anna wasn''t in the mood to answer their questions. She already had a headache after exining everything to YuWon, and that''s when he already knew about some things.


    Besides, she had no interest in revealing her ss to a bunch of strangers. So she carried on with her exnation.


    "While we were in that room, each second we spent there was equivalent to 12 years in the real world," Anna said, crossing her arms. "Spend over a day meant--"


    "It''s been more than a million years," YuWonpleted Anna''s sentence.


    "You know, it is as simple as the impact event. Think of it as a global reset, just like the one with the Jurassic and Paleoproterozoic1 eras. Only this time, it wasn''t an asteroid that changed the world."


    Everyone reacted like a bomb had dropped on them. They began worrying about their savings, properties, weddings, and whatnot. YuWon found it hrious that people were still worried about such trivial things.


    In his eyes, none of it mattered from the moment the monsters appeared. It wasn''t like the beasts would discriminate between rich food and poor food. As long as it was food, they would chow down on anything.


    Anna then leaned in closer to YuWon so only he could hear her.


    "In my timeline," Anna continued, "we called this ce the Otherworld. But you can call it whatever you want. I''m not calling dibs this time. Just so you know, I can be gracious in giving, too."


    YuWon could discern the flirty tone Anna had while saying thest part. He turned to tell her he wasn''t the one who loved her, but froze when he saw something lurking behind them.


    A massive creature walked out from the trees. The darkness made it difficult for them to get a good look at the creature, but when it stepped into the moonlight, he saw it ¡ª a two-tailed, four-eyed ck wolf.


    "Watch out!" someone screamed, but it was toote.


    The wolf lunged forward, grabbing a man from the group. The man didn''t even have time to scream as the wolf snapped his neck. But the wolf wasn''t alone, as more of them appeared in the clearing.


    Everyone panicked, and some even tried to run away, only to be the first ones who ended up dead.


    Those who could fight formed a circle around those who couldn''t, because of ack of skills, ss, or will. YuWon didn''t order those people to be protected, the others did it on their own.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Such a mentality was detrimental to one''s survival. However, before YuWon could lecture them about it, a wolf lunged toward him. YuWon dodged its initial attack and swung his Noir de, slicing through the beast''s left eyes.


    The creature howled in pain and retreated. The pack followed the creature, who seemed to be their alpha. But as they left, they dragged the man''s corpse with them.


    Good dogs! That saves me the trouble of burying the man.


    "We''d need the food," YuWon said, ready to chase after the wolves.


    But before he could take off, Anna and Gina pulled him back together.


    "Are you out of your mind!?" the two yelled simultaneously, only noticing each other''s presenceter.


    Gina red at Anna, who let go and raised her hand. She didn''t want to be at odds with anyone close to YuWon... not in this timeline. But it looked like Gina''s rival sense was on high alert and she red at Anna.


    "It''s nighttime," Anna said, ignoring Gina''s res. "We need to find a safe ce to rest first. Besides, if we chase after them now, we''ll end up dead and have them feasting on our corpses."


    "...she is correct," Gina chimed in before dropping her voice to a whisper. "Even though she''s a bitch."


    Gina''s insults did not surprise Anna, nor did she retort. After all, it was this attitude of hers that would prove useful in keeping YuWon in checkter.


    "Alright. Let''s find a ce to make a base first," YuWon said, stepping in between thedies. "And Anna, we might need to have another talk when everything is done."


    "Of course," Anna smiled at Gina. "Whenever you like."


    ***


    Author''s note:


    [1] Paleoproterozoic era: The Paleoproterozoic is a geological era that existed about 2.5 billion to 1.6 billion years ago. It''s an era where only primitive life such as bacteria existed.

 Chapter 106: Base Building (1)

    "It doesn''t look like we have the time to be picky," Anna sighed.


    Since the beasts attacked, the group of roughly sixty people had been constantly moving. They only stopped for brief rests, at which point they began discussing what to look for on a base.


    As usual, everyone''s opinions varied. Yuna wanted to look for a ce that could provide them with protection from monster attacks. Preferably a ce with elevation where they could see what was going on around them.


    Yeji suggested a ce with water, food, and other building materials so they could build a proper base. Lysandra thought about a ce where they could farm, solving their hunger problems.


    The list went on and on. However, because of their group size, the options they had were limited.


    YuWon had almost made up his mind to kick everyone out and continue ahead in a small group. But Anna stopped him. Although she didn''t explicitly say it, he understood why she wanted them to stay.


    Primarily, she had two reasons. First was manualbor. The more people they have, the easier it would be to collect materials and build their base. The second reason was a selfish, but logical one.


    We can use them as meat shields.


    YuWon could almost hear her thoughts. If the monster attacked them, they wouldn''t care about feeding on specific people. As long as they got any food, they''d back down without taking unnecessary risks, just like what happened before.


    Slowly, he understood why he and Anna got along in other timelines. Their thinking process was identical, but more importantly, one wasn''t afraid of the other.


    "What do you suggest we do?" YuWon asked Anna, ignoring everyone else.


    Since Anna was a regressor, she had more experience than anyone else there. Therefore, her opinion was more important than the rest.


    Lysandra didn''t care about her and continued getting acquainted with the forest. Gina looked like she had swallowed a lemon, but kept quiet. Meanwhile, Yuna and Yeji found it surprising that YuWon was seeking the opinion of someone who had tried to kill him.


    YuWon ignored their gaze. His eyes remained fixed on Anna.


    "Securing food and water should be our main priority," she said. "Everything elsees second."


    That wasn''t the answer YuWon expected. He was hoping Anna would remember a secret location or some shit like a protagonist from a regression novel.


    However, it didn''t seem like that was the case, or Anna would have already told him about it. With that thought, YuWon stood up, dusting off his clothes as he looked around at the group.


    Everyone was exhausted. Most were on the ground, massaging their legs after running for so long, trying to catch their breath. Unfortunately, they couldn''t afford to stay still for too long.


    "Alright, let''s get moving," YuWon said, bringing Yuna and Hojin in front.


    A few people groaned in protest. No one looked thrilled about moving again, but they didn''tin either. If they stayed in one ce for too long, they were bound to attract attention, which was thest thing they wanted.


    "Go wherever you feel like," YuWon whispered in Hojin''s ear, as people surrounded them. "Don''t think too much about it."


    "Hm..." Hojin nodded and grabbed onto Yuna''s hand, walking ahead.


    Although YuWon asked him politely, Hojin wasn''t a fool to not know his intentions. He knew YuWon must have known about his luck and was hoping he would identally stumble upon a great location.


    Despite knowing all that, Hojin didn''t feel any animosity towards YuWon. In fact, he was happy to be of YuWon''s use. At least he wasn''t being forced to do something he didn''t want.


    How could Honjin not want to find a base? Especially since he, too, was tired now.


    "I''ll find something good for you," Hojin said and walked ahead.


    YuWon smiled and nodded. The brat was trying his best, so a little acknowledgment was in order.


    Just then Anna walked next to YuWon and whispered, "Don''t expect me to be of much help before the next trial."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "And why is that?" YuWon replied, without even looking at her.


    "I do not know how we ended up in a forest, that''s why. Thest time I was in a desert, so¡ª"


    "Randomized locations? Well, that''s not a big deal," YuWon replied, looking at Hojin''s back. "We got a walking treasure before us."


    Anna remained silent.


    ***


    Roughly an hourter...


    YuWon''s trust in Hojin wasn''t unfounded. After an hour, he finally found them a location good enough for their base. The light from the two moons illuminated the clearing.


    "This could work," YuWon mumbled, noticing the small stream flowing close by.


    The clearing was big enough for the people to restfortably and still have some ce left to notice any monsters before they came knocking on their door.


    However, everyone''s gaze was fixed on the stream. They have had no water since they got thrown into the changed earth. Now in front of the stream, they couldn''t resist any longer.


    People rushed towards the stream, desperate to quench their thirst. But before anyone could dip their hands into the water, Anna told everyone to stop.


    "Why not?" someone said, ncing at the water. "It looks clean to me!"


    YuWon crossed his arms before shaking his head.


    "The earth has changed. What makes you think the water stayed the same?" He quizzed. "Besides, it''s the first rule of survival to never drink straight from the source. You always boil it first."


    People looked at each other, nodding in agreement as they slowly backed away from the river. But how were they supposed to boil it?


    Anna sighed. After living for years in the apocalypse, unlike them, she had expected the people to have some awareness. But then she remembered she had returned to a time when everything was new to them.


    "Have you ever seen a survival show?" YuWon said, pointing at the trees. "Friction makes heat, heat makes fire, survival 102. Those who can move start chopping the trees. Those who can''t start gathering branches for firewood."


    "But¡­ what are we supposed to chop the trees with?" someone mumbled, looking helpless.


    "You got your weapons, don''t you? You will not use it against the monsters. Might as well use it here."


    Once everyone got busy, Anna approached YuWon, "You''re not nning to use Hellfire for this... are you?"


    "Do I look like an idiot to you?" YuWon replied, acting like that wasn''t exactly what he nned to do.

 Chapter 107: Base Building (2)

    "12 minutes," Yuna informed the group. "That''s the limit."


    In twelve minutes after boiling the water, it would be undrinkable. It meant they couldn''t store water after boiling it and also had to use water consciously.


    "But the leaves and herbs stay the same," Lysandra chimed in.


    "So we can farm vegetables... if we can get seeds," YuWon replied, lost in thought. "Lysandra¡ª"


    "Already on it!" Lysandra said, yfully saluting YuWon and beganmunicating with her vines.


    She''s the heart of this base.


    YuWon wasn''t ttering her either. Lysandra had be the most useful person in the group.


    Apart from looking for food, she had also created a few traps around their little settlement, using her vines.


    Moreover, the vines she had spread also acted as an rm. As long as any creature stepped on those vines, Lysandra would get to know about it. That''s why YuWon said she was the heart of their base.


    However, vegetables alone won''t be enough for them. They would require protein, and the only source of protein there were the evolved beasts. Only this time, they were the food source of those they wanted to hunt.


    Let''s get down to business.


    YuWon took a deep breath and got up, scanning the ground as mes flickered. Unlike before, he would not ask everyone to hunt. He couldn''t risk a fool leading some unkible creature to their settlement.


    This time, only a few elite hunters would take part. The rest of them would focus on building the base by collecting wood, stones, and those kinds of things.


    "Anna, Gina, and I," YuWon said. "We''ll try to hunt some beasts. Anyone else want to join in?"


    YuWon scanned the crowd, but not a single person raised their hand, apart from Yeji and Lysandra. YuWon found it funny. These people readily took arms to throw Yeji to the giant. Yet now they were hesitating as if they had never held a weapon before.


    "Not you two," YuWon said, pointing at the girls. "You have to stay at the base¡ª"


    As he said that, a bright sh appeared before him. Before YuWon could react, something heavy fell right on top of him, knocking him t onto the ground.


    "Ugh, these portals¡­ the awakening messed them up," the angel mumbled, rubbing her head. "Where is he... huh?"


    Suddenly, the angel felt something strange vibration between her legs. Her eyes widened, and for a split second, her cheeks turned red. It didn''t take long for her to realize exactly what¡ªor who¡ªshe was sitting on.


    With a wild blush on her face, she hastily jumped to her feet and looked down in horror. YuWon was lying on the ground, with something sticky shining on his face.


    "I-I''m so sorry!" she stammered. "That portal malfunctioned... I didn''t mean tond on you!"


    Although she yelled, YuWon didn''t reply and got up, walking to the stream and washing his face. Only then did he turn to the angel.


    "Don''t you dare say that was my reward!"


    The angel blinked in surprise at first, surprised by his tone. But then her expression shifted from shock to anger. She crossed her arms and red at him. The slight blush was still visible on her face.


    "That wasn''t your reward, but how dare you act like it wasn''t worth one!" she snapped as her wings twitched behind her. "Do you have any idea who I am? If someone like you¡ª"


    "I don''t care!" YuWon retorted, angrily waving his hands. "Keep your fetishes off me. If I was so eager to bury my face between someone''s legs, I would have asked my wives about it!"


    "You don''t need to ask, you know," Gina replied, her eyes shyly staring at her feet.


    "She''d not wrong," Lysandra smirked, putting an arm on her waist.


    "That''s not the point!" YuWon red at them before turning to the angel, who looked like she could explode at any moment.


    "My¡­ fetishes?" the angel growled. "I have no fetish that requires me to rub someone''s face in my... you know where?!"


    "Oh yeah? Then what was on my face?"


    The angel opened her mouth to argue, but then thought she was above a mortal and there was no point in fighting with a ything.


    "Ahem, here''s your reward," she said, waving her hand.


    [Gold +40,000]


    [All stats +10]


    [All skill levels +2]


    [Achievement Unlocked!]


    [Title: me Nightmare yer]


    [Description: A title rewarded to a maniac who defeated an undefeatable monster.]


    [Effect: The awakener is immune to all types of fire damage.]


    "This should be more than enough to please you--" the angel smirked, proud of her work, but got interrupted immediately.


    "What the hell will I do with this gold? Are there any stores here!?"


    Upon hearing his words, a vein bulged from the angel''s smooth forehead. Even though she closed her eyes and forced a smile, it was still difficult for her to control her anger.


    If only you weren''t her favorite pawn...


    The angel thought to herself before opening her eyes and taking a deep breath.


    "May I ask why you think you can''t use gold anymore?"


    "...are there stores in this world?"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "If you''re asking about the ones mortals created, then the answer is no," she replied, hovering over the ground. "But the stores I created remain scattered throughout the world. You only have to look harder for it. Is that all?"


    "Where''s the nearest shop? I would like to spend some gold¡ª?"


    "I am not your navigator!" the angel stomped the air before disappearing in a sh.


    Only when the angel disappeared did YuWon realize how scared the others were. After all, unlike him, none of them would dare talk back to someone like her and even YuWon was wondering about it.


    He had crossed the line countless times. Yet the angel didn''t do him any harm.


    I got lucky because she was too embarrassed to think about anything else. I better apologize to her when we meet next or who knows what she''ll do.

 Chapter 108: Kidnapped

    "What the hell happened here?" YuWon mumbled, dropping the beast he was carrying. Anna and Gina rushed behind him.


    The ground was stained red with blood. Countless peopley injured with Yeji healing them, but a dozen of them were already gone, never to return. Yeji was kneeling beside a wounded soldier, trying to close the person''s wounds.


    There wasn''t a single soul that didn''t have some injury. People were on the ground groaning in pain, but a hint of relief crossed their faces when they saw YuWon.


    Without wasting a second, YuWon rushed over to Yuna. She was leaning against a tree, clutching her shoulder. She winced in pain, clutching her blood-soaked shirt. Hojin was by her side, cleaning her wound.


    "What the hell happened here?" YuWon asked, looking around. "And where''s Lysandra?"


    "They took her..." Hojin whispered.


    "Who!?" YuWon yelled, grabbing Hojin by his shoulder.


    "Ogres."


    "Ogres?" YuWon raised his eyebrow. "How can they cause so much chaos?"


    YuWon had thought just like the goblins, the ogres were a thing of the past. Only now did he realize how wrong he was.


    From what Yuna and the others told him, they weren''t ordinary ogres. They had horns and appeared more human-like. The ogres deceived Lysandra''s vines and by the time they noticed them; they had been surrounded.


    Those who could, fought back. But it wasn''t enough. Thankfully, Lysandra was quick to retaliate, and it seemed the ogres would retreat.


    "But then..." Hojin nervously looked at Yuna.


    "But then what!?" YuWon yelled again.


    "They got your mother," Yuna mumbled as Yeji came to heal her, not even ncing in YuWon''s direction. "Earlier, Lysandra didn''t care who they held hostage and kept attacking. But she stopped when they got Min-Ji ajumma."


    YuWon clenched his fists and took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Unfortunately, he couldn''t. The anger surged through him like wildfire.


    Without thinking, he hit the tree on the side. His knuckles tore the bark, leaving a deep hold on it. The booming sound of his punch stunned everyone.


    Everyone looked worried because that one sound could attract the beasts towards them and they weren''t in a condition to fight back. But YuWon couldn''t care less about them at that moment. Lysandra was the only one he was worried about.


    "Where..." YuWon mumbled. "Where they did they go?"


    "N-No idea¡ª"


    "Which direction!?" YuWon yelled, cutting Hojin off.


    "To the north."


    YuWon forced a smile when he heard the voice he least wanted to hear. He turned and sure enough, Min-Ji was standing before him. With her head hanging low, she didn''t dare look at YuWon.


    When the monsters attacked, Min-Ji saw people fighting them. She didn''t want to be a burden for her son and maybe get some forgiveness. So she threw herself at an ogre.


    Min-Ji''s heart was in the right ce, but fate had other ns. She thought she would help her son, instead; she became the biggest cause of his distress.


    Because of her, Lysandra willingly surrendered herself to the ogres in exchange for Min-Ji. Lysandra was taken away, and it was all her fault and she didn''t deny it.


    "Ruining my happiness once wasn''t enough for you?" YuWon spoke through gritted teeth as he stepped towards Min-Ji. "Will you only stop after destroying everything I care about!?"


    Min-Ji flinched. Her lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but the words stuck in her throat. She tried again, but no sound came out. The next moment, YuWon broke intoughter.


    "Why am I even yelling at you?" he said, running his hand through his hair. "I should have expected this. Because of you, my father died. Because of you, my life was ruined and now because of you, those fuckers took Lysandra!"


    Gina reached out for him, but in his rage, YuWon pushed her hand away and stared at Min-Ji.


    "Why don''t you just die somewhere!?"


    Min-Ji''s eyes widened as tears ran down her cheeks. She tried to hold back the sobs, but couldn''t as she realized how much hurt she had unknowingly caused her son.


    His word felt like a knife stabbing her heart. But even then, Min-Ji knew it was the truth. She had caused this. Seok had killed her husband because of her.


    Seok even wanted to kill YuWon and ruined his life... all because of her. And now, because of her, Lysandra was gone too.


    She wanted to beg for forgiveness, to tell her son how sorry she was, but nothing she said could change what had happened.


    Smack!


    "That''s enough!" Yeji yelled at YuWon, pping him.


    It was the first time she had hit him. But this time, it didn''t sting much. Maybe because YuWon had gotten stronger or his mind was numb. The pain didn''t register, but the look in her eyes did.


    Tears streamed down Yeji''s face and as quickly pulled him in a hug. Yeji''s arms tightened around YuWon as if she were holding him together. At that moment, everyone realized why Yeji had pped him.


    She didn''t do it for Min-Ji''s sake, but his. Yeji stepped in to stop him from doing something even more regrettable. YuWon was angry, but no son would want his mother''s blood on his hands.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    If Yeji hadn''t stopped him, then the guilt Min-Ji felt after hearing YuWon''s words might have driven her to end her own life.


    Yeji knew it because she had just lost her father and even though she didn''t want him back, there was a certain pain she felt as his daughter. And she didn''t want YuWon to feel the same.


    "You need to find Lysandra, YuWon," she whispered. "Her safetyes before anything else."


    YuWon''s breathing slowed as he heard her words. He looked down at Yeji and nodded. Only then did she let go of him. Neither Min-Ji nor YuWon looked at each other as he rushed to the north.


    Gina wanted to follow him as well. But before she could take a step, Yeji grabbed her arm, stopping her.


    "He can handle himself," she said. "But we have uninvited guests to deal with."


    "What¡ª?" Gina asked, but stopped when she heard a low growl.


    As she turned, the pack of wolves they had fought earlier emerged. Their leader was the first to step out of the dark, bearing the scar given to him by YuWon.

 Chapter 109: The Planets New Residents (1)

    "You''ll regret doing this," Lysandra calmly responded.


    The ogres looked at each other, scratching their heads. They couldn''t figure the woman out. They were monsters, awakened monsters who looked human, but they were still monsters. Yet the woman didn''t seem afraid of them.


    It confused them, but if they knew what kind of monster Lysandra was, they wouldn''t dare mess with her. Although she surrendered for Min-Ji''s sake, she could have easily tied the ogres up and left them to die, if not kill them herself.


    But she didn''t, as the Ogres had more to offer. Since they were eagerly taking her somewhere, she assumed they must have a base. In other words, it was an established ce that she could capture for YuWon.


    Even if that didn''t happen, at least we''d get to know the location of their base.


    For now, Lysandra didn''t act up. But she left a trail behind. A special vine that YuWon would recognize. After all, their wedding rings were made of the same vine. She believed YuWon would find her, no matter what.


    ***


    At the same time, YuWon was running in the forest like a crazed spirit. Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he saw dangling down a tree.


    "This again."


    YuWon clicked his tongue. It was a lizard-like creature. From what he knew, it was a predatory creature that used its tail to hang upside down from a tree and then poison any passing creature. The poison would paralyze the target, allowing the beast to feast on its prey while alive.


    YuWon had killed a couple of them while chasing after Lysandra. But that didn''t make them any less annoying. Without hesitating, YuWon swung his Noir de, slicing clean through the creature''s neck.


    Its body dropped to the ground, lifeless, but YuWon didn''t stop. He didn''t even bother to nce back as he kept running. However, something else caught his sight.


    He squatted down and noticed some footprints left on the ground. It looked like someone was trying to run away while being chased.


    "Lysandra!"


    YuWon got up and changed direction, chasing after the footprints. However, it wasn''t what he thought it''d be. He noticed a group of four humans backed up against arge boulder, surrounded by other people.


    Tsk, I don''t have time for this.


    YuWon was there to find Lysandra, not to interrupt a random group''s fight. Just as he was about to turn away, he noticed the horns protruding from their heads.


    YuWon''s eyes narrowed as he recalled what Yuna had told him earlier about the ogres. In appearance, they were like humans, but had horns and terrifying strength. The people surrounding the humans were ogres.


    If they were ogres, they would know about Lysandra''s whereabouts. As long as he captured one of them, the fucker would lead him to their base and YuWon can deal with the rest on his own.


    ***


    "Please let us leave!" a girl cried out, the broken chains around her neck swung wildly as she did.


    Other than the girl, the men didn''t plead for their life. But they cursed their fate.


    Back when they arrived on the strange, there were over fifty of them. However, most of them got picked off by the monsters within hours of starting. Only a dozen remained there, and they found a clearing next to a stream.


    They thought it was the perfect spot to set up their base. But what they didn''t realize was that someone had cleared the ce on purpose to set a trap for people like them.


    They were getting ready to rest when suddenly these people with horns appeared out of nowhere. Before the awakeners could fight, the horned people killed those they deemed useless while capturing the rest.


    By some miracle, they could escape their den. However, the horned folks soon came chasing after them. Now they were stuck in a terrible position with no hope of escape.


    Without their weapons or gear, fighting back was a death sentence. But there was a guy, unwilling to go down without a fight.


    "Fuck this," a guy yelled, bringing his fists up. "I''m not dying here."


    As the ogres watched the human, they burst outughing. It was always fun to see their ves struggle in vain.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I''ll deal with this one," the ogre with white braids said, stepping up. "One finger should be sufficient for this weakling."


    Saying so, the horned ogre raised a finger and aimed for the human. The man trembled but stood his ground and red at the ogre, his fists raised. The ogres continued to chuckle, amused by the spectacle.


    "Fools like this one deserve death¡ª"


    The ogre had just said it when a sword appeared from his chest. He looked at the ck de protruding from his chest before blood gushed out of his mouth and his eyes widened in disbelief.


    The ogre staggered forward as he tried to turn around. But then his legs gave out, and he copsed, dying before his body could even hit the ground.


    YuWon jumped to the next one before the ogres could retaliate. He shed through a second ogre''s chest. Another one rushed towards YuWon, but he ducked under and quickly stabbed upward, piercing the beast''s stomach.


    One after another, the ogres came rushing towards YuWon, who killed them with ease. But something felt off. These ogres were too easy to kill. Creatures like them shouldn''t have been a problem for his group. So how did they end up killing twelve people?


    YuWon turned towards the remaining ogre. The creature quickly raised his weapon to attack him, but YuWon severed his arm with a swing of his de.


    "You''re not an ogre," he mumbled, shing at the creature''s head.


    The horn easily broke like it was made of wood.


    "Why would you disguise yourself as a monster?" YuWon asked, lifting the man''s face with his de.


    But something caught YuWon''s eyes as the man raised his head.


    "A ve brand," YuWon mumbled. "Who the hell are you?"

 Chapter 110: The Planets New Residents (2)

    The man had seen hisrades get ughtered and didn''t resist when YuWon began asking questions. Apart from the one YuWon killed first, the rest weren''t ogres or onis, as the man told him.


    These people had dressed as onis, evolved forms of ogres, but in reality, were ves of the actual oni. The oni had been expelled from his n and grabbed the few people he could, enving them and dressing them up as onis.


    In the end, they became a glorified con group, fooling humans and enving them. Not only that, but they also sold some ves to the actual oni that ruled this part of the forest.


    YuWon realized that if they frequently sold ves, then it was probable that Lysandra had also been taken there. In that case, only the man could guide him there.


    "Where do you sell the people at?" YuWon asked.


    "In the cave up north! I can take you there¡ª"


    "How many people are there?"


    "ves? I d-don''t know¡ª"


    "Oni, why the hell will I ask you about the ves? Does it look like I care about them?"


    As YuWon retorted, the man''s gaze drifted towards the people standing behind YuWon. The man couldn''t help but think YuWon had a couple of loose screws.


    On one hand, he said he didn''t care about saving the ves. Then, on the other, he saved the people they wanted to capture.


    "I-I don''t know about that! They didn''t allow us to enter the cave¡ª"


    "Alright, get up," YuWon said, grabbing the man by his nape. "Take me to the cave and I''ll let you go."


    The man hurriedly nodded, and they were about to leave when the people YuWon had identally saved stepped up. They wanted to thank him for saving them, but YuWon couldn''t care less about them.


    "We were hoping you could take¡ª" the man spoke.


    "Get lost."


    YuWon''s harsh words stunned them. But they weren''t fools to keep pestering him. As for him, he didn''t want to save any more people. After all, they always caused problems for himter.


    ***


    Sometimeter, at an unknown location...


    In the center of a strange indoor garden, there stood a massive tree. Its branches spread wide and far, reaching the ceiling. A woman could kneel next to the tree, carefully tending to the roots of the once vibrant tree.


    The woman''s ck hair hung down her back, standing out against her pale, almost ghostly skin. Two red horns appeared on her forehead, a mark of her Oni heritage.


    She had a strong yet graceful build,manding and elegant. But what stood out were her icy blue eyes. They were cold with indifferent toward everything.


    As she worked, a sudden thud distracted her. A fruit fell from the tree and turned rotten as soon as it touched the soil. The oni looked at the fruit and frowned before picking it up.


    "I wonder who died now..." she mumbled.


    Just then, she heard the sound of hurried footsteps and saw an attendant rushing into the garden.


    "Didn''t I tell everyone not to bother me when I''m here?" the woman red at the attendant.


    "My apologies, Your Majesty," the attendant panted. "But... we have lost contact with a scout¡ª"


    "Why do you think I would care about a missing scout?" The woman''s anger red up instantly. "I may be the queen, but I have no interest in the lives of mere scouts."


    "Y-Your Majesty...it isn''t any scout," the attendant stammered. "It''s the prince ¡ª former prince."


    Upon hearing that, the woman''s gaze softened, and she stared at the fruit and then at the tree.


    Since she was a kid, she was told that the old tree was really important to her family, and a fruit symbolized each family member. Whenever a fruit fell, it meant someone in the family had passed away.


    But she hadn''t expected it to be her exiled brother. As the realization struck her, the fruit fell from her hand.


    "So he''s the one who died," she whispered.


    The attendant, unaware of her words, stood there awkwardly.


    "We''re preparing a search party¡ª"


    "There''s no need for that," the oni replied.


    Before the attendant could ask why, she picked the fruit up and tossed it carelessly toward the attendant, who barely caught it.


    "My brother is already dead."


    The attendant froze. Yet another death in the family. As the attendant who had served the family for decades, he could only pray for the departed, staring at the tree that used to be full of fruits. Now, there were only seven left.


    "Prepare a funeral," the oni ordered, stepping away from the tree. "And find out who killed that disgrace."


    "Your Majesty?"


    "Even if he was a worthless bastard child, he was still my kin. I must avenge his death."


    Just as the Oni queen was about to turn and leave the garden, two more attendants came rushing in.


    "Your Majesty!" one of them gasped. "There''s an intruder! He has broken through the outer defenses and is attacking our guards!"


    Before the queen could respond, the fruit in the first attendant''s hand vibrated. Suddenly, it exploded, sending bits of rotten pulp flying everywhere. The attendant stumbled back, dropping what remained of the fruit.


    The queen''s gaze shifted to the fruit''s remains, and her lips curled into a smile. The rotten fruit served two purposes.


    The first was to be used as a symbolic funeral and the second was to detect the person who killed the fruit''s bearer. Since it exploded, it meant her brother''s killer was close.


    "How interesting," she said. "I was worried it would take me time to track down my brother''s killer. But fool has made it easy for me."


    Just then, a guard came rushing into the garden.


    "Your Majesty!" he shouted. "We''ve captured the intruder!"


    "Already?" she asked. "Tell me, who is this intruder? And how did you capture them so easily?"n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "It''s a human, Your Majesty," the guard replied. "He surrendered after dispatching several of our men."


    "A human? A human killed an oni? Do you take me for a fool!?"


    "N-No, Your Majesty..."


    "Where is this... human?"

 Chapter 111: Wrestling (1)

    All of their weapons pointed directly at the man standing in the middle of the chamber with his hands tied behind his back.


    The queen didn''t bother greeting her people, and her eyes settled on the human. For millenniums, humans had vanished from the world. Yet, in thest year, they had been popping up like insects.


    Most of these humans were weak. They got captured and enved by setting up simple traps to attract them. Sometimes they fought back, but the result remained unchanged. The oni always won.


    But this man had done something unthinkable. He had killed an Oni, and not just any Oni, he had killed her brother and she wanted to know how.


    After all, till then, she hadn''t viewed the humans as anything more than insects. But one had to think of a countermeasure once the insects get rowdy.


    "Your Majesty¡ª" an attendant called out, but the queen didn''t stop.


    She stepped forward, circling the man like a predator.


    "Tell me, human," she said, "how did you kill my brother?"


    "Did I kill someone?" The man shrugged casually. "If I did, it was probably a weakling. What''s the point of talking about him?"


    The room fell silent. The attendants were speechless while the guards gripped their weapons tighter. They looked at the queen for her reaction. But instead of getting enraged, the queenughed.


    "You''re quite funny," she said. "What''s your name?"


    "YuWon," he answered.


    "YuWon... it''s a weird name," she tilted her head, smiling. "I''m Akari, in case you''re wondering."


    The Oni court shifted uneasily, confused by the queen''s friendly interaction with this human. It was rare to see their queen so entertained, let alone by someone who had killed one of her own.


    It seemed like someone had possessed the queen, and they were right. Akari wasn''t acting of her own free will. YuWon had already sent a soul totch onto hers, controlling her with no one''s knowledge.


    "Leave us," Akari ordered her people. "I want to talk to this... human, alone."


    The attendants and guards exchanged worried nces, hesitant to obey. The thought of leaving their queen with a stranger felt out of ce. Besides, if something happened to her, the royal bloodline would be in danger.


    "Your Majesty," an attendant mumbled, "we should stay¡ª"


    "Now," Akari snapped.


    The fierceness in her voice pushed them out of the room. No matter how worried they were about her and the bloodline, everyone loved their head more than anything.


    As soon as they were alone, YuWon''s posture yawned and turned towards Akira.


    "Remove my restraints," he instructed her.


    Without hesitation, Akari stepped forward and loosened the ropes that bound his wrists. YuWon rubbed his sore wrists, feeling the blood flow back into his hands.


    Then he grabbed Akari, pulling her close and holding her as a hostage. As a queen, Akari had a strong mentality. [Soul Bind] could deactivate at any moment and YuWon wanted to have some precautions in ce.


    Alright, let''s find Lysandra and get out of here.


    But before he could take a step, Akari''s lips curled into a sly smile as she grabbed his hand.


    "Oh, do humans find Onis attractive?" she whispered.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Before YuWon could react, she threw him over her shoulder with ease before mming him down onto the stone floor. YuWon hit the ground hard. He stared up in shock, realizing toote what had happened.


    Akari straightened, brushing off her clothes, all the while staring at YuWon.


    "Did you think I wouldn''t notice your little trick?" she mocked him.


    YuWon gritted his teeth and scrambled to his feet. Since Akari already knew, there was no point in pretending anymore.


    Just then, she lunged at him, her ws aimed at his throat. YuWon drew his des just in time to parry her strike. Sparks flew out as the two collided.


    YuWon''s muscles strained as he blocked her powerful blows. The thing about onis being strong wasn''t a lie. Akari was indeed strong, but not strong enough to overpower him.


    As Akari applied more pressure on him, YuWon subtly turned sideways, pushing Akari off bnce. She fell, but not before grabbing YuWon''s hand. The force pulled him down with her, his hand pressed to her throat.


    Upon feeling his grip on her throat, Akari''s reflex kicked in and she wrapped her legs around his waist. She locked YuWon in ce and thought the force around his waist would force him to let go.


    However, before that could happen, the chamber''s door swung open and a wrinkled old Oni peeked in. However, his eyes widened at what he was seeing.


    The human was on top of the queen, with her legs wrapped around his body. The old Oni''s face went bright red, and his mouth fell open in shock as he realized why the queen wanted everyone to step out.


    The old man quietly turned around and left the room in a hurry before either person could notice him.


    Outside the room, a few other guards and attendants approached the old Oni. They had sent him in because they heard some noises but didn''t want to charge in recklessly and get killed.


    They expected something was off, but their worries melted away when they saw the old oni smile.


    "The queen has found her match! The royal bloodline is secured."


    Everyone sighed in relief, and some even hugged each other.


    "Finally," someone mumbled, "we were starting to worry she''d never choose a mate."


    "She turned down every strong Oni warrior who approached her." A dissatisfied oni spoke up. "But now she picks a human?"


    "Who cares?" another one chimed in. "As long as we get an heir, that''s all that matters."


    Everyone nodded, and some even rushed towards the chef to have him prepare a feast. After all, the royal family was set to have an heir after 126 years. It was a joyous asion!


    Little did they know that YuWon and Akari were locked in a deadly fight, not wrestling to secure the royal bloodline as they assumed.

 Chapter 112: [Bonus Chapter 1/5] Wrestling (2)

    "OW! What are you? A rabid dog!?" YuWon grunted in pain as Akari sank her sharp teeth into his free hand.


    The sudden pain made him involuntarily shift his weight. As soon as he did that, Akari used all her strength to flip him over. The sudden force sent YuWon to the floor. Before he could react, Akari straddled him, sitting on top of him with a confident smile.


    "You''re a hundred years too early to defeat me, human," sheughed.


    Sitting on top of him, Akari panted heavily. Her jet-ck hair was all over the ce. She no longer looked like the calm andposed queen she was before. But like an average club girl who had a rough night.


    "Hundred years? What would you say about being defeated in a hundred seconds?"


    The next moment, he tried to push her off. But before he could seed, he felt a sudden tremoring from underneath. Suddenly, the walls shook and the floor beneath them erupted.


    Akari''s smug expression disappeared in an instant as a tree burst through the floor. Meanwhile, the oni guards and attendants were cheering her on,pletely misinterpreting the situation.


    "She''s taming him! The queen is taming her mate!" one of them shouted.


    "It''s about time!" another guard added.


    "Praise the heavens for this blessing!"


    But none of them realized that their queen''s supposed efforts did not cause the tremor to ''tame'' her mate. It was the arrival of someone else who was about to get pissed.


    "Lysandra!?" YuWon called out.


    Vines and tree roots burst through the ground, forming a throne on which Lysandra sat. At first, she was happy to hear his voice, but all that changed when she saw him pinned beneath a strange woman in apromising position.


    Moreover, Akari''s clothes were torn, her hair disheveled, and with the way she sat on YuWon, it was all too easy to jump to the wrong conclusion. With a snap of her fingers, the vines moved to obey hermand.


    A vine shot out from the throne and wrapped itself tightly around YuWon''s leg. With a gesture of her finger, she yanked him out from under Akari. YuWon yelped as he got dragged upside down, now dangling in midair.


    Meanwhile, another vine wrapped itself around Akari. Before she knew it, the vine wrapped her up tightly, binding her arms and legs together like a mummy.


    "Hey!" YuWon shouted, swinging back and forth. "Babe... can we talk about this!?"


    "You want to talk, then talk," Lysandra rolled her eyes. "I haven''t gagged you yet. But tell me one thing first. Why were you in that position with her?"


    "That position...? Oh, shit!"


    Lysandra raised her eyebrow and only then YuWon realized why she was upset. The position Akari was in when Lysandra found them was also the position the Dryad loved the most.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    So much so that she forbade Gina from climbing on top of YuWon during their nightly adventure. Yet she found Akari in the same position and lost her cool. No wonder she was uncharacteristically angry with him.


    "It''s not what it looks like, Lysandra," he tried to exin, raising his hands in surrender even though he was still upside down. "I was on my way to rescue you, but Akari wouldn''t stop fighting me!"


    Unfortunately, his exnation only fanned the mes more.


    "Already on a first-name basis, are we?" she said, narrowing her eyes. "And it looked like you were enjoying the fight, YuWon. Are you sure you''re telling the entire story?"


    "It''s not like that!" he insisted. "I swear, I was here to save you. That bitch made things difficult for me!"


    Lysandra crossed her arms, looking like she didn''t believe a word. How could she, after knowing the horn dog he was? But then she nced at Akari, her eyes locked on YuWon.


    "y along," she whispered so only YuWon could hear her.


    Without saying another word, she moved closer to YuWon and helped him stand, so he wasn''t hanging upside down anymore. Then she cupped his face and kissed him like there was no tomorrow.


    YuWon''s eyes widened in surprise, but Lysandra forced her tongue inside his mouth, all the while her gaze was locked on Akari. The Oni raised an eyebrow, wondering what the two were doing in front of her.


    They weirded her out. But with Akari''s face half-covered with vines, it was easy to mistake it as her acting jealous. Once Lysandra saw that look, she smiled inwardly and let go of YuWon.


    "There," she whispered. "That''s how you make it clear who belongs to who."


    "I ain''tining," YuWon mumbled back. "But why...?"


    "You don''t need to know that," Lysandra said, turning towards Akari. "You and I need to talk. Because no one, no one, touches what''s mine."


    "Forget about it," YuWon said.


    Before Lysandra could say anything else, he grabbed her by the arm, pulling her close.


    "We''ll deal with herter. What matters is that you''re safe, and that''s all I care about right now."


    Lysandra hesitated. She wanted to eliminate all the oni and take their base as her own. But after she had seen everything, she realized they needed more preparation.


    "You''re right," Lysandra finally said, nodding. "This isn''t the time to get caught up with her."


    "Now how do we get out of here," YuWon mumbled, looking around. "The door isn''t an option. Not with her people waiting right outside."


    "Leave that to me," Lysandra smiled and waved her hand.


    A momentter, her makeshift throne rose, burrowing through the rocky ceiling above them. With onest look at the trapped Akari, they climbed through the opening, leaving her behind in the cave.


    "Consider yourself lucky," Lysandra called out before disappearing above.

 Chapter 113: World Tree (1)

    "That''s what you get for fooling around with crazy women," Lysandra yelled back at him. "Who told you to mess with their queen?"


    "For god''s sake, nothing happened between us, I swear!"


    "Try telling them that!" Lysandra yelled, raising another barrier to stop the volley of arrows and spells.


    YuWon thought as long as they made their way out of the cave, things would be easy. Unfortunately, he couldn''t be more wrong.


    The oni became infuriated when they entered the royal chamber and saw Akari''s mate had escaped and tied her up.


    The onis got so pissed; they abandoned everything and began chasing after the duo. They didn''t care if YuWon had someone else. In their mind, he had to give Akari a child so she could carry on the lineage of royal blood further.


    That crazy bitch. Instead of clearing their doubts, she left her crazed followers on me! They believe I slept with her and went to get milk.


    However, before they could make a choice, a familiar sh of light blinded the two. The angel stood before them, fidgeting like she had done something to get in trouble.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Um... good thing I found you," she said, smiling awkwardly.


    "What do you want now?" YuWon asked and kept running.


    "It''s nothing much. I just made a mistake and have to correct it."


    Even though YuWon didn''t stop or say anything, he raised his eyebrow to convey his confusion.


    "I might have miscalcted your arrival point. None of you were supposed to spawn here... hehe."


    "Hehe? HEHE!?" YuWon finally retorted, remembering Anna''s words.


    In her timeline, they ended up in a desert, not a forest. YuWon thought it was weird and now the angel was there to correct her mistake.


    "But fret not, it would only take a minute to move you to the right ce!" the angel smiled. "You''ll like the world tree. It''s a great ce to be¡ª"


    "Wait, it''s not a desert?" YuWon retorted.


    "Why would it be a desert? There''s only one on this, and no one can survive there. Maybe you could, since you killed a fire giant. But everyone else would be burned to a crisp as soon as they set foot in it."


    YuWon frowned upon hearing those words. Anna had explicitly told him about the desert. It made him wonder if the situation of the desert was so bad. Then how did she survive there?


    For a moment YuWon thought the angel could be lying. But the angel didn''t have a reason to lie to him. Something was off about Anna and this time he would not let her go without making things clear.


    But first... let''s get out of this forest.


    "Fine, do what you have to," YuWon replied. "But there better be somepensation for this."


    "...you''re a greedy bastard. Has anyone told you that?" The angel sighed before waving her hand.


    The next moment, YuWon and Lysandra disappeared, along with everyone who hade to the forest with him. But as they got teleported to the world tree, the angel smiled, looking at the sky above.


    "Goddess Ereshkigal," she mumbled. "I hope you''re happy now. You should have left him for the others, but your unwillingness to share might lead to his death."


    The thing she told YuWon about making a mistake was a made-up story. In reality, the gods weren''t pleased with YuWon being rewarded for killing the fire giant.


    In their eyes, it broke the bnce of their game. But since he deserved the reward, the other gods urged the angel to make things fair.


    Since YuWon was stronger than his peers, they decided to put him in a ce where his strength matched the challenges. So, they sent him to the world tree.


    But even though he might survive there, the same couldn''t be said for hispanions. After all, because of YuWon, they all had to skip three trials, missing out on rewards that would have helped them get used to the new environment.


    "Oh well, it''s not like they would have survived for long either way," the angel shrugged before disappearing as well.


    ***


    YuWon blinked a few times to shake off the haziness. He looked around, trying to make sense of his surroundings, only to see Lysandra lying on top of him.


    "Where are we?" YuWon mumbled, trying to force Lysandra up.


    But then he heard footsteps and immediately got alert.


    "Are you guys okay?" Yuna called out.


    Soon Yeji, Gina, and the rest came into his vision. YuWon pushed himself on his elbows, careful not to disturb Lysandra, who was still half-asleep. As he looked around, he noticed some of them were injured. Even Yeji had a cut along her cheek that looked fresh.


    "What happened to you?" YuWon asked.


    "After you left to find Lysandra, the wolves came back," Yuna exined. " We lost a few more people, and the rest of us didn''t get away unscathed. Even so, we ended up killing most wolves before we found ourselves here."


    "Yes... where are we?" Gina asked, looking around. "This doesn''t look like a forest to me."


    "Yes, it''s not a¡ª"


    YuWon was about to exin everything to them when Anna gasped and pointed ahead. They followed her trembling hand and saw a massive tree in some distance.


    The tree towered over everything. It was so massive that they couldn''t see the top of it. Its trunk was thicker than any mountain they had ever seen, stretching endlessly into the sky.


    The most unsettling part was the branches. They spread out in every direction, covering the sky like a web. Instead of clouds, all they could see were the thick branches. It was as if the tree had swallowed the sky, leaving only a few patches of light to shine through.


    "World tree..." YuWon mumbled, remembering what the angel had told him.


    He finally understood why it was called as such. It wasn''t a tree, but an entire world in itself. But Annapletely broke down.


    "No... no, no, no. We''re screwed," Anna shook her head as if she had seen a ghost. "We''re so screwed now."

 Chapter 114: World Tree (2)

    She didn''t bother replying and got up, staring at YuWon.


    "We need to talk right now!" Anna eximed, reaching for him.


    "No, you don''t!"


    Gina and Yeji stepped between them, staring at Anna. They didn''t enjoy having her around. Not when she was after YuWon''s neck and not now. She kept acting like she was a close confidant of theirs, when in reality they couldn''t tolerate her.


    "Who do you think¡ª?"


    "Alright," YuWon said, interrupting Gina.


    "But husband¡ª!"


    "It''s fine Gina, don''t worry about me."


    YuWon wasn''t sure if the others saw it, but he could see the desperation in Anna''s eyes. He didn''t think she was acting, and if she was, then she deserved a damn Oscar for her performance.


    She''s still a regressor and judging by how she''s acting, it''s wise to hear her out.


    Anna didn''t wait for anyone else to stop and grabbed YuWon''s hand, taking him away from the crowd.


    "What''s got you all riled up?" YuWon asked. "It''s like you''ve seen a ghost or some shit."


    "...this is where you died thest time."


    "What!?"


    Anna couldn''t look at him, but nodded.


    "A disaster lives here and it killed you and countless others," she continued. "The same disaster killed the world tree, too. It can kill anyone and anything it sets its eyes on and wouldn''t stop, no matter what."


    YuWon raised an eyebrow, looking at the sky. The branches were certainly dry and leafless. Someone or something might have destroyed the tree. But that didn''t mean they could kill him.


    "I can respawn¡ª" YuWon said, but Anna cut him off.


    "There''s a cooldown for the skill, isn''t there?"


    YuWon nodded. The skill certainly had a cooldown. But it was only eight seconds now. He didn''t believe anyone or anything could kill him twice within 8 seconds. However, Anna didn''t look convinced because she had seen happen before her eyes.


    "You know about the creature and you''re alive, so you must know how to kill it, right?"


    "...I don''t," Anna shook her head. "I have no recollection of fighting that damn mole."


    "Mole?" YuWon asked. "You were calling a mole a disaster?"


    Anna looked at him, horrified. It was the same thing he had said before and ended up dying. But not this time. It was her only chance to save him or she would never see him again, as jumping timelines wasn''t a simple thing to do.


    "Don''t jinx yourself!" Anna blurted out, closing his mouth with her hand. "A mole killed the world tree. Can''t you be serious about it for once!?"


    But YuWon wasn''t paying attention and thought about the mole. It wouldn''t be the first time a mole killed a tree. After all, it was a well-known fact that moles could kill trees and any nts.


    Well, not directly, but because of digging shallow tunnels that lifted the soil from the root, the mole could force tree roots to dry out and die.


    But YuWon wasn''t a tree. Hence, he wasn''t worried about the creature Anna called a disaster, or so he wanted to say. But he wasn''t a fool to dismiss Anna''s concerns.


    "Rx, I know it won''t be easy," YuWon replied, walking past her. "I''m not a fool to take something that killed the world tree lightly. So calm your tits and remember how to defeat it."


    With that, he headed towards the rest of the group. But before he could take another step, the ground beneath their feet rumbled violently.


    "Shit! Run!" he yelled for everyone.


    A secondter, the earth split open, and a massive creature shot out from the ground. It looked like a hill of fur with ws attached to its side. It was the disaster Anna had warned him about.


    Despite YuWon''s warning, there wasn''t much anyone could do, and the creature swallowed eight people whole before diving back into the ground. Everything happened in a blink of an eye and people were too stunned to move.


    "RUN!" Anna screamed, running ahead. "It''ll be back! Get to the tree! NOW!"


    Lysandra tried using her vines to slow the creature down by spreading a web of vines along the ground. But when her vines touched the ground, they withered instantly, crumbling into dust.


    "My powers¡­ they aren''t working¡­" she mumbled, looking at YuWon.


    For the first time, Lysandra looked helpless. She didn''t know what to do, but YuWon did and grabbed her hand.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Forget about it and run!"


    Just then, the ground shook again. They could feel the disaster mole move underneath. The next moment, it emerged again, swallowing six people this time.


    "Go, go!" YuWon urged.


    They ran with all their might. But the mole was relentless and kept attacking them. Every time it surfaced, people disappeared. Anyone could die at any moment and they were helpless to stop it.


    After running for over half an hour, only eight of them reached the base of the world tree. Everyone else was gone, swallowed by the mole.


    "We have to climb!" Anna urged everyone, and they began climbing. "It can''t get us if we''re on the roots!"


    No one questioned how she knew that and followed her instructions. YuWon helped Lysandra up first before pulling himself up.


    Even though they were just the roots, they were towering above them like the walls of a fortress. Climbing them after running for over half an hour wasn''t easy.


    But Min-Ji was struggling the most. Her feet were sore from running, and exhaustion was taking its toll. As if that wasn''t enough, another tremor weakened her grip.


    YuWon noticed her and hesitated to help her. By the time he offered her his hand, it was toote. Her fingers slipped, and she fell to the ground. The mole reappeared, its massive mouth wide open, waiting for her to fall right into it.


    "Shit!" YuWon cursed and without thinking jumped towards her.


    He grabbed Min-Ji''s hand in mid-air and, with a grunt, hurled her out of the mole''s path. Gina was quick to grab Min-Ji, but YuWon... there was nothing he could do.


    Why the hell did I jump to save her? After everything she did?


    "YUWON!" Anna yelled as he fell into the mole''s mouth.


    Their horrified face was thest thing he saw before everything turned dark.

 Chapter 115: Fallen Angels (1)

    "He¡­ he jumped," Min-Ji whispered. "But why¡­?"


    Gina''s eyes widened with disbelief as she stood there, staring at the spot where YuWon had been only moments ago. But Yeji had the most vtile reaction.


    "This is all your fault!" she shouted at Min-Ji. "If it weren''t for you, YuWon would still be alive!"


    Min-Ji couldn''t even look Yeji in the eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out.


    "We need to keep moving," Yuna muttered, urging them to climb ahead. "The mole¡­ it''s still out there. We have to protect¡ª"


    But Lysandra wasn''t listening. Instead of climbing up, she took a step down. Anger reced the sad look on her face.


    "I''m going to find him," she mumbled to herself. "He won''t die like this... he can''t leave me behind."


    "Lysandra, wait!" Yuna called out, but it was no use.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Before anyone could stop her, Lysandra began climbing down the roots, her mind set on one thing¡ªgetting YuWon back, no matter what it took.


    But she wasn''t alone. Gina joined her and began climbing down. Even Yeji joined them and finally, Anna did, too. YuWon wasn''t dead... they refused to believe it until she saw his corpse with her own eyes.


    No one bothered to stop them. As they climbed down, they could feel minor tremors. The mole was still there, waiting for more people to fall. Just then, a voice interrupted them.


    "Stop!"


    It was strange. They knew each other''s voices, and it didn''t resemble anyone whom they knew before. Yeji looked up, only to see hundreds of people staring down at them from the roots above.


    "We can help you recover those taken by the mole," a man wearing ck robes stepped up. "But before that, you need to get up here."


    However, when Anna saw their cloak, a sharp pain shot through her head. Her vision blurred for a second and she saw shes of memories from her timeline.


    She recognized them as awakeners who came before them. In a room where one second was equivalent to twelve years, even a slight dy in leaving the chamber could mean years had gone by.


    These people were one of the few who got released before them. Although it felt like just a moment for Anna and her group, these awakeners had been in the Awakened World for more than a decade and had made a home in the World Tree.


    "W-We should hear what they have to say," Anna mumbled.


    However, no one moved. Apart from YuWon, no one knew about the truth. They all viewed her as the Anna who tried to kill YuWon. As such, her words didn''t exactly have any credibility, something Yeji was quick to point out.


    "We should trust you, shouldn''t we?" Yeji retorted. "You could have fooled YuWon, but not me."


    "If you want to go, go," Gina chimed in. "But I''m not leaving without YuWon."


    Anna sighed, knowing they wouldn''t listen to her. She needed something to convince them and took a page out of YuWon''s book.


    "YuWon isn''t the only oracle here," she said, lying through her teeth.


    "Bullshit!" Yeji called her out. "If that was the case, why didn''t you warn¡ª"


    "I did," Anna yelled back, cutting Yeji off. "Why do you think I took him to the side before? I told him this would happen, but the fool didn''t listen!"


    That stopped any retort Yeji had. She had seen Anna drag YuWon away and him dismissing her. At first, she thought it had something to do with the world tree and didn''t pay attention. But she could be right.


    "Fine," Lysandra and Gina spoke simultaneously. "But if this is a trick, we''ll kill them and then you."


    Anna sighed but didn''t take their words to heart. She knew they were hurt and taking out the anger on her. She too was hurt, but unlike them, she didn''t have a way to express her anger.


    I hope I''m making the right decision...


    ***


    As they climbed, the other awakeners rushed to help them. Everyone followed the worlds of the cloaked man they had seen before. They couldn''t make out his face, but his ck skin and feathers stuck to his back got everyone on edge.


    "Only eight of you made it this time," the man sighed, joining his palms and praying for the departed. "Things are getting worse."


    "Who are you?"


    Gina was the first to speak up. After everything they''d been through with angels, it was normal for them to feel nervous around someone who looked like one.


    The man looked at her and smiled. Slowly, he took off his cloak, showing them the burn marks all over his chest and arms. Behind him were his wings, or what used to be wings.


    In ce of wings, two massive holes were left and only a few feathers were stuck out of his back. It looked nothing like the wings of the angel they had grown ustomed to.


    "You need not worry, mortal," he said in his soft voice. "I was once an angel, but now... I am as much of a mortal as you are. My name is Lucifer. Perhaps you''ve heard of me."


    "Lucifer... like the fallen angel?" Yeji asked.


    "Yes," Lucifer smiled at her.


    Unlike Yeji and Yuna, Anna didn''t know Lucifer, but she knew about the fallen angels. After all, she had once fought alongside them.


    From them, she learned they were beings who had defied the will of the gods. As punishment, the gods stripped them of their divine status and threw them into the Awakened World to suffer alongside the awakeners.


    They''re no longer angels, but they''re far from harmless creatures.


    But that didn''t matter. Things had changed a lot from her timeline. Back then, she only met the fallen angels in the trial against the 3rd disaster. But if fallen angels were present, thenhewould also be there.


    "...take me where Asmodeus is," Anna stepped up.

 Chapter 116: Fallen Angels (2)

    Yuna was about to move, but Yeji stopped her. It wasn''t the time to intervene. Besides, it was the perfect time to see if Anna was an oracle, like she imed or not.


    "How do you know my brother?" Lucifer snarled, tightening his grip on Anna''s throat.


    "We can know about you, but not him?" Anna smirked. "Your inferiorityplex is showing up."


    Lucifer''s face twisted in anger and tightened his grip around Anna''s neck. But just then, someone appeared between the two and held Lucifer back. Unlike Lucifer, this person had an old man''s appearance and sternly looked at his younger brother.


    "Enough," he said. "This is not the way to wee ourrades."n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "But brother¡ª" Lucifer protested, but was quickly shut down by Asmodeus.


    "I said enough!" he yelled again.


    Lucifer clicked his tongue and let go. Anna fell on the tree root, coughing and gasping for air. She rubbed her bruised neck where Lucifer''s fingers had left a mark on her white skin. Anna looked up at the older man, recognizing him instantly.


    "...you should keep your dogs on a leash," she mumbled, thumping her chest twice to clear her lungs before looking at Asmodeus.


    Hearing her remark, Lucifer was about to lunge at her again, but held back when Asmodeus stared at him. Once that was done, he turned his gaze towards Anna.


    "I heard a mortal was looking for me," the old man said. "May I ask why?"


    Anna didn''t reply and took out something from her phantom bag.


    "This might jog your memory," she said, handing Asmodeus a ring, the same one he was wearing.


    "...I see," Asmodeus smiled, understanding what it was about. "Follow me. We shall talk in... private."


    Without waiting for a response, Asmodeus turned and began walking deeper into the root system of the World Tree. Anna followed, still rubbing her neck, while the others stayed behind, watching the two walk away.


    Lucifer didn''t look pleased with the mortal''s sharp tongue but quickly calmed himself down. He couldn''t keep looking down on the mortals, not when his life depended on their sess in the trials.


    ***


    Asmodeus guided Anna into his room. Then he examined the ring carefully, but his senses didn''t betray him.


    "This is the real ring," he whispered, ncing at Anna. "But I don''t know you. Which means¡­ you must be from another timeline."


    "You''ve always been a sharp, old man," she nodded.


    "I told ya to hand over that ring, didn''t I?"


    Asmodeus remembered his promise of never parting with the ring unless he got a decent disciple. It looked like his other self in a different timeline had found that student and now she was back.


    He isn''t wrong...


    Anna thought how Asmodeus, despite being framed for being a jealous pervert, was more than that. He was her teacher who took her under his wing following YuWon''s death and taught her everything she knew, from survival to warfare.


    "You even gave me that ring before¡­ before you died at the hands of the fourth disaster," Annamented.


    "I''m surprised Isted that long," Asmodeus said with a smile, handing the ring back to Anna. "So, what do you need from me?"


    Anna took a deep breath, steeling herself. There wasn''t an easy way to make this request. Hell, Asmodeus would probably have her head for just saying it. But for YuWon''s sake, she had to. After losing him once, she didn''t want to lose him again.


    "I need you to help me get inside the mole."


    The moment she uttered those words, Asmodeus''s smile vanished. His entire body stiffened. Did she want help to kill a disaster with their flimsy numbers?


    Even if there were thousands of them, Asmodeus wouldn''t dare challenge it. After all, there were better ways to die than to challenge a disaster.


    "Do you know what you''re asking?" Asmodeus asked, barely keeping his temper in check.


    "I do..." Anna replied. "I know how powerful it is¡ª"


    "Since you were my student, I''ll tell you this once," Asmodeus said, cutting her off. "Forget about it and wait for more people to arrive, like the rest of us. In a decade or two, we''ll have enough people to think about it."


    "I don''t have¡ª"


    "That creature¡­ it''s not something that can be tamed with sheer strength!" Asmodeus yelled, shaking with rage.


    "I''m not asking for sheer force," Anna replied. "But I''m asking you to tell me the method. After all... you''re the only one who has survived even after being eaten by the mole."


    Asmodeus looked at her for a moment before shaking his head. He would not face the beast and risk everyone''s life for no reason.


    "Don''t do it for me," Anna sighed and used her ace. "But for Lilith."


    "...it seems I turned you in your timeline," Asmodeus sighed before frowning. "But not in this life. How dare you take her name before me!"


    Fuck!


    Asmodeus swung his fist at Anna, who immediately used her de to block the strike. Even so, the force was too much, and she got flung out of the room, crashing into another root before stopping.


    But other than a few scratches, Anna was safe. But not for long, as Asmodeus shot into the air before hurling himself towards her. Lucifer took note of the situation and rushed towards them.


    "Bind them! Make sure no one intervenes!" he yelled, telling the others to stop Yeji and the rest.


    "Don''t worry," Yeji mumbled. "We got no intention of helping her."


    ***


    Asmodeus kept throwing punches at Anna, but she kept blocking and dodging his attacks. She wasn''t his best student for no reason.


    Even though she only had a sword, her performance was on par with some lesser angels. Only then did he realize there was no point in dragging the fight anymore.


    Just then, Lucifer reached there, ready to kill Anna. But Asmodeus raised his hand, stopping him.


    "Brother¡ª" heined again.


    "She isn''t someone you can handle," Asmodeus replied.


    "I can''t handle her? She''s just a mortal¡ª!"


    "Not just a mortal," Asmodeus mumbled. "She''s a survivor of a world where I died."


    "What?"

 Chapter 117: [Bonus Chapter 2/5] Disasters Belly (1)

    Asmodeus leaned in slightly, eagerly listening to the tale of his death. Lucifer, on the other hand, sat with his arms crossed, skeptical about her ims.


    "As we thought the mole was a thing of the past, it reappeared at the most inopportune time... during another disaster subjugation mission."


    She continued, "Fighting one disaster was already difficult, but fighting two simultaneously was impossible. Because of that, 85% of the remaining Awakeners were wiped out. The disaster wiped out almost everyone, including the fallen angels."


    "I''ve had enough." Lucifer got up, staring at Asmodeus. "Brother, are you buying what she says? This girl is lying! Show me proof! Show me proof of our death!"


    Anna sighed. Even though she didn''t know who Lucifer was, the guy was annoying. But if he wanted proof, then she had ample of it. She reached into her phantom bag once more and pulled out the same ring she had shown Asmodeus earlier.


    "Take a look at it," she said.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Lucifer snatched the ring and examined it. His eyes widened in shock when he realized Anna was telling the truth.


    "Fine," he muttered, running a hand through his hair. "I believe you... as much as I don''t want to."


    "Hence you''re so impatient," Asmodeus sighed, looking around as if weighing the options.


    "Don''t get me wrong. I don''t want any of you to die with me," she said. "All I need is to know how you made it inside the mole and got out of it without dying. That''s it. I can deal with the rest myself."


    Asmodeus, who had been lost in thought, looked up at her. The determination in her eyes reminded him of Lilith. She too was just as stubborn as Anna, if not more, and it was herdeaththat made Asmodeus rebel and hence stripped of his powers.


    "Lilith... was the first to defy the gods for the sake of the mortals," Asmodeus recalled a long-forgotten story. "As a punishment for her crimes, they fed her to the mole."


    He continued, "I couldn''t just stand by and watch, so I jumped after her. I ended up in the mole''s stomach, but I never found her."


    "So, she''s dead too?"


    Lucifer, who heard about Asmodeus''s love life for the first time, couldn''t help it and asked. But Asmodeus didn''t answer and continued the story.


    "I survived," he said after a long pause. "But it wasn''t easy. The mole''s insides¡­ it''s abyrinth,plete with its own ecosystem within. The only reason I got out alive was because something made the mole throw up."


    "Make it throw up..." Anna nodded. "I see."


    Just then, Lucifer couldn''t hold on any longer and asked Anna why she was hell-bent on entering the mole''s body.


    "My reasons don''t differ from sir Asmodeus''s," Anna replied, smiling wanly. "The ugly bastard swallowed someone important to me. Someone I already lost once and I''m not willing to lose them again."


    Lucifer looked at her and rolled his eyes. He was surrounded by love-sick fools who couldn''t even think logically before doing something stupid.


    "Are you deaf?" Lucifer sighed loudly. "Didn''t you hear what brother said? He couldn''t find Lilith. What makes you think you can find your lover?"


    Anna smiled and looked at her hand, touching her ring finger. She knew because she couldn''t live without him. Despite their differences and his indifference, she knew they were connected.


    But saving YuWon wasn''t the only reason. The true reason was the words of the one who eventually killed the mole.


    "Hellfire," Anna mumbled. "It''s a crazy resource, don''t you think?"


    Asmodeus''s eyes widened as he realized what Anna meant.


    "So you''re the one who killed that fire giant?" Asmodeus smiled. "You caused quite a scene in the heavens."


    "I wasn''t alone," Anna replied. "Besides, I couldn''t let such a precious thing go to waste."


    "Do you still have it?"


    Anna shook her head. Asmodeus looked disappointed until she spoke again. "But the one I want to save does."


    The fallen angels realized why Anna was so desperate to save her lover. The mole''s tough exterior protected it from even a god''s smite. But even though the creature was invulnerable on the outside, it was just as weak on the inside.


    If one had hellfire, they could set the beast''s innards aze. Although that itself might not be enough to kill it, it would severely weaken the disaster.


    After setting the creature on fire, everyone left inside would die from the mes as well. But that wouldn''t be the case for those who killed the fire giant.


    For their insurmountable feat, they would gain immunity from all kinds of mes, including hellfire. They could continue killing the beast from the inside.


    "You had nned it from the beginning," Asmodeus smiled before shaking his head. "What a cunning disciple I had."


    Anna nodded. She had all but one piece of the puzzle. Now that Asmodeus had handed it to her, she could n her next steps to get inside the mole''s stomach without getting crushed by its teeth.


    "You''ll need a bait," Lucifer chimed in, as if reading her mind. "Do you have your eyes on someone?"


    Anna nodded, but her eyes never left Lucifer. Soon Asmodeus was also staring at his little brother.


    "You''re both sick in the head!" Lucifer yelled, but they had already decided.


    ***


    Sometimeter...


    Lucifer dangled upside down from the massive tree root, his arms crossed as he crushed everyone he could see.


    "Asmodeus, you insufferable old fool," Lucifer growled. "Using your brother as bait for the desires of a mortal. Do you have no conscience?"


    "For the hundredth time, you''re not dying," Asmodeus yelled back. "We studied the mole''s patterns. You''ll be safe as long as you stay at that distance."


    "Easier for you to say, old prick!"


    Anna didn''t bother paying attention to Lucifer''sints and continued staring down.


    "Are you sure jumping in straight will work?" she asked Asmodeus.


    "That''s what worked for me," he replied. "If you hit anything on your way down, the mole will sense it and react. Things might get chaotic, and you might die before you even have time to rescue your beloved."


    "YuWon''s not someone who dies so easily," she replied confidently. "I''m sure of it, even if the records say otherwise."


    Asmodeus raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He admired her confidence, but he knew the reality of the situation. One mistake and they would lose everything. Just then, the ground trembled.


    "Here ites," he muttered.


    The mole burst out of the ground, its enormous mouth wide open, aiming directly for Lucifer.


    "Now!" Asmodeus shouted.

 Chapter 118: Disasters Belly (2)

    The wind rushed past her, and she kept herself as still as possible, not touching any part of the mole on her way down.


    Lucifer was watching from above, let out a loud, dramatic sigh as Anna disappeared into the mole.


    "I swear, I''m demanding a vacation as soon as they pull me up," he muttered. "Preferably far away from mortals and their insane ideas. Who the fuck would evene up with shit like this?"


    But no one was listening to him. All eyes were on the mole, waiting to see what would happen next.


    "Godspeed, mortal," Asmodeus mumbled, before turning away.


    Frustrated by the prey, the mole got tired and closed its mouth before jumping to the ground.


    Gina, Yeji, and Lysandra were there, watching as the mole disappeared along with Anna. For a moment, they wondered if they had misjudged Anna.


    After all, someone like her wouldn''t risk her life for anyone else. Still, Anna volunteered to bring YuWon back.


    "We should have gone in with her," Ginamented.


    "No..." Yeji shook her head. "You heard the angels. The fewer people go in, the higher the chance of sess. For now... we can only trust her and hope everything goes well."


    ***


    Meanwhile...


    As Anna dropped further into the mole, the air around her changed. It became humid and carried a stench so strong it made her gag. But all of that was to be expected. After all, a disaster doesn''t need to maintain hygiene.


    However, her fall hit a stop abruptly. She hit something soft and sticky on her way down. She got stuck in the beast''s esophagus.


    "Damn it," she cursed, getting off the slimy surface.


    The mix of mucus and who-knew-what-else remained clinging to her, making her smell like she had lived half her life inside the creature. Ignoring her state, Anna looked around but couldn''t see much.


    It was dark, too dark for her to see anything. Anna blinked a few times, trying to adjust to the dim environment inside the creature''s body.


    So much for getting in and out of there with ease.


    Anna''s target was the mole''s stomach, where YuWon was likely being held if he was still alive. But the mole''s sudden dive into the underground interrupted her fall. Now, she was stuck here, inside the esophagus.


    "Of course, it couldn''t be simple," she muttered. "I had to hit something on the way down."


    She kept breathing through her mouth while her eyes adjusted to the surroundings. As her vision slowly adjusted, she noticed the esophagus walls pulsing faintly.


    It was a weird feeling being inside a living creature. But things were about to get much worse. The rhythmic movement of the surrounding walls reminded her she had limited time before the digestive process would turn her into minced meat for easy digestion.


    Come on... let''s head deeper.


    But that was easier said than done. Normally, the esophagus would have led her straight to the stomach. However, as she walked deeper, she found countless pathways ahead.


    Thankfully, the person who eventually killed the mole in her timeline told her the method to look for the right path.


    Take the path with most monsters lingering around.


    Technically, they weren''t monsters but bacteria and parasites that lived and bred within the mole. Since they needed food as much as the mole, they often gathered around the digestive tract to get fresh nutrients.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Speak of the devil.


    Just as she was thinking about the bacteria and parasites, she heard some cluttering sounds. Anna turned around, only to see creatures as big as her crawling down the walls of the esophagus.


    Their long pointy legs stuck to the walls as they rushed towards her. They were the natural cleaners of the mole''s digestive tract. And right now, they saw her as a foreign object that needed to be disposed of.


    "Fantastic," Anna grunted, unsheathing her sword. "You better kiss my feet after I go through all this shit, YuWon."


    The germaphobe in her was kicking hard on her instincts. But for YuWon''s sake, it didn''t matter who she had to go against or how ufortable she was. She would save him and get something decent while she was at it.


    The first of the creatures lunged at her, snapping its mandibles as it aimed for her legs. Anna sidestepped before swinging her sword, slicing the creature in half. The parasite let out a high-pitched screech before copsing onto the fleshy floor beneath.


    "...yuck!" Anna gagged, looking at the goo absorb dead parasite.


    But there was no time to rest. More of the creatures swarmed toward her. None of them looked the same, and yet they wanted the same thing, Anna.


    One creature, bigger than the rest, jumped from the wall with its ws, reaching out to grab her. Only for her to slice its head off. The beast dropped to the ground in two pieces, oozing a thick greenish liquid.


    The next creature lunged for her back, but Anna spun quickly, jamming her sword straight through its head. It twitched and copsed, joining the growing pile of dead parasites at her feet.


    For a moment, everything was still again. Anna stood amidst the bodies of the dead bacteria, panting crazily. Fighting the parasites wasn''t as difficult as moving around with the mucus and goo slowly her down.


    Anna looked ahead. The challenges would get tougher from there and if she got tired then... it would be the end of everything she worked so hard for.


    No wonder he said to go straight for the stomach. Damn it.


    Anna sighed and pressed forward, looking for any lurking dangers left behind. No more creatures came at her, but the faint vibrations reminded her that her time was running out.


    The walls kept pulsing around her, and the sounds of the mole''s heartbeat kept getting louder as she went deeper. With each step, she got closer to the stomach and YuWon.


    "Just hold on a bit longer..."

 Chapter 119: Disasters Belly (3)

    Right when she thought she was at the stomach''s doorstep, she encountered an annoying foe. Some strange-looking worms had lined themselves up along the walls.


    It was the first time Anna had seen them, but not the first time she had heard about it. These worms were called Spinebacks. Asmodeus had told her about them in the briefing before she jumped inside the mole.


    These human-sized worms had spiked exoskeletons, hence the name Spinebacks. They used their spike to burrow along the stomach walls of the mole to stimte contractions and keep food moving.


    But that wasn''t the problem she faced. They could split into smaller versions if damaged, making them hard to kill. Besides, they had a regenerative power that allowed them to reform after being cut.


    "Damnit! Why are these things guarding the entrance?" Anna clicked her tongue. "Asmodeus said they would remain buried in the stomach walls..."


    As if things couldn''t get worse, the worms spotted her and began moving towards them. How wanting to deal with them, Anna lit a small explosive that she had in her phantom bag and threw it at them.


    Boom!


    The mes engulfed the worms, tearing some of them while burning the rest. But the shredded pieces squirm as they slowly pieced themselves together.


    "Fuck!"


    She had hoped the mes would burn away what remained of the scattered pieces, but that wasn''t the case. The explosion had reduced their numbers, but it wasn''t enough for Anna to charge blindly ahead.


    Besides, Anna couldn''t use more explosives. She wasn''t sure if the creatures could listen, but they would surely react to the vibrations across the mole''s body.


    I can''t afford to get swarmed here.


    Before she could form a n, one of the spinebacks lunged toward her, aiming its spiked body towards her to impale her.


    Anna dodged just in time, rolling to the side as the creature crashed down where she had just stood. The spikes were sharp enough to tear her apart, but it was the same case for the mole''s esophagus.


    "I could use them!"


    An idea struck Anna, and she put her sword away before charging towards another spineback. The spineback whipped its spiked tail at her, but she ducked, avoiding the deadly spikes.


    As the worm came at her again, she jumped and mmed both of her fists into the creature''s belly. The impact sent the spineback flying upwards, its spiked exoskeleton digging deep into the esophagus walls.


    Anna stood back, watching the spineback wiggle in its position. But the more it tried to free itself, the more damage it did to the mole. Moreover, she could immobilize the spinebacks long enough to slip past them.


    But then something strange happened¡ªthe creature''s body swelled. Blood from the mole''s esophagus was being absorbed through the spikes, bloating the spineback to where it could barely move.


    Usually, these spikes were intended to stick to the thick mucus of the stomach lining. But the esophagus wasn''t a ce for the spinebacks to roam around. Hence, the mucus walls were thin enough for the spineback to prate and draw blood.


    Spinebacks feed through their spikes. As they are stuck to the walls, they are being forced to feed on Mole''s blood!


    Soon the spineback grew to the size of apact car. It gave her a way to get rid of them without killing them.


    "Alright, let''s see how you like that."


    Anna turned her attention to the other spinebacks slithering toward her. One by one, Anna grabbed the worms and flung them into the walls of the esophagus, ensuring each one''s spikes got buried deep into the walls.


    But there was one thing she didn''t ount for. As she forced more spinebacks to feed on the mole, it reacted.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Its massive body shifted ufortably and Anna could feel the tremors beneath her feet as the giant beast tried to shake off the sudden irritation caused by the parasites.


    "...I got carried away."


    Without wasting time, Anna rushed towards the stomach. But just then the mole let out a deep growl, and suddenly, Anna heard a rushing sounding from above.


    She looked up just in time to see andslide of dirt and sand pouring down the esophagus. The mole must have eaten what it got its hands on to force whatever was stuck in the esophagus down to its stomach.


    "Oh, hell no!"


    Anna ran, not wanting to get buried under tons of sand and dirt. However, running wouldn''t save her as she''ll end up buried in the stomach. She needed something to stay afloat and dodge thendslide.


    Thinking fast, Anna reached out and grabbed one of the spinebacks, yanking it free from the wall. The creature writhed in her grasp, but its bloated body was too weak to fight back.


    "Stay still damn it!" Anna yelled, and took off her shirt, wrapping it around the spineback''s neck.


    She held on to the shirt, and jumped onto the spineback''s stomach, using it as a makeshift surfboard. Soon the dirt and sand came crashing down on her, but she bnced herself on the spineback''s stomach.


    With the help of her shirt and the spineback''s spiked body, she controlled the creature and slid through the avnche with ease.


    As the mole''s body shifted again, twisting the path, Anna came across a waterfall, only this one was made of dirt and sand.


    "The things I got to do for that moron!" she yelled as fell along with the spineback.


    Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the esophagus opened up, and Anna entered arger chamber... she was inside the mole''s stomach.


    She leaped off the spineback just before stabbing the thick walls with her sword, dangling in the air as dirt and sand filled up the mole''s stomach.


    "...shit," Anna mumbled. "Please don''t tell me... he got buried underneath."


    From the amount of dirt and sand filling the stomach, there was a possibility that it might be true. But just as she thought she had killed YuWon by her mistake, there was a loud explosion, distracting her.

 Chapter 120: Escaping Disasters Belly (1)

    He was alive, but barely. He must have been fighting these creatures for a long time, as it was clear from the condition of his body. His skin was scorched, covered in burn marks from head to toe, and his left was dangling to the side, clearly broken.


    But despite his injuries, he fought fiercely against a swarm of bile leeches, slimy creatures that moved toward him, throwing their acid on him. But they weren''t alone.


    A few balloon-like creatures were also behind the bile leeches. They were called the Gastrognats.


    These creatures trap the excess gas produced during digestion and use it to float around the stomach, acting like kamikaze bombs. Even the slightest pressure can cause them to explode. The explosion Anna heard before was one such attack.


    No wonder the spinebacks had fled and were waiting outside the stomach.


    The constant sts from Gastrognats had made it impossible for them to survive in their usual home, forcing them to escape into the esophagus.


    However, it wasn''t the time to solve mysteries. Anna drew her sword and jumped into the fray.


    "YuWon!" she shouted.


    Upon hearing his name, YuWon turned his head slightly. He couldn''t afford to take his attention off the beasts that had been attacking him relentlessly. But that slight turn was enough for Anna to see his bloodshot eyes from the pain and exhaustion he had suffered through.


    Just then, a bile leech lunged at him, intending to bathe him in acid. YuWon swung the noir de with his good arm. However, after fighting continuously without rest, his agility and strength were at rock bottom.


    Killing anything, no matter how small it was, was impossible for him. Just then, Anna arrived to save him and sliced through one of the bile leeches before it could attack.


    As the leech died, its acid sprayed everywhere. With no hesitation, Anna ced herself between YuWon and the acid, letting the burning liquid hit her instead. Her skin burned upon impact, but she gritted her teeth and endured the pain for YuWon.


    "What are you doing here?" YuWon asked. "You shouldn''t havee! You''re going to get yourself killed here!"


    Before Anna answered, he quickly rubbed some mucus on her back to soothe the pain. As disgusting as it was, it was what he had been doing to survive for so long.


    As he did that, Anna smiled, reaching out to his scarred face. It was like she didn''t care about the pain, but only about him. YuWon looked confused. He wasn''t the YuWon who loved her, yet she was willing to take such a risk for his sake?


    "I couldn''t save you once," she whispered. "I''m not making the same mistake again. We can talk about... how you''ll make it up to meter. First, let''s get out of here."


    As she said that, a Gastrognat flew toward them. Its bloated body was swollen, ready to explode at any moment. Without thinking, Anna kicked the creature away, straight towards a cluster of bile leeches.


    The moment the Gastrognat burst, the explosion triggered a chain reaction. The bile leeches sprayed their acid everywhere, causing more Gastrognats to explode, and the cycle continued.


    "Move!" YuWon shouted.


    He grabbed Anna''s wrist and pulled her behind arge mucus-covered tissue. The two of them ducked as the bile leeches exploded and melted into the surrounding stomach walls.


    Anna winced in pain. Although she was safe now, the acid from before would take a while to get neutralized. Her muscles were screaming from all the running and fighting she was doing.


    But when she looked at YuWon, all her pain faded. Not because he was her sce, but because he was in a much worse state than her.


    His face was pale, drained of all colors, and he was having a little difficulty breathing. Still, more fight left in his eyes, that same stubborn determination she had always admired.


    "Don''t look at me like that," YuWon smirked. "I''m fighting because I don''t want to die and turn into shit. There''s no deep philosophy behind it."


    "You''re a dumbass..." Anna chuckled.


    "Says the one who jumped into this crap-storm for no reason,"


    As the explosions continued, none of them had anything to say and kept holding each other, hiding behind the mucus wall.


    ***


    As YuWon opened his eyes, he was confused about where he was. Then it all came flooding back. He moved a little and felt something soft under his head. As looked up, he realized he had been sleeping on Anna''s thigh.


    She was fast asleep herself, her head tilted back against the mucus-covered wall, and her chest rose and fell with each breath.


    At least she''s alive.


    YuWon sighed and looked down, only to get surprised. The acid burns that had covered his skin were gone and his broken arm was tied up with a makeshift splint. Anna had healed his injuries to the best of her ability while he was out cold.


    But YuWon was neither pleased nor unhappy with it. What he felt was confusion. She had saved him twice now. But no matter how much she did for him, there was still that nagging doubt in the back of his mind.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    How could he trust herpletely when another version of her had tried to kill him before?


    The situation wasn''t like Gina''s or Lysandra''s, where he could just get with them and forget about everything. Sure, it was another version of her, from another timeline. But that wasn''t enough for him to forget about what he went through.


    As if she knew YuWon was thinking about her, Anna stirred and opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was YuWon staring at her and smiled at him.


    "Did no one tell you it''s creepy to watch people sleep?" she asked.


    "Good thing you got enough energy to talk shit," YuWon replied, getting off her. "Let''s find a way out of here."

 Chapter 121: Escaping Disasters Belly (2)

    He had the hellfire crystal. If he had just used it, then he wouldn''t be in such a condition. Well, apart from his broken arm, since it happened when he fell into the stomach.


    "If you could think of everything yourself, then would you need us?" Anna shook her head.


    The duo made their way to the upper mouth of the stomach. Before using Hellfire Crystal to kill the mole, they needed an exit strategy. Although they were immune to the fire, random explosions from Gastrognats could kill them.


    The first n was to use Asmodeus''s way and make the mole vomit. But YuWon quickly disregarded the n. If the mole vomited, it could vomit the hellfire crystal as well.


    "In the worst case, the mole might throw up the mes along with everything in its stomach and set the world tree on fire," YuWonmented.


    The second n was to climb their way out. But even that wasn''t possible. First, the climb back was too steep and second, YuWon couldn''t climb with a broken arm.


    This left them with a final, disgusting approach... exit through the mole''s butt hole. As disgusting as it sounded, it was the most practical solution to their problem.


    Since they''d be traveling down, YuWon''s broken arm won''t hinder them much. Also, it would be quicker. The only issues were the parasites and germs. They won''t give them a clear passage.


    "We''ll have to fight our way through the shit hole..." Anna frowned. "Even saying so makes me want to vomit."


    "I''m not a fan of the situation either," YuWon frowned. "But we gotta do what we gotta do."


    "Why don''t you use <Soul Bind> on the mole?"


    "You think I haven''t tried? This shit is too big for me to handle," YuWon replied, walking to the other side. "I would need thousands or more souls just to control it for a second or two."


    "The microorganism could give you the souls¡ª"


    "They give nothing. No gold, no reward, no exp, nothing."


    Anna nodded before getting quiet. That monkey who defeated the mole didn''t tell her about this info, but it didn''t matter anymore. As long as they could kill the mole, everything would be worth it.


    YuWon stood at the edge of the mole''s stomach, staring down into the dark pit below. It should be the entrance to the small intestine. But from where they stood, it looked like a never-ending fall.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Do you think it''s too far?" Anna asked, stepping up beside him.


    "Does it matter what I think?"


    "So?"


    "So we jump," YuWon said, taking a couple of steps back. "On the count of three, we''ll dive together."


    "...fine."


    "One¡­ two¡­ three!"


    They both ran to the edge, but only Anna followed through. She looked back mid-fall. YuWon was still standing at the edge,ughing.


    "You asshole!" she yelled before disappearing into the dark.


    "Sorry! I already broke one arm. I''m not interested in breaking the other so soon!" YuWon replied, waving at her. "Besides, someone has to set this thing on fire."


    Just then, freshly spawned parasites came rushing towards him.


    "Perfect timing," he muttered, pulling out the Hellfire Crystal.


    With no hesitation, YuWon flung the crystal towards thergest Gastrognats in his sight. The moment it struck the parasite, the balloon exploded.


    The heat from the explosion melted the frozen crystal. A momentter, blue mes erupted, spreading like wildfire across the stomach walls. The parasites who were rushing towards YuWon were burned to ashes within seconds.


    The intense heat warped the stomach walls, making the entire ce feel like an inferno. The mucus walls that used to protect the stomach lining from acid and other substances stood no chance against the hellfire.


    It was only a matter of time before the mole realized something was wrong. But even if it did, it couldn''t do anything to save its butt.


    "Time to go!"


    Without sparing another nce at his artistic masterpiece, YuWon jumped off the edge.


    ***


    While Anna and YuWon were fighting their way out of the mole, the life on the World Tree continued as usual. People went about their day. Most had given up on the mission since they thought Anna was dead.


    However, not everyone thought the same. Asmodeus and YuWon''s family hadn''t moved from their spot since Anna jumped inside the mole. The only good news they had so far was that the mole hadn''t shown up again.


    Asmodeus knew better than anyone how dangerous it was inside that mole. That''s why he knew the mole not appearing again was a positive sign. Regardless, he waited for Anna and the human she so desperately wanted to protect.


    Just then, they heard a faint rumbling sound. It was soft, almost unnoticeable at first. But then the ground trembled under their feet, causing the giant roots of the World Tree to shake.


    "Did you hear that?" Yeji asked.


    Everyone nodded, hurrying to the edge of the root to look down. But there was nothing... for a second. Then they felt the ground shake again. Before anyone could say a word, there was a massive explosion.


    Dirt and rocks shot out everywhere, and then the mole reappeared. But something was different this time. The mole wasn''t moving with its usual predatory grace. It thrashed wildly, writhing in agony.


    Its enormous body smashed into the World Tree''s roots, causing tremors. People on the tree, unaware of what was happening, quickly rushed for cover.


    "What is going on?" Yeji mumbled in disbelief.


    "Look inside its mouth," Asmodeus said, smiling. "She did it."


    Lysandra looked confused until she saw the blue glow inside the creature''s mouth. Just then, the mole let out a bloodcurdling scream before copsing on the ground.


    The mole remained motionless. The beast''s indestructible hide contained the hellfire within it, turning its insides to ashes until only its fur remained.


    But the victory didn''t bring them the relief they had hoped for. As there was no sign of YuWon or Anna.


    "Where are they?"


    Before anyone could respond, the mole''s massive body twitched onest time. And then it crapped itself. The sight would have beenughable under different circumstances, but right now, all they could do was stare in disbelief.


    "Come on, let''s look for them."


    Everyone rushed down the tree root. Just then, two figures walked out of the shit puddle, covered in the mole''s excreta from the head to the toe.


    "Are they¡­ covered in¡­?" Gina blinked in disbelief.


    "...YuWon behaves like he''s the shit," Yuna couldn''t help butment. "This time we call can agree. He really is the shit, or at least covered in it."

 Chapter 122: Acceptance (1)

    "You''re impossible," Anna frowned.


    She was still mad at YuWon for tricking her, but she couldn''t stay angry for too long. After all, YuWon was safe, and that''s all she cared about. But she wasn''t the only one.


    As soon as the girls saw YuWon, they rushed towards him. YuWon was barely standing, covered with injuries and dung. But none of that seemed to matter to the girls. They wrapped their arms around him, pulling him into a hug.


    Yeji couldn''t say a word and was busy shedding tears. Gina clung to his neck, her face buried in his chest.


    "Don''t you ever dare to do something like that again!" Gina said before crying.


    "idiot..." Lysandra said, trying to sound tough, but ended up crying as well.


    "I''m sorry girls, ow¡ª" YuWon groaned in pain.


    But the girls only hugged him tighter. YuWon, despite the pain, couldn''t help but smile weakly. Meanwhile, Anna stood further away, watching YuWon''s reunion with a sad smile on her face.


    She had done what she wanted to. She had saved YuWon. The person she couldn''t protect in her timeline was alive and surrounded by the people who loved him, and that was enough for her.


    Time to leave... I guess.


    There was no need for her here anymore. Anna had drastically changed the future. With YuWon alive and the mole dead, her knowledge of future events was more or less obsolete now.


    Now, she wasn''t sure if she had a ce in this one. Her presence could trigger the butterfly effect and make things moreplicated. So it was wise for her to leave and get back to her timeline.


    "Live a long and adventurous life... my love," Anna whispered, before turning to leave.


    But just as she was about to step away, she felt someone grab her hand.


    Anna turned to see YuWon holding her arm. His face was still covered with grime, but there was a smile on his lips. It was a smile Anna hadn''t seen in ages... not sinceherYuWon died.


    "Where do you think you''re going?" YuWon asked softly.


    The girls were still holding on to him, but all his attention was on her. The sight of him made her heart go wild in her chest. No matter how much she tried to calm it down, just one look at YuWon would get her flustered again.


    She hadn''t expected him to reach out to her¡ªespecially not after everything that had happened between them... or their different versions.


    But then she saw a sh of the YuWon from her timeline, the one who used to be the life of the party, always smiling.


    The YuWon she loved had died, and no one would ever rece him. But then... another YuWon was smiling at her, and her chest tighten. Was she betraying the one she loved by falling for his other self, or was it destiny?


    She had sworn she would let no one else take YuWon''s ce... but now she was wavering. Maybe... falling for him again wouldn''t be so bad.


    She would always cherish the YuWon she knew, but maybe it was time to let go of that sadness and appreciate new things.


    "Don''t leave us hanging," YuWon said, and the girls also looked up. "You''re a mess too. So might as well join us in this gross reunion."


    They had their doubts about her. But after what she did, they held no grudges. After all, without her, only god knows what would have happened to YuWon.


    "Yeah, I guess I am."


    Anna smiled and stepped towards YuWon, before being pulled in by Gina.


    It was what she needed. It was time to stop running from the past, to stop being afraid of what could go wrong, and to be happy with where she was.


    ***


    The next day...


    YuWony back in the bed, propped up by soft pillows made of the World Tree''s husk. That wasn''t all. The girls weren''t leaving any stones unturned for hisfort.


    "Here, have some. It''ll help you recover," Lysandra said, as she fed him one of the dried fruits from the World Tree.


    Despite being dried up, the fruit still retained some of the original rejuvenating properties to help him heal fast. Besides, it was the only food they had, so it wasn''t like he had a choice.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    At his side, Yeji worked carefully, tending to his injuries with her healing abilities. Unlike others, she furrowed her brows as she concentrated on healing him.


    "Try not to move too much," she sighed in frustration, holding his arm still. "You need your arm to wipe your butt. I won''t do it forever."


    "Aww... and here I thought you liked it. Ouch--!"


    "Stay still," Yeji replied, ring at him.


    "Yeji... be careful, please," Gina mumbled from the side.


    Since she had nothing else to do, Gina sat on the edge of the bed, running her fingers through YuWon''s hair.


    "He''s not a baby, Gina," Anna rolled her eyes. "A little pain wouldn''t kill him."


    "You''re heartless, noona!" YuWon said teasingly.


    "What¡ªI told you not to call me that!" Anna''s face flushed, despite her words.


    Witnessing her face turn red, everyoneughed.


    Technically, YuWon wasn''t wrong. He was younger than Anna by a decade. So it was only right for him to address her as such. No matter how much it pissed her off.


    Anna had enough of the brats and sat in the corner, staring at the ring on her ring finger. It was identical to the ones worn by Gina, Lysandra, and YuWon.


    Yeji wanted one as well, but YuWon was quick to shut that down. After all, the ring was meant for him and hiswives,which didn''t include Yeji... for now.


    YuWon sighed, enjoying the calm atmosphere of the room. Unfortunately, it didn''tst long. There was a knock on the door and they all turned to see... Min-Ji standing there, nervously ncing around the room.

 Chapter 123: Acceptance (2)

    The room went silent. All eyes turned to Min-Ji, who stood there fidgeting around.


    "What do you want?" YuWon asked, the warmness gone from his eyes.


    "I-I wanted to check if you''re alright¡ª"


    Before she could say anymore, Yeji got up, staring at Min-Ji like she was going to burn her with her gaze itself.


    "Get out," she said, pointing towards the gate. "You''re not wee here."


    Min-Ji looked down but didn''t move. Yeji lost her cool and was about tosh out when YuWon grabbed her wrist, pulling her back.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Calm down," he said.


    Yeji looked at him as if he had stabbed her in the back, but then calmed down. YuWon smiled and shook his head. He knew Yeji was acting out on his behalf.


    In her eyes, he nearly died because of Min-Ji, even though it was his choice. But Yeji couldn''t say anything to YuWon, so she wasshing out at their mother.


    Once she was calm, YuWon looked at the rest of the girls and nodded towards the gate. They understood and walked away, but not before casting dirty nces at Min-Ji on their way out.


    The door shut behind them, leaving only YuWon and Min-Ji in the room. For a moment, neither of them spoke and kept staring at each other.


    "How are you feeling?" she asked. "If you need¡ª"


    "You don''t have to pretend," YuWon cut her off. "You don''t need to y the role of my mother anymore."


    The words pained her, as usual, but she swallowed the pain, trying to keep her emotions in check.


    "I wasn''t¡ª" she started, but YuWon wasn''t finished.


    "Look, if you''re here to talk about our past, I can help you," he said. "I''m not sure what I want right now, so you can leave."


    Min-Ji''s lips trembled, but she nodded. She wasn''t there for forgiveness, but to check on him. Still, hearing her son say those words hurt more than any physical wound could.


    But she had done the same to him. Even if it was Seok who manipted everyone, the things she said about him and his father weren''t something they would work past so easily. However, YuWon wasn''t done.


    "But Yeji," YuWon continued. "She needs her mother. She''sshing out because she''s hurt and guilty. But you still have a chance to make things right with her. She deserves better than what you gave me."


    "Yes... I know."


    Min-Ji had never taken the word Yeji told her to heart. After her father''s betrayal and the guilt of destroying her stepbrother emotionally, her aggressive behavior was expected.


    But YuWon''s words gave her some hope. YuWon looked confused, seeing her smile suddenly.


    "I''ll try," she whispered. "No, I''ll definitely make things right with her."


    Min-Ji felt tears well up in her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away. She turned to leave, not wanting to burden him any further. But before she stepped out, she stopped and looked back at him.


    "Why did you save me?"


    "Is that what this is about?"


    "...no, but I want to know¡ª"


    "You were an excellent mother to me once, a long time ago," YuWon shrugged, not meeting her eyes. "Saving you was to pay back an old debt."


    Debt. The four-lettered word had never felt heavier. But Min-Ji didn''t let it bother her. YuWon wouldn''t say it, but she was his mother, always has been and always will be. But for now, her other kid needed her more.


    "I understand," she whispered. "But I won''t let you down again. I promise."


    YuWon said nothing, just grunted in response. Min-Ji took onest look at her son as if burning his image in her head, before turning and quietly leaving the room.


    As the door closed behind her, YuWon sighed. He wanted to feel nothing, but her visit stirred something in him. Something he wasn''t ready to face yet.


    "...I should go for a walk."


    ***


    YuWon walked to the edge of the massive root. The wind blew gently, ruffling his hair as he looked down. Far below, he could see some people around the disaster mole''s corpse.


    Lucifer stood at the front, directing them as they worked on digging a massive hole next to the mole.


    "It''s good to see you out and about," Asmodeus called out, joining him. "How are the injuries?"


    "Getting better," YuWon replied, his eyes fixed on the mole. "All thanks to the World Tree''s fruit. My body''s recovering faster than I thought."


    Asmodeus nodded thoughtfully. The two stood in silence for a moment, both of them staring down at the workers below.


    "What are they doing down there?" he asked, ncing at Asmodeus. "Preparing for the mole''s burial?"


    "You could say that," Asmodeus chuckled. "Not out of respect, but caution. After all, hellfire burns within the corpse."


    If they were to leave the body as it was, the fire might make its way out of the mole''s body, which would have been disastrous.


    That''s why Lucifer and Asmodeus decided to bury it far below the surface, deep enough that no one would ever stumble upon it. Whether intentionally or by ident.


    "Out of sight, out of mind," YuWon nodded.


    "Precisely."


    "Speak up."


    "Pardon?" Asmodeus asked.


    "Whatever''s on your mind, just say it."


    "Did you¡­ see anyone else inside the mole? A woman, to be precise."


    "No," YuWon shook his head. "And I definitely didn''t see Lilith."


    Asmodeus looked at YuWon like he was some ghost before speaking again.


    "How do you know about her?"


    "Rx, Anna told me about your... history," YuWon began. "About you, about Lilith¡­ and everything else."


    "I... see."


    Although YuWon was acting calm, back when Anna told him about the fallen angels, he had a tough time believing her. But then there were other angels, so it wasn''t impossible, just strange.


    Meanwhile, Asmodeus stared up at the sky, trying to hide the sudden surge of emotions. He said nothing for a moment, lost in thought. Then, he turned to YuWon, forcing a small, grateful smile.


    "Thank you for killing the mole," he said. "At least now, the World Tree will flourish again."


    YuWon nodded but said nothing. He could tell that Asmodeus was holding back a lot of what he was feeling. But he wasn''t about to dig into it further.


    Asmodeus then turned and walked away, leaving YuWon alone at the edge of the root. The wind blew again, and YuWon looked down at the mole''s body below, before pulling out a pink crystal.


    Sorry, Asmodeus. But Lilith needs a new master. Besides, how can I give you the reward I got after killing the mole?

 Chapter 124: Disasters Heart

    "You said the mortal won''t ruin our entertainment anymore," he roared at the chained angel before him. "Now look at what he did! A mere mortal killed a disaster!"


    As the man roared, the floor cracked underneath the force of his fury.


    "That mortal... I want to see that pathetic bastard to suffer!"


    As the god keptshing out, other gods watched him. Some looked amused, others remained indifferent. They were being entertained like never before.


    For them, killing a disaster wasn''t as big of a deal, but watching the mortal kill the disaster was something they enjoyed. After all, it was the first time anything like that happened.


    One god, whose presence was barely visible except for the faint glow of starlight around her, couldn''t help but smile.


    "A mortal has got you all riled up," she chuckled. "You lose your head on such a trivial matter, yet call yourself a god?"


    The sun god only grew more furious at her words.


    "Don''t you dare test my patience!" he snarled.


    Some godsughed at his outburst, while others rolled their eyes. But no matter their reaction, they understood why he acted like that. He was the mole disaster''s creator, and no one wanted to see their beloved pets get ughtered by a mortal.


    "Calm down," the one with the thunderous voice spoke. "It is but one disaster. More await the mortal for the trial."


    "But that was my disaster," he growled.


    "Don''t be a child," the booming voice roared again. "You''ll get plenty of chances for revenge as they climb the world tree."


    Countless gods nodded to the god''s words. It was true, after all, that the world tree was but a mere staircase. The disasters were merely the start of their suffering. Eventually, they would have to face the gods themselves, that''s when they will get true entertainment.


    "Think of it in this way," a beautiful maidenmented. "The higher they climb, the more painful their demise will be."


    "Fine," he muttered through gritted teeth. "But when the timees, I''ll kill him with my own hands."


    "We won''t interfere. But what about the other pantheons?"


    "They have their pawns, we have ours," the sun god said, turning his gaze back to the mortal realm. "If their pawns die, they will have no right to interfere in our matters."


    ***


    Last night...


    After cleaning and getting medical attention from Yeji, YuWon decided to rest. It had been a tiring couple of days and the moment his head hit the pillow; he was fast asleep.


    "Oi! Wake up!"


    No reaction.


    "...wake! Up!"


    No reaction.


    "I didn''t want it toe to this..."


    Smack!


    YuWon sat right up, feeling the stinging pain on his cheek.


    "Who the fuck¡ª!" YuWon shouted, but the angel quickly covered his mouth with her hand. "What are you doing here!?"


    The angel looked offended and crossed her arms.


    "Why? Don''t you want your reward?" she said. "It would be easier for both of us if that were the case."


    YuWon scratched his head. If they wanted to reward him, couldn''t the angel have given it earlier? Why bother showing up in the night?


    "About time you showed up. Couldn''t you give it earlier¡ª?"


    "Do you want everyone to know what you got?" the angel shrugged. "It wouldn''t be fun for the sponsors if people were to get stronger because of you. So just take the reward and we can head our ways¡ª"


    "What''s the reward?"


    The angel sighed and snapped her fingers.


    "There, everything has been deposited in your phantom bag."


    With that, she disappeared again, leaving YuWon on the edge of his bed. Without wasting time, he brought the rewards out, staring at the two strange objects.


    The first was a pinkish crystal. Strangely, it felt alive, as if it had a heartbeat of its own. As he touched the crystal, a prompt appeared before him.


    [Contains Lilith''s Essence: Can resurrect Lilith.]


    From what Anna told him, Lilith was Asmodeus''s wife. If he were to know about it, the guy might go crazy to get the crystal off of him.


    I better keep it hidden for now.


    He shoved the crystal into his bag, deciding to deal with itter. Then his eyes fell on the other item he got. It was a fleshy, pulsating thing with veins running through it. But when the item''s information appeared, YuWon couldn''t believe it.


    +++


    Item Name: Disaster Mole''s Heart


    Set: Iplete (1/5)


    Item Type: Consumable Artifact


    Rarity: Mythical


    Attributes:


    >> HP: +7500


    >> Strength: +60


    >> Agility: +35


    >> Intelligence: +10


    >> Defense: +70


    >> Endurance: +60


    Special Ability:


    Tectonic m:


    Effect: The Awakener can unleash the power of the titan''s heart to m the ground, sending a shockwave that deals damage to all enemies in a 30-meter radius and knocks them prone, reducing their defense by 30%.


    Cooldown: 1 hour.


    Unique Traits:


    >> Titan''s Resilience: The Awakener''s skin hardens upon the heart''s absorption, reducing all damage by 30%.


    >> Thermo-sense: The Awakener gains the ability to detect movement and hidden creatures within 20 meters circle around them.


    +++


    As YuWon finished reading the details, another prompt appeared before his eyes. This time, it was a quest.


    +++


    Quest Title: Shards of the Disaster Heart


    Objective:


    ¡ª Hunt down the five disasters and absorb their hearts.


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)


    ¡ª Disaster Mole (Dead)


    - Reward:


    - Title: World breaker


    - Final Reward: ???


    +++


    ...this bitch wants me to hunt disasters!?n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Not only did he have to hunt the disasters, but he also needed to absorb their hearts into his body. It was a strange quest. However, he couldn''t deny that the attributes he would get from absorbing the heart alone made it worth it.


    But how was he supposed to absorb it? Just then, another prompt appeared before him.


    [Consumable artifact found.]


    [Proceed with absorption?]


    [Yes / No]


    That''s... convenient.


    YuWon agreed, and immediately a pain shot through his chest like his heart was being ripped out. He gasped, before falling to his knees as the Disaster''s heart slowly merged with his own.


    A momentter, his skin burned, and his bones felt like they were being crushed from the inside.


    "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! THIS WASN''T A GOOD IDEA! ARGH!"

 Chapter 125: New Beginning

    In the dimly lit room that had be his home, he watched his reflection in the broken mirror. The cracks in the ss distorted his face, but even then, the subtle differences in his could be seen.


    His face looked sharper now, and his jawline was more defined. Even his cheekbones were slightly higher. But the biggest change was in his eyes. They seemed deeper, darker, and if he looked closely, he could catch a faint glow, like a flicker of light behind them.


    "The stupid glow again..." YuWon sighed, running his fingers through his hair.


    Even two years wasn''t enough for him to tame his powers. The Disaster''s heart would often trigger his abilities without him knowing it. The broken mirror was a prime example of his instability.


    His muscles bulged as he turned to pick up the thin strand of the world tree''s vine and tied the hairs so they didn''t fall on his face. His arms were stronger than they had ever been. He wasn''t bulky, but lean and toned like a predator.


    But it wasn''t just physical changes. His mind had be sharper, more aware. He could hear the faintest sounds around him.


    Looks like everything is fine. Just like every other day.


    Strangely enough, in the two years, nothing much happened. The constant chaos they were living in was gone. Hell, they didn''t even have a trial in two years.


    Anna had already told him about it. In her timeline, it took them two years to reach the world tree. Which meant the angel had screwed them over and made them skip other trials.


    Soon, a knock on the door pulled him from his thoughts. Asmodeus had sent word earlier for the wee party. After all, it was the day for the Awakeners to arrive.


    ***


    YuWon walked up to the edge of the cliff, where Asmodeus, Lucifer, and Anna were standing. The once barren tree now had fresh leaves sprouting from its branches.


    Since the mole wasn''t there to kill the roots, the World Tree had slowly started to heal. It was also thanks in part to Lysandra. It seemed that she was somehow rted to the world tree.


    When the tree had dried up, she couldn''t use her powers either. But now that the tree was healing, her powers were alsoing back. She was nowhere close to how strong she used to be, but she was improving day by day.


    "Where are the others?" YuWon asked, looking around.


    "They should be here soon," Asmodeus replied. "Gina and Lysandra are guiding them through the roots that have sprouted."


    YuWon nodded. As the tree grew, it sprouted new roots, turning the ce into a maze. Without a guide, those awakeners would get lost and die even before they got a chance to climb the tree.


    It was the angel''s idea to send some people over when she informed us about their arrival.


    Anna wrapped her arm around YuWon''s as they waited for the people to arrive. Just then, Asmodeus spoke, breaking the silence.


    "How are you adapting to the Disaster''s heart?" he asked. "Had any troubles recently?"


    "It''s been¡­ an adjustment," he admitted, curling his fingers in a fist. "But thanks to your training, I won''t go berserk anymore."


    "Well, good thing it''s manageable now." Luciferughed, smacking YuWon on the shoulder. "Remember the first time we sparred after you got the Heart? You lost control and shattered my shoulder."


    YuWon shook his head before swatting Lucifer''s hand away.


    "Still crying about it? It healed fast enough, asshole."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "So? Just because I healed fast means I can''t talk about it?"


    "Talk? Sure you can. But what you''re doing is not talking, it''s called bitching."


    "...brutal, mortal."


    Over thest two years, the two had formed a bond, sparring regrly to keep YuWon in check.


    Since Lucifer was the strongest person on the base, he was the only one who could withstand the full brunt of YuWon''s strength suffering no severe injury.


    Asmodeus smiled faintly at their banter, recalling the sight of Lucifer knocking YuWon out when he broke his shoulder. Besides, he had his own sprouts to deal with.


    He was the one who had taken charge of training the others while YuWon and Lucifer sparred. Asmodeus''s time as an angel gave him ample knowledge about everyone''s abilities. That alone made him the perfect instructor.


    What little control Lysandra had over her abilities was thanks to Asmodeus. However, with her abilities gone, she had to learn different forms ofbat and he had helped her with that as well.


    Anna, for her part, hadn''t changed much. She remained the strongest of YuWon''s wives. That was the case when she didn''t receive any reward for helping YuWon kill the mole.


    Or she would have been stronger than me.


    YuWon found theck of strange. But Anna didn''t seem bothered by it. She was content to be by YuWon''s side, even without a power boost.


    Unlike Gina, who had grown stronger over the years. While she wasn''t as strong as Anna, she was formidable in her own right. YuWon could take Anna''s word for it because the two often sparred together.


    If it had been the same case with Yeji, I wouldn''t have to worry about her.


    But that wasn''t the only thing bothering him. While Yeji was the same ever-so-loyal stepsister, something felt off about her. She had been ignoring him recently and often acted out.


    While YuWon was wondering about her, Anna nted a kiss on his cheek.


    "Still worried about her?" she asked.


    YuWon nodded. "From what Lucifer and Asmodeus told me about Sekhmet, I don''t want Yeji to have anything to do with her."


    "YuWon," Anna smiled and cupped his face. "Yeji is your sister first, and Sekhmet''s envoyter. Have some faith in her... she won''t make the same mistake again."


    "I hope she doesn''t," YuWon sighed. "We saved her thest time she went berserk. I''m not sure the Awakeners would be so understanding again."


    Just then, Lucifer nodded ahead, pointing at the new batch of Awakeners. Finally, they could start climbing the tree as they were supposed to.

 Chapter 126: Lesson One: Discipline (1)

    YuWon only learned about what happened to the others. But it started with Yeji and Min-Ji arguing about something trivial. It should''ve been nothing, just the usual back-and-forth between family.


    But something inside Yeji snapped. Min-Ji did not know what happened, but Yeji struck her. When her hand connected with Min-Ji''s face, she let out a bloodcurdling scream.


    Yeji''s p had ripped a portion of Min-Ji''s skin off. Blood gushed out of one side of her face as she fell to her knees. The Awakeners rushed in to protect Min-Ji, but Yeji wasn''t herself anymore.


    She tore through them with ease. Her eyes never left Min-Ji''s face as she continued towards her.


    Two awakeners were unfortunate to stand in Yeji''s way and got their hearts ripped out. Their blood was all over her face, but she looked happier with all the blood around her.


    The rest of the camp erupted into chaos. Meanwhile, YuWon and Anna were having an intimate time. It wasn''t until they heard the shouts did they ran out to see what was going on.


    When they got there, YuWon was stunned to see the sight. Min-Ji was on the ground while some awakeners helped her, throwing disgusting nces at Yeji.


    Thankfully, Lucifer had arrived to get her under control. But even then, he wasn''t uninjured. Blood poured from a deep gash across Lucifer''s chest as he pinned Yeji to the ground.


    Even so, Yeji kept struggling, and it wasn''t until Lucifer knocked her out that she stopped.


    As expected, the awakeners were furious with Yeji. They gathered for a meeting and insisted on punishing Yeji, either by death or exile. Their anger was just. After all, Yeji had killed two innocent people.


    Asmodeus agreed and made his way towards the makeshift cell where Yeji was held to carry out the punishment. But YuWon stopped him. That moment was the first time he saw the true strength of Asmodeus as he flung him away with no effort.


    To YuWon''s surprise, Lucifer stood up, refusing to let Asmodeus leave. It looked like the fallen angels could erupt at any moment. But YuWon appealed to the crowd to give Yeji another chance.


    They were baffled and refused immediately. It wasn''t until YuWon bowed before them, did they heard him out.


    "I won''t make excuses for her, or for what she did," he told them. "But asking for another chance is all I can do. I give you my word. If she loses control again, I will deliver whatever punishment you see fit."


    Anna chimed in, bowing before them as well. Suddenly, the room fell silent. The Awakeners weren''t pleased, but they couldn''t ignore their saviors.


    After all, if it wasn''t for YuWon and Anna, they would still live under the Disaster Mole''s fear. Reluctantly, they agreed to give Yeji another chance. But they didn''t view her the same after that and even kept their distance.


    ***


    Yeji hadn''t lost control since that night. Still, they kept a close eye on her. No matter where she went, Lucifer, Anna, Gina, or YuWon kept watch on her. As for Min-Ji, she still had the scars from that night, but her rtionship with Yeji deepened after that incident.


    Maybe it was all for good.


    A sudden scream brought him back to reality. Fearing the worst, YuWon''s eyes immediately went towards Yeji''s group. But they were fine. But they were looking behind them.


    "It''s not them," Asmodeusmented. "It has to be Yuna''s group. They were bringing the second group of awakeners."


    "Who else is there?" YuWon asked.


    "Hojin and... Min-Ji," Lucifer replied.


    Without wasting another second, YuWon and Lucifer jumped down from the enormous root of the World Tree. The other entrance wasn''t far, but as they got closer, the sounds of struggle and shouting became louder.


    When they got there, the scene was worse than they expected. A man, tall and muscr, had Hojin by the throat, lifting him off the ground like he weighed nothing.


    Hojin''s face had turned red as he kicked the man desperately to free himself. His head split open, and blood soaked his shirt. At some distance, Yuna was being restrained by two people, probably the other guy''sckey.


    Meanwhile, Min-Ji was between them. She screamed while wrapping her arms around her head. The sight of Hojin''s blood must have triggered her trauma from being hit by Yeji.


    That sight alone enraged YuWon, but what the man said next sealed his fate.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You''ve got so much luck, don''t you?" The man holding Hojin sneered, holding a crystal in his other hand. "How about you share some with me? Before I hurt someone else. What the¡ª?"


    Before the man could say anything else, YuWon appeared before him. He snatched Hojin away from him before backhanding the man across the face and sending him crashing into the nearest tree.


    At the same time, Lucifer dealt with theckeys restraining Yuna. Once freed, Yuna rushed to Hojin, who was coughing violently as YuWon set him down.


    "Feed him a fruit to stop the bleeding," YuWon instructed her. "Yeji can heal himter."


    Meanwhile, the awakeners who had arrived with the man stood frozen. YuWon had just tossed aside the strongest member of their group like he was nothing.


    They were worried he might retaliate against them. But YuWon didn''t care. He didn''t even nce at them as he walked over to Min-Ji, who was still curled up on the ground.


    He squatted beside her and gently pried her arms away from her head. The moment Min-Ji saw him, she wrapped her arms tightly around YuWon''s waist, burying her face in his chest.


    By then, the rest of them had arrived. Lysandra kneeled beside Min-Ji and gently pulled her away from YuWon''s embrace.


    "I''ll take care of her," she told him before walking away.


    YuWon looked at Asmodeus, and he nodded, silently saying he would deal with the mess. But before he could, the man YuWon had flung away before stood back up.


    "Why are you acting up?" heughed. "The angel warned us, saying you lot were strong, so I had to see for myself. It''s not my fault if your people aren''t as strong as they im to be."


    "Is that so?" YuWon turned around, his eyes glowing like embers.

 Chapter 127: Lesson One: Discipline (2)

    Michael pondered at hisckey''s words, before smiling. It had been 2 years since they fell into the hellhole of the awakened earth. He had gone through a lot during that time.


    People had witnessed his strength firsthand. He had trampled on those who tried to kill him and used the people who would benefit him, no matter how. Right now, YuWon was one such person.


    Although Michael didn''t seem affected by YuWon''s backhand. He knew thetter was holding back.


    Should I try to get on his good side? No, it''s toote for that.


    That ship had already sailed because he tried to steal that pipsqueak''s stats. But could anyone me him?


    After all, he had gotten stronger that way. Stealing a bit of stat from one person and then from another. Once he saw Hojin''s luck stat, he knew he had to take some of it.


    But he could take the stats of the arrogant guy standing before him. Though it won''t be easy, if his people helped him, then it should be doable.


    "Fine," Michael shrugged. "But since you''re quite strong, you won''t mind handling a few of us, will you?"


    YuWon said nothing, just gestured for them to step up. Lucifer was about to join YuWon, but Asmodeus held him back. After all, they were once angels and should abide by the rules of not involving themselves with mortals unless it was during a trial.


    Lucifer clicked his tongue, but stepped back. It was a stupid self-imposed rule. But he didn''t want to go against his brother.


    When Michael saw no one stepping up to help YuWon, he smirked. His n was working. Without another word, Michael and his six men charged at YuWon.


    Their n was simple. Theckeys would keep YuWon busy till Michael absorbs his stats. After all, it was a n they had been using for years and had defeated countless strong opponents.


    But YuWon had already seen through their ns. As Michael and his men came within striking distance, YuWon lifted his foot and mmed it into the ground.


    Suddenly, the ground beneath them shook, and a shockwave rippled from YuWon. Michael and his men didn''t even have time to react before the shockwave hit them, mming all seven men face-first into the ground.


    That was the strength of YuWon''s [Tectonic m] skill. Something he learned thanks to the courtesy of the Disaster''s heart in him.


    Not bad.


    It was his first time using the skill in an actual fight, and the results were better than he had imagined.


    "Argh..."


    A sudden groan brought YuWon out of his thoughts. Michael was the first to groan, followed by his men. All of whom had their faces buried in the dirt. They kept trying to push themselves off the ground, but kept failing. It was as if the shockwave had paralyzed them.


    "Don''t bother," YuWon coldly spoke, walking over to them. "You''re not getting up anytime soon."


    He had no sympathy for them. These brats had caused a problem as soon as they arrived. They thought it would be easy to push others around and pick fights for no reason. It was time they learned some discipline.


    "You guys are a wild bunch," YuWon said. "Since you''ve made such a mess, I guess it''s only fair I teach you some manners. As your senior, that''s my responsibility, right?"


    Michael tried to lift his head, but all he could manage was a pathetic grunt as hey face down in the dirt. His men followed the example and cursed under their breath. YuWon didn''t care.


    He lifted his foot and brought it down on the hand of one of Michael''sckeys. A sickening crunch followed as the bones in the man''s hand shattered beneath YuWon''s boot.


    The man, who could barely grunt, was suddenly screaming in agony, as blood and shards of bone sputtered from his mangled hand.


    YuWon didn''t stop there. He moved to the next man and stomped down on his hand. One by one, YuWon stomped on their hands, crushing them so they were beyond any use to them.


    Now, only Michael remained. He had watched in horror as his men screamed and writhed in pain and had no desire to join them. Unfortunately, he was powerless to stop YuWon.


    "Please!" Michael''s voice broke as he screamed through the dirt. "I''m begging you. We''ll apologize! Please!"


    "Well, that was quick," YuWon titled his head. "You want me to leave you alone?"


    "Yes!" Michael begged. "We''ll leave! We won''t bother you again, I swear! Just please stop!"


    YuWon pretended to think for a moment, then nodded.


    "Alright," he said. "Since you realized your mistakes, I''ll leave all of you alone, and I''ll even ask the healers to patch you up. But there''s one condition."


    Michael''s heart sank as soon as he heard those words. He knew what wasing for him. With a smile, YuWon squatted next to Michael and extended his hand.


    "The crystal of yours," YuWon said. "Hand it over."


    Michael''s face went pale. The crystal was a relic he gotst year. It had an ability that allowed him to steal the stats from others as long as he was in direct contact with them.


    But there was a catch. All of his stats were stored in that crystal. In other words, he had no stats of his own. If he gave it up, he would lose everything. He would be the weakest person on the.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I¡­" Michael stammered. "I can''t¡­ it''s¡ª"


    To make things worse, his allies weren''t on his side this time. Since they got their hands stomped and Michael didn''t, they had no loyalty left for him.


    "Just give him the crystal!"


    "Yeah, screw that crystal! Give it to him, or he''ll kill us!"


    "I don''t care about your fucking stats! I want my hand back!"


    YuWon crossed his arms, watching as Michael desperately tried to weasel his way out of there. But his patience ran out and grabbed Michael''s bag, and took the crystal out before Michael could say another word.


    "No!" Michael screamed, trying to reach for the crystal, but in vain. "Please! I''ll do anything else!"


    YuWon looked at the crystal in his hand, then nced back at Michael, who was on the verge of tears.


    ...I made him cry. Tsk, makes me wanna make him wail. Frick... not these sus words again.


    Suddenly getting irritated, YuWon squeezed the crystal until it shattered in his hand. All life left Michael as the shards hit the ground.


    But YuWon wasn''t that heartless. He bent down, picked up the smallest shard, and tossed it to him.


    "If you want more, you''ll have to earn them."


    Although he said that, YuWon had no intention of ever returning the shards. Since he was nning to use the shards to speed up the World Tree''s growth. In other words, he would help Lysandra.


    But before YuWon and the others could leave, a bright sh blinded them, and out of it came an angel, different from the one before. She saw YuWon and walked closer, practically fawning over him.


    "My, my," she said, circling YuWon. "You look even more impressive in person. So strong, so handsome¡­ I like you!"

 Chapter 128: Hydra Disaster (1)

    Lucifer and Asmodeus didn''t look surprised by the announcement. Neither were the rest, as the fallen angels had already informed them about it.


    The second disaster.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Lucifer wanted to tell YuWon everything about the disaster, but Asmodeus stopped him. Unlike Lucifer, he still had some lingering feelings toward being an angel and wanted the awakeners to go through the trial themselves.


    Hence, Asmodeus didn''t want them to interfere much in the trials. Even though they were just as much mortal as the awakeners. Anna was surprised by it because he had actively taken part in the trials in his timeline.


    But since YuWon was alive and had received considerable strength, maybe he didn''t find it necessary to screw over the gods himself. Either way, that was their situation.


    "Alright, that''s pretty much it, cockroaches. Oh, I almost forgot. The portal will open at midnight. Just so you people have time to prepare."


    With that, the angel smiled cheerfully at the awakeners and nodded toward the fallen angels before disappearing.


    "It''s weird seeing a junior act all superior," Lucifer scoffed, rolling his eyes.


    "Heal up," YuWon instructed everyone.


    As everyone got busy, YuWon walked up to the fallen angels. "I suppose you''re staying back?"


    Asmodeus nodded. They had already discussed each other''s roles. The Awakeners would carry on as they were supposed to, while the two of them would stay behind as guides to help other mortals climb the world tree.


    Lucifer wasn''t pleased with the decision but obeyed Asmodeus. So did YuWon. It wasn''t like he could force them to fight by their side.


    "Alright, but could you help with the preparations?" YuWon asked. "It''ll be a pain to get the newbies up to speed."


    "I''ll handle it," Asmodeus nodded, assuringly.


    ***


    A few minutes before midnight...


    "I''m not staying back," Lucifer announced, entering YuWon''s room. "That old bastard can blow the gods for all I care, but I won''t."


    YuWon couldn''t help butugh. He already knew Lucifer had made up his mind. Asmodeus might not want to screw over the gods, but Lucifer did. He was too full of pride not to.


    "Wee aboard," YuWonughed, patting the guy''s back. "Your experience will be much needed."


    "Yeah, yeah, someone needs to carry your ass."


    "We''re done preparing," Anna arrived with the girls.


    Some awakeners stayed back because of injuries or ack of will to fight a disaster. Min-Ji and Hojin fell in thetter category, while Yuna stayed behind because YuWon asked her.


    He wanted to have some people he trusted to stay back. Besides, since she was in a rtionship with Hojin, it was only right for her to stay back and care for him.


    "Good. Now we wait."


    "Not for long," Lucifermented, counting down with his fingers.


    With a burst of light, the portal appeared as soon as he finished counting.


    "You''re an annoying, cocky bastard," YuWon shook his head as they got up to leave.


    "Same to you, bitch." Lucifer retorted.


    ***


    After stepping through the portal, the group found themselves in the middle of a massiveke, surrounded by mist, and giant water lily leaves floating on the water. They were standing on those leaves and each leaf held ten or fewer people on it.


    They were in awe, but the peace didn''tst long. The water beneath them suddenly had many ripples. Those who had survived the mole disaster quickly climbed the lily''s stems.


    "Everyone, get off the leaves!"


    Others quickly followed suit. Just then, something burst out of the water. It was a monstrous, two-headed, dragon-like beast. But Lucifer called it the Hydra Disaster.


    As the hydra appeared before them, so did the quest notification.


    [Trial: Swamp of Lerna]


    [Type: Survival]


    [Objective:


    >> Survive for two days on theke without being killed.


    >> Alternatively, kill the Hydra to clear the trial.]


    [Rewards: To be revealed afterpletion.]


    "...so this is what Lerna looks like," YuWon couldn''t believe what he was seeing.


    The swamp of Lerna was part of the famous tale featuring one of Hercules''sbors. The more he recalled about it, the more YuWon realized the dangers of being there. After all, the Hydra wasn''t the only thing they had to be worried about there.


    Since the Hydra is here, the water must be toxic. So should the fruits in this region.


    Everything they could eat or drink, from the water to the fruits, was poisonous. Hence, surviving in the swamp won''t be as easy as the notification made it sound.


    They''d have a better chance of killing the creature instead. But how will he exin it to the rest?


    [You have gained a special status effect!]


    [Curse of Lerna]


    [Description:


    Poison Mist: The toxic air of the swamp slowly drains everyone''s health.


    Swamp Madness: Staying too long in the Hydra''s presence can cause hallucinations.


    Night Hazard: Enemies be stronger at nightfall.]


    [The artifact: Traveler''s Bracelet has negated the curse effects on you.]


    Thank you for that.


    Even with the curse lifted, YuWon wasn''t happy for long. He was the only one immune to the scenario. The rest of them will be affected, regardless. Some people might even die from the poison from prolonged exposure to the toxins.


    "Yeji, don''t waste your heal on the rest," YuWon mumbled.


    Yeji nodded. After the incident involving her losing control, she lost the urge to help anyone. Hence, YuWon''s request didn''t bother him. As for the rest of his group, no one cared about the others.


    "This will be easy," Lucifer suddenly smiled. "Dealing with a two-headed Hydra-ling is far better than dealing with the actual thing."


    "That thing is the child of the real hydra?" YuWon asked. "Wait... who even impregnated that thing?"


    "Did you mean who didn''t?" Luciferughed. "A few entities have an obsession for certain... things."


    "...I can''t believe this," Yeji chimed in. "Why was none of this mentioned in ancient texts? I used to read a lot of them so¡ª!"


    "You don''t believe the gods to tell you everything, do you?" Lucifer scoffed. "What you humans know about them is just the tip of the icebergpared to the truth. Let''s focus on getting rid of this thing for now."

 Chapter 129: Hydra Disaster (2)

    "What the hell?" YuWon mumbled, looking closer. "Is that poison?"


    "Worse," Lucifer and Anna replied simultaneously.


    Just then, something reached out of the swamp... a hand, then another, and then another. Some resembled human-like figures, while others were monstrous beasts with deformed limbs and sunken, glowing eyes.


    "What¡­ what is that?" one awakener gasped, backing up in fear.


    "Zombies?"


    "Not just any zombies, but reanimated corpses of the ones who failed to kill the hydra," Lucifermented. "One head kills the enemies, while the other reanimates them and uses them to overwhelm the intruders."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The reanimated creatures slowly crawled onto the massive water lily leaves. Their eyes glowed a sickly yellow tint, and their bones made cracking sounds with every step.


    Some creatures had bits of flesh hanging from them, while others barely held together.


    Suddenly, one corpse lunged at an Awakener. Its skeletal fingers dug into his arm, pulling him into the swamp. The guy screamed, thrashing and kicking the creature to get free, but the reanimated being''s grip was unrelenting.


    "Hold on!"


    Another Awakener rushed to help to sever the corpse''s arm. But as soon as the arm fell away, another creature grabbed hold of the man, and more crawled onto the leaves surrounding them.


    "Back away!" a mage roared, sending a burst of mes towards the horde.


    The explosion ripped the corpses apart. But just as they breathed a sigh of relief, the shredded pieces of the corpses that were scattered aroundslowly pieced themselves back together.


    Back on the other leaf, YuWon''s group was holding the creatures at bay. But the result remained unchanged.


    However, Lucifer was having the time of his life as he cut another creature in half... but this time, it didn''t regenerate. A momentter, Anna did the same.


    "How did you¡ª?" YuWon asked.


    "Use their weapons against them," Anna cut him off, killing another creature. "Not all of them drop weapons, so you might have to ''shred'' them till you get a weapon."


    Soon everyone knew what to do and began recklessly hunting the creatures. Some even began fighting amongst themselves to get the weapons first.


    After all, no one wanted to be at someone else''s mercy. In the end, the death toll among the awakeners only increased.


    "Good," Anna smiled as the chaos on other leaves attracted more reanimated away from them.


    "Wait... you did that intentionally?" Yeji asked, hiding behind Lysandra.


    "Yup," she replied. "Now that the creatures are busy with others, we can take care of the hydra."


    "Wicked..." Yeji mumbled with admiration.


    "And this is for good measure..."


    Anna threw what looked like an explosive to the furthest leaf. A deafening explosion shook the swamp and what little reanimated were around them, immediately left, swimming towards the other leaf.


    "Damn... I like this one!" Lucifermented, realizing what Anna did.


    "Sorry, I''m taken," Annaughed it off, handing YuWon her weapon. "Use this to break through the Hydra''s scale. Then your Noir sword can deal damage to it."


    "What other secrets are you hiding?" YuWon shook his head, taking the axe from her.


    "You''ll know in due time," she winked. "Now go before the sun sinks and the hell hole opens."


    "Right!"


    YuWon charged toward the Hydra with weapons in hand. Watching him head its way, the hydra roared. One head bared its fangs, while the other opened its jaws, and he saw a tinge of cackling mes from within.


    Fire? Good luck hurting me with that.


    YuWon grinned and pushed forward without even thinking about the fiery st. A momentter, a stream of mes engulfed YuWon. As expected, the mes felt warm around him but didn''t burn his skin.


    But as the mes faded, something felt off. Suddenly the wind felt... cold to him, reaching parts where it shouldn''t have. YuWon nced down for a moment, only for his eyes to widen in shock.


    ...my clothes...


    He was standing stark naked in front of a giant, two-headed dragon and, worse, in front of countless awakeners. Even the reanimated creature stopped fighting the awakeners to witness the spectacle.


    "Well, well," Lucifer called out. "I must say, YuWon, even among the gods, your package is¡­ impressive."


    YuWon could feel his face turn red with embarrassment, and he spun around, ring at Lucifer.


    "Shut the hell up!"


    By now, the rest of the Awakeners had taken notice of YuWon''s¡­ predicament. Some were too shocked to react, others tried and failed to hide theirughter.


    A few men gave approving nods, while others just stared in disbelief. As for the women¡­ well, they were having their peculiar reactions.


    Anna, Lysandra, and Gina exchanged nces, grinning like fools. Even Yeji, who was usually more reserved, had her eyes glued between YuWon''s legs. Lysandra, noticing this, nudged her with her elbow and pointedly raised an eyebrow.


    "Enjoying the view, are we?"


    "N-No!" she stammered, acting disgusted as she turned away. "I wasn''t¡­ looking¡­ like that!"


    "Sure, sure. Whatever you say."


    Meanwhile, YuWon was trying to cover up what little dignity he had left. Awkwardly, he used one hand to hold his sword in front of his private area and red at everyone.


    "Can we please focus on the Hydra?!" he shouted, exasperated.


    "Oh, don''t worry, the Hydra''s probably just as impressed as the rest of us. It hasn''t moved since you exposed it to your exhibitionistic tendencies."


    "Shut. Up." YuWon clenched his teeth.


    The hydra''s roar snapped YuWon back to sense as he noticed one of its heads moving towards him.


    [Skill: Soul Bind has been activated.]


    A wisp snaked out of YuWon''s arm, striking the hydra''s head. There was no way the skill would work on the Hydra, but it was enough to buy him some time. With the Hydra still in front of him, he mmed his foot down on the swampy waters beneath.


    [Skill: Tectonic m has been activated.]

 Chapter 130: Disaster Evaded?

    YuWon frowned. He had hoped the attack would knock the Hydra-ling down, as it did to Michael and hisckeys. As his n failed, YuWon decided to take some other measures.


    But just as he was about to attack the Hydra-ling, he heard a loud gurgling sound. A secondter, a sudd water jet exploded from the swamp directly under the Hydra-ling.


    The monstrous creature got thrown into the air. The sudd force caught it off guard, and it began thrashing its heads wildly while in the air.


    "Well, that wasn''t what I had in mind¡­"


    YuWon realized what had happed. [Tectonic m] wasn''t meant to be used on water. So wh he used the skill, it targeted the solid surface under the dse swampy waters.


    The shockwave th created ough pressure for a water jet to shoot outward, throwing the Hydra-ling in the air. As the Hydra-ling descded, YuWon saw an oping.


    As soon as Hydra-ling came close, he swung both des at it. As Anna said, the reanimated weapons could break through the Hydra-ling''s scales. However, it couldn''t inflict deep wounds.


    YuWon swung the Noir de next, but ev th, the wound wasn''t deep ough to kill the being. However, as YuWon jumped away, he noticed something strange.


    A ckness spread from where he had hit the Hydra-ling. Within seconds, the darkness seeped into the Hydra-ling''s flesh, causing it to screech in pain.


    "What the hell--?"


    [Achievemt: You call that Invincible? is active. The Awaker will deal 0% damage.]


    The beast began thrashing wildly, hitting anything and everything in its way. It mmed into several nearby water lily pads where some awakers stood. The force knocked overturned the leaves, sding them into the reanimated-filled waters below.


    Meanwhile, YuWon had his eyes somewhere else.


    This... system.


    YuWon''s mouth twitched as he read the new title he had unlocked.


    [Achievemt unlocked!]


    [Title: Exhibitionist]


    [Description: shing emies? Only a true exhibitionist coulde up with such a strategy. You deserve a reward for this!]


    [Effect: Wh fighting naked, lowers the emy''s reaction speed by 0% and their defse by %.]


    Meanwhile, the awakers were in chaos. Some were struggling to hold on to the edge of a water lily pad. But the reanimated beings were reltless. They grabbed the fall awakers and dragged them deep into the water.


    The awakers tried to fight back, shing and stabbing the reanimated with whatever they had, but it was useless. The creatures were reltless and kept pulling them until their screams faded.


    It seemed the sudd pain had made the hydra-ling lose control of the reanimated creature.


    "Well, that wt south real fast," Lucifermted, handing his shirt to YuWon. "By the way, wrap this a your waist."


    YuWon looked at the shirt but th declined. If he wore anything, the [Exhibitionist] title effect would disappear. He didn''t want to do that, especially against someone with defse as vigorous as the Hydra-ling.


    Lucifer stared at him for a second, th he began grinning like an idiot as he ced a hand on YuWon''s shoulder. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You don''t need to exin," he said. "I''m so proud of you, YuWon. I always knew you''d evtually embrace your true self ande out of the closet."


    "What the hell are you on about¡ª?"


    "You don''t have to exin," Lucifer cut him off. "It''s fine, man. We all have things that excite us. And if you ever want to explore other, uh¡­ fetishes, you know where to find me. I''m always happy to help a frid in need."


    "Lucifer shut the hell up," YuWon stared at him, dumbfounded.


    "Don''t worry," Lucifer winked. "Your secret''s safe with me."


    YuWon sighed again, rubbing his temples. The idea of smacking Lucifer crossed his mind, maybe ev kicking him in the nuts, but that would probably egg him on ev more.


    In the d, YuWon turned his atttion back to the Hydra-ling, who was still iling a and causing more destruction in the swamp.


    "How do we kill that thing?" YuWon muttered. "Getting close to it while it''s thrashing a isn''t a good idea. But we can''t just leave it like this."


    "You got a n?"


    "...would I be standing here if I had a n?" YuWon sighed. "Wait... maybe I do. I''ll need your help."


    "What do you need?"


    YuWon told him what he wanted to do. As the n unfolded, Lucifer''s grin wided, and he nodded. With that, they split up and headed toward the hydra.


    YuWon took the left side while Lucifer wt to the right. The Hydra''s heads hissed and snapped in their direction, ignoring the searing pain.


    Just as the Hydra''s left head lunged at YuWon, he sidestepped, and the head mmed into the g, missing him by inches. Lucifer did the same on the other side. Out of sync, the heads couldn''t focus on one target.


    The heads growled at one another, before YuWon threw a stone at them, getting their atttion back. The headsshed out, but once again, they couldn''t target both YuWon and Lucifer simultaneously.


    Their frustrations grew and so did their anger. Once again, the two heads lunged, one wt for YuWon, the other for Lucifer.


    "Now!" YuWon shouted.


    In perfect sync, both YuWon and Lucifer leaped forward and punched the heads with all their strgth, sding the heads crashing into one another. That was the breaking point.


    Both heads hissed and snapped at each other, their irritation turned into full-on aggression. The next momt, the headsshed at one another, each head trying to bite the other''s throat.


    As the heads continued their violt struggle, the second head let out a roar. In response, the reanimated corpses lurking in the swamp moved, climbing up the water.


    The second head called for them to attack the other head. However, they couldn''t scale the body. Instead, they attacked the Hydra-ling''s shared body.


    The reanimated creatures wed and bit into the Hydra-ling''s flesh. Their blood spilled across the swampy waters as the heads thrashed about. With each passing momt, the Hydra-ling grew weaked.


    The two heads, now heavily injured and bleeding from the constant attacks, kept tearing at each other until they had no strgth left. The creature let out ast roar before as the heads slumped to the g.


    As the Hydra died, so did the reanimated creatures. One by one, they fell into the water, sinking into the swamp without a sound.

 Chapter 131: Geas

    They had killed the Hydra-ling, yet they were stuck in Lerna. They didn''t get any rewards either, which only meant one thing. The quest wasn''t over.


    "...of course this would happ," Yeji mumbled. "Look at the quest prompt."


    [Objective:]


    [>> Survive for two days on theke without being killed.]


    [>> Alternatively, kill the Hydra to clear the trial.]n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "We hav''tpleted either of the tasks," Lucifer mumbled.


    The quest stated they had to kill the Hydra, not a Hydra-ling. The only problem was that a Hydra-ling wiped out more than half of their initial force. Now they find out they were fighting the wrong monster all this time?


    I ev had to get naked because of it...


    But they had an ev bigger issue. The quest didn''t say there wer''t more Hydra-lings. Also, considering what Lucifer told them about some gods'' disturbing fetishes, they could be more of them.


    They can be stronger than the one we just fought.


    Apart from Lucifer, everyone was downcast, ev Anna. In her timeline, they had a massive army. Hce, wh they attacked the swamp, they split up and killed the Hydra-lings.


    What she didn''t know was that Asmodeus and a few elites had gone to hunt the actual Hydra. Only wh they killed it did the trial clear.


    Anna didn''t know that and thought all they had to do was to hunt the Hydra-lings. Meanwhile, YuWon turned to Lucifer.


    "You didn''t tell us¡ª"


    "Before you get all using," Lucifer interrupted, showing YuWon his tongue.


    At first, YuWon thought Lucifer was being childish. It wasn''t until he pointed at the mark did YuWon realized something was off.


    "I said nothing, not because I didn''t want to," Lucifer continued. "I didn''t tell you because I can''t. This is a geas... a binding curse that prevts me from speaking about the trials."


    "So you can''t speak about it?"


    "Nope. I''ll lose my voice if I did."


    "What about writing¡ª?"


    "My hands would rip my heart out if I tried that."


    "How about you show me how to defeat them?"


    "That would require killing them, and I''m forbidd to do that. Another geas sures that," Lucifer shook his head. "Besides, all this is supposed to be a trial for humanity, not for the fall angels."


    YuWon sighed. As a fall angel, Lucifer held immse knowledge about the trials. If he could tell them about the trials, it would take all the fun away from the gods.


    They love this chaos too much to let someone ruin it for them.


    YuWon could also understand why they had abandoned the fall angels. Imagine knowing all the secrets of making money, but one was in aa. They could watch everyone try to achieve what they couldn''t, only to fail repeatedly.


    Over time, despair would kick in and the ones in aa would lose all desire to live.


    In their case, "making money" was an analogy for clearing the trials, and the ones in aa were the fall angels.


    They could fight, but they couldn''tplete the mission on their own, and they couldn''t share the secrets either. All they could do was watch in hopelessness while the gods joyed their suffering.


    Now it makes sse why Asmodeus wanted nothing to do with the trials.


    YuWon looked at Anna, and she shrugged. It was the first time she had heard about geas. But it made her realize something.


    Back wh they were fighting the fourth disaster, right before the disaster mole appeared, Asmodeus had a clear shot at the fourth disaster. Yet he didn''t take it and allowed it to kill him.


    Anna had always wondered why he did that. She ev asked Asmodeus about it in the currt timeline, but he didn''t answer. He just smiled and changed the topic.


    Now she understood why Asmodeus didn''t fight back. He had lost all hope in humanity and realized that if people couldn''t ev survive the disasters, th there was no point in pretding they could keep going, so he chose death instead.


    "Let''s move first," YuWon snapped everyone out of their thoughts. "Who knows what will happ if we stay in one ce for long."


    "Yes," Gina chimed in. "We still have the curse hanging over our heads. Let''s find the Hydra and deal with it."


    But that was easier said than done. Lerna''s swamp was a massive ce. Ev looking for something as big as a hydra would be akin to searching for a needle in a box of nails.


    Not to mtion how many more Hydra-lings would they have to fight their way through. Their morale was at an all-time low, especially the awakers who had barely survived the first counter with a Hydra-ling.


    "Those who want to fight can join us," Anna announced. "As for those that don''t, stick to this area and lie low."


    YuWon nodded. There were two ways to clear the trial. Either kill the Hydra or survive for two days. It was the right decision to have separate teams focusing on differt tasks. That way, if one group failed, the other could still seed.


    However, with YuWon involved, that would never work because he would keep respawning. Sure, the timeline would be ruined, but it wouldn''t be the first time. After all, he had probably died a hundred times by now.


    Besides, moving a inrge groups would draw unnecessary atttion.


    "Don''t drink the water from theke, as it''s toxic. If you really need to drink something, poke a small hole in the water lilies and drink from their stems."


    Anna continued, "It''ll still be harmful, but if you drink just a little, you''ll only get a stomachache. For the food, eat the fruit from the world tree. It''ll help counter the poison from the water lily. Most importantly, try not to make any noise... unless you want to die."


    "She''s not bad," Lucifer whispered, leaning on YuWon. "her instructions were precise and covered everything one needs to survive here. As expected from a regressor, unlike you."


    "Are you done yet?" YuWon shook his head. "If you have free time, point me towards the Hydra."


    "No can do," Lucifer shrugged, before walking away.


    Just because he couldn''t tell YuWon what he wanted, that didn''t mean he couldn''t let the humans follow him. If they were smart ough to catch on, that is.

 Chapter 132: [Bonus Chapter 3/9] It Was All A Lie

    "What is this?" Gina mumbled as soon as they tered the cave.


    It wasn''t a cave, but a nest. Everywhere their eyes wt, all they could see were eggs. Dozs upon dozs of Hydra eggs. Most eggs had small cracks on them as if they were ready to hatch.


    "This is bad¡­" Anna whispered.


    Everyone''s reaction was the same. They didn''t ev want to think about the chaos the eggs would bring once they hatched.


    The swamp was already a dangerous ce to be, but with these creatures added to the mix, they could forget about killing the Hydra. Hell, ev stepping out of the swamp alive would be impossible.


    "No wonder the quest said to survive for two days," Yeji mumbled. "These eggs would hatch by th. I don''t ev want to imagine what will happ th..."


    "We need to destroy them now," Lysandra insisted.


    But that was easier said than done. If they destroyed the eggs, the Hydra could learn about it. Th it could either appear before them or go into hiding, making it impossible for them to hunt the Hydra.


    But, if they didn''t destroy the egg, they''d get swarmed by Hydra-lings. Neither of those options was good, by Lucifer decided for them by idtally falling on an egg, crushing it.


    "Oops¡­" Lucifer covered his mouth, nodding toward the eggs.


    "Smash the eggs!" YuWon instructed the rest.


    Without hesitation, they began destroying the eggs. But as the eggs got crushed, a strange gre gas hissed out from them. The gas th mixed with the fog and filled the air with an unsettling odor.


    "What is this smell?" Gina asked, quickly covering her nose.


    Since she had the best sse of smell in the group, she knew something was wrong. But everyone ignored her. They couldn''t afford to stop with so many eggs left to destroy.


    "Keep going!" YuWon ordered, ignoring the gas.


    But a momtter, YuWon''s vision blurred. He tried to stay awake, but couldn''t.


    "Guys, I¡ª" he tried to say, but everything wt ck.


    ***


    YuWon oped his eyes, but the ce was awfully bright suddly. It didn''t feel like he was in the cave. As he sat up, he found himself in a strangely familiar ce, bathed in the orange glow of a setting sun.


    "Where¡ª?" YuWon mumbled, looking a. "No..."


    YuWon''s eyes wided as he recognized the ce. It was the college rooftop, the same ce where he was nning to d his life.


    "This¡­ can''t be!"


    YuWon yelled as he tried to stand, but his legs buckled beath him. His leg was brok, just like before he had awaked to his powers.


    "No, no, no¡­" he muttered, pping his leg in frustration. "This can''t be happing!"


    YuWon''s breathing became unev as his heart began pounding in his chest. Everything he wt through.., that couldn''t be a lie.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The memories came flooding in, though they were hazy, as if something was erasing everything, like he had wok up from a dream.


    "This isn''t real¡­ right?" he whispered.


    Th the doubt crept in. What if  of what he wt through was real? He remembered taking pills to help him take thest step to d it all. But what if it knocked him out and made him have a dream instead?


    As much as YuWon didn''t want to believe it, that seemed to be the only believable answer. After all, how could monsters arrive in their world? Those things only happ in movies and novels. Not in real life.


    "All of it," he whispered. "Was everything... fake?"


    Tears welled in his eyes as he tried to hold on to his memories, but they were slipping away, reced by old sces of him being bullied, mocked, and beat. The life he had forgott about had caught up to him... but there was more.


    Suddly,ughter echoed from the stairwell, snapping YuWon out of his thoughts. A momtter, Hoon and his gang arrived at the terrace, acting like they owned the ce.


    "Hey, look at this!" Hoon sneered. "What''s this loser doing at our spot? Either way, it''s good timing. Your dumbass stepsister refused to kiss me again. Now you''ll have to pay for it."


    YuWon was still on the g but looked up in disbelief. It was just like before. He was the weak one, always had be, and always would be.


    It was as if all the strgth and confidce he had gained while fighting monsters never existed. But maybe... he was living a dream.


    "Get lost," YuWon muttered weakly.


    "What was that?" Hoon raised an eyebrow, stepping closer. "Come on, say it again, bitch!"


    Before YuWon could do it, Hoon kicked him on his side. The kick st YuWon stumbling as pain shot through his ribs, and he gasped, clutching his side. But it was just the trailer for what was toe.


    "This bitch thinks he''s a tough guy?" Hoon mocked.


    Th, he stomped on YuWon''s hand, grinding his knuckles into the concrete.


    "You''ve always be a pathetic piece of trash. What makes you think that''s ever gonna change, huh, bastard?"


    YuWon winced and tried to fight back, but Hoon''s gang held him in ce. Th it happed, all of them began beating him. Every muscle and every bone in his body screamed in pain.


    "Let''s see how much you can take," Hoon sneered, joying the sight of YuWon in pain.


    The fists hit his face, and the kicks beat the little defiance he had in him. YuWon curled into himself, trying to protect what he could, but the blows kepting.


    "Stop it..." he muttered weakly, trying to resist.


    But the confidt YuWon was gone. All that remained was the weak, brok college studt¡ªa nobody who couldn''t ev protect himself.


    Memories of fighting monsters, taking revge and feeling unstoppable faded away. And got reced by familiar memories of humiliation and pain from everyone''s hands.


    This was his reality.


    Being beat by a bunch of guys who joyed tormting him. That was his reality. Not ying some monsters and having a harem.


    Those were the things he desired. But they wer''t real.


    "It was all just... in my head," YuWon whispered as despair took hold. "I was never anything more than this... maybe... it''s time to d it all."


    Just th, he heard a voice, a familiar feminine voice.


    "Get up, YuWon," the voice echoed in his mind. "This isn''t real."


    Not real? Th how can I feel this pain? No... this is real.


    But the voice kept urging him.


    "Wake up..." the voice called again. "Goddamn it, just wake up and I''ll let you do whatever you want to me!"

 Chapter 133: Two Betrayals (1)

    As she was about to hit him wh YuWon jolted awake. His instincts kicked in, and he grabbed her wrist, but his grip was shaky after what he had be through.


    "You''re awake," she said, getting off him.


    YuWon heard her, but his head began pounding like someone was hammering it. He groaned, releasing Anna''s hand and clutching his head instead.


    "What... is going on?" he mumbled.


    He returned to the cave, but his perception of reality got distorted after the shback.


    "You were hallucinating," Anna exined. "The gas leaking from the eggs caused that. I think it was a defse mechanism against intruders."


    "...I see."


    YuWon was fine physically, but the mtal toll on him would take some time to heal. For a momt, he looked a the cave, unsure if he was back in reality.


    Anna noticed his reaction and hugged him. She didn''t know what he had gone through in his dream. But for him to be so shak up, something terrible must have happed.


    If it hadn''t be for Anna''s past life experice dealing with hallucinations, she would be in the same boat as him.


    "It''s alright," she whispered in his ear. "We can talk about itter. Right now, the others need our help, too."


    YuWon took her hand and pulled himself to his feet. They were in the middle of a trial and there was no time to waste like that. While Anna left to wake Gina, YuWon spotted Yeji next to him.


    Much like him, she was sweating buckets with her eyes shut tightly. Her face was pale, likely because of the nightmare she was expericing. YuWon crouched down beside her and gtly shook her shoulder.


    "Yeji, wake up!"


    Wh she didn''t respond, YuWon had no other choice. With a snap of his finger, the ve brand activated, shocking her.


    Yeji immediately sat up, looking a in a daze. But wh her eyes fell on him, she immediately hugged him.


    "Don''t leave me, please!" she yelled. "I''ll be more useful to you! I swear!"


    ...it''s clear what she was dreaming about.


    YuWon shook his head, patting her back. Across the cave, Anna was helping Gina up, while Lysandra was still lying on the g. He walked up to her.


    Meanwhile, Lucifer stood on the side. He couldn''t help them anymore. He had already pushed his luck by leading them to the Hydra''s nest and destroying an egg, idtally, of course.


    If he tried as much as lifting a finger to help them, he was afraid the geas in him would choke him to death.


    That wasn''t ev the worst of it.


    If his geas were to activate, it would give the gods the opportunity they wanted. They could get their minions to change the rules of the trial. If that happed, their negligible chance of survival would turn to non-existt.


    Everyone slowly got to their feet. No one spoke a word, but they were shak and not in a position to fight. Unfortunately, they won''t get the time to recuperate.


    A roar echoed from outside the cave. It was like the Hydra-ling''s roar. Only this time, it was much louder and fiercer.


    "The Hydra¡­" YuWon muttered.


    ***


    After blocking another whip-like tail, Anna looked at YuWon fighting in the distance. Only t minutes had passed, but fighting the Hydra was already tiring them out.


    To make things worse, their faces revealed the mtal toll of hallucinations. Moreover, they couldn''t drop their guard ev for a second. Not with a doz heads staring at them.


    Meanwhile, Lucifer was patitly watching them. He told them he couldn''t help them, but somehow Anna felt that wasn''t the case. He had helped them fight the Hydra-ling before with no problems, th why was he staying out of it now?


    Yet he wasn''t taking any risks. But Anna didn''t get more time to think about it longer as one of the Hydra''s sev tails came crashing towards her.


    It was no big deal. She could dodge the tail again...


    "¡­Uh?"


    Suddly, it felt like she was wearing weights on her ankles. No matter how much she tried, her legs won''t move. She looked a at the others, but there was nothing wrong with them.


    Th she saw it¡ªthe smirk on Lucifer''s face.


    "You bastard¡ª!"


    She screamed, but the tail came crashing down on her.


    ***


    Sometime ago...


    Fools.


    That was the thought Lucifer had about the mortals. He never showed it, but every second he spt among them disgusted him. They were animals raised for ughter, and suddly he was one of them?


    Unlike Asmodeus, who got his powers stripped away from love, Lucifer lost his wings because of pride. The power and authority of an angel got into his head and he idtally ruined one of God''s ns.


    As a punishmt, they took away Lucifer''s wings and forced him to live the rest of his days as a mortal. That was until he received a notification.


    An unknown tity was willing to restore his status. But he had to do one thing. He had to sure YuWon and his tire group failed the trial. The tity ev promised him divinity if he got them killed and dealt with YuWon.


    It happed a year before the trial was scheduled. The tity''s offer was why Lucifer disobeyed Asmodeus and took part in the trial.


    The fool destroyed the eggs, just because I did.


    Lucifer knew the gas would knock them out and, without help, they''d never wake up. His n was perfect. He would trap YuWon in eternal sleep and leave the rest behind for the Hydra, as destroying the eggs would get her atttion.


    However, the n failed wh Anna woke up from her eternal dream. Back th, Lucifer was about to carry YuWon away. In the d, he had to pretd that he was helping him. But Anna pushed him away.


    She had always be conscious of him. Ev though she never showed it outright, Lucifer knew it. Her knowledge of the future evts was a hurdle for him.


    Ev while fighting the Hydra, she didn''t believe his words about Geas, ev though all of it was true. But Lucifer didn''t care about winning her trust anymore. He was already busy making ns for the future.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    With divinity, I can have my revge on those fools who banished me. But first... I should get rid of the most problematic one.


    With that, he used his ability to petrify Anna. While he couldn''t interve in the trial, that was only limited to the disasters, not humans. Hce, he targeted Anna first, who was the most problematic among the bunch.

 Chapter 134: Two Betrayals (2)

    Now th, let''s get rid of the main star¡ªwhere is he?


    Lucifer turned to where YuWon was supposed to be. However, he was nowhere to be se.


    "What the...?" he murmured, spinning a quickly.


    Slowly, the grin on his face disappeared. YuWon was standing before Anna, his arms a her as he shielded her from the Hydra''s attack.


    Lucifer was wide-eyed. he knew YuWon had a disaster''s heart, but ev th he didn''t expect him to take a direct hit and remain standing.


    At that momt, Anna, who got knocked unconscious after the initial attack, slowly oped her eyes and found herself in YuWon''s arms.


    "Sorry about the rough ride," YuWon smiled.


    However, Anna just pointed back at Lucifer, "That bastard¡ª!"


    "I know," YuWon cut her off. "I saw everything."


    Lucifer heard those words, and a chill ran down his spine. He couldn''t believe it. A mortal''s word affected him like that? No way that would ever happ. He was an angel! An existt above mortals!


    No... he couldn''t possibly know what I did. I made sure¡ª


    Lucifer was confidt in his abilities. Despite what YuWon said, he couldn''t have any proof of what he had done. Unfortunately, YuWon saw him smile while Anna was about to get attacked. That was ough confirmation for him.


    [Run.]


    A single word shed before Lucifer''s eyes. It was amand from the tity he was contracted with. But his pride got in the way. How could he run with his tail tucked betwe his legs in such a situation?


    [Run or else.]


    Lucifer clicked his tongue. He wouldn''t admit his fear of a mortal, but he feared the gods. The tity wasn''t making a request but giving him a warning.


    Besides, he had already shown his colors to YuWon. Now, there was no need for him to anger the sponsor and lose the only backing he had.


    Just th, a portal appeared next to Lucifer, and he stepped into it.


    "I''ll see you again, YuWon."


    Lucifer waved at them before disappearing in a sh. YuWon Tried to run behind him while Lysandra attempted to block Lucifer''s path with her vines. But both of them failed.


    "Damn it!" YuWon cursed, clching his fists.


    Lucifer had be like a brother to him. To think it was all a ploy filled him with rage. A gold tinge appeared in YuWon''s eyes as his anger kept rising. Something was happing to him.


    The hydra ssed the change in him and it ignored everyone and wt straight toward YuWon, swinging two tails at him. However, YuWon raised his arms and caught the tail betwe them.


    The force of the impact was ough to sd him flying once again. But YuWon used [Tectonic m] to bury his feet into the g. He was still almost thrown away, but he gritted his teeth and held on.


    The hydra tried pulling the tails back, but YuWon didn''t allow that. Instead, he gritted his teeth and began pulling the hydra towards him. The creature hissed at YuWon, forgetting about everyone else.


    To a stranger, it would seem like a fight betwe a human and a disaster. But only the two involved knew it was a fight betwe two disasters. The only differce was that YuWon couldn''t keep it up indefinitely like the Hydra.


    As the Hydra focused on YuWon, it became an opportunity for the others. After using every ounce of her restored powers, Lysandra summoned a massive vine out of the swampy g.


    Anna and Gina grabbed the vine and dashed towards the Hydra. The n was simple: since severing its head was useless as the creature would grow more; they would suffocate the monster to death.


    "Hold on!" Anna yelled as the vines coiled a the Hydra''s scaly necks.


    Gina nodded, using all her strgth to tight the vines. Upon realizing their n, the Hydra hissed in anger and thrashed its head a to loos their grip on its necks.


    But wh that failed, the Hydra tried using its tails to knock them off. But Lysandra was quick to foil its ns. She summoned as many vines as her dulled abilities allowed and wrapped them a the creature''s tails.


    However, with her weak control, Lysandra couldn''t stop all the tails. Thankfully, YuWon was there to intercept the attacks. Whever the beast lifted one of its tails, YuWon was there, pinning it back to the g.


    But ev he couldn''t be everywhere at once. Slowly it lured YuWon away from the girls, keeping him busy with a couple of tails. Unbeknownst to him, the creature had nned to hit Gina while he was busy.


    Since Gina was busy pulling on the vines, she couldn''t see the tail in time. With YuWon and Lysandra having ough on their tes, there was no one to help her.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    But th, out of nowhere, Yeji jumped on the tail. Her eyes were bloodshot and a sadistic, deranged smile was on her face. With a loud, primal scream, Yeji threw herself at the Hydra''s tail, grabbed it with both hands, and sank her teeth into it.


    "ARRRR!"


    With a growl, she ripped off a chunk of Hydra''s scales with her teeth, something YuWon failed to do ev with his hands.


    The Hydra let out a deafing screech, reeling in pain. The sudd shot of pain made it lose its focus, giving Anna and Gina the time to kill it.


    "Pull harder!" Anna yelled.


    "Trying...!" Gina yelled back.


    Ev Yeji and YuWon jumped on it and began pulling the vine with everything they had. With each second, the vines got tighter a, cutting off the creature''s air supply.


    The creature tried to fight back, but its hisses turned to weak gasps, and soon, the mighty beast copsed, its heads falling lifelessly to the g.


    [Hydra Disaster has be in.]


    [Second World Tree root has be purified.]


    [Trial: Swamp of Lernapleted.]

 Chapter 135: [Bonus Chapter 4/9] Two Betrayals (3)

    The swamp wasn''t a ce they could take on with their current numbers. From the environment to the creatures they''d fight, the odds were stacked against them.


    Even with YuWon and Lucifer there, he didn''t expect the first expedition to be sessful. Just then, the portal shimmered and Awakeners stepped out of it. Most of them were injured and quite a few of them were missing.


    But they had a smile on their faces¡ªthe smile of victory.


    They... did it!?


    It wasn''t until he noticed YuWon that he realized something was off. Unlike the rest, he was quiet and lost in his thoughts. But all that disappeared when their eyes met.


    YuWon rushed towards him. Before Asmodeus could get a word in, he grabbed him by the cor and mmed him against the tree root.


    "YuWon!" Anna shouted, but didn''t stop him.


    "What do you think you''re doing?" Asmodeus shot back.


    "Where is he?" YuWon snarled, his voice echoing in the silence.


    "Who¡ª?"


    Asmodeus questioned, only to realize that the portal had closed, and there was no sign of Lucifer. It didn''t take long for him to piece everything together.


    That brat must have done something.


    That''s why he disobeyed his instructions and joined the trial. Asmodeus knew that, unlike him, Lucifer had never made peace with their current status. It was only a matter of time before he did something about it, and it looked like he finally did it.


    However, he had no involvement in Lucifer''s n. But even if he did, no oneid hands on him, especially not a human.


    No... the emotions are running too high.


    Even though Asmodeus thought that, he believed there was no better way to blow off steam than a quick spar. He could let YuWon take out his frustrations and once he calmed down, they could have a civilized conversation.


    He was about to push YuWon back to their usual sparring spots. But something unexpected happened.


    A tiny figure appeared from behind YuWon and sat on his shoulder. When Asmodeus saw her face, he was too shocked to say anything. He blinked a few times, like he was trying to wake up from a dream.


    It was her. His Lilith.


    Asmodeus stared at her with his mouth hanging open. She looked familiar and different at the same time. She was small, like a tiny fairy, no bigger than the palm of his hand. Her once powerful and seductive form had diminished, leaving her with a stunted stature.


    But there was no mistaking her. Lilith, the Queen of fallen angels. His wife. Or who she used to be.


    "Lilith?" Asmodeus whispered. "Is that really you?"


    But Lilith didn''t even acknowledge him. She remained sitting there as she nestled against YuWon''s neck. Her eyes were solely on YuWon, no one else, as if he was the only one who mattered to her.


    "Don''t bother with it," YuWon smirked, releasing his grip on Asmodeus. "She doesn''t know you. Lilith belongs to me now."


    As he said that, Lilith''s smile widened, and she hugged YuWon''s neck.


    The words hit Asmodeus like god''s smite. Even as a fallen angel, he hadn''t felt so powerless before. Howe someone as strong as Lilith turned into nothing more than a servant to a human?


    "Impossible¡­" Asmodeus shook his head in denial. "This can''t be real."


    Unfortunately, it was real. The way she acted around YuWon and how she ignored him made it painfully obvious.


    ***


    Some time ago, during the trial...


    As the hydra copsed, so did they, from exhaustion. The adrenaline faded, and they didn''t even have the strength to stand. All of them, except for Yeji.


    Yeji was crouched beside the Hydra''s body. Her eyes remained bloodshot as she smiled maniacally, looking at the dead creature. Before anyone could do anything, she jumped at the Hydra''s corpse like a rabid dog.


    "Yeji, stop!"


    But she didn''t. She was too far gone to stop. With no other way to calm her, YuWon used the ve brand to knock her unconscious. It was the only method he knew to get her in control.


    It was a cruel thing to do, but YuWon knew she probably liked it. Besides, he needed the Hydra''s heart for himself.


    "A little help here," YuWon called for the rest as they gathered next to the creature''s chest.


    Slowly, they began peeling the scales one after another. Yeji had made it seem effortless, but it took all of them to remove a single scale. If only she wasn''t off the rails, taking the heart open would have been a breeze.


    Finally, they reached the leathery skin and YuWon ripped it open with his sword. Blood gushed out of the wound, covering his face and hands as he dug deeper. After almost half an hour of search, his finger found what he was looking for.


    With some help from Lysandra, he carved the heart out of Hydra, still feeling warm in his hands. YuWon wiped the blood from his face, staring at the heart for a moment, then the notification appeared.


    +++


    Hunt sessful!


    ¡ª Hunt down the five disasters and absorb their hearts.


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ¡ª Hydra (Dead, Awaiting absorption)


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)


    ¡ª ??? (Alive, undiscovered)


    ¡ª Disaster Mole (Dead, Absorbed)


    +++


    YuWon smiled and ced the heart in the Phantom bag. After going through the pain of absorbing the mole disaster''s heart, he didn''t want a repeat of that episode, at least not in the swamps.


    But just as YuWon was about to close the bag, something unexpected happened.


    The pink shard carrying Lilith''s essence shot out of the bag. Before YuWon knew what was happening, it began hovering over the corpse.


    A secondter, there was a sh of light. The Hydra''s corpse got sucked into the crystal, vanishing without a trace. The shard continued to glow and expand until it was the size of a football before falling apart.


    A figure emerged from the broken crystal. It was a tiny female with translucent wings. With her pale skin and jet-ck hair, she immediately rushed towards YuWon, curiously moving around him.


    "Lilith..." he whispered.

 Chapter 136: New Dog

    YuWon stood staring intently at Asmodeus. His n was working so far. Lilith''s appearance and her submission to him would catch Asmodeus off guard. But more importantly, YuWon needed something to control him.


    I was too foolish to believe anyone, especially these fallen angels. They might be mortals now, but the years spent as an angel wouldn''t evaporate instantly.


    He made the mistake of trusting one fallen angel. He wasn''t interested in repeating the mistake. Anna had vowed for Asmodeus''s innocence, but YuWon wanted guarantees.


    One way to keep someone like Asmodeus under his thumb was to use Lilith. With her devotion towards him, the fallen angel wouldn''t dare do anything to upset YuWon.


    "Asmodeus," YuWon began. "Did you know about Lucifer''s n?"


    "Does it appear I do?" Asmodeus shot back, trying to hold back his bubbling rage.


    Asmodeus''s rage was justified. The wife he abandoned everything for was now cuddling someone else''s neck. That too, in front of him. He might be an angel, but he was also a man and knew YuWon was intentionally humiliating him.


    But there was nothing he could do. Lilith had lost her memories, so he couldn''t me her. However, YuWon knew the truth and still betrayed him. That was one thing Asmodeus couldn''t forgive.


    "You''re staring at me as if you''re going to murder me," YuWon scoffed. "How was I supposed to know that Lilith would be among the rewards I received for killing the disasters?"


    "We both know that''s a lie," Asmodeus gritted his teeth. "That''s the trouble with you mortals. You overestimate yourselves."


    "You''re mortal too, you know. But let''s not get to the technicalities. Do you know where he is?"


    Asmodeus shook his head. YuWon narrowed his eyes, studying him closely. Asmodeus was powerful, sly, and cunning. But was he lying? YuWon didn''t want to trust the fallen easily, especially after what happened with Lucifer.


    "He''s telling the truth, Master," Lilith whispered in his ears. "He doesn''t know."


    "You can detect lies?"


    Lilith smiled and nodded, puffing her chest. "There''s little I can''t do, master."


    "Stop holding your breath or you''ll snap your clothes."


    "If master would like that¡ª"


    "Not now."


    "Fine~"


    YuWon turned away. He believed Lilith''s words, as she was bound to him. But he would need to test her abilityter to confirm if she was telling the truth or ying an act to protect Asmodeus.


    "Fine," YuWon said, his tone shifting. "I''ll take your word for it. However, there''s something you need to do for me, Asmodeus."


    Asmodeus crossed his arms. He thought it was hrious that a mortal could think they could order him around. But he heard YuWon out, just for the sake of it.


    "What are you getting at?"


    ????¦®???§Á


    "Since you''re not taking part in the trials," YuWon said, "then make yourself useful. I want you to hunt Lucifer down. Find him, and bring him to me. Alive if possible."


    "And why should I do anything for you?" he growled, stepping closer.


    As Asmodeus stepped forward, Anna reluctantly raised her weapon. But she wasn''t alone. Everyone who had gone through the trial did the same. Lucifer''s action shook their trust in Asmodeus.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    While Lucifer betrayed them, the people saw it as a fallen angel''s betrayal and wanted nothing to do with a fallen angel, Asmodeus included. All the goodwill he had cultivated over the years vanished instantly.


    YuWon knew deception was the most effective weapon to get a reaction from the crowd. After all, he had been on the receiving end of it for a while.


    But it didn''t seem Asmodeus cared all that much about it. Even with all the weapons raised against him, his eyes were fixated on YuWon.


    But YuWon didn''t flinch. Instead, he reached out and grabbed Lilith, lifting her so Asmodeus got a clear look at them. Meanwhile, Lilith''s expression remained calm, but there was a hint of difort in her eyes as YuWon held her in his hand like a delicate trophy.


    "You''ll do as I say," YuWon mumbled, gently touching Lilith''s face. "Or would I need to repeat myself?"


    Asmodeus froze. His eyes locked on Lilith, and for a moment, his usuallyposed face crumbled. Even though she didn''t remember her, he did and would want no harm to her.


    "You wouldn''t dare..." Asmodeus hissed, with barely restrained rage.


    "I wonder," YuWon smirked, enjoying the reaction. "But could you handle losing her twice?"


    Asmodeus clenched his fists, and for a moment, it looked like he was ready to attack. But then he sighed. Lilith was bound to YuWon now, and Asmodeus knew the rascal would keep them apart if he desired, and there was nothing he could do about it.


    "Fine," Asmodeus said through gritted teeth, his voice dripping with bitterness. "I''ll bring Lucifer to you."


    "I knew you won''t be unreasonable," YuWon''s smirk widened.


    "But, I have a condition," Asmodeus cut him off. "Once I bring Lucifer to you, you''ll release Lilith from your control."


    "Of course," YuWon agreed. "Since I''m getting what I want, it''s only fair you get what you want."


    Asmodeus shot him onest look of pure hatred before turning away. He hated that YuWon had him on a leash, but for now, he would have to y the role of his hunting dog.


    As he walked away, Lilith turned to YuWon, worried about his words.


    "Master," she whispered, "you won''t abandon me, will you?"


    "Why would I do that?" he smiled. "You''re mine, and I don''t like to share my things."


    Lilith''s face lit up, but YuWon''s smile was not one of kindness. In truth, he was only using her as leverage to control Asmodeus. That fucker wanted to reunite Lilith? That would never happen.


    But Asmodeus didn''t need to know that. He would be his faithful dog till he outlives his usefulness. Maybe then he would let Lilith kill him, or there were other things that he could have her do. But for now, the situation was good enough.


    "I''ll keep you close," YuWon said, caressing her cheek. "You''re far too useful to let go."

 Chapter 137: Reward And Agony

    Item Name: Hydra''s Heart


    Set: Iplete (2/5)


    Item Type: Consumable Artifact


    Rarity: Mythical


    Attributes:


    >> HP: +5800


    >> Strength: +35


    >> Agility: +20


    >> Intelligence: +35


    >> Defense: +25n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    >> Endurance: +35


    Special Ability:


    Regenerative Pulse:


    Effect: The Awakener controls the Hydra''s regenerative powers and instantly heals 25% of their total HP and continues to regenerate 5% of their total HP every 10 seconds for 1 minute.


    Cooldown: 5 hours.


    Unique Traits:


    >> Hydra''s Vigor: The Awakener automatically regenerates lost limbs or major wounds over 3 minutes. Smaller injuries heal within seconds. This effect can trigger once every 30 minutes.


    >> Poison Immunity: The Awakener bes immune to all toxins and poisons.


    +++


    Once again, YuWon was alone in the room, but this time with the Hydra''s heart. If the two hearts werepared based on attribute gain, the mole''s heart was better than the Hydra''s.


    "But it''s not about that," YuWon mumbled, looking at the unique traits and abilities.


    The mole''s heart gave him two useful skills. First was the [Tectonic m] and the other was [Thermo-sense]. Those skills were useful in their own right. However, Hydra''s heart outshined them inparison.


    The [Hydra''s Vigor] and [Poison Immunity] alone were enough to outshine the mole''s heart. But [Regenerative Pulse] toppled things in Hydra''s favor.


    Thankfully, he didn''t have to choose between the two. YuWon could have it all... or so he thought.


    Just as he closed his eyes and prepared to embrace the pain, a notification popped up before him.


    [Error: The Awakener has gained too many skills. Please sacrifice some existing skills to make space for additional skills.]


    "Too many skills?"


    It had never happened before. Usually, when he got a skill, it simply added to his arsenal. But now he was being asked to let go of some skills?


    YuWon couldn''t believe the stingy bastards. If the game was truly for survival, then why did it matter how many skills he had?


    YuWon looked at the heart and made up his mind. It was too valuable to give up. Still, choosing what skills to give up wasn''t easy.


    He opened up his skill list, scrolling through abilities he had umted over the years. Some skills were too important to even consider removing. Others had be outdated or unnecessary, as he had grown stronger.


    He wasn''t getting rid of skills rted to <Revenant> ss because that would be the worst mistake of his life. The same went for the <Soul Reaver> subss. After all, it provided him with continuous growth.


    The only skills he could sacrifice belonged to the <Headhunter> subss. He had almost forgotten about them, as he had received no contracts for over two years.


    Probably because of those gods not wanting me to get even stronger.


    YuWon sighed as he remembered how the <Headhunter> skills had once been useful to him. It gave him some assassination contracts and special missions, which in turn gave him wonderful rewards.


    But he couldn''t remember thest time he received any new contracts. Without them, the skills were practically useless. After all, no contracts meant no way to activate those abilities.


    The headhunter ss was impressive at the start. But now, it had run its course. After a moment, YuWon decided to let go of those skills.


    It felt weird to see the number of skills drop. But YuWon was excited about what was toe.


    [Consumable artifact found.]


    [Proceed with absorption?]


    [Yes / No]


    Yes.


    Despite the confirmation, nothing happened. For a moment YuWon thought he somehow messed up. Just as he was about to let go, a sharp pain tore through his left arm.


    Spikes shot out of the heart and stabbed into his arm, then pulled back and went through his veins. It was a new kind of pain, but YuWon didn''t enjoy it one bit.


    Without thinking, he bit down on his other arm, trying to dull the pain in his left arm. His teeth broke the skin and blood flowed out, but it did little to distract from the burning sensation creeping up his veins.


    Then came the familiar feeling of dizziness. His vision blurred, and he fell to his knees. But the worst was yet toe. His head exploded as if someone had thrust a molten iron bar into his head.


    The next thing YuWon knew, his stomach began churning and something rose in his throat. Before he realized it, thick and dark blood came gushing out of his mouth.


    see-MVLeMpYr-for-more


    His entire body felt like it was on fire, every organ twisting and turning inside him, as though they were being rearranged to make space for the new heart.


    His bones cracked under the immense pressure, yet YuWon stubbornly refused to let go of consciousness. He did not know what would happen if he cked out in the middle of the process.


    Would the heart take over his body? Would he die? Will he lose the heart?


    No matter the result, he didn''t want to find out. Seconds turned into minutes as his body continued to reshape itself. But eventually, the pain subsided.


    The heart disappeared from his hand, and so did the burning sensation in his veins. By the time it happened, he was drenched in sweat. His arms were still shaking as a glowing text appeared before his eyes.


    [Absorption Sessful.]


    Fuck me... I can never get used to this pain.


    He raised a trembling hand to his head, hoping to massage the dull ache in his temples. But as his fingers brushed over his scalp, he froze. There was something there, something new.


    With ragged breaths, YuWon forced himself to his feet before walking to the broken mirror.


    "WHAT THE HELL!?"


    His hair was overflowing behind him, and his eyes had turned crimson. The muscles of his body were more defined, which realistically wasn''t possible.


    But the most drastic change was the two small horns on his head. As for his skin, it had turned sickly pale, like that of a vampire. Even his lips were red, as if he had sucked on someone''s blood.


    ...I bet my internal organs have changed even more.


    His body was a mess, but he was stronger now. Strong enough to take on something like the Hydra alone.

 Chapter 138: Steamy Affair

    But as he left the room, he bumped into Gina and Lysandra, who were hurrying to his room after hearing him yell. But they froze when they saw him.


    "...you changed again?" Lysandra asked, carefully looking at him.


    "Those horns! Take them off!" Gina lunged at YuWon, pulling the small horns.


    "Ow! Back off, will you?" YuWon pulled her hands off, rubbing his head. "I need to clean the room."


    "How clean do you want it to be?" Lysandra asked, peeking into the room.


    "What do you¡ª?"


    YuWon turned and saw the room was... spotless. Even the broken mirror was fixed, making him wonder what happened while he was out. From the corner of his eyes, he noticed something.


    It was Lilith, with a miniature bucket and a mop wiping the sweat off her forehead.


    "I cleaned it all up!" Lilith triumphantly dered.


    Having a fallen angel clean up after you... it''s not that bad.


    ***


    Meanwhile, somewhere in the world tree...


    The cave shook violently as something mmed against its walls. Massive w marks were all over the bloodstained walls.


    In the middle of it was a towering figure with the upper body of a beautiful woman with pale skin and wavy ck hair. But from the waist down, she was a massive coiling serpent with a tail that was easily the size of a banyan tree, capable of crushing anything or anyone under its weight.


    Countless monster corpses were around her, but even killing them all didn''t satiate her anger.


    She grabbed a nearby attendant, one of the many lesser creatures that served her, and threw it to the wall. Its body shattered on impact, only leaving a bloodstain behind.


    A goblin was hiding away, not wanting to meet the end like that of his colleagues. But it couldn''t hide forever. Suddenly, the woman''s tail wrapped around the goblin''s feet and dragged him out.


    "She died..." the woman hissed, wrapping her hand around the goblin''s neck. "Those mortals killed her!"


    The goblin struggled to free itself, but with a quick squeeze, she crushed him as if he were made of y and tossed the lifeless body aside.


    "SHE WAS MY DAUGHTER!"


    One of her attendants, a harpy, tried to speak. "M-Mistress, please¡ª"


    Even before she couldplete what was on her mind, Echidna''s tail crushed the harpy, killing it.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "My beautiful Hydra..." Echidna couldn''t hold back her tears anymore and copsed.


    It didn''t matter how much she tried, or how many creatures she killed, nothing could rece the grief she felt. Just then, a figure appeared in the cave, lighting the otherwise dim ce.


    Helios stepped out of his golden carriage, carefully entering the primordial being''s home. His ming hair and golden armor filled the ce with light as he looked around at the carnage.


    Echidna wasn''t happy with the intrusion and didn''t even let Helios speak a word. She sent her tail towards Helios with all her strength, but Helios didn''t flinch. With a flick, he pushed the tail away, sending it crashing into the wall next to him.


    "That was a warm wee," Helios mumbled.


    "Leave!" Echidna hissed, baring her fangs. "I am in no mood to entertain you, Helios!"


    "I''m not here for entertainment either, Mother of Monsters," Helios scoffed. "I have plenty of willing partners to be with."


    However, realizing he had stepped out of line, Helios bowed slightly before Echidna.


    "Ie not to fight you, Echidna. But to bring my deepest condolences. Hydra was... a magnificent creature. A beast capable of ruling the world. It''s a shame¡ª"


    "Save your ttery for someone else," she snarled.


    Echidna knew very well how much the gods respected her daughter. They had mated with her so often that she was stillying eggs, even after thousands of years of celibacy.


    If she hadn''t been weakened fromying all those eggs, those mortals would could never defeat her. In a way, the gods were also responsible for Hydra''s death.


    "Very well," he said, smirking now that he didn''t have to pretend. "I ask you this, Echidna... do you want revenge? On the mortals, of course."


    Suddenly, everything fell quiet. Her hatred for gods was immense, but so was her desire for revenge. She wanted nothing more than to tear apart whoever was responsible for Hydra''s death and make them suffer as she was suffering now.


    But she knew everything with gods was always transactional. Helios wouldn''t offer her the chance of revenge without wanting something in return. But Echidna wanted those mortals and for that, she would do anything.


    "What are you proposing?" she asked.


    "I know who killed your daughter and I know where they are," Helios sighed. "Unfortunately, the gods have an agreement to not intervene in the entertainment. But... not everyone is bound by the rules."


    Echidna raised her eyebrows, wondering what the little god had in his mind. The gods weren''t allowed to physically intervene in the trials until the mortals reached the canopy of the world tree.


    But the primordial beings weren''t any better off. She couldn''t interfere until the mortals reached the deep root or the primordial realm. Unfortunately, no mortal would ever enter the ce.


    After all, the primordial realm existed deep below the roots where the mortals lived. All trials were supposed to help them climb the tree, not dig deeper within. Hence, Echidna was confused by Helios''s statement.


    "A new being," Helios exined. "What if we created a new being, one with the power of a god and a primordial being¡ª?"


    "Enough!"


    Echidna''s eyes burned with hatred as she imagined what Helios was suggesting. She hated gods and even if she didn''t, she would never betray her husband.


    "Leave, Helios..." she snarled. "Or I''ll tear your heart out myself."


    "I wouldn''t dream of deceiving you, Echidna," Helios chuckled, stepping closer to her. "But I need you to have an open mind. Our child¡ª"


    "No!"


    "What good is a husband who isn''t even here, grieving for his daughter?" Helios shrugged. "But I won''t force you. I''m not like my sessor."


    With that, Helios turned and walked away. But he had only taken a few steps when Echidna called him back.


    "Why do you care about... this, Helios?" she asked. "What do you gain from this?"


    Helios smiled inwardly. What did he have to gain from this? Everything. Not only he would take credit for killing the mortal no one else could, but he would also outshine that bastard Apollo.


    Ever since the fall of the Titans, the Olympians have caused problems for the remaining Titans. Their duties and powers were taken away and bestowed upon young Olympians.


    Although Helios still held control over his relics, it was only a matter of time before Olympians would hand everything to Apollo. That''s why he wanted to use the opportunity to cement his position as the superior god.


    But for that, he required outside support. And Echidna could provide it to him. However, she couldn''t let her know that. MVLeMpYr-unofficial-chapter


    "I have my reasons," Helios replied. "What matters now is what you want. You can have your revenge, Echidna. All I ask is that you let me help you."


    Echidna paced back and forth in the cave. Though her initial instinct had been to reject it outright, she couldn''t deny how tempting it sounded. A new child with the blood of a Titan could surely avenge her dear daughter''s death.


    But then her mind went back to Typhon. He had been absent for centuries and even now that their daughter was dead; he was nowhere to be seen. His absence left a void, one that had grown over centuries of neglect.


    It had been so long since Typhon had paid any attention to her. That angered her almost as much as Hydra''s death. That rage decided for her.


    "Very well," she said, turning to Helios. "But no one can ever know about this. Especially not Typhon."


    "No one shall ever know," he agreed.


    Echidna agreed, slowly revealing her alluring form to someone other than Typhon for the first time. Following her lead, Helios snapped his finger and his golden armor shimmered before vanishing.


    But as he stepped toward Echidna, she slithered toward him. Before he knew it, she had wrapped her tail around him, pulling him closer with a strength that made even the god''s eyes widen.


    She brought her face close to his and ran her forked tongue across his face, as her hand explored the treasure between his legs.


    "You''ll do fine," she whispered in his ear. "But if we''re to do this, it''ll be on my terms and my way."


    Helios got disarmed by her seductive gaze and nodded. It wasn''t how he had expected it to be. But, he reminded himself, the means didn''t matter. As long as their union resulted in the birth of the powerful child he needed for his n, everything would be fine.


    "Your way..." he whispered as she dragged him to the bed.

 Chapter 139: Morrigan

    The awakeners no longer had to scavenge for food or eat dried fruits from the tree. They simply plucked the boulder-sized fruits and drank water from the thick roots, which filtered through them and added a healing touch to it.


    But the awakeners weren''t the only ones who wanted the benefits of the world tree.


    The creature that had fled the area because of the mole disaster and the dying tree returned. For them, the awakeners were nothing but invaders. From mutated birds to evolved animals, everything charged toward the tree to im it as their own.


    "328 monsters," YuWon mumbled, touching the ground.


    [Thermo-sense] helped YuWon predict the number of enemies approaching them from thend. As for the birds, there wasn''t much they could do about them unless they got close.


    "Lysandra," YuWon called.


    "On it," she smiled and raised her hand.


    With the world tree recovering, Lysandra''s powers returned as well. With a swipe of her hand, massive vines emerged from the ground, forming a barrier around the tree.


    ***


    YuWon wiped the sweat from his head after cleaving through one of the mutated bear-like beasts.


    "They just keeping," he said, ncing back at the others.


    "It''s not like we can''t handle them," Anna grinned, twirling her de.


    Just then, a vine shot out between them and wrapped around a beast, holding it in ce.


    "A little help?" Lysandraughed.


    "Sure thing."


    Gina dashed towards the beast, slicing it in half with YuWon''s spare crimson sword.


    While YuWon and a few others fought the beasts outside the barrier, Yeji and Yuna led a contingent, fighting the smaller beasts that wiggled their way through the barrier.


    Much like them, the awakeners worked in sync, killing anything non-human that moved in sight.


    ***


    Min-Ji stared at her children from the safety of the tree. All of them were shoved into the apocalypse simultaneously. But the growth they had shown was substantialpared to her.


    "I have no reason to be worried anymore," Min-Ji smiled.


    Unlike them, she didn''t have abat ss. She was merely a glorified cook. But since she didn''t have any ingredients to cook before, her talent was getting wasted.


    As the world tree healed, she had the chance to show off her skills. The dishes she made using the world fruit gave the awakeners different temporary boosts.


    Enhanced attributes, bonus damage, additional healing, and invulnerability. Those were some of the most famous boosts she offered. Everyone praised her skill... but not the one she wanted to hear it most from.


    YuWon ate nothing she made. Even if it would provide him with boosts, he wouldn''t touch her food. Yeji tried to feed him sometimes, but even she failed.


    Her son was true to his words. He wanted nothing to do with her and now, Min-Ji had to make her piece with it.


    "You did something to master, didn''t you?" Lilith mumbled, sitting on Min-Ji''s head.


    "...you can say that," Min-Ji replied, smiling wanly.


    Lilith tilted her head in confusion. She had only been with YuWon for a couple of days, but she hadn''t seen him behave coldly towards anyone, especially someone who wasn''t useless by his standards.


    ***


    Asmodeus...


    Lucifer gritted his teeth as he was running through a forest. In the mortal realm, only a few people could have such an effect on Lucifer. One of whom was Asmodeus.


    The man was like a hunting dog. No matter how much Lucifer tried, he couldn''t shake him off. It was as if he was possessed.


    I wonder what got him all riled up.


    Lucifer sighed, killing a seven-horned rhino who got in his way. The flesh of these beasts was quite delicious. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the time to eat them properly.


    He shoved what he could inside his mouth and inventory before running ahead. After all, Asmodeus wouldn''t wait for him to finish eating before continuing the chase.


    "What has be of you?"


    Lucifer''s feet froze as soon as he heard that voice. It wasn''t Asmodeus''s voice, but someone far worse than him. The voice was enough to make him forget about Asmodeus, and he immediately went to his knees.


    "...my apologies for such... delinquency," Lucifer mumbled, not daring to look up. "Goddess Morrigan."


    The crow perched in the tree above tilted its head. Its golden eyes pierced through the darkness and Lucifer''s soul as it stared down at him. wee-to-MVLeMpYr


    Lucifer didn''t dare look up, but he knew it was a projection of the goddess, not the goddess. After all, the gods couldn''t descend into the mortal world themselves.


    Instead, they forced their consciousness onto unsuspecting beings, such as animals. However, no mortal form could host such power for long and will inevitably die. That''s why Lucifer knew Morrigan wasn''t there to waste time.


    "No need to be so formal with me," Morrigan replied, sitting on Lucifer''s shoulder. "After all... you are, but a nephew to me."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Lucifer could only smile, even though he was cursing his luck. Morrigan called him her nephew, but he was nothing more than a toy to her. A toy who gave him a way back to divinity and now he was cowering away.


    "I-I did not expect your presence here," Lucifer stammered. "If I had known, I¡ª"


    The crow cawed, cutting him off.


    "You have failed your task," Morrigan spoke. "You couldn''t stop a mortal, and you expect the gods to bestow divinity on you?"


    "I can make it right," Lucifer immediately replied. "The next trial will be hisst. I will not fail again."


    Morrigan didn''t respond right away. Instead, her vessel jumped back on the tree.


    "You had better not," Morrigan warned, as the crow''s body trembled. "Or there will be consequences far worse than the life you''re living now."


    Before Lucifer could reply, the golden glow in the crow''s eyes faded. Its body fell to the ground, turning into a pile of dust as it did. Watching the crow die, Lucifer let out a breath he didn''t realize he had been holding.


    "...damn you, YuWon!"

 Chapter 140: The Great Forest of Lykaion (1)

    "On it!" several voices echoed.


    Even after fighting and killing the monster horde, their work wasn''t over. So far they had been living on the world fruit. But with so many beast corpses lying around, they could finally eat something different.


    Yeji coordinated people to take the corpses away, while Gina and some select individuals were busy hacking the beasts into smaller pieces. Anna, using her knowledge, carefully cleaned the corpses and sorted them into edible or poisonous stuff.


    As usual, Lysandra didn''t participate in such tasks. Instead, she chose to cook along with Min-Ji.


    Coordination between the teams was of utmost importance. If they wasted even a second, the diligently prepared food might rot. Even those eating had to do it quickly and get to work so others could have their turn.


    While they were busy, the bubbly angel appeared before them again. But this time, she had a foolish grin stered on her face.


    "Sorry for the dy!" she announced, knocking her head as she giggled. "Since you cleared the trial, the path within the world tree will be opened!"


    Before anyone could say anything, the angel snapped her fingers, and a glowing gate appeared at the base of the World Tree.


    "There you go! Your pathway to doom¡ªI mean, redemption!" the angel yfully winked at them. "I would love to guide you in there, but as you know, I got a busy job so... hehe. Bye for now!"


    With that, she vanished as quickly as she had appeared. YuWon didn''t know how to say it, but he liked their previous angel more.


    At least she was patient enough to exin things to them instead of throwing a bunch of information their way and leaving them to figure it out themselves.


    However, Yeji was quick to take notice of a little detail.


    "She didn''t say it was a trial," she mumbled, looking at YuWon.


    "I was thinking the same thing..." YuWon replied, scratching his chin.


    Whenever they received a trial, they also received a quest. But this time, it didn''t happen. Which meant it wasn''t necessary to enter and climb the tree. But as YuWon thought, not everyone needed to climb.


    Since they had established a stronghold at the roots, there were quite a few of them who wanted nothing to do with the trials anymore. They had grown ustomed to normalcy and didn''t want to let go.


    Then there were people like him who didn''t want to miss out. Besides, he needed to be prepared to fight Lucifer, and even Asmodeus. He couldn''t do that while sitting at the roots.


    Hence, climbing the tree was the only choice he had.


    "Let''s eat first," Anna said, hinting at something.


    "Alright," YuWon nodded and followed Anna.


    ***


    "...you''ve never been inside the tree?" YuWon asked, baffled.


    "Nope," Anna shrugged. "Since we only killed one disaster before, we didn''t get the opportunity to enter the thing."


    "That''s... troublesome."


    YuWon had hoped Anna could tell him something about the tree, like where to find a relic or something. But now, that will not happen anymore.


    "Meh, it''s fine," YuWon shrugged after thinking about it. "I can always respawn¡ª"


    "Yes, and doom this timeline in doing so." Anna shook her head.


    "Well, I''ve already messed up so many timelines. Messing up another won''t weigh on my conscience."


    Anna couldn''t help but sigh. It''s true. After all, once he died, he would have nothing to do with that timeline. The rest would suffer, but he would thrive in an identical alternate reality. Even she would be in that reality, so... it''ll all be fine.


    "You do you..." Anna shrugged, walking off. "But try not to make a habit out of it."


    ***


    The next day...


    Some awakeners decided to explore the tree. The rest would stay behind and do Asmodeus''s job: protect the tree and guide any awakener that arrives there.


    "Are you... sure about this?" YuWon asked Lysandra as she hugged him.


    "Yes..." she replied.


    In Asmodeus''s absence, they needed someone strong to stay behind. Since Lysandra already had a deep connection with the world tree, she volunteered for the role.


    YuWon nodded slowly, knowing she was right. But it didn''t make saying goodbye any easier.


    As Lysandra was about to turn, YuWon leaned down and kissed her. She was taken aback for a moment before kissing him back as her hands rested on his face.


    "You just had to make things difficult, didn''t you?" she said, smiling.


    "You expected me to leave without having a taste?" he teased back.


    With that, he gave her onest look before joining the others. As YuWon approached them, Anna and Gina grabbed his hands to reassure him. Even Yeji joined in, hugging him.


    "Alright, enough emotions for now," YuWon said, freeing himself from their loving clutches. "Let''s go."


    ***


    [You''re entering the Great Forest of Lykaion.]


    The message shed before their eyes as soon as they left the roots. Suddenly, they were in a vast forest, unlike anything they had ever seen. It was like they were in a new world.


    They were surrounded by trees that disappeared into the sky. The flowers around the bushes were as big as themselves. Everyone was mesmerized by the sight before them.


    So much so that they didn''t notice something approaching them. The sudden rustling of leaves made them turn. Just then, a creature jumped out of its hiding ce.


    "What the hell is this?" Yeji mumbled, looking at the creature.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    It stood on two legs and had the body of an ape. But it wore an armor that looked like an exoskeleton. Its eyes glowed even in the light as it dragged its sharp ws behind. wee-to-NovelBin


    Suddenly, the beast lunged at them. YuWon pushed everyone aside and swung his fist, punching the creature in the chest. The impact was like a thunderp.


    The creature let out a pained screech as the impact shattered its exoskeleton and sent it packing. It crashed into a nearby tree and got shattered into many pieces upon impact.


    "...that was weird."

 Chapter 141: The Great Forest of Lykaion (2)

    [Thermo-sense] revealed the position of multiple creatures around them. But strangely, none of them were heading towards them. They were rushing past them, barely even noticing them.


    "They''re ignoring us?" Gina asked, swiping away at one creature.


    The creature lost its finger but didn''t stop to fight and kept running.


    "No. They''re not ignoring us... they''re running from something," Yejimented.


    Suddenly, a howl echoed through the forest, and the creatures began running even frantically. Then came the heavy footsteps, shaking the ground as the thing got closer.


    Even the trees didn''t have a chance against the one as it pushed through them and found itself before the humans. It was a werewolf, thrice as big as them. That''s what the creatures were running from.


    At first, the creature didn''t care about them. But then it skidded to a halt. The running beasts no longer seemed interesting as it stared at the humans.


    "Uh, guys?" Yuna muttered, slowly backing up. "I think... that thing isn''t interested in chasing the beasts anymore."


    "Don''t move..." Anna mumbled. "It''s curious. As long as we don''t give it a reason¡ª"


    Anna tried to warn everyone. But it was toote. An awakener was already on the run.


    "For fuck''s sake!" Anna cursed loudly.


    Upon noticing the running man, the werewolf let out a howl and charged at them. YuWon didn''t hold back either. He drew the noir de and stabbed the werewolf in the chest. However, his action only enraged the creature.


    It swung its ws at YuWon. Even though the attack didn''t connect, YuWon still got injured as blood dripped down his neck. Even so, YuWon didn''t flinch and kept attacking. Hydra''s heart could deal with such superficial wounds.


    Unfortunately, YuWon wasn''t the only one with regeneration. Each time his de cut through the werewolf, the beast healed instantly. Behind him, the others tried to assist.


    Anna stabbed the werewolf''s feet while Gina did a number on its arms. But nothing seemed to work. The werewolf shrugged off their attacks and kept his attention on YuWon as if it recognized him as the only threat.


    "This is going nowhere."


    YuWon was about to call for a retreat when something jumped between him and the werewolf. When YuWon saw it, he thought his eyes were ying tricks on him.


    "Mickey!?" YuWon eximed.


    The one-armed skeleton nced at him before turning towards the werewolf, raising a bell in its direction.


    "Stand back," a feminine voice called out.


    YuWon turned to see Soo-Ah standing beside Mickey. But something was different. Much like Mickey, she too was missing an arm and the way she looked at him wasn''t one of a friend, but cold like an enemy''s.


    "Soo-Ah?" YuWon called out.


    He remembered her and Min-Joon turning into blood-thirsty creatures in the dungeon. But more importantly, he remembered killing them. Yet she was standing before him like none of that ever happened.


    "Timelines..." YuWon mumbled, answering his question.


    But even then he wasn''t sure which Soo-Ah was he facing now. Was it the one he had saved from the hobgoblin, or someone else? From the looks she was giving him, it was probably thetter.


    I wonder what I did to her in her timeline. Fucking hell, all this is bullshit!


    In his moment of distraction, the werewolf lunged at him. But before it couldnd a blow, Soo-Ah struck the bell. A loud screeching noise came from the bell, forcing everyone to their knee.


    Even the werewolf stumbled and whimpered in pain, covering its ears. In an instant, all urges of hunting vanished from its mind and it fled into the woods.


    As the werewolf ran with its tail tucked between its legs, YuWon turned to thank Soo-Ah. But before he could say anything else, Soo-Ah backhanded him across the face.


    "Don''t you dare..." she hissed.


    Everyone stepped towards her. But the next moment, countless bony hands emerged from the ground, grabbing their legs. They were all the skeletons under Soo-Ah''s control.


    But that wasn''t all. Countless more figures appeared from the trees and bushes. They were centaurs, dozens of them with their bows and arrows pointed at the humans.


    "What''s the meaning of this?" Yeji asked, clenching her fists.


    But like everyone else, she was ignored as Soo-Ah lifted YuWon''s face by his chin.


    "I''ve been waiting for this moment for so long," she smirked. "Waiting for your arrival."


    "What the hell happened to you?" YuWon asked, easily pulling out of her grip.


    But before he could say anything else, a sharp pain hit him in the back of his head. His vision blurred, and the world spun around him before he copsed.


    "Min-Joon!?" Yeji gasped.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Yeji couldn''t believe her eyes. Min-Joon hit him in the back of the head. But just like Soo-Ah, something was different about him.


    His arms were covered in scars, and an eyepatch covered his right eye. But more importantly, he was wielding the same de as Gina... the crimson de.


    "We got another one," Min-Joonughed, nudging YuWon''s unconscious body with his foot. "I told you this is the better way to hunt his bastard."


    Soo-Ah hummed in agreement, before walking towards Yeji. Without warning, she pulled Yeji into a hug as if she were meeting a long-lost friend.


    "Don''t worry," Soo-Ah whispered. "That bastard won''t harm you anymore. Everything''s going to be fine now... like it was supposed to be."


    Yeji, however, didn''t know what she was talking about. The only thing she felt was disgusted and pushed Soo-Ah back.


    "Don''t touch me," Yeji hissed, ring at her.


    The smile on Min-Joon''s face faded. No matter how important Yeji was to Soo-Ah, he wouldn''t tolerate any disrespect towards her.


    "You better watch your mouth, Yeji, before I¡ª"


    "Stop!" Soo-ah stopped him. "It''s not her fault. She doesn''t remember."


    "What are you¡ª?"


    "All in good time, Yeji." Soo-Ah smiled, but there was no warmth in it.


    With that, she nodded towards the centaurs. The beast people moved quickly, binding everyone and dragging them deeper into the forest.

 Chapter 142: The Kings Curse

    What a drag... How long do I have to stay like this?


    YuWon kept ying dead as the centaurs dragged him along the forest. He had been awake all this time. After all, he barely even registered Min-Joon''s strike to the back of his head.


    Thanks to the hearts of the disasters inside him, a blow like that was nothing more than a mild annoyance, like a mosquito bite. But YuWon yed along and let Soo-Ah and Min-Joon believe he was knocked out.


    Why you ask? Because it was the perfect way to get answers without raising suspicion. After all, if he was knocked out cold, then the rest of them would drop their guard.


    But that doesn''t make this any better.


    From YuWon''s position, he could hear the surrounding conversations. It wasn''t long before they began talking in their strange, horse-like voices.


    "This is madness," a centaur groaned. "We''ve dragged humans into our cursednd again."


    "We have no choice," another centaur replied. "A human needs to perform the ritual for the curse to be lifted."


    YuWon listened carefully, wondering what curse and ritual they were talking about.


    "What about those two who appeared before?" the first centaur asked, keeping his voice low. "How did they even get here? We''ve been trapped in this forest with no way out, yet they appeared out of nowhere."


    "You ask too many questions," the second centaur replied, getting frustrated. "if you have questions, go ask the elders about it. As if dragging humans isn''t demeaning enough, I have to do it along with you!"


    "..."


    After the exchange, the two got quiet. YuWon was about to get up and make them talk himself when the first guy opened his mouth again.


    "The werewolves are getting stronger. Every day, they kidnap more of our people and turn them into those monsters. That''s why the elders are desperate for any help. Even from the humans."


    "...I hope they seed, but... I don''t have any hope in humans. No one of us could break the King''s curse. Then how will they do it?"


    "We''ll find outter, won''t we? Now shut up before you get both of us sacrificed!"


    At that, YuWon''s ears perked up even more. The King''s curse, werewolves, and the forest. Something about everything irked him. Despite the warning, the centaurs kept chatting with each other.


    From their chat, YuWon could piece most of the information together.


    Long ago, the centaurs ruled over the forest of Lykaion. They were its protectors and, as usual, it was a kingdom everyone wanted to live in until the ipetent king took the throne.


    The centaurs, known to be one with nature, often offered offerings and rituals to the gods whom their forefathers had seen. But when the ipetent king took the throne, he abolished all suchws. .


    Not only that, he dered he was their only god, as such they would give the offerings to him. People protested, but the king''s men quickly dealt with them. This left the centaurs no choice but to follow such rules.


    However, one day a human traveler arrived there. He imed to be an emissary of the gods who had returned to survey Lykaion as promised by their forefathers.


    The emissary came with his wife and two young children. They quickly took a liking to Lykaion and spent the day sightseeing. Meanwhile, the ministers urged the king to give the emissary the proper respect he deserved.


    They expected the foolish king to reject them. Hence, the ministers were ready to kill the king if necessary, as they knew the emissary wasn''t someone to be trifled with.


    But the king agreed and even organized a banquet in the emissary''s honor. That''s when disaster struck.


    Unbeknownst to everyone, the king took a liking to the emissary''s wife and kidnapped her. Not only that, he killed their children, wanting the woman to have a fresh start as his wife.


    All this happened without the knowledge of the ministers. But the worst was yet toe.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The emissary wanted to feast on some meat. But as the protector of Lykaion, the centaurs couldn''t hunt other animals, as it would doom their souls to hell.


    Surprisingly, the king bought some flesh. When asked about it, he mentioned forcing some prisoners to do it. The ministers were hesitant, but since they couldn''t upset the emissary, they agreed to serve the meat.


    Everyone had a good time. But then the emissary asked them about his wife and children. The ministers were in the dark and didn''t know about it either.


    Just then, the kingughed and his men brought the emissary''s wife, who was bound in chains. Enraged, the emissary asked the king what he was doing. But the next moment, he began coughing blood.


    Smug by his victory, the kingughed and told him everything. He told him how he had killed his children and served them as the food he praised so much.


    The emissary''s eyes widened in disbelief as he kept coughing blood. The king enjoyed watching the emissary squirm. Not only did he feed the emissary his children, but he had also poisoned his food. Soon, the emissary would die and his wife would be the king''s concubine.


    That''s how things unfolded. The king thought he proved his point that he was their only god. Until... a literal god arrived at their doorstep, enraged by the king''s action.


    But he didn''t kill them. Instead, the god wanted to make them suffer and cursed them.


    As the centaurs talked, YuWon could hear the regret in their voice, but it didn''t change the facts. The king''s greed and ipetency had brought the curse upon themselves.


    "The king was the first to fall," the centaur continued. "He transformed into the first werewolf. Now he spreads the curse by kidnapping more of us and turning them into his followers."


    "That''s why we need the ritual," another centaur sighed. "It''s the only way to lift the curse. But only humans can perform it."


    What the hell...


    Even though YuWon stayed still, he felt baffled by the story. These fuckers screwed over some god and now wanted a way out. Also, for some reason, Yeji was crucial to that ritual.


    But that didn''t exin how Soo-Ah and Min-Joon got there and how they knew about the ritual. Unfortunately, YuWon got no more answers.


    The group walked in silence for a while after that. Finally, after what felt like hours of being dragged through the forest, they arrived at their destination.


    YuWon slightly opened his eyes to look around, without making it obvious that he was awake. They had reached what appeared to be a vige.


    The buildings were simple butrge, built to amodate their half-human, half-horse bodies. But the ce had no sign of the glorious kingdom the centaurs talked about.


    "We''re here," a centaur announced.


    YuWon slowly shifted his body, pretending to stir as if he were just beginning to wake up. He couldn''t let them know he had been listening this whole time.


    "Looks like this one is waking up," the centaurs said, eyeing YuWon cautiously.


    YuWon groaned, blinking his eyes open as if in confusion. "W-Where¡­ am I?"


    The centaur holding the rope around his wrists quickly smacked him on the head. "You speak when you''re spoken to, human!"


    YuWon stumbled slightly from the blow, ying the part of a disoriented fool. But as he did, he looked around the vige. There were dozens of centaurs standing before an altar.


    Soo-Ah stood off to the side, her arms crossed, watching him closely. Min-Joon kept talking to Soo-Ah, but she didn''t pay any attention to him.

 Chapter 143: Lycaon

    The bones belonged to centaurs. Those few that were too weak to be converted into werewolves or too wild to be controlled. Their remains were a constant reminder of the curse that haunted both the centaurs and their former king, Lycaon.


    "Fire... add more wood to the fire!" Lycaon roared. "This isn''t tender yet!"


    The servants around quickly rushed to obey the man sitting on a poorly built throne. It was Lycaon, the king of the centaurs. But now, he was nothing more than a monstrous creature.


    All the signs of nobility were long gone from him. What remained was an insatiable hunger that drove him to madness.


    His body was enormous, covered in thick, matted white fur. He couldn''t take his eyes off the horse''s leg, eating it up.


    The leg had once belonged to a centaur, one of his kind. But that didn''t matter to Lycaon anymore. The curse forced him to hunt and devour his kin. Unlike the ones he converted, other creatures couldn''t satiate Lycaon''s hunger. He needed to consume centaurs.


    That was the curse he received for tricking the emissary into cannibalizing his children. Now, he must do the same, only there was no end to his misery.


    As he gnawed on the leg, two of his minions entered the cave, dragging a bruised and battered centaur behind them. They had done a number on the centaur. Both of his front legs were broken, and scars covered what remained of his body.


    The werewolves shoved the centaur to the ground before their king, while standing guard as they awaited Lycaon''smand.


    "Ho... this one looks healthier than thest," Lycaon licked his lips. "But who is this?"


    Lycaon threw away the half-eaten leg and stood up from his throne. Bones cracked under his feet as he walked, his tall figure casting a long shadow over the centaur.


    The centaur struggled to rise but winced in pain, unable to move because of its broken legs. He red at Lycaon, but his resolve wavered as the king drew closer. He was just that intimidating.


    "Tell me," Lycaon continued. "Where are the rest of your kind hiding?"


    The centaur said nothing, clenching his jaw. Watching the centaur hold back, Lycaon smiled. It was always entertaining to break someone''s spirit. It might be his third favorite activity after eating and mating with female centaurs.


    He stepped forward and stomped on the centaur''s broken leg. The crack of bone echoed through the cave, followed by a sharp cry of pain as the centaur writhed beneath the king''s foot.


    content hosted on m _vlempyr


    "I won''t ask again," Lycaon said, pressing down harder. "Where are they hiding?"


    The centaur bit his lip, trying to stifle his cries. He knew he was in a terrible position. Lycaon and his minions had tried countless times to capture the centaurs, but had never seeded.


    After all, the centaurs were always on the move, making it difficult for the werewolves to track them down. That''s why the werewolves captured him alive.


    The centaur knew if he spoke, not only would he doom his kind, but also any hope for their civilization''s revival. But if he didn''t, Lycaon would torture him until he either died or got turned into one of them. Either way, Lycaon would seed in his ns.


    The werewolves had gotten lucky this time when they captured him. He was one of the generals who knew where the centaurs were nning to set up their next base.


    If they turned him into a werewolf, Lycaon wouldn''t just find out the base''s location, but also other important details that could lead to the centaurs'' downfall.


    I can''t let that happen... no matter what.


    While the centaur was lost in thought, Lycaon chuckled.


    "You''re strong, I''ll give you that," he said. "But even the strongest break, eventually."


    With that, Lycaon grabbed the centaur''s hand and, one by one, snapped his fingers. Each crack sent a fresh wave of agony through the centaur''s body, and he howled in pain but didn''t say a word.


    "I''ll ask again," Lycaon growled, leaning closer. "What are the centaurs nning? And where are they hiding?"


    The centaur struggled to speak. He wrestled with his thoughts. Either he could tell Lycaon something and hope that would be enough. Or he could tell him nothing and turn.


    "There''s¡­ a ritual," the centaur finally admitted. "They believe¡­ it can lift the curse."


    "A ritual, you say? What exactly is this ritual?"


    The centaur hesitated. He knew he couldn''t reveal too much. If Lycaon learned the truth, he could destroy any chance the centaurs had of freeing themselves from the curse. But he couldn''t endure much more of this torture.


    "It¡­ requires humans," the centaur stammered. "Humans¡­ must perform the trial. That''s all I know."


    "Humans? Interesting. I haven''t eaten those before." Lycaon smacked his lips. "But that doesn''t answer my most important question¡ªwhere are they hiding?"


    The centaur''s heart pounded in his chest. His gamble didn''t pay off, but he couldn''t reveal the vige''s location. His family was there, along with the rest of his people. If Lycaon found them, it would be a massacre.


    I need to buy some time...


    "I¡­ I''ll take you there," the centaur said.


    He hoped Lycaon would take the bait. If they take the long route, the elders would notice the centaur''s absence and move somewhere else. As long as that happened, nothing Lycaon did would matter.


    "Do you think I''m that much of a fool?"


    Lycaon''s words crushed any hope the centaur had. Even so, he frantically shook his head, trying to fool him.


    "N-No, why would I think of something absurd? You can kill me on a whim. I wouldn''t dare lie to you."


    "I wasn''t born yesterday, fool!" Lycaon backhanded the centaur. "You want to buy enough time for them to move. I can practically hear your thoughts!"


    The centaur''s eyes widened in panic. But he kept lying, as it was his only lifeline.


    "No! I''m not lying! I''ll take you to them, I swear!"


    But Lycaon didn''t believe him. He grabbed the centaur''s throat and lifted him into the air. The centaur struggled, but there wasn''t much to be done.


    "I''ve grown tired of your lies," Lycaon growled. "If you won''t lead me to them willingly, then I''ll make sure you have no choice."


    The werewolf king''s ws dug into the centaur''s neck, drawing blood. As the centaur gasped for air, Lycaon bit into his neck.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The centaur''s body convulsed as the curse took hold. His skin rippled and tore as fur sprouted from his flesh. His eyes rolled back in his head as his body changed.


    "No¡­ no¡­ please¡­" the centaur whimpered in vain.


    His bones cracked and shifted as his body contorted, reshaping itself into the form of a werewolf. His hind legs disappeared, turning into arge humanoid shame.


    Lycaon grinned as he watched the centaur transform into a hulking werewolf. Once the transformation was done, Lycaon put a metal leash on the werewolf''s neck.


    "Now," he said, yanking the leash hard. "Take me to the centaurs. It''s about time they submitted to their king."

 Chapter 144: Sekhmet (1)

    YuWon found their reasoning for hating humans quite hrious. But he wasn''t a great example either. After all, he could feel his humanity slipping away with each trial. But for now, his focus was on the centaurs and their ritual.


    "Lilith, are you here?" he whispered.


    "Invisible like you ordered, master."


    "Do you know anything about what this ritual might be?"


    "...I''m sorry, master."


    YuWon clicked his tongue. But it wasn''t surprising. After all, she was reborn as someone new. The knowledge and abilities she had as an angel were long gone.


    More importantly, he wondered what happened to Soo-Ah and Min-Joon for them to act so hostile. They went as far as locking him up in a separate cage from the others.


    They are wary of me. That''s good.


    Fortunately, they didn''t seem to know about Lilith. Which wasn''t all that surprising, considering she was the reward for killing the mole. She would work to his advantageter.


    "When the time is right, unlock all cages," YuWon instructed Lilith.


    "As you wish!"


    With that, she flew away, positioning herself between the cages. As for him, he had already tested the strength of the cages. They were sturdy, but not enough to hold him back.


    As painful as it is to absorb the Disaster Hearts, they are worth it.


    YuWon thought as his eyes drifted to Yeji. As they tied her unconscious self to the altar, he wondered what the ritual would aplish. Despite the ims from the centaurs, he didn''t think a human could dispel their curse.


    From how Soo-Ah and Min-Joon had been acting, it wasn''t far-fetched to think they had ulterior motives. YuWon hoped it was something that could help Yeji control over her rabid self.


    "Let''s begin," Soo-Ah informed the elderly centaur. "We need to get this over with before dawn."


    "Very well..." the elder nodded.


    Upon his signal, countless young centaurs appeared around the altar. They were all wearing clothes made of leaves and dead rodents.


    For the species known for protecting the forest, it didn''t seem the centaurs cared much about its residents. Otherwise, they wouldn''t have gone against their creed and killed other beasts.


    They are desperate, that''s for sure.


    The children kneeled before the altar, their heads bowed as if praying. YuWon couldn''t make out from his cage, but it felt ceremonial, like they were begging for redemption.


    Behind the young centaurs stood the older ones. They weren''t wearing clothes like the rest, but were wearing masks, holding a de in their hands.


    YuWon felt a deep unease rising in his chest. If they dared go anywhere close to Yeji with those daggers, he would kill them all with no hesitation.


    The young centaurs finished their prayer. Then, without warning, the older centaurs grabbed their heads and sliced their necks with the des.


    The young centaurs gasped as they fell to the ground. Their bodies crumpled like rag dolls.


    "What the hell...?" YuWon mumbled.


    It wasn''t because the centaurs had killed their kin. But because of their blood. It flowed unnaturally, creeping towards the altar like something was pulling them.


    The blood snaked through the designs carved into the ancient stone, climbing higher and higher until it reached the top. The altar seemed to glow faintly as the blood reached the top.


    Soo-Ah stood before the altar, her eyes wide with a crazed smile. She couldn''t take her eyes off the altar, looking like a total fanatic.


    Yeji was tied down at the top of the altar. She had been unconscious moments before, but as the blood touched her, her eyes shot open, and she began to convulse violently.


    Her body arched as if she was about to float, only to be held back by the restraints.


    "Alright, that''s it!" YuWon eximed.


    He knew he couldn''t wait any longer. Whatever was happening, it was too dangerous to let it continue.


    He clenched his fists and shattered the bars of his cage with a powerful punch. He jumped out, charging towards the altar.


    At the same time, Lilith forced open the remaining cages, releasing the other prisoners.


    Chaos erupted as everyone rushed to fight the centaurs. But YuWon kept his eyes on the altar. He was almost there, just a few more steps. Unfortunately, he never got close to the altar.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    A sudden cackling sound stopped him in his tracks. A momentter, a bolt of lightning struck the top of the altar, causing an explosion.


    The force of the st sent YuWon flying backward. Dust and debris covered the altar and everything in sight. YuWon groaned, shaking his head as he struggled to get back to his feet.


    As the dust settled, YuWon stared at the smoking remains of the altar. Where Yeji had been moments ago, there was nothing but a charred b of stone and shattered restraints.


    "Yeji..." YuWon mumbled, walking towards the altar.


    However, Min-Joon stopped him.


    "Get back bastard," he warned, pointing the de towards YuWon. "You''ll nevery your hands on our goddess--!"


    "Get lost."


    YuWon raised his de, aiming for his neck. But then he heard augh and turned around to see werewolves... hundreds of them. They had already surrounded the vige.


    One of them, twice asrge as the others and white-furred, walked in front. YuWon assumed he was their leader. However, the beast wasn''t looking at them, but the dead centaurs.


    "It seems..." Lycaon smirked. "You''ve prepared a feast for your king."


    Lycaon wasn''t here to negotiate or talk. He was there for blood. But Fortunately, it wasn''t human blood.


    "Kill them all!"


    Lycaon''s signal was holding the hungry werewolves back. Now, with his permission, they charged into the crowd. The centaurs scrambled to defend themselves, but they were no match for the overwhelming force of the werewolves.


    "Everyone, get back!" Yuna yelled.


    Since the werewolves weren''t attacking them, it was the right time to make their escape. YuWon and Min-Joon turned back to each other, fidgeting with their weapons.


    "Truce!"


    They yelled simultaneously.

 Chapter 145: Sekhmet (2)

    Lycaon knew the humans were the key to his defeat. As such, none of them were escaping death, just like the centaurs. Their intent was clear¡ªkill everyone in sight.


    As they tried to run, Lycaon set his eyes on YuWon. Something about him felt different. He was stronger than the rest. While the werewolves struck everything, Lycaon saw the human''s potential.


    If I convert him... my strength will be unparalleled. Even the gods won''t dare interfere with the forest anymore.


    With that thought, Lycaon unleashed histent powers. As he roared, golden mes surrounded him. It wasn''t fire in the true sense, but his strength condensed as an aura to protect him.


    In a sh, Lycaon was before YuWon and swung his ws at him. YuWon ducked and punched him in the chest. His strength alone should have been enough to throw the werewolf away.


    But nothing happened.


    YuWon stared at the werewolf in disbelief. It was as if his fist had hit an immovable wall. Meanwhile, Lycaon looked down at YuWon and smiled.


    "You''re strong," Lycaonughed, backhanding YuWon into the nearby tree. "But not strong enough."


    The tree uprooted as YuWon collided with it. Through the trail of dust, he could still see Lycaon''s golden eyes staring at him. The dog had a tougher defense than even the Disaster Mole.


    +++


    The Overseer''s Pendant will reveal the target''s stats to the owner.


    Name: Lycaon


    ss: Werewolf


    Sub-ss: Ruler


    Allegiance: ??


    Level: ???


    Experience: ??


    Primary Attributes:


    ¡ª Health Points (HP): ????? / ?????


    ¡ª Mana Points (MP): 0 / 0


    Core Stats:


    ¡ª Strength: ???


    ¡ª Agility: ???


    ¡ª Intelligence: ???


    ¡ª Defense: ???


    ¡ª Endurance: ???


    ¡ª Wisdom: ???


    ¡ª Luck: 55


    Note: Due to the pendant''s limitations, the owner cannot see the target''splete profile.


    Due to the inefficiency of the pendant, a hint will be given to the awakener.


    The creature possesses [Invulnerability].


    +++


    YuWon couldn''t believe his eyes. It was the first time the pendant had failed so miserably to show someone''s stats to him.


    No wonder my attack didn''t work...


    <Wisdom> and <Defense> both were filled with question marks. It was worrying because these two stats showed someone''s resilience.


    YuWon too had his <Defense> in three digits. But the fact he still couldn''t see Lycaon''s stats meant they were far above his pay grade. And that was the least of his worries.


    What''s this about [Invulnerability]?


    As if on cue, the system disyed the skill''s information to him. Essentially, it was a skill that nullified the damage on Lycaon to a certain degree.


    In other words, if he didn''t hit the werewolf hard enough, it wouldn''t even lose 1 HP. For example, if Lycaon''s [Invulnerability] had a limit of 100 HP, any attack weaker than 100 HP wouldn''t do any damage.


    So, if YuWon wanted to hurt Lycaon, he''d need to deal at least 101 HP of damage. But even then, only 1 HP damage would hurt the Lycaon, the other 100 HP would get nullified.


    Moreover, the 1 HP of damage would be further reduced by Lycaon''s <Wisdom> and <Defense> stats, making it even harder to hurt him. Not to mention the werewolf''s innate regeneration ability.


    All thingsbined, Lycaon was nearly unkible.


    Everyone here is fucked!


    At first, YuWon wondered why they had to kill two disasters to enter the world tree. Now he knew why. The creatures inside the world tree were on a different level. But offense was the only way to win a fight.


    "Tired already?" Lycaonughed, slowly walking towards YuWon. "Entertain me more, human."


    "Oh, I''ll entertain you!" Soo-Ah''s voice echoed as hundreds of skeletons rushed towards Lycaon.


    Skeletons of humans, goblins, and even centaurs rushed towards Lycaon. But he didn''t bat an eye. With a casual swing, he tore through one of the biggest skeletons. The other didn''t fare well either.


    The usual number advantage Soo-Ah might have meant nothing to Lycaon. No matter how many of them attacked him, no harm woulde to him. [Invulnerability] was just that broken.


    "Why are you doing this?" YuWon red at Soo-Ah.


    "Don''t be mistaken," she replied, nodding at Lycaon. "I was nning to feed you to the goddess. But with him here, you''re not worthy of bing one with the goddess."


    "...it was never about the curse, was it?" YuWon scoffed. "You just wanted your goddess, whoever the fuck she is¡ª"


    "Careful how you talk about her, backstabber," Soo-Ah snarled, "or I will rip your tongue."


    "Her? She''s my ve. Just like you''ll be once I''m done dealing with this mess."


    Soo-Ah couldn''t help butugh at YuWon''s delusion. He thought just because he had control over Yeji, he would also control the goddess in her body.


    If he had been that confident in controlling the goddess, he wouldn''t have killed Yeji in their timeline. That alone was enough for Soo-Ah to know she made the right choice bying there.


    "We''ll see who deals with whom," Soo-Ah mumbled, shaking her head. "For starters, tell me how to kill that thing."


    "Like hell do I know."


    Soo-Ah looked at him strangely. The YuWon she knew always had a n. But this YuWon seemed utterly foolish.


    "You didn''t put any points to increase your intelligence, did you?" Soo-Ah sighed.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "What?"


    "That pendant you have can show you more than just someone''s stats. It can reveal their abilities and weaknesses, but only if you put enough points into increasing your intelligence¡ªsomething you didn''t do."


    "..."


    YuWon didn''t know if he should believe Soo-Ah''s words. They made sense, but if that was the case, then why didn''t Anna tell him about it? Even in different timelines, he should have simr gear on him.


    "There''s no time to do that," YuWon replied. Besides, I don''t trust you.


    YuWon kept thetter part to himself. But he knew he had to do something about Lycaon''s abilities. He had a n, but for that, he would need someone''s help, and Soo-Ah definitely wasn''t on the list of helpers.

 Chapter 146: Sekhmet (3)

    But even that had its downside. Primarily, he would be out cold and defenseless. That''s why he needed to have someone trustworthy by his side to protect his body.


    Although Soo-Ah and Min-Joon had aligned themselves with him, it was a temporary alliance. The minute he deals with Lycaon, they will turn on him and, in that state, they will betray him.


    Unfortunately, YuWon didn''t get to think of a n as Lycaon raised its hand towards him. At first, YuWon was confused, wondering what was going on inside the werewolf''s head.


    But a momentter, the ming aura around Lycaon disappeared. No, it got concentrated in his palm. The beam of light shot towards YuWon, who tried to dodge, but the beam kept following him.


    Inevitably, he was hit by it. But strangely, he couldn''t feel any pain. Yet, Lycaon was smiling as if he had won the fight.


    "No more running," he smirked, gesturing for YuWon toe at him.


    "As if¡ªwhat the hell?"


    YuWon was startled as he stepped toward Lycaon, but he wasn''t moving because he wanted to. Lycaon''s aura around him was controlling his actions.


    For a moment, YuWon was in awe of Lycaon''s ability. To control others through his aura was something YuWon wouldn''t even dream of doing. It showed how far ahead Lycaon waspared to him.


    But the realization only widened the gap between him and the werewolf. Their abilities were wide apart and YuWon didn''t think he could defeat him.


    Thankfully, he solved a problem for me.


    ***


    Humans were busy fighting a battle on two fronts. They thought since the werewolves were attacking the centaurs, they would focus on the wolves. But that wasn''t the case.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Instead, the centaurs doubled down and continued attacking the awakeners. They were confused, but the centaurs, who knew the true strength of the awakeners, didn''t even bother fighting them.


    Hunting humans was easier and more rewarding. After all, if they killed humans, their blood and the excitement of eating something different would distract the werewolves.


    The centaurs were nning to use their distraction to run away. But they were shocked by how tough the awakeners were. It wasn''t easy to take them down. However, a bigger surprise was still waiting for them.


    As the three groups were fighting, a massive creature flew past them. But only the werewolves recognized who it was.


    "Lycaon!" one werewolf called out.


    The awakeners were unaware of Lycaon''s strength, but the werewolves and centaurs knew it very well. Shocked, they turned around to see who could manhandle Lycaon like that... only to see a figure with blood swirling around her.


    "Yeji!?" Anna gasped in shock.


    ***


    A few moments ago...


    YuWon''s n was straight. He would let Lycaon use his aura to pull him closer. Once he was close enough, he would use [Soul Grapple] on him. Since [Soul Grapple] had a hundred percent sess rate.


    Once inside Lycaon, YuWon could force the beast to hurt himself and hope it''d work. Unfortunately, he never put his n into action.


    As YuWon pretended to fight against Lycaon''s control, the werewolf felt something was off. His [Beast Sense] screamed that something wasn''t right. Lycaon had learned long ago never to ignore it.


    Suddenly, his tail shot out and wrapped around YuWon''s neck. YuWon gasped, realizing Lycaon had sensed something. He tried to move his hand toward the tail and use [Soul Grapple], but Lycaon was a step ahead.


    He controlled his aura, forcing YuWon''s hand to his side. YuWon grunted as he fought against the crushing force in vain.


    "You''re a feisty one," Lycaon smiled. "It will be amusing to tame you."


    "Yeah? Try taming this!"


    YuWon activated [Tectonic m] and stomped the ground with all his strength. The earth beneath him cracked, sending shockwaves through the ground.


    The sudden tremor caught Lycaon off guard, breaking his concentration for a split second. That was all YuWon needed.


    As the tail around his neck loosened, YuWon lunged at Lycaon, ready to use [Soul Grapple]. But Lycaon was faster. He swung his arm as soon as he saw YuWon lunging.


    Once again, YuWon was backhanded, but this time, Lycaon grabbed his feet and mmed him to the ground. Blood trickled down his head. It would take a while for Hydra''s healing to kick in.


    But Lycaon wouldn''t give him a second of respite. Before YuWon knew it, Lycaon''s ws dug through his chest. Even then, he tried to stand back up, but Lycaon mmed his foot on his chest, breaking several ribs.


    Just like that, YuWon was pinned to the ground, unable to move. All he could see was the towering figure standing above him.


    "The fire in those eyes..." Lycaon snarled, leaning in. "I can''t wait to turn that defiance into loyalty. With you at my feet, no one would dare rise against me."


    Time for another respawn I guess...


    YuWon mumbled, thinking Lycaon''s bite would kill him. But that won''t be the case. If turned, YuWon would keep all his abilities and sses and won''t die. In other words, he would be doomed.


    Just when everything seemed lost, a hand grabbed Lycaon''s hair from behind and yanked him back. Lycaon could only yelp in surprise as he got flung away.


    From the blood loss, YuWon''s eyes were blurry, but through his hazy eyes, he saw someone standing over him. Long hair felt out of ce on her, probably because YuWon had always seen her with short hair.


    Yet, he couldn''t make out who the familiar figure was. Not until a gentle hand caressed his cheek. He immediately recognized the familiar smell. But couldn''t say anything as blood trickled from his head and chest.


    Yeji¡­?


    "Close your eyes and rest," Yeji smiled, guiding YuWon''s blood back into his body. "This time, I''ll protect you..."

 Chapter 147: Divine Incarnation

    It was a female... a human female. Lycaon couldn''t believe his eyes. A human could fling him into the distance? He shook his head. A human couldn''t overwhelm him.


    Still, he looked at her, not letting Yeji out of sight.


    Yeji ignored the chaos around her and kept walking towards Lycaon. Unlike the rest, there was no trace of fear on her face. Noticing her confidence, Lycaon couldn''t help but chuckle as he raised his hand toward her.


    No matter how powerful someone was. They were as good as dead if they couldn''t move.


    "Humans never learn," he taunted, letting his aura flow out.


    As it happened to YuWon, Lycaon''s aura moved around Yeji, wrapping around her. But as his aura reached her, it couldn''t get close to her. At first, Lycaon was confused until he noticed the blood swirling around her.


    The blood of the fallen centaurs had be one with Yeji, forming into armor around her. The blood armor protected her, and Lycaon''s aura couldn''t prate it.


    "Impressive¡­" Lycaon''s eyes narrowed.


    It wasn''t the first time someone had evaded his attack. But it had been a while since something like it happened.


    Meanwhile, the awakeners and centaurs stopped fighting, instead focusing on the battle between Yeji and Lycaon.


    Soo-Ah was smiling like she had won the lottery, unable to take her eyes off her goddess. Gina and Anna were shocked when they saw Yeji''s strength.


    It was like the time Yeji lost control of herself. When that happened, she gained immense strength but lost her rationality. But it didn''t happen this time. She didn''t lose her marbles, just gained strength.


    "What''s going on with her?" Gina asked, but no one had any answer.


    Even Anna didn''t have any clue about it. But then it hit her. The blood swirling around Yeji, following her every whim, could only mean one thing.


    "It''s not her!"


    ***


    Meanwhile, Lycaon lunged at Yeji. But she sidestepped effortlessly. As Lycaon moved past her, the blood around her shifted, forming sharp edges along her arms and legs. It was her turn to attack him.


    She swiped her bloody ws at him. But Lycaon didn''t care. Until he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He stumbled back, realizing that she had managed to cut him, even if just slightly.


    It was the first time someone had gotten past his [Invulnerability] and he was surprised. But he couldn''t wait for long. The human before him was dangerous, and taking her down was the only thing on his mind.


    He charged at her again, but Yeji was faster. She spun, shing him with her ws again. Lycaon dodged some of her attacks, but each time he took a hit, he felt something strange. His wounds¡­ they weren''t closing up.


    Lycaon''s eyes widened in shock. Not only did Yeji prate his defenses, but she was messing with his regeneration.


    "What¡­ what is this?" he muttered, ncing down at his chest.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The blood around Yeji hadtched onto his wounds, clinging to them like leeches, preventing them from healing. Yeji smirked and rejoiced at the fear in Lycaon''s eyes.


    "Maybe you''re not as invincible as you thought."


    Lycaon growled, but his confidence was waning. For the first time, he was facing someone who could injure him and prevent him from healing. He couldn''t understand how it was possible, but he couldn''t ignore the pain all over his body.


    Thanks to his regenerative abilities, Lycaon had forgotten the feeling of being hurt. Now he was having a difficult time adjusting to the pain. Hence, he couldn''t focus on the fight.


    Yeji took a step back. The next moment, the blood armor around her disappeared, turning into mist. But it reformed when she extended her arm and turned into spears floating around her.


    "You''re done."


    Lycaon''s eyes darted around, realizing he was in a troublesome situation. If just a little of her blood on his cuts could cause him this much pain, he didn''t even want to imagine what would happen if one of those spears pierced him.


    "You think you can defeat me? I''m the king here! You''re nothing but a mortal¡ª!"


    "Too loud," Yeji cut him off, unbothered by his threats.


    With a wave, Yeji thrust her hand forward, and the spears shot toward Lycaon in unison. He barely had time to raise his arms in defense as the first wave of spears struck him, piercing through his flesh and pinning him down.


    He roared in pain as each spear dug deeper into his body. He tried to move away, but the spears pinned him to the ground like an insect caught in a ck widow''s web.


    Lycaon thrashed around, trying to free himself, but it was all in vain. He continued to struggle, but the blood from the spear continued to spread within his body.


    Just like he used his aura to control others, Yeji was using his blood to control him. Slowly, he lost control of his hands, then his legs. Eventually, everything below Lycaon''s neck was in Yeji''s control.


    "No!" he roared. "This¡­ this is impossible!"


    Yeji stepped closer, smiling coldly as she looked down at him.


    "So you bleed like anyone else..." she scoffed. "I''m disappointed."


    Lycaon''s breathing got haggard. He desperately tried to fight off Yeji''s control, but every attempt threw him deeper into the pits of despair. He felt fear creeping into his mind. An emotion he hadn''t known for centuries.


    "Not yet!"


    Desperately, he reached out with his aura, trying to grasp at Yeji onest time. But he couldn''t even raise his arm, let alone concentrate his aura.


    "You will die here," Yeji said. "Not because you killed some beasts. I couldn''t care less about them. But because youid your hands on someone I love."


    With a wave, she made the blood within Lycaon go haywire. His blood chaotically flowed within him, reaching everywhere and nowhere at the same time.


    His heart couldn''t take the continuous reversal in flow and, slowly, he lost consciousness. All the while, Yeji stood over him, watching as the light in his eyes dimmed.


    Lycaon''s breaths came in ragged gasps. The blood continued to hold him down, draining his life force. He tried to summon thest of his strength and force his aura to stabilize the blood flow, but it was useless.


    As his vision blurred, Lycaon looked up at Yeji, not with anger or desperation, but with admiration and respect. Atst, he understood why the centaurs chose her for the ritual.


    "You¡­ you''re¡­ stronger than I thought¡­"


    Yeji didn''t respond. She just watched as thest traces of life faded from his eyes. Only when he died did she turn away.


    "...the king is dead."


    "Retreat!"


    Chaos erupted among the werewolves as they fled the scene. If someone could defeat Lycaon, then they could annihte everyone in sight. The centaurs wanted to chase after them, but they couldn''t offend their savior and turned to Yeji first.


    But something was off with Yeji. She hadn''t moved at all after killing Lycaon. It appeared like she was in a trance. Just when things looked calm, it happened.


    Yeji lost her mind.


    As the centaurs kneeled and praised her for defeating the cursed king, she approached an elder who looked up, expecting a blessing. Instead, he got his throat ripped out.


    Yejiughed as the centaur convulsed on the ground. Everyone else could only watch in horror.


    But Soo-Ah and Min-Joon had the biggest smile on their faces. They had done it. They had forced Sekhmet''s divine incarnation into Yeji''s body. Now, their goddess could rule over the earth.


    "That''s enough!" YuWon yelled, leaning on Gina''s shoulder.


    Yeji turned to YuWon, only tough at his face. "A mortal... thinks he can order me around?"


    A sh of crimson passed before her eyes as she lunged towards YuWon.


    "I am Sekhmet! The Goddess of destruction and healing¡ª!" she yelled but was interrupted by YuWon.


    "No, you''re just an out-of-control ve."


    With a snap of his fingers, he forced Sekhmet to her knees. Since it was Sekhmet and not Yeji, YuWon didn''t hold back and let her experience the full brunt of the ve brand''s power.


    Sekhmet stared at YuWon with murder in her eyes. She struggled to free herself from the ve brand, but the more she tried, the more painful it got for her.


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon couldn''t witness their goddess in such a state. They moved to attack YuWon, only to be stopped by Gina and Anna. Soo-Ah summoned her skeletons for aid, and Min-Joon was about to go berserk.


    But then the joint force of centaurs and awakeners rushed at them. The skeletons stood no chance against an enraged horde. Neither did Min-Joon as they got pinned to the ground and forced to watch their goddess kneel before YuWon.

 Chapter 148: Search For Chiron (1)

    Sekhmet bit her lips in frustration. She hade with dreams of ruling the world and reshaping it in her image. Only to be forced into submission by a mere mortal. Unable to bear the humiliation, Sekhmet''s eyes glowed with rage.


    If she couldn''t force the brand off herself, she would ckmail the mortal into letting her go. If he didn''t, she would kill his precious sister. But as she raised a blood spear, ready to strike herself, YuWon cut her off.


    "I forbid you to harm yourself," YuWon mumbled with a smile.


    As he did, the blood spear in Sekhmet''s hand dropped to the ground. Sekhmet''s eyes were wide in disbelief.


    She knew the brand could make mortals do certain things, but she hadn''t expected YuWon to have trained Yeji so well that her body would obey him on its own.


    While she was lost in her thoughts, YuWon walked up to her. He grabbed her hair and pulled her head back, forcing her to look directly into his eyes.


    He was aware of Yeji''s submissive tendencies. Hence, he knew she wouldn''t mind him getting a bit rough on her.


    "Yeji is mine," he whispered. "She''s not your toy to possess, but my puppet to use as I please. Leave her alone while I''m being kind, or I swear, even the heavens won''t protect you from me. Get that inside your head, divine bitch."


    Sekhmet red at him with pure hatred. No one, no mortal nor god, has ever dared to speak to her like that. There was someone who tested her once, another foolish mortal.


    It happened ages ago and the man''s entire civilization had to pay the price for his mistake. If the gods hadn''t tricked her into drinking wineced with the sleeping curse, she would have killed every mortal back then.


    Yet, another mortal was repeating¡ªno, he had done something even worse. Not only had YuWon threatened her, but he had touched her through Yeji.


    That thought made her blood boil. Sekhmet wanted to strike him down, to tear him apart, but she knew it was nothing but wishful thinking. If she made any attempts at the mortal''s life, the ve brand would destroy her precious vessel.


    She had groomed Yeji''s body to fit herself. As things stood, Yeji''s body was the only one capable of containing her divine essence. As such, if she tried to kill YuWon, the ve brand would kill Yeji, leaving Sekhmet without a mortal vessel.


    With her hands forced, Sekhmet was forced to swallow her pride and anger. She lowered her gaze, reluctantly acknowledging YuWon''s control.


    "Fine. You can have her," she spat with disdain in her eyes.


    YuWon smiled, but so did Sekhmet as she continued, "But know this: I can possess her anytime I please. There''s nothing you can do about it. You might have won this battle, mortal. But you will lose the war."


    Instead of being worried, YuWon looked amused by Sekhmet''s deration of war.


    "We''ll see about that," he replied.


    Sekhmet''s aura disappeared from Yeji''s body, and she copsed on the ground, unconscious. The blood swirling around her fell as well, forming dark red puddles around her.


    YuWon checked her and thankfully, Yeji was alright, just asleep from exhaustion. YuWon had never been possessed by a god, but knew it would be an exhausting affair.


    "What did you do to the goddess!?" Soo-Ah roared.


    Despite being forced to the ground, she still had the strength to yell at him. But as he turned to look at her, YuWon saw something else as well. Soo-Ah was angry, but she was also afraid.


    If YuWon could force a god, then who knew what he would do to them? After all, Soo-Ah had done everything, hoping Sekhmet would save themter.


    But now that the goddess was gone, she wasn''t as confident as before. Since her ns failed, she was afraid of what YuWon might do.


    "Nothing she didn''t deserve," YuWon smiled, looking at her. "But don''t be jealous. I did nothing to her that I wouldn''t do to you."


    With that, he walked up to her. Soo-Ah''s face went pale. Before she could react, YuWon hit her in the back of the head, knocking her out. Min-Joon was lying next to her and gritted his teeth.


    "No matter where you are... you always turn into a tyrant¡ª!"


    "Good, then you know what I''m about to do next."


    YuWon knocked him out as well. But something about their words and gazes weirded him out, especially thest part.


    "A tyrant, huh?" YuWon mumbled before looking at the centaurs. "Tie them up. I''ve got questions for them when they wake up."


    "Got it."


    While they tied them up, YuWon turned towards Yeji. The ve brand was truly a splendid weapon, but its after-effects made him ufortable. He hadn''tid a finger on her body, yet she was full of bruises.


    But despite everything, she looked peaceful in her sleep, like someone finally at rest after a brutal journey.


    "You''re safe now," he murmured, brushing a stray strand of hair away from her face. "No one else is going to use you like that. Maybe I will, but no one else."


    YuWon could swear he saw her smile at those words as he leaned in to kiss her forehead.


    "Lilith, take care of her for me."


    "Aye, chief!"


    "...first master, then boss, now chief?"


    "I can call you anything you like, daddy¡ª"


    "No! Anything but that word. It makes me cringe so much I can feel my skin crawl."


    "...right, master."


    Next on the agenda were the centaurs. The beasts took a couple of steps back when he approached them, which was a good thing. After all, he wasn''t there to y savior.


    "Now then, shall we settle your debt?" YuWon smiled.


    "Debt...?" an elder asked.


    "You didn''t think Yeji killed Lycaon out of goodwill, did you?"


    "But that was the goddess¡ª?"


    "I can''t see a goddess here, can you?" YuWon shook his head, taking a step towards the centaur. "So how are you nning to repay my stepsister''s kindness?"


    The centaurs looked at each other. With Soo-Ah and Min-Joon out cold, the awakeners outnumbered them.


    Moreover, they had been fighting with each other a few moments ago. There was enough bad blood between them. If they offend the awakeners anymore, there was no saying how they might react.


    "...we are poor," the elder pleaded. "The once rich kingdom is long gone¡ª"


    "I don''t need your money," YuWon cut him off.


    "Then..." the centaur mumbled, looking at the females.


    "Oh, hell no!"


    The thought disgusted YuWon. The female centaurs were pretty, but only from the waist above. What the hell will he do about that other half? Close his eyes when they do the tango?


    From the way some females acted, it was like YuWon''s rejection had offended them. But how could he not feel disgusted about imagining them being intimate?


    "I see," the elder replied, nodding towards the males. "Are they up to your liking¡ª?"


    "If you have a death wish, just say the word," YuWon snarled, revealing the noir de.


    "...I''m afraid we have nothing to offer you, then."


    YuWon sighed, knowing they won''t go anywhere like this. He did not know about the centaurs and what treasures they could be hiding. Also, it didn''t appear they will disclose information about anything they held close.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Oi angel," YuWon called out, looking at the sky. "Don''t even think about hiding anymore. I know you''re watching us all the time."


    YuWon waited for a moment. Sure enough, the angel appeared there with a sh of light.


    "How did you know!?" the angel pouted. "I erased my presence entirely."


    "I didn''t," YuWon waved her off. "But thanks for confirming my suspicions."


    "You¡ª!"


    "No need to get angry now. Besides, didn''t I give you lots of entertainment?"


    The angel sighed. It was true. The encounter between him and Sekhmet had pleased the sponsors and the watchers. As such, her poprity had increased. If he kept at it, they would soon promote her to an archangel.


    But that didn''t mean she could openly help him. Not only that would be against thew, it would also be unfair to other awakeners. That said, he deserved a reward for fending off Sekhmet.


    "Fine, I can help you. But don''t make a habit of it," the angel shook her head. "What do you want?"


    "Settle their debt."


    The angel didn''t bother replying and turned to the elder centaur. The centaur who was acting till now, suddenly found himself praying for real.


    Centaurs had lived inside the world tree for millennia. It was absurd to think they didn''t have any treasures lying around. They just didn''t want to part with their treasures.


    "My beloved stingy horsies," the angel smiled. "Do I need to spell everything out for you?"


    "...oh great one, please¡ª!"


    "Shut it!" the angel cut him off. "Take him to Chiron. That''s an order!"


    "...as you wish."

 Chapter 149: Search For Chiron (2)

    That was a name YuWon had heard of before. Not in much detail, but he knew someone named Chiron, who had taught and trained many heroes in Greek lore. Not only that, he was known to be proficient in medicine and warfare.


    At first, YuWon wondered what that was about. But if something like a Hydra could exist, it won''t be strange for Chiron to exist.


    "But, we don''t know--!" the elder opened his mouth again, only to be cut off by the angel.


    "It''s an order. Do as I say, or the werewolves will be thest thing you''d be worried about."


    With that, the angel disappeared, leaving behind the confused centaurs. It was true Chiron was a centaur. But meeting him wasn''t easy. The elder centaur needed the angel''s help to locate him. But she thought he was making excuses and didn''t listen to him.


    "So where is he?" YuWon asked, stretching his muscles.


    "We don''t know," the elder shook his head. "Chiron has always been... different from us. That''s why they don''t live with usmoners."


    "They? There is more than one Chiron?"


    The elder nodded. "Chiron isn''t an individual, but a position. A revered one at that. Not anyone can be a Chiron."


    The elder kept talking about it. The Chiron was like a n of gifted individuals. It was said they possessed all the knowledge that an entire species of centaurs couldn''t possibly achieve.


    Before a curse befell their race, people worshipped the Chirons as messengers of the gods. But when the gods cursed Lycaon, he went after them first. He wanted a cure for the curse and knew the Chirons could offer it.


    However, the Chirons didn''t help him. Whether they didn''t want to go against the gods, or because their knowledge failed, was anyone''s guess. Either way, they were the first n that Lycaon struck.


    The werewolves killed many of them. But they were also the only n who managed to chase Lycaon away. Ever since then, no one had heard about them. The Chiron went into hiding and even Lycaon didn''t dare to pursue them.


    The centaurs tried looking for them to learn how they defeated Lycaon. But they found no trace of them. It was like they had disappeared into the air.


    "It''s impossible to find the Chiron," the elder sighed.


    But YuWon remained unconvinced. If it had been truly impossible, the angel wouldn''t have given them the task. Besides, she was an angel, and she obviously knew what happened between Lycaon and the Chiron.


    There has to be something...


    YuWon looked far deeper into the forest. If the centaurs didn''t know shit, then there was only one person who could guide them.


    "Hm... time to wake Soo-Ah."


    ***


    Sometimeter...


    YuWon crouched beside the unconscious Soo-Ah, holding a small bowl of water. Without hesitation, he sshed it over her face. She gasped, blinking rapidly, adjusting to the rude awakening.


    "Wh-what?!" she asked, frantically looking around.


    However, she rxed immediately when she noticed Yeji before her. To her, Yeji was no ordinary person; she was the vessel for the goddess Sekhmet, whom Soo-Ah worshiped.


    YuWon knew that, hence he briefed Yeji about his n and left it all to her. Despite her caring nature, she could be quite cunning when she had to. Besides, Soo-Ah''s reverence for her would make it easier for Yeji to fool her.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "How are you feeling, Soo-Ah?" Yeji asked, smiling gently at her.


    The respect Soo-Ah had shown Yeji disappeared when she heard Yeji''s voice and not Sekhmet''s. Despite that, she couldn''t be rude to her, in case Sekhmet saw it as her disrespect.


    "I''m fine, Yeji. It''s just that traitor..." Soo-Ah''s eyes darkened as she remembered YuWon. "He caught me off guard, but I''ll recover soon and unite you again."


    Yeji''s brow twitched slightly when she heard Soo-Ah call YuWon a traitor, but she forced herself to stay calm. After all, YuWon had already told her Soo-Ah might call him names.


    Just for a while... Tolerate her, just for a while.


    With that thought, Yeji gave Soo-Ah a polite smile, trying to hide her irritation.


    "That''s good to hear," Yeji replied, breathing a sigh of relief.


    Yeji then paused for a moment before continuing. "I wanted to ask you something, Soo-Ah. It''s about the skeletons you''ve resurrected before. Do they keep their memories?"


    Soo-Ah blinked in surprise, clearly surprised by the question, but nodded. If Yeji was taking an interest in her abilities, then she should be d.


    "Yes. Depending on the grade and ss of the creature, they can keep fragments of their memories and certain traits. But why are you asking about it?"


    "I''m not, but the goddess wanted to," Yeji shook her head before smiling at her. "But I''d like you to resurrect Lycaon as a skeleton soldier."


    Soo-Ah''s face turned pale, and she recoiled as if someone had pped her. Why did she want to resurrect that beast? Whatever the reason was, Soo-Ah didn''t agree.


    "Absolutely not!" she eximed, shaking her head vigorously. "Resurrecting someone who meant harm to you, to the Goddess¡­ it''s against my beliefs. I will never let that beast walk on earth again!"


    After hearing Soo-Ah''s response, Yeji almost lost her temper, her hand itching to p some sense into Soo-Ah. But then YuWon''s words echoed in her mind, calming her.


    Yeji took a deep breath before gently grabbing Soo-Ah''s hand and pulling her close in a hug. Soo-Ah''s eyes widened at the unexpected gesture.


    She was so close to the one Sekhmet had possessed. That thought alone made her heart pound as Yeji whispered in her ear.


    "Listen to me, Soo-Ah," Yeji murmured with a hint of urgency. "Resurrecting Lycaon is essential to the Goddess''s n."


    "Sekhmet''s n? But¡­ I don''t understand."


    Yeji released her but held on to her shoulders as she lied through her teeth.


    "My body¡­ it can''t handle the full force of the goddess Sekhmet''s power. That''s why YuWon could push her out of me. I''m not strong enough to resist his control."


    She continued, "But for the few moments I had, the goddess inside me... did something. I want to experience her power again. I want to have Sekhmet live within me. But I need strength for that."


    Yeji stopped, analyzing Soo-Ah''s face. It was important for her to buy the bullshit Yeji was spouting. If not, all their work would be in vain.


    "But¡­ how will resurrecting Lycaon help with that?"


    The prey had taken the bait. Yeji wanted to smile, but her expression remained serious.


    "When the Goddess was about to leave me, she told me of someone who could help strengthen my body. Someone named Chiron. They have abilities that will make me strong enough to bear Sekhmet''s full power."


    Yeji saw Soo-Ah''s eyes light up when she paused. So she continued.


    "After talking with the centaurs, I realized the Chiron was not a person but a n. However, they don''t know where the Chiron n is. But Lycaon might."


    "So, that''s why you want me to bring Lycaon back, even if it''s just as a skeleton soldier. He''ll lead us to the Chiron."


    "Exactly. As long as I can find the Chiron, we can have goddess return to us."


    Soo-Ah considered this for a long moment, then nced at Yeji with suspicion. The Yeji she knew was devoted to YuWon. It was unlikely she would plot against him. After all, that''s what it would mean to bring Sekhmet back to the mortal world.


    "Does YuWon know about this?"


    "Not entirely. He knows about Chiron and the body enhancements, but I lied to him and said having the enhancement would prevent the goddess''s possession."


    She continued, "He is overprotective of me, so he agreed. But even he has suspicions about my motives. Since I woke up knowing about Chiron. But he trusts me... but I need your trust more than his."


    Soo-Ah''s gaze softened. She had experienced the enlightenment firsthand. Hence, she knew Yeji could believe in Sekhmet when she woke up. She needed to have a n in ce. Just in case Yeji was ying with her.


    "Very well. I''ll do it, but only on one condition."


    "What is it?" Yeji asked.


    "I will apany you," Soo-Ah said. "That is not up for negotiations."


    "Of course, Soo-Ah. I wouldn''t have it any other way," Yeji smiled, holding her hand. "Goddess Sekhmet will remember your devotion. Thank you sincerely."


    Hearing Sekhmet''s name spoken with such reverence brought a glimmer of pride to Soo-Ah''s eyes. The goddess herself would remember her loyalty; that was enough to make Soo-Ah agree wholeheartedly.


    "But for now, you''ll have to stay here," Yeji informed her, saddened by the fact. "YuWon suspects me already. If I ask him to free you, he might not take it kindly."


    "I understand," Soo-Ah nodded. "Fret not, it would take more than this to break me and my devotion to the goddess. But be careful. I don''t trust that traitor."


    With ast smile, Yeji left the room, only to find YuWon waiting outside. As soon as she saw him, she gave him a thumbs-up, along with a triumphant smile.


    "Told you it''d work," YuWon said, ruffling her hair.


    "Isn''t that what I should say?" Yeji grinned. "But she''ll resurrect Lycaon and help us find the Chiron. Mission aplished."


    "Good. That will make things a lot easier."


    "But we have to be careful. Soo-Ah is still loyal to Sekhmet. If she finds out the truth, we could be in serious trouble."


    "Don''t worry. I''ll deal with her distracted if ites to that."

 Chapter 150: Search For Chiron (3)

    "This is it, huh?" YuWon mumbled.


    Lycaon''s skeleton had led them to a secluded tunnel. Even the Elder Centaur did not know about the cave''s existence. Moreover, it had carving all over it, which the elder told them was the doing of the Chiron.


    It wasn''t easy to get there either. They had to locate their way through a maze. Every entrance led to five others, and they had to cross five such clearings. The probability of finding the correct path was around 0.032%.


    Thankfully, Lycaon was dead and couldn''t betray them, or else he could have easily gotten them lost in the maze, where they''d die from natural causes.


    "No wonder it was impossible to find them," Anna mumbled, touching the cave''s wall.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "If someone doesn''t want to be found, then this is the best way to keep anyone from trying," YuWon added.


    They were at the gates, but they all knew their journey ahead wouldn''t be easy. The Chiron had gone through so much trouble to hide themselves; it was obvious the maze wouldn''t be their only defense.


    "Let''s go," YuWon instructed, and Soo-Ah made Lycaon''s skeleton to take the lead.


    Sure enough, that was the case, but no one expected to see werewolves waiting inside the cave. But they weren''t like the ones they had fought before.


    These werewolves were more like skeletons. Hunger gnawed at them, and their eyes were filled with insanity. More importantly, they had strange cors around their necks.


    "They must be the werewolves who got captured during Lycaon''s attack," the elder mumbled. "...the Chiron are more fearsome than I thought."


    "Are you sure they''ll... help us?" Yeji couldn''t help but ask.


    Who could me her? The Chiron didn''t look like someone they''d get involved with. Besides, the centaurs had made it clear their kind didn''t look kindly on the humans.


    "They will help you," the elder nodded, though he didn''t seem confident. "Even the Chiron are bound to obey the rules of the world tree. They wouldn''t dare offend an angel."


    "But what happened to these werewolves?" Ginamented, looking at their skeletal frame.


    "The king''s curse is powerful. Even if they don''t eat, they''ll never die from hunger or weakness," the elder exined. "Instead, they just¡­ keep going, like empty shells. It seemed the Chiron knew about it and turned them into guards."


    YuWon didn''tment on it, but even he was in awe. These Chiron weren''t just strong, they were terrifyingly powerful. Not only did the Chiron defeat the werewolves, but they even turned them into their mindless guards.


    But that thought also made him nervous. Even with the power of two disaster''s hearts, YuWon couldn''t hold his own against a pack of werewolves, at least not without significant risk.


    But the Chiron made it all seem so easy. If he made any mistake during their meeting, things wouldn''t end well for them. The thought of having a cor around his neck and being forced to guard the Chiron caves like one of these werewolves made him uneasy.


    Let''s get rid of these werewolves first.


    "Subdue them," YuWon mumbled. "Since the Chiron own them, they won''t be pleased if we killed them."


    "Alright."


    Anna swung her sword at the first werewolf that came close, slicing its side, but the creature only staggered. It showed no signs of feeling pain and kept attacking.


    "What the hell!?" she eximed, kicking away the creature.


    "It''s their hunger," the elder eximed. "With food in sight, they don''t care about getting hurt."


    "Makes sense," YuWon replied.


    It made sense, but it didn''t make their work any easier. The easiest way to get rid of them would be to kill them. But YuWon didn''t want to take that chance.


    A way to deal with this mess...


    YuWon''s eyes fell on Lycaon''s skeleton and got an idea. He turned to Yeji, who was fending off a werewolf with a spear of blood she had conjured.


    "Yeji! Can you control them with your blood magic, like you did with Lycaon?"


    "What do you think?" Yeji replied, ncing at the blood on the ground left from the werewolves'' attacks. "I did it before, but Sekhmet was guiding me. I don''t know if I can do it¡ª"


    "We won''t know unless you try," YuWon cut her off, kicking away a werewolf.


    Yeji nodded. Since they wanted to keep Sekhmet out of her body, she would eventually have to use her powers. The sooner she started, the better it''d be.


    With that thought, Yeji raised her hand, and her eyes turned blood red like before. All the chaos around her disappeared as she focused on the blood on the cave floor.


    It took a moment, but the blood on the ground began to ripple and swirl, slowly rising into the air. Yeji narrowed her eyes as she forced the blood into the shape of long, thin needles.


    It was taking a lot of struggle on her part. She couldn''t believe it was so easy to control it before. But slowly, she gained control over the needles.


    "Here goes nothing..." she mumbled.


    She flicked her wrist, sending the needles flying straight at the werewolves. The blood needles struck the werewolves in their arms, legs, and shoulders, piercing through their skin.


    The wolves barely reacted and kept fighting. But in time, their movements got slower, and eventually, they slumped against the walls.


    "Hurry!" Yeji called, her voice strained. "I don''t know how long I can hold them!"


    Without wasting time, they knocked the werewolves out before tying them up with the supplies the elder had brought with him.


    "That should hold it," Anna mumbled after tying up thest werewolf.


    Only then did Yeji let go of the needles and copsed on her knees. Sekhmet had made it look so easy, but after trying it alone, Yeji realized how difficult it was to control her powers.


    As the red glow faded from her eyes, the needles lost their solid form and fell to the ground.


    "It worked, huh?" she smiled weakly.

 Chapter 151: Thessaraea (1)

    After the struggle with the starved werewolves, the rest of the cave path seemed almost too quiet. It almost felt like someone had removed all obstacles in their way. But they didn''t drop their guard as they kept moving.


    Finally, they spotted a light ahead, and they approached the cave''s exit. But just as they neared it, six centaurs appeared, blocking the exit. They halted, looking at the three males and females adorned in armor. Their weapons were already trained on YuWon and the rest.


    They didn''t look hostile, but that didn''t mean they couldn''t turn hostile. However, when the elder saw them, he immediately bowed, showing his respect to the warrior tribe... the Chiron.


    "My ancestors," he said, his voice trembling slightly from the excitement. "It is an honor to be in your presence."


    The elder babbled on. But the more he talked, the more annoyed the Chirons'' became. Instead of listening to the babbling centaur, they turned toward YuWon.


    After a minute, one of the Chiron''s steeped up, ignoring the elder.


    "We''ve been waiting for you, mortal," she said. "Please,e with us. Our leaders would like to discuss certain... matters with you."


    YuWon looked at the rest before walking off. The rest of them followed him as well. Even the elder looked up and followed. But as he tried to step past the Chiron, one of them blocked his way, holding out a hand.


    "The cursed bloodline is not permitted beyond this point," he said, coldly looking at the elder.


    The elder''s face fell immediately. He had apanied the humans, hoping to find the Chiron and possibly joining their n. But the Chiron had already expected it and preemptively blocked him.


    "I-I must apany¡ª"


    "Turn back."


    The elder looked pleadingly at the Chiron, but they held firm. They wanted nothing to do with the centaurs. Even the kindness they were showing him was too much, and eventually, their patience ran out.


    Suddenly a Chiron pushed the elder back into the cave while the one who spoke to YuWon cast a spell, sealing the cave entrance behind them.


    Meanwhile, outside the cave, the entire scenery around them changed. Leaving the dense forest behind, they found themselves surrounded by a deste mountain range.


    From the air to the ground below, everything felt dry. YuWon was stunned. The humans were taken aback by the bleakness of the ce concealed behind the forest cave.


    But more surprises were waiting for them when they turned around.


    "Climb on our backs," one Chiron said.


    One after another, the remaining Chirons lowered their backs as well. It was strange because it went against their pride.


    Traditionally, riding on a centaur''s back was considered extremely disrespectful. They considered it a sign of dominance rather than partnership. But the Chiron seemed unconcerned with such customs.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Are you¡­ sure?" Yeji asked the Chiron near her.


    The guy nodded, looking annoyed. "The path ahead is treacherous. It''s safer for you to ride on our backs rather than walk on your own."


    The group looked around once more at the rocky terrain that waited for them ahead. It was a simple decision to make. YuWon climbed the back of the Chiron leading the others.


    The others followed, each mounting a centaur and holding on carefully. With everyone ready, the Chirons were on the move.


    "How long have you all been here, in this ce?" Gina asked, unable to bear the silence for long.


    "For as long as we can remember," the Chiron replied without turning her head. "We''ve guarded this region for centuries. Only a few are ever allowed here. But it''s a first for humans."


    "And what makes someone worthy of entering... whatever this ce is called?"


    "Only primitive species measure someone''s worth by what one possesses or knows," the male centaur ahead of them answered. "For us, only those who know the worth of sacrifice deserve to enter Thessaraea."


    Gina was about to ask another question but got cut off by the Chiron YuWon was riding.


    "The journey will take two days," she said. "Conserve your energy."


    ***


    A dayter...


    Once again, they stopped for lunch. Unfortunately, it wasn''t an extravagant affair. The Chiron didn''t allow them to eat the food they had brought from the outside. They didn''t want to get infected with any foreign bacteria they might have brought along.


    Instead, the Chiron offered them an assortment of dried berries and water. It wasn''t enough to fill their stomach, but it boosted their energy for the ride ahead.


    Meanwhile, the centaurs quickly wrapped up the unused food and ran ahead at full speed.


    After the chat they had yesterday, the Chirons had spoken little. So much so that they didn''t even know the names of the Chiron carrying them. Hence, YuWon and the others didn''t either. Thankfully, they didn''t have to tolerate each other for long.


    "We''re here," the Chiron carrying YuWon announced.


    The Chiron stopped, prompting the humans to get off. YuWon jumped off before helping Yeji do the same. As he did, the rest of them suddenly wanted his help as well. YuWon rolled his eyes and helped Anna and Gina too, before taking in the scenery.


    Everything was more or less the same as before. Deste mountains surrounded them. But this time, in the valley, they could see a patch of green that felt out of ce.


    That patch of green was the city founded by the Chiron... or so the Chiron wanted them to believe.


    "You can follow that path if you want to die," one Chiron replied and turned to the massive wall behind them.


    Of course...


    The Chiron, a secretive race of Centaurs, wouldn''t build a city in such an obvious spot. Instead, the green patch they saw was a breeding ground for countless deadly creatures. If anyone identally fell in, there''d be no way to escape, and the beasts would eventually devour them below.


    Meanwhile, the Chiron hugged the wall, looking for something. Then they hit it simultaneously, and a lever emerged from the ground below. It took all six of them to pull it, and when they did, a hidden path appeared within the mountain they were standing on.


    ...fuck me.

 Chapter 152: Thessaraea (2)

    Once again, they had to walk through a maze of tunnels. The Chiron didn''t want to take chances of securing their location, but this time, it didn''t take them days to make it out of the maze.


    Within an hour, they walked through thest tunnel. The other side of the mountain was entirely different from what they had seen up to now. It was like they were back in the forest.


    But this time, it was a well-organized forest. Everywhere they could see, they saw well-built stone roads. The cliff on the side of the road reminded them they were still in the mountains.


    "Wow..." Yeji mumbled in awe.


    She captured everyone''s reaction in one go. Meanwhile, Anna was busy studying the city''s strategicyout. It was surrounded by steep, unconquerable mountains in every direction, providing the city with a naturalyer of protection.


    The only way in and out of the city seemed to be through the passage they had exited. But knowing Chiron, they definitely had more than one exit hidden in the city, just in case.


    Besides that, the entrance was quite narrow. Anna understood it was intentional so they could funnel any enemies into a narrow area, thus making defense easy for the Chiron.


    Still, it was a strange sight to see a lively ce such as that in the middle of barren mountains. Billionaires back on earth would pay millions of dors to vacation there.


    Who am I kidding? They''d buy it instead.


    ***


    You gotta be kidding me!


    That was the first thought in YuWon''s head as they stepped into the heart of Thessaraea. Lush Gardens weed them along with a massive fountain in the center. The entire ce was artificially created, but it only made it more unbelievable.


    As they walked, curious centaurs gathered around, observing the group with keen eyes. It wasn''t strange because they had seen humans for the first time.


    But YuWon was more interested in knowing about the city.


    "I''m amazed," he mumbled. "I can''t even imagine all the work it would have taken to get all this water."


    "Water is scarce here, as you''ve noticed. For us, everything is a blessing from nature, so nothing goes to waste in this city," the Chiron replied.


    She continued, "The secret lies between conservation and recycling. Through a system of careful filtration and purification, every drop is reused, nurturing the trees, nts, and even the fountain you see."


    "So¡­ this entire city runs on recycled water?"


    "Yes. It took generational knowledge to perfect it, but now it will sustain us for as long as we are alive," she replied, gesturing towards the countless, almost invisible pipelines that connected everything together.


    "Amazing..."


    For the first time, YuWon noticed the Chiron beam with pride at hisment.


    As YuWon and his group walked through the city, they were amazed by all the minor details around them. Every nt and patch ofnd seemed to have a purpose, showing off the Chiron''s intelligence and skill in design, as they used everything they had to itsplete utilization.


    Soon they arrived in front of a building that felt out of ce in the city. It was a small house built in the style of human architecture. Strangely enough, it appeared to be the oldest structure in the entire city.


    "Is this¡­ for us?" Anna asked.


    "It was prepared long ago, built for when humans might one-day visit. We understand your needs differ from ours, so we wanted to ensure yourfort."


    "Built long ago but remained unused and unmaintained," YuWon mumbled, noticing the visible cracks in the structure. "Let''s check the ce from the inside."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Just as they were about to step inside, a young centaur trotted up to them. Though he was the youngest centaur they had seen, all the Chiron around quickly bowed their heads in respect.


    No words were spoken, but the humans realized the little centaur had to be rted to someone important. The young Chiron looked at the rest and urged them to raise their heads before facing YuWon.


    "Wee, travelers. I am Alecton, the leader of the Chiron," he spoke clearly for someone so young. "We have been waiting for your arrival, especially yours, disaster conqueror."


    "You''re¡­ the leader?" YuWon asked, sizing up the young Chiron.


    "I may be young, but the title has been mine since birth," Alecton nodded, smiling a little. "The Chiron have waited a long time for this meeting, as we have much to discuss."


    ***


    In the quiet, dim chamber of the Chiron temple, YuWon sat cross-legged on the cool stone floor. Alecton sat across from him, his eyes fixed on YuWon, studying him.


    They were the only ones inside the temple dedicated to Athena. YuWon thought it was strange; it almost felt like the massive statue was staring at him and it wasn''t a pleasant look either.


    The angel knew the location of Chiron all this time. She had even gone out of her way to inform the Chiron about him and the reward he should get.


    That''s why the Chiron was waiting for him at the cave. They knew he wasing and wanted to help him with the angel''s orders.


    Next time I see her, I''d ask her to help me directly. Not in this long, winding way.


    In the center was arge tank filled with a strange silvery liquid. At first nce, he thought the tank itself was his reward, but Alecton told him it was the shimmering liquid inside that held the true power.


    "So... the reward is the liquid?" YuWon asked, looking back at Alecton.


    "Yes," Alecton confirmed. "It is the water from the River Styx. A gift to Chiron and the secret of our strength."


    "I see... so do I need to drink¡ª?"


    "Do not drink even a single drop. The water has powerful, transformative properties when used correctly, but if you ingest it¡­ it will be the end of you. Bathe in it as many times as your body can handle it."


    "I''ve got two disaster hearts," YuWon shrugged. "I think my body can take it."


    "That''s where you''re wrong," Alecton shook his head. "Your body is robust, but it''s nearing its limits. Absorbing two Disaster Hearts is a miracle, especially for a human. But to keep gaining strength, your body must evolve. I''m here to help you with that."


    "What do I need to do?"


    "Enter the tank," Alecton instructed. "The water will strengthen your body from the outside and make it capable of bearing even greater power. But remember, even touching this water will be a painful experience."


    He continued, "The River Styx was never meant for mortals to use. But since the angel was confident in your abilities, I shall allow you to experience hell. Are you certain you''re ready?"


    YuWon nodded, taking off his shirt.


    "Very well," Alecton sighed. "Remember, you must stay submerged for as long as you can bear it. Only then will the Styx change you. But don''t overdo it."

 Chapter 153: Calamity Strikes (1)

    Anna, Gina, and Yeji stood nervously outside the grand stone temple. Around them, several Chiron warriors were waiting, all while looking at them like annoying insects.


    The centaurs kept urging the girls to leave and rest. They even said it would take a while before YuWon got out of there, but the humans refused to budge.


    "The temple is not a ce for sightseeing," one Chiron urged. "The ritual takes time. That''s why we suggest you rest morefortably in the human quarters."


    "We know you mean when, but we can wait," Yeji shook her head. "If it''s your job to monitor us, then rest assured, we aren''t going anywhere. You can rx as well."


    The Chiron exchanged uneasy nces. They seemed used to giving orders and having them followed. But Alecton, their elder, had been clear: they were to treat these humans with respect, which meant they couldn''t use force to make them leave.


    "Please, do not make it any more difficult than this already is," the Chiron mumbled. "Our people are not used to seeing your kind. As such, your presence makes them ufortable¡ª"


    "Then perhaps you should cover us with a nket," Gina smiled. "After all, we are not moving from here until YuWon returns."


    The Chiron''s tail flicked in annoyance, but they didn''t push the matter further. Instead, they did as Anna suggested and tried to make themselvesfortable, standing guard with the humans.


    Suddenly, a deep rumble shook the ground beneath them. The Chiron warriors around the temple snapped to attention. Something was terribly wrong.


    The next moment, a bright re lit up the sky, signaling that an intruder had broken through the first maze.


    "What was that?" Yeji''s eyes widened.


    The Chiron exchanged tense nces. Three Chiron immediately left to alert the warriors, while the others turned toward the humans. They''d been invaded before and felt pretty good about their defenses.


    The only issue was... the humans. They quickly turned to them, suspicious of them. It couldn''t be a coincidence that the attack happened as soon as the humans arrived there. The humans had to be involved in it.


    "Capture them," one Chiron instructed to the other. "Alecton will decide on their punishmentter."


    Another Chiron stepped forward, using the humans. "You came to our city, and now we''re under attack. You led them here!"


    "Excuse me? We have done nothing!" Gina clenched her fists, stepping forward. "If you still dare to¡ª"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Gina, don''t. Fighting them won''t help right now," Anna mumbled, cing her hand on her shoulder.


    Gina nced at Anna and took a deep breath. The Chiron were watching them closely as if expecting them to resist. They seemed eager to believe the humans were involved in this invasion, even though it wasn''t the case.


    They did not know who could even get through the countless mazes they had. However, it was unlikely the Chiron would believe them. For the moment, it was better to listen to theirmand and wait.


    "We''lle along peacefully," Anna said, lifting her hands, surrendering.


    The Chiron warriors eyed them warily before nodding. "You''ll be detained until this threat is dealt with. If you had no part in the invasion, Alecton will judge you fairly. If not, you''ll die a dishonorable death."


    Without another word, the Chiron bound their wrists with a strong, enchanted rope. The girls didn''t struggle as the Chiron led them away. The bindings weren''tfortable, but Anna knew they didn''t stand a chance against the centaurs if they resisted.


    Upon reaching the assigned house, the Chiron pushed them inside and locked the door. The sound of heavy hoofbeats receded as the warriors hurried away, likely to defend their city.


    Inside the small room, Gina finally let out a frustrated sigh, rubbing her wrists to restore blood flow.


    "This is ridiculous. We didn''t even do anything, and now we''re prisoners?"


    "I know," Anna replied, sitting down against the wall. "But if we''d tried to resist, it would''ve only made things worse. They already think we''re here to cause trouble."


    "We just have to wait. YuWon''s still in there," Yeji nodded. "He''ll figure this out once he''s done. Will then we should wait."


    ***


    Under the light of the setting sun, the werewolves moved steadily up the rough mountain path. Dust and blood covered their matted fur. Their eyes glowed with a fierce hunger as they climbed the mountain from every side possible.


    "Keep moving!" thergest werewolf in the lead growled. "We''re close now."


    He nced back at the others. Most of them were in rough shape, but it was their only chance to attack them. Their injuries would heal and their stamina would return in the night. It would be the best time to attack the Chiron and im the immortalizing water of the Styx.


    But not everyone was prepared for it.


    One of the younger werewolves hesitated, looking up at the steep, rugged cliffs that loomed over them.


    "Are you sure this is the right way, Graul?" he asked nervously, ears ttened against his head.


    Graul snarled, shing his sharp fangs. "Do you doubt me, pup?"


    The younger werewolf swallowed hard and shook his head, quickly falling back in line as they climbed.


    It had been a while since Graul hadst seen the Thessaraea, but he remembered as if it was yesterday. They had faced the Chiron bravely since they had remained undefeated back then.


    However, no matter how hard they tried, it was impossible to subdue the Chiron. As soon as they injured someone, they ran away, only to return stronger than before.


    At first, they didn''t know how. But thanks to the deal they made with the centaurs, they now knew. Water from river Styx. It had saved them but now; they were going to attack the Chiron from behind and take over the temple first.


    "Without the water... they''ll have nowhere to fall back. All thanks to that fool Lycaon for helping us even in death."


    "What''s the point? They''ll smell using. Besides, we''re not exactly quiet."


    "Let them. I want them to know we''reing," Graul smirked. "It''ll be good to see them cower in fear as we tear through their defenses. Tonight, the Chiron fall."


    With ast nce at the pack, Graul led the charge up the final stretch of the mountains. The Chiron''s sanctuary would soon be under siege.

 Chapter 154: Calamity Strikes (2)

    "What''s going on!?" Tehron, the Chiron warmander, yelled.


    It was the third earthquake they felt in minutes. It couldn''t be a natural phenomenon. Someone or something was intentionally causing this mess. But the Chirons had no clue who it could be.


    "We''re surrounded," a Chiron with closed eyes mumbled. "I can sense hundreds of hostiles all around us!"


    "I don''t care about those maggots!" Tehron gritted his teeth. "Find out what''s causing the earthquakes!"


    "Sir, we need to get rid of the wolves first¡ª"


    Smack!


    Tehron hit the person before pulling them in.


    "Take my squad and man the gates! Do I need to hold your fingers to make you do your job!?" Tehron yelled, pushing the man away.


    He continued. "Tell all squads to man the borders! The rest should escape through the underground tunnels for the time being."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    For people who had spent centuries perfecting their defense, it was quite unsightly to see them in such panic.


    A strange would have thought the Chirons would have faced the threat calmly and bravely. But all of them had lost their minds. Surprisingly, Tehron didn''t care about the werewolves, but the earthquake.


    He couldn''t recall any instance of an earthquake within the world tree ever since he was born. That''s why he knew it wasn''t a natural urrence. Someone was headed their way, big enough to cause an earthquake with each step.


    A disaster...


    That was the first thought Tehron had.


    The disasters usually stayed near the roots of the world tree. They never went inside it. But what if something forced them into their safe ce?


    But that raised another question. What could be powerful enough to cause a disaster inside the world tree?


    What if the disaster entered the tree of its free will?


    Tehron shook his head. He couldn''t assume it was a disaster, all because of a few earthquakes. After all, more mysterious beings lived within the world tree. It could be one such creature.


    "Let''s get rid of those mutts first."


    ***


    Meanwhile, near the temple...


    "Those bastards! To think they''d hit us from the back!" A Chiron roared. "I''m going to rip these dogs apart!"


    Most Chirons had rushed towards the gates, as it was the only way to enter the city. None of them imagined the werewolves would scale the mountain and strike the temple first.


    Now the werewolves had surrounded the temple. The few Chirons left were trying their best to protect it.


    The only sce they had been they had sealed the temple, so even if they died fighting, the werewolves would have a difficult time entering the temple. But once they break the seals, there''ll be no stopping them.


    "Elder Alecton, what should we do?" a Chiron asked in a panic.


    "Ease your heart," Alecton replied, looking at YuWon, who remained suspended in River Styx''s water. "They targeted the temple because of the treasure. We mustn''t allow those rabid animals to touch the water."


    The werewolves were already a pain to deal with because of their regenerative abilities. If they got their hands on Styx, then there''ll be no stopping them.


    "Once they break in... you must keep them upied," Alecton sighed. "I will destroy the reservoirs."


    The Chirons were shocked. Destroying the reservoirs meant destroying their existence. After all, the water from Styx was why they could live sofortably under such harsh conditions.


    Without the water, they were as good as the cursed race they detested. However, they understood it was a necessity. If the werewolves got their hands on the reservoir, it would lead to a much darker future.


    While contemting their next actions, a wave of ck smoke hit them.


    Damnit!


    The Chirons had thought they''d be safe after sealing themselves inside. But they couldn''t be more wrong.


    The werewolves never intended to waste their energy on breaking the seals. Instead, they lit a fire around the temple to smoke them out.


    If the Chirons rushed outside for safety, they''d meet with hundreds of werewolves. And if they didn''t, they''d die from suffocation while the fire burned the temple down. Their survival had been turned into a game to see how quickly the Chirons would give up.


    "...follow me," Alecton mumbled, foreseeing his death. "We will destroy the reservoirs. That water will put out the fire outside."


    "...as you wish."


    ***


    "Damn it! We can''t keep this up for long!" Graul yelled.


    Their n depended on the element of surprise. But the longer they stayed there, the quicker that opportunity faded.


    Once the Chiron notice the force at the entrance was a mere diversion, they''ll turn towards the temple. Graul wanted to get his hands on Styx before that. But the stubborn horses had locked themselves inside.


    Not to mention the fire. It''ll surely attract their attention.


    The n to smoke the Chiron out of the temple was failing with each passing moment. If they don''t do something soon, the werewolves will get sandwiched on two fronts.


    Just as Graul began to think it was a bad idea, one of the temple doors swung open from the inside. At first, it was a trickle of water. But within seconds, it turned into a roaring flood, pouring out of the temple like a broken dam.


    The water struck like a battering ram, knocking them off their feet and extinguishing every trace of fire surrounding the temple. While they struggled to maintain their footing, Graul''s eyes widened in horror.


    He knew immediately what this water was. It was the treasure he sought. But the Chiron had wasted it, using it to put out pitiful mes just to keep the werewolves from gaining its power.


    Besides, since one had to be submerged in the water for it to take effect, the werewolves didn''t benefit after being sshed with it.


    "Those filthy cowards," Graul mumbled, clenching his fists.


    His eyes turned red with rage as the soil absorbed the precious water. Just like that, the reward, the reason for their risky assault, got snatched away from them.


    "Kill them all..." Graul growled. "BRING ME THEIR HEADS!"

 Chapter 155: Calamity Strikes (3)

    As the werewolves burst into the temple, their eyes fell on the only remaining container filled with Styx water. It was what they''de for, but getting to it would not be easy.


    Chiron had surrounded the container, their weapons raised. Alecton wasn''t willing to give up YuWon yet. Hence, they were going to protect him and fulfill their promise to the angel.


    "Tear them apart!" Graul roared.


    Without another word, the werewolvesunched themselves towards the Chiron. The temple was filled with the sounds of ws striking metal. As they continued to fight, one of Graul''s followers saw his chance.


    They pushed Alecton back to protect him from the onught. However, as the werewolves overwhelmed the guards, there was no one left to save Alecton. A werewolf realized the situation and lunged at the young leader.


    As he was about to grab Alecton, the container behind him cracked open with a loud shatter. The sacred water of the Styx gushed out, spilling across the floor. For a moment, everyone froze.


    Before they could notice what was happening, a pale hand shot out of the water, grabbing the werewolf about to attack Alecton, and snapping his neck with a sickening crack.


    Tossing the corpse aside, the hand slowly withdrew. The man stepped forward, drenched in the Styx water as he stared at the werewolves.


    "Tsk, I could have waited inside for a while longer," YuWon mumbled, looking at the broken container.


    YuWon stood in the center of the temple, the water of Styx swirling around him like a living storm. The werewolves circled him, growling, ws ready.


    "Don''t just stand there! Rip him to shreds!" Graul yelled, pointing a finger at YuWon.


    With a unified howl, the werewolves lunged at YuWon from all sides. The first wolf came at him from the front, its ws raised to tear his throat out.


    But YuWon was faster. He sidestepped, his hand shooting out to grab the werewolf''s wrist. With one smooth twist, he snapped the arm, then swung his other fist into the creature''s chest, shattering its ribcage.


    Another werewolf took advantage of the momentary distraction and leaped at YuWon from behind. Its ws struck YuWon, but there wasn''t even a scratch on it. YuWon just shrugged and smacked the guy away.


    The werewolf stumbled back, but YuWon pulled him back by the tail. He then grabbed him by the throat and lifted him into the air. Without a word, he tightened his grip until the werewolf''s neck gave a sickening crack, then tossed the limp body aside.


    Graul couldn''t believe it. The werewolves had elerated healing, but YuWon was killing them before their regeneration could kick in.


    Two more werewolves charged at him from opposite sides, trying to corner him. YuWon crouched low and then jumped over them. As he fell, he grabbed onto their heads, mming them into the ground with brutal force, shattering their heads like watermelons.


    One of the werewolves let out a roar, throwing itself at him with renewed rage. YuWon caught the creature''s arm mid-swing, then twisted it behind the werewolf''s back, forcing it to its knees.


    "You''re not even a challenge," YuWon murmured, almost disappointed by the werewolves.


    Before the werewolf could say more, YuWon delivered a crushing blow to the back of the werewolf''s neck, shattering its spine. It slumped forward, lifeless.


    "Keep attacking him!" Graul yelled desperately.


    After hearing Graul''s words, YuWon couldn''t help but smile. The remaining werewolves hesitated for a moment, but their loyalty to Graul forced them forward. Unfortunately, it was a big mistake. But fortunately, soon they won''t be making any of those anymore.


    As time passed, they attacked in waves of four or five at a time, but YuWon dealt with them all with ease.


    One werewolf tried to catch him off-guard, shing for his side, but YuWon spun and grabbed its arm, using its momentum to flip it over his shoulder.


    He followed up with a kick to its ribs, sending it crashing into another werewolf that had tried to sneak up on him.


    "Too slow, too obvious," YuWon taunted, stepping over another fallen werewolf.


    Another wolf tried to tackle him, but he dodged easily, mming his elbow into the creature''s temple. As it staggered, YuWon grabbed its jaw with one hand and the back of its head with the other, twisting sharply. The werewolf went limp, its neck broken.


    One by one, the werewolves fell. Some managed to scratch him, but the wounds healed even faster than they had been inflicted. Soon, only Graul remained, but he had no intentions of fighting YuWon.


    YuWon walked toward him, the blood of Graul''s kin sttered across his skin. Graul''s confidence was gone, reced by pure fear. He took a step back, then another, before he sprinted toward the temple''s exit.


    "Oh boy," YuWon sighed, but didn''t follow the beast.


    After all, it was thanks to him that YuWon aplished his goal. After all, he had intentionally let Lycaon''s skeleton apany him so the werewolves would follow the scent and attack the Chiron.


    Since the Chiron were strong and devoted to their gods, YuWon deemed them dangerous. After all, he would fight them soon. If the Chiron sided with the gods, things would be unnecessarily difficult.


    That''s why YuWon nned to get rid of them without raising a finger.


    As a thanks for helping him, YuWon would let the werewolf leave... his sight. But he couldn''t assure the guy''s safety beyond that.


    As Graul stumbled outside, he was relieved, but it was short-lived. Within moments, he came face to face with the centaurs who had been waiting outside the temple''s entrance.


    "You''re not going anywhere," Tehron announced.


    Graul looked from the centaurs to YuWon, who had followed him outside. Realizing he was trapped, Graul thought about taking someone hostage, but it was no use.


    The Chiron had already moved everyone out of Graul''s reach. Soon they moved in, capturing him, and forcing him down as he struggled uselessly against their strength. The Chiron dragged Graul away like a dragging a corpse.


    But as he was being dragged away, something strange happened. It was another earthquake. A momentter, something shot out of a nearby mountain... something that was on fire.


    They didn''t have to think for long, as the ming substance fell right on top of Graul, killing him.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "What the hell?"

 Chapter 156: Ignis? Nah, Campfire.

    Graul''s body was consumed in an instant, his body reduced to ash in the blink of an eye. Through the fire, a figure stood up, surrounded by intense mes from head to toe. His skin seemed to shimmer with the intensity of moltenva.


    Everyone instinctively backed down, unable to tolerate that man''s heat. The fiery figure ignored everyone around until his eyes were fixed on YuWon.


    The man lifted his hand, pointing a single finger toward YuWon, and without warning, a fireball shot from his fingertip. YuWon was immune to fire, but in that moment he was running on reflexes and ducked.


    The fireball flew past him, hitting the temple behind. In an instant, the ancient structure erupted in a fiery explosion, the walls crumbling as the st reduced the stone to smoldering rubble.


    The Chirons were backing away until that point. But after seeing their temple turn to dust, something snapped in them.


    "Attack! Don''t let him desecrate our home!" Tehron roared.


    As he did, the ming man turned to face them. As the first Chiron warrior lunged, thrusting his spear toward the intruder''s chest, the man didn''t even flinch.


    "No! Wait!" Alecton yelled, but no one listened to him.


    Instead, he lifted his hand, stopping the spear with his finger. The Chiron put his entire weight behind the spear, but nothing happened until the man tilted his head and smiled.


    In an instant, the entire spear was set on fire. The mes raced up the weapon and engulfed the Chiron warrior before he could let go of the weapon. Within seconds, the warrior was reduced to nothing but ashes carried away in the wind.


    Another Chiron attempted to strike from behind. She swung her sword down with all her might. But the ming man twisted around, catching the de with his bare hand.


    As it happened with the spear, the sword melted as if it were made of wax. The Chiron warrior stared in horror as her hand caught fire. Just like the one before, the fire spread across his armor and consumed her until nothing but ashes remained.


    YuWon watched them get ughtered. But when no other Chiron stepped up, the man''s focus went back to YuWon.


    "You. Dead." the man mumbled, pointing at YuWon. "I. Ignis. Kill."


    "No. Me. Whoop your ass."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Ignis didn''t take kindly to YuWon''s taunt and rushed at him with mes trailing behind him like aet. He kept looking at the fire spirit heading his way and, at thest moment; he sidestepped.


    Ignis skidded to a halt, ring at YuWon. "Running. Stop."


    "Running? Dude, I didn''t even move," YuWon smirked. "You. Slow. Dumbass."


    Ignis lunged at him again, his fist zing as he swung at YuWon''s face. But YuWon ducked, dodging the attack yet again. Ignis followed up with another punch, but YuWon ducked before smacking him in the head.


    "Stand still!" Ignis yelled.


    "Hey! You spoke two words together!" YuWonughed. "Let me hit you more. Maybe it''ll fix your broken speech."


    Ignis got angrier, which showed as the intensity of his mes increased. Even his attacks became more fierce. But no matter how fast or hard he struck, YuWon was one step ahead, dodging his attacks with minimal effort.


    Finally, YuWon stopped moving, standing still as Ignis unleashed another powerful punch. The ming fist connected with YuWon''s chest¡ªbut instead of burning him, the mes bounced off YuWon''s skin, leaving himpletely unharmed.


    "No. Burn?" Ignis mumbled, surprised.


    "Yeah, dumbass," YuWon smiled. "I''m immune to fire."


    With that, YuWon hit Ignis across the face. The impact sent the fiery man stumbling backward, momentarily dazed. Ignis roared in frustration, mes ring around him as he regained his bnce.


    Enraged, Ignis began gathering mes in his hand, slowly creating a fireball. It would have been easier to stop him. But YuWon didn''t bother. The more destruction Ignis caused, the more time it''d take the Chirons to reim their position.


    "Go ahead," he taunted, crossing his arms. "Give it your best shot."


    Ignis hurled the fireball at YuWon. The massive sphere came crashing into YuWon like a meteor. But just as the fireball was about to make contact, he raised his hand, catching it with his bare palm.


    The Chirons backed away from the heat, but YuWon held it firmly, unharmed by the searing heat. Ignis stared in disbelief as YuWon causally threw the fireball away.


    "Is that all?" YuWon asked before yawning.


    "Impossible. Mother. Told. Me. Strongest!"


    "She hasn''t met me yet, I guess," YuWon shrugged. "Who is she either way?"


    "Mother is Mother."


    "...why did I even bother?"


    "Burn¡­ all¡­!" Ignis roared.


    He mmed his fists on the ground, sending out waves of mes and setting everything around him on fire. The Chiron could only watch in horror as their houses were set on fire.


    Meanwhile, YuWon watched him with his arms crossed. He could easily take down Ignis now, but he held back. After all, Ignis was doing his dirty work for him.


    This destruction would weaken the Chiron, eliminate any thoughts of resistance from them, and give him one less potential hurdle to deal withter.


    "More¡­ burn more!" Ignis roared, stomping across the temple grounds, setting fire to everything within his reach.


    The houses, the carefully cultivated gardens, everything the Chiron had made for themselves was slowly turning to dust. The Chiron were running all over the ce trying to dodge the mes.


    After throwing the tantrum, Ignis slowed, his chest heaving with each breath.


    "Are you done?" YuWon asked as the mes died down.


    "No¡­ no¡­ burn¡­ you!"


    Ignis attempted to throw another barrage of fire at YuWon. But his mes sputtered, barely a flickerpared to the earlier chaos he caused. Knowing Ignis couldn''t do anything to help him anymore, YuWon took a step towards him.


    "Give your mother my regards."


    YuWon clenched his fists, preparing for the final blow. Just as he was about to strike, Ignis''s body got covered with mes. Before YuWon knew what was happening, Ignis vanished, leaving only a fading trail of embers in his ce.


    "...dude took my words to heart," YuWon mumbled, scratching his head.

 Chapter 157: Next!

    The once-thriving city was now in ruins. The grand garden and buildings had turned into ckened debris, stretching out in all directions.


    Ashes from the burned buildings and people floated in the air like snowkes. The homes, statues, and ancient architecture, nothing was spared from Ignis''s rampage.


    The bones and ashes of fallen Chiron warriors were scattered everywhere. Within minutes, the entire city turned into a cemetery.


    Those who had survived ran around the ruins, desperately looking for their loved ones. Some were busy pulling theirrades from under fallen stones, helping the wounded, and offeringfort to those who had lost everything.


    Yet amid all the sorrow and despair, YuWon''s eyes held no pity. He kept his expression uninterested, but inside, he was satisfied with the result. The chaos Ignis had unleashed served his purposes well. After all, weakening the Chiron and making them easier to influence.


    If I y my cards right, I might get more than I expected from them.


    YuWon scanned the area, but suddenly he was worried when he realized that Anna, Gina, and Yeji were nowhere to be seen. He didn''t care about Soo-Ah, as she had fulfilled her purpose, but the rest weren''t expendable for him.


    His satisfaction quickly turned to concern. He noticed Alecton further ahead. He was busy directing the remaining Chiron to clear rubble and tend to the injured. But YuWon didn''t care about all that.


    "Alecton," YuWon said. "Where''s my team?"


    Alecton looked confused, ncing around as if noticing the absence of the girls for the first time. He had been inside the temple all this time, so he didn''t know what happened outside.


    "I¡­ I''ll find out right away."


    With that, he beckoned to one of his guards, who sprinted off to make inquiries. Momentster, the centaur returned, whispering something into Alecton''s ear.


    YuWon watched as the color drained from Alecton''s face, his eyes widening in rm. Something was off and YuWon was immediately worried.


    Alecton turned slowly back to YuWon, clearly hesitant to share the news. But he hesitated, his eyes staring at everything but at YuWon''s eyes. He was afraid, not about what he had learned but about how YuWon would react after learning the truth.


    "...there was¡­ a misunderstanding," he mumbled finally. "When the werewolves attacked¡ª"


    "Your people thought I brought them here, didn''t they?" he sighed, exasperated.


    It didn''t take a genius to figure out what happened. Besides, it wasn''t exactly a mistake, but it wasn''t something YuWon would openly admit.


    What would he say to them, that he had deliberately used Lycaon''s skeleton, knowing it would carry the scent of their leader to attract Graul and his pack to the city?


    But if Alecton or the other Chiron thought he''d done it on purpose, they''d be even less likely to trust him in the future. He had to y his part and appear as the hurt benefactor who had only ever wanted to help but got hurt by theck of Chiron''s trust.


    "All I''ve done is help you, and this is what I get in return?" YuWon shook his head, raising his voice. "This was a mistake¡ª!"


    Alecton''s face turned an even paler shade, if that were possible. He swallowed hard, ncing nervously at his guards. The thought of angering YuWon any further was harrowing.


    "No, you''re mistaken! I¡­ I''ll have them released immediately!" Alecton announced, quickly turning to face the guards. "Go, bring them here! With honor!"


    "If there''s a single scratch on either of them," he said coldly, staring through Alecton. "I''ll burn what''s left of your city myself."


    The centaur visibly flinched, bowing his head. He didn''t dare argue as the guards hurried away.


    A few minutes passed, but finally, after what felt like an eternity, Anna, Gina, Yeji with Soo-Ah were led out of the house. They looked tired but were unharmed. Alecton visibly rxed and sighed in relief once he noticed the girls.


    YuWon gave each of the girls a once-over. Thankfully, the mes didn''t reach the house, or else they might not be standing there before them.


    Once YuWon was sure they were unharmed, he turned back to Alecton. He knew the girls had a lot to talk about, especially Soo-Ah. He''d have to get her in control eventually. But for the moment, his focus was on Alecton and the Chirons.


    "So, what are your ns now?" he asked.


    "We''ll try to rebuild¡­ what''s left."


    Although Alecton said that, his voice had little trust in the words. After all, when they had established the city, they had the water from the River Styx.


    It gave them the resilience of withstanding the harsh conditions of the coldnds. It gave them the courage to survive the harsh weather. But now they had nothing left.


    Returning to our old territory wasn''t an option either; the other centaur tribes there won''t take kindly to them. Now that they were weak, they might even be subject to regr attacks.


    The Chiron were strong, but their morale was at an all-time low. Fighting battles weren''t something they were prepared for at the moment. Alecton''s face fell as he went over all those thoughts inside his head.


    But as YuWon watched Alecton''s despair grow with every word, an idea formed in his mind. This was his chance to sway the Chiron, to pull them away from their loyalty to the gods, and make them his allies.


    He''d already shaken their faith; now all they needed was a push in the


    right


    direction.


    "Why don''t you live near the roots?" YuWon suggested. "I already have a base there. You can stay and recuperate. When you''re confident in your ability to rebuild, you can either return here or establish a new city with the humans out there."


    He continued before anyone could interrupt. "More importantly, you''d be safer, and the resources there would help you regain your strength. What do you think?"


    Alecton looked at him, clearly surprised.


    "Why would you go that far for us?" he asked, somewhat suspicious of him.


    "It''s not like you''ll be staying forever," YuWon shrugged, feigning indifference. "Just long enough to rebuild your strength. Consider it a temporary solution. But it''s your choice. I won''t force you."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Alecton studied him for a moment. Then, with a weary smile, he finally spoke.


    "How much more in your debt do you want the Chiron to be? You saved us from that fire spirit, protected us from the werewolves¡­ and now you''re offering us a ce to stay?"


    YuWon''s face remained neutral, though inwardly, he was pleased. He could already see the pieces falling into ce. But didn''t let a hint of his satisfaction show. Instead, he shrugged.


    "I''m only doing what any ally would," he replied, pretending his offer held no hidden motive.


    "I... see."


    For a moment, YuWon thought Alecton might refuse, that perhaps the centaur''s pride would keep him from epting help from a human. But after a moment''s hesitation, Alecton lowered his head and bowed.


    "Then we will be in your debt, YuWon," he said solemnly. "If you ever need us, we''ll answer your call in whatever way we can."


    YuWon feigned surprise, but he was grinning inwardly. His n had worked perfectly. He''d not only weakened the Chiron''s allegiance to the gods but had gained them as his allies.


    ***


    Meanwhile, somewhere deep within the roots...


    Ignis kneeled on the stone floor, unable to look his parents in the eye. neither Echidna nor Helios said a word, but Ignis could feel the coldness of their stares burning through him more intensely than any fire he could conjure.


    "You failed, Ignis," Echidna hissed. "He is but a mortal. You have the blood of gods within you... yet you failed."


    "He. Immune," Ignis tried to argue, but got pped in the face by Helios.


    Helios pped Ignis, but it wasn''t out of disappointment. After all, both his parents knew about YuWon''s immunity to fire. Unfortunately, their bond had created Ignis, and it was unlikely Echidna would make another offspring with him.


    That''s why he sent Ignis to YuWon, hoping the blood within Ignis would physically overpower the mortal. Unfortunately, YuWon was a step ahead and bathed in the water of Styx, granting him [Invulnerability].


    But the fight only made it more infuriating for Helios. The fact that a mere human could defy their kind was more than an embarrassment¡ªit was a threat.


    What started as a fight to reim his honor as a titan now left him worrying about their survival.


    YuWon still had to climb 20 sections of the world tree to reach the top. But if he was so strong after climbing two sections, Helios couldn''t help but worry about what would happen if he were to climb to the top.


    While lost in his thoughts, a sharp caw drew everyone''s attention. A ck crow pped its wings as itnded before them. In a puff of smoke, the crow shifted, its feathers dissolving into a slender, dark-haired woman.


    "Morrigan," Helios greeted her. "What are you doing here?"


    "Oh, I was just wondering how it feels," sheughed, looking at Ignis, "to create the worst possible offspring and then send him off to fight a mortal and still fail. Quite the strategy."


    "If you''re here just to mock us, then leave. We have no time for your games."


    "You''re no fun, Helios," Morrigan sighed. "But believe it or not, I came to help you. And I brought a little¡­ gift."

 Chapter 158: Against Oneself

    The dim light of a flickering campfire painted the cave orange. Shadows danced along the jagged stone walls, creating sinister shapes that seemed to move on their own.


    A faint whimper escaped someone''s lips, followed by a man''s clicking tongue. Then there was silence... apart from the shallow breaths of the elves tied to wooden posts.


    There were three of them¡ªeach one secured tightly. Their wrists had turned blue and their faces pale. Blood trickled from various wounds on their bodies, staining the floor.


    Despite their injuries, their eyes remained sharp, full of defiance. But when they saw the young boy standing before them, all that rage turned into empathy.


    But the young elf boy, who was only twelve, had fear in his emerald eyes.


    "Why did you stop, my boy?" the man sighed.


    "...I-I ran out," the elf boy replied.


    "Collect the knives, then."


    The boy nodded and rushed towards his family. Meanwhile, the man lounged near the fire, his features hidden by shadows. He idly tossed a throwing knife into the air, catching it again with practiced ease.


    His movements werezy, almost as if he was bored to death. But there was a chilling precision in how he bnced the falling de on the tip of his fingers.


    The man turned his hidden gaze to the young elf. He stared at the young man and smiled as if he remembered something.


    "You know, your kind always prides itself on its resilience," he mumbled. "I''m curious. Just how far can you bend before you break?"


    With a flick of his wrist, he sent the knife hurtling through the air. It whistled past the boy''s trembling ears and buried itself into the post behind him.


    "Though you should try being honest for once," the man continued, pointing at the clean cut in the rope. "I know what you''ve been doing, boy."


    Before the boy could give an excuse, the man threw another de at him. The de missed by inches, as he wanted.


    The boy still fell on his knees, covering his head in fear. The man''s soft chuckle echoed in the cave. But this time, hisugh was cold and devoid of any warmth.


    The papa elf clenched his teeth, refusing to cry out as the stranger toyed with their family. His mother, tied to a post before, struggled against her bindings, tears streaming down her dirt-streaked face.


    "Please," she pleaded, her voice cracking. "Leave him alone."


    The man leaned back and sighed, as if considering her words. But then shook his head.


    "Leave him alone?" he repeated. "But he''s just so much fun. Isn''t that what your kind said to my wife and child?"


    He drew another knife and got up. He approached the boy and squatted so that they were at eye level.


    "Don''t flinch," he whispered, pressing the de into the boy''s small palm. "It''ll hurt more if you do."n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "No!" the mother yelled.


    Before the man could throw the de using the boy''s arm, sudden footsteps echoed from the mouth of the cave. A man with a long scar on his face stumbled in, panting.


    He was calm at first, but then his face turned pale. He hurried to the knife-wielding figure and leaned in, whispering urgently into his ear.


    For a moment, the man with the knives was silent. Then, slowly, he smiled. He turned back to the boy, his eyes suddenly had a shine.


    "Well, well. It seems things are about to get interesting," he said, hugging the boy. "I''m afraid I''ll have to end this session now."


    With a sudden movement, he wrapped his hand around the boy''s wrist, forcing the small hand to grip the knife tightly.


    "But let''s y a game before I leave," he murmured. "A game called revenge."


    "No!" the boy''s mother screamed, struggling desperately.


    The man ignored her, guiding the boy''s hand. Together, they hurled the knife. The de flew, burying itself in the chest of the boy''s mother. Her cries were cut short as her body slumped against the post.


    "No!"


    The boy screamed, pushing the man away. Tears streamed down his face as he stared at his mother''s lifeless form. Watching the boy cry, the man''s smile vanished.


    He won the game, and yet he was crying. The man was nning on leaving the rest. But the young man spoiled his mood.


    "So noisy," he muttered as he ced his hand on the boy''s head. "Time to be quiet."


    The boy''s father wanted to say something, but when he opened his mouth, the man threw a knife at him, killing him. He did the same with the boy''s sister.


    "No! Stop!" the boy yelled, trying to bite the man''s hand, but couldn''t. He was only a century old, unable to perform extravagant moves to surprise the man and avenge his family. He could only watch them die... slowly.


    "Shh..." the man whispered in his ear. "You''ll all live like a happy family soon."


    The next moment, a sickening crack echoed through the cavern as he twisted the boy''s neck. The young elf''s body went limp, copsing at the man''s feet.


    But as the boy fell, he ripped the man''s sleeve. It was only then that a dark tattoo was revealed¡ªa serpent coiled around his arm, its fangs poised to strike. Beneath ity another tattoo, the symbol of the Phantom''s Bag.


    The man nced at the tattoo and shook his head. "The more I try to forget about this, the more I have to remember it. Isn''t that right, Hojin?"


    "...right, YuWon."


    "...what did you call me?"


    "Sorry... I meant..."


    "It doesn''t matter," the man waved his hand. "Where is he?"


    "ording to Soo-Ah, on the bark''s second level."


    "I see," the man said. "And who is with him?"


    "Yeji and Anna."


    "Them, huh?" the man mumbled, tracing the serpent''s outline, lost in thought for a moment. "This will be fun. I knew I''d have to deal with him myself. Clean up, we''d need a ce to wee the old me."

 Chapter 159: Reset (1)

    "We''re ready to leave," Alecton announced.


    It took a few days for the Chiron to pack everything up. Most of them weren''t ready to leave thend their ancestors cultivated, but they had no choice. Ignis had ruined everything.


    Alecton took YuWon''s offer and was willing to leave. But the Chiron weren''t the only ones leaving. Almost all awakeners were going with them. They had heard about the fight with Ignis and the werewolves.


    As such, they didn''t think it wise to continue the journey, and YuWon didn''t stop them, either. It was good they recognized their weakness and stepped down.


    "Alright, let''s head back," YuWon nodded.


    Everyone walked back to the forest. They even reached the end, but as they were about to exit, something weird happened. A mountain of corpses blocked the path ahead.


    Centaurs, humans, and even werewolves were piled on each other. Two men were standing in front, their backs turned towards the crowd of Centaurs and humans.


    YuWon had a bad feeling about it. Something about these people... felt off. He gestured for Yeji, Anna, and Gina to step back. The rest of them were to be used as shields.


    "You took your sweet time," a man spoke, wiping the blood off the crimson de. "I hope you didn''t mind me killing some of you to pass the time."


    Everyone was shocked and turned towards YuWon. The voice was eerily simr to his. Anna was the first one to react. She grabbed YuWon''s arm and made a run for it.


    "Tsk, you''ll never change Anna," the other YuWon smiled, showing his face to the rest. "That''s why I always kill you first. Leaving a regressor alive is always a pain in the ass."


    Saying so, the other YuWon took a step, but the Chiron stood in between. No one knew what was happening, but they didn''t care. Someone meant to cause harm to their savior. It was their duty to stop them.


    Alecton was hiding behind the soldiers. He was confident they''d defeat the man before them. Unfortunately, he was way too optimistic.


    In the blink of an eye, the Chiron''s were ughtered. Everyone was shocked as their corpses hit the ground.


    "Filthy insects," the other YuWon snarled. "Hojin, deal with them."


    "...alright."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Hojin pressed his palms together and a weight scale appeared in his hands. He pushed the scale before the Awakeners and they began copsing one after the other.


    No one got a chance to fight back. Yeji, Gina, Alecton... everyone fell to the ground. Just like that... they were dead. Everyone on the floor except Anna and YuWon had died because Hojin wished for it to happen.


    But there was a huge price to pay for it. Hojin looked at the fallen people, and soon ghostly visages began to rise from the corpses. Yeji''s spirit was the first to meet his eyes but there was no hint of animosity in her.


    Hojin closed his eyes. It was the curse of using the mythical item. Anyone he killed will follow him for all eternity. Their souls would ensure the user of the reaper''s clock would never have a moment of peace.


    The artifact was also the reason why YuWon never killed him. The sadist wanted Hojin to suffer alongside him. But this time Hojin was nearing his limit.


    "You''ll pay for this," a spirit whispered.


    Hojin didn''t open his eyes. By now, thousands of spirits had surrounded him, cursing him to die with them. Only then would the souls leave for the afterlife and find peace.


    "Die with us."


    Hojin''s chest tightened. He took a step back, then another, until his legs felt weak and he fell to his knees. Unable to take it anymore, he covered his ears, yelling to drown the voices of the souls he doomed.


    "Coward! You must suffer as we have!"


    "Go away!" Hojin screamed.


    "Weak..." other YuWon scoffed. "Maybe it''s time to put you to rest."


    But he shook his head and turned away. There was no time to deal with Hojin now. After all, he had to kill YuWon before the bastard jumped to some other timeline. He had to hunt him down before that fool destroyed everything and doomed the world.


    Because of that fool, the gods have already arrived here.


    If they couldn''t even handle the werewolves meant that people weren''t strong enough to fight back the world tree''s influence. Moreover, the otherworld''s appearance was tied to how strong the awakeners were.


    Their average strength didn''t matter. As soon as an Awakener is deemed strong enough to enter the world tree, the world will evolve, forgetting about the rest.


    In other words, if one person became too powerful while everyone else stayed weak, the gods would field day hunting them down. That''s what happened to the other YuWon''s timeline.


    He learned the lesson the hard way. No matter how strong one human was, they could never beat an entire group of gods alone. That''s why it was more important to get stronger together than to keep all the power for yourself.


    Thus he had made it his mission to hunt down the doomed versions of himself and kill them. When only one timeline remained, the other YuWon would do everything perfectly and save everyone. Even if it meant killing the people he once cared about.


    ***


    "What the hell is going on?" YuWon asked.


    Anna didn''t reply and kept running. She hadn''t seen the other YuWon before. But she knew a crazy bastard when she saw one.


    "He''s here to kill you," she finally spoke.


    "Thanks, Einstein!" YuWonmented sarcastically. "I know he''s here to kill me, but why the hell are we running? We can--!"


    "No, we can''t!" Anna yelled,ing to an abrupt stop. "Didn''t you see? He killed everyone who was on this floor. You think you can defeat someone like that?"


    "...I''m different now."


    Anna opened her mouth to say something, but before she could utter a word, a sword impaled her. Shocked, YuWon turned around to see the other YuWon standing further away. He threw his sword to kill Anna before she had a chance to say anything.


    "Finally, we can chat without interruptions," the other YuWon smiled, pulling out a new crimson de.

 Chapter 160: Reset (2)

    "You''re me, huh?" YuWon mumbled, retrieving his Noir de.


    "You don''t look surprised," the other YuWonmented. "I expected more reaction from you."


    YuWon sighed, looking at Anna. She was already gone, but YuWon didn''t feel any sadness. He had already marked a checkpoint. Everything should be fine as long as he killed his other self. But there was a problem.


    He can respawn as well.


    It wasn''t like his fight with Anna. He was fighting a better and stronger version of himself. Killing the other YuWon once wasn''t enough. He''d have to kill him till his respawn points had dried up.


    But that itself was a problem. Unlike YuWon, his other self must have killed hundreds of thousands of beings. Creatures that were stronger than anything he had faced.


    As such, he had amassed an unthinkable amount of respawn points. YuWon didn''t think he had it in him to stop his other self. But before all that, he needed to know something.


    "Why are you doing this?" he asked. "Killing everything in sight? Is that necessary?"


    The other YuWon smiled knowingly and shrugged. "You''re the reason. Your greed has ruined this branch of timelines. I''d exin more, but it would take too long¡ªand I still have to track down your other versions."


    With that, heunched towards YuWon, who used [Tectonic m] to slow down his other self. Unfortunately, he wasn''t the other self for nothing. He dug his de into the ground and used it tounch himself into the air.


    YuWon had expected such a maneuver and immediately let a soul loose toward his other self. The other self smiled and let out his own [Soul Reaver] powers¡ªonly his abilities far surpassed anything YuWon could do.


    Thousands of souls bombarded YuWon like missiles. He tried to dodge and absorb them, but he couldn''t block even a small part of the attack. But instead of taking over his body, the souls started chipping away at his HP.


    YuWon felt pain all over his body. At first, he didn''t pay any attention, but then he noticed something was off. His HP was actively decreasing, even though he wasn''t being attacked anymore.


    Moreover, since it wasn''t a physical attack, Hydra''s heart couldn''t heal his wounds, because there weren''t any on his body.


    "It took me a while toe up with this move," the other YuWon announced. "The souls I unleashed are actively sucking your life force. They are quite vengeful, so just die quickly."


    "Like hell, I''d die so easily!"


    YuWon lunged at him, intending to use [Soul Grapple] and get rid of him for good. But he was in a precarious situation. His HP was dropping at an rming rate and even with respawn skill, he was worried.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The other YuWon knew he could respawn, but he was acting too confidently. That''s what worried YuWon. His other self must have a n to stop him from respawning.


    He kept attacking his other self, but he deflected every attack with ease, as if he had been through the same thing over a thousand times. YuWon stepped back, catching his breath. Sweat dripped down his brow, but he ignored it, rushing in once more.


    His swing became wider and erratic. He was full of openings, but the other YuWon didn''t strike him once and kept smiling. But suddenly his smile dropped, and he kicked YuWon away.


    "Fucking piece of shit!"


    The change in the mood of his other self was weird. But then YuWon smiled. He must have killed him somehow and the other self respawned, irritated. That exined the reason.


    However, the thought didn''t bring him any peace. Suddenly, the de slipped from his hands and he copsed to the ground. His vision got blurry, and all the strength left his body.


    YuWon checked his stats, only to see his HP had dropped below 20 points. He could feel death approaching and he grabbed the de.


    Instead of turning it toward the other YuWon, he turned the de toward himself. He nned to end it before his other self could stop him from respawning.


    But he was too slow. The other YuWon rushed and kicked the sword away. But more importantly, he had something in his hands. YuWon barely had time to blink as his opponent shoved the familiar dagger into his chest.


    "Surprised?" the other self asked, smiling mockingly. "No respawns. No tricks. Just you... and death."


    [Medusa''s Fang] gleamed in the artificial light inside the world tree. Unlike the replica he had, his other self had the actual artifact. That''s why the other YuWon was so confident. He had intended to seal YuWon''s abilities before he could respawn.


    The HP bar ticked dangerously low: 18... 12... 9...


    "Goodbye," the other YuWon whispered.


    With that, the other YuWon turned to leave. He used his sword to create a dimensional rift to hunt his other target, but as he took a step, he heard augh.


    The other YuWon turned, only to see YuWonughing like a madman. His body was pale and blood trickled down his mouth, but he keptughing as he had won a lottery.


    "What''s so funny?" the other YuWon asked.


    "You forgot something," YuWon smirked, gripping the dagger''s hilt tightly. "We''re the same person."


    Once used, only the user could remove the [Medusa''s Fang]. But since YuWon and the other YuWon were the same, the dagger recognized both as its owner. In other words, YuWon had as much im on the dagger as his other self.


    With that, YuWon ripped the dagger from his chest. The other YuWon''s face twisted in rage, and he lunged at him. But YuWon would not wait for him.


    He threw the original [Medusa''s Fang] in his inventory and instantly activated [Load] ability. YuWon didn''t care where he was going as long as it was far away from the clutches of his other self.


    Space and time bent around him as he was pulled away. YuWon was leaving, but not before he gave his other self a middle finger.


    "See youter,


    me


    ," YuWonughed as he vanished.


    "...ARGH!"


    The other YuWon''s scream was thest thing he heard before everything turned dark.

 Chapter 161: Reset (3)

    YuWon woke up surrounded by darkness. Eerie darkness stretched everywhere. He didn''t recall ever marking such a ce as a checkpoint. Everything there felt... strange, like someone was staring at him.


    Just then, he saw a throne before him. A throne made of skulls and bones. On the throne sat a woman, nkly staring at YuWon.


    Her long hair flowed like a golden river in the darkness, and her eyes, ck as night, seemed to pierce straight through him. She watched him with a faint smile.


    "Wee, my child," the woman said. "I''ve been expecting you."


    "Who are you?" YuWon asked.


    He tried taking the noir de from his inventory, only to realize the other YuWon had kicked it away before he escaped.


    "...fuck," he mumbled.


    The woman on the throneughed before shaking her head. "I''m not your enemy YuWon."


    "Sure you''re not," YuWon scoffed.


    Amused by his reaction, the woman leaned forward, her fingers tapping the armrest of her grotesque throne.


    "I am Ereshkigal," she said. "Goddess of the Underworld and your benefactor... in a way."


    Find your next read at m_v l|e-NovelBin


    "My¡­ benefactor?" YuWon repeated before shaking his head. "Why am I here¡ª?"


    "You died..." Ereshkigal sighed, almost as if she pitied him.


    Maybe she thought YuWon would break down or throw a fit, which is why his calm reaction seemed so strange to her. He just looked down, wondering how he could die.


    Without the dagger in him, even if he died, he''d respawn. Instead, he scored a date with the goddess of the underworld.


    "Yes. You died while trying to load an earlier checkpoint."


    "You know my ability, right?" YuWon smiled and shook his head. "I can''t die¡ª!"


    "Is that what you believe?" Ereshkigal interrupted.


    She got off the throne and walked to him slowly. She stood before him and lifted his chin with a finger. YuWon sighed as she caressed his cheek and smiled.


    "It''s not over yet, YuWon."


    He stared up at her, confused. "But you said I died, and apparently I can''t respawn¡ª!"


    Just then, Ereshkigal couldn''t hold back and beganughing.


    "You died, but you can still respawn. I merely borrowed your consciousness to tell you a few things that others don''t want you to know."


    YuWon looked at her in disbelief and was about toin when Ereshkigal ced her finger on his lips.


    "Time is of the essence, YuWon. You can give me an earfulter. For now, there''s a lot you need to know."


    YuWon''s eyes widened. Borrowed his consciousness? He couldn''t wrap his mind around it, but before he could question her, Ereshkigal continued.


    "Do you remember the world tree you saw?" she asked. "That was only a sapling. The true world tree is something even the gods struggle toprehend."


    She continued, "The true World Tree is something far greater. It''s an existence that binds various dimensions¡ªor, as you call them, timelines¡ªtogether. Each branch of the world tree represents a different timeline. Each leaf a different universe."


    With a snap of her fingers, Ereshkigal reced the darkness with a massive tree.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    YuWon''s breath caught in his throat. He had always thought of the world tree as an unreachable entity, but hearing her describe it as something even gods could not fully understand sent a chill through him.


    It was a massive treeden with green leaves, but suddenly, some branches dried up. Some turned rotten, infecting other branches. YuWon turned to Ereshkigal, who was watching the tree with sadness.


    "The branches where you died have dried up, never to flourish again." She paused. "I thought your living was the key to creating a perfect universe. I was wrong."


    "Wrong?"


    YuWon recalled Anna saying the same thing. That his death had ruined the future of her timeline. But from Ereshkigal''s words, it didn''t seem his being alive got any positive result either.


    "Yes, I was wrong," she replied. "The branches where you gained immense power became corrupted, rotten. Their decay spread to other branches, infecting even the healthy ones."


    YuWon''s heart pounded as realization struck. He remembered the other version of himself. His eyes met Ereshkigal''s, and she nodded as if reading his thoughts.


    "That other YuWon was a product of such corruption," she confirmed. "After losing too many loved ones, the lust for power dominated his thoughts. He became a disease, jumping from one leaf to the other, killing any version of you he came across."


    A cold shiver ran down YuWon''s spine. It seemed the god''s game was taking its toll on the world tree and his existence was the trigger.


    If he died, the branch and consequent leaves would dry up. But if he lived and got too strong, the world tree would be in greater danger.


    "So, what am I supposed to do now?"


    "I don''t know," Ereshkigal sighed, looking defeated.


    "There is no clear path forward. But I know this: You must live. You still need to get stronger, but not alone."


    YuWon tilted his head, wondering what she was talking about. But then Ereshkigal told him the reason for his failure.


    "You can get stronger without making reckless moves. Don''t interfere in scenarios with brute force."


    "What do you mean?" YuWon asked. "You''re talking as if I destroyed the bnce¡ªoh... I see."


    Ereshkigal smiled.


    "When you killed the fire giant, it set off a chain of events. By killing an ''unkible'' monster, you proved the awakeners were too powerful. It sped up the third awakening by a decade and threw everything into chaos.


    "I didn''t know¡­" he shook his head. "But even if I did, should I let those monsters roam freely? What about the awakeners who wanted to kill me? Should I do nothing about them?"


    "Not exactly," Ereshkigal said. "Be more selective. Only kill when absolutely necessary. The Fire Giant, for example, was meant to be unkible. Its death broke the cycle, creating a destabilized world."


    She continued, "Try ying a supportive role for once. Help the awakeners, cultivate and guide them. Fight the monsters, but don''t be the center of every conflict."


    "Follow the rules of the game. Is that what you want me to do?"


    "The gods are watching you closely, and it''s best not to provoke them... even though it might be toote."


    "They won''t leave me be, would they?" YuWon shrugged.


    "That''s how it seems to be," she admitted. "Many gods are already watching you. For now, they can''t act against you directly. But since you reversed the progress of a timeline, they will get some concessions."


    "So, what do I do if theye after me?"


    "...I can offer you something to help."


    She stepped closer, cing her hand over his chest. A strange warmth spread from her palm, slipping into his body. YuWon''s eyes widened as he felt the disaster hearts he had absorbed start to shift, breaking apart and reforming into something new.


    Unlike before, it didn''t hurt, but the sensation was unlike anything he''d felt before. When she stepped back, a message floated before his eyes.


    [The User has epted the God Seed. Feed it well, and you shall ascend to godhood. Current progress: 0.00%]


    YuWon stared at the words, stunned. His disaster heart had turned into a god seed waiting to sprout. But there was a strange thought in his head.


    Ereshkigal was a goddess herself, yet she was helping him fight the gods? Was it only because of the world tree or she had some other reason behind her actions?


    As if reading his thoughts, Ereshkigal smiled. "I called you my child, didn''t I? Isn''t that reason enough to help? Before I forget... a few surprises will be waiting for you when you respawn."


    With that, she turned and walked away; her form fading into the darkness. The scenery changed again, and this time he stood on the terrace of his college, the wind ruffling his hair.


    "...so we''re back again."

 Chapter 162: Gods Game: Remake

    "¡­I''ve reallye back, huh." YuWon sighed.


    He felt conflicted. In his haste to [Load] before losing his life, he carelessly picked the first checkpoint. Either that or Ereshkigal intentionally threw him at the start to undo his mistakes.


    Either way, YuWon checked his stats first. Everything remained the same, with a couple of changes. He had new options right under his name.


    [Community] and [Special Store].


    These were the surprises Ereshkigal had prepared for him. Although it wasn''t his first time in such a scenario, it seemed the goddess had gone all-out to help him, though he didn''t know what [Community] meant.


    YuWon tried clicking it, but nothing happened. As for the [Special Store], it didn''t take a genius to figure out what it was. A store made just for him.


    "I bet the other gods also got some privileges," YuWon sighed.


    From what little he knew about the gods, they wouldn''t let Ereshkigal allow YuWon to have such stuff without something in return. The first thing he could think of was their involvement in the game.


    Earlier, their involvement depended on the world tree''s growth. But now that it was gone, they must bepensated. Allowing them to intervene early on would be the best and the easiest option for the angels.


    Another thing was the new stat, [God Seed: 0.00% progression]. Since Ereshkigal had already exined it to him, YuWon bothered a little about it. But ast surprise was waiting for him.


    "I greet the master."


    A feminine voice appeared behind YuWon. He smiled, knowing who it was.


    "Good to see you too, Lilith," YuWon said, turning around.


    Lilith wasn''t the small fairy YuWon remembered. She was now a fully grown woman, carrying a sword¡ªYuWon''s Noir de. She handed him the de and YuWon inspected it before handing it back to Lilith.


    "Use it well," he said.


    Lilith already knew YuWon would say something like that and didn''t offer him the sword back. He won''t need the sword soon. Why? Because he wasn''t nning on killing any beast that would require him to use a weapon.


    "It''s about time."


    YuWon turned around, staring at the clock. The next moment, the ground shook, marking the arrival of the goblins. But this time, YuWon wasn''t nning on wasting his time on the roof.


    YuWon decided to follow Ereshkigal''s suggestion. Instead of getting strong alone, he would raise others to be as strong as him. Once they reached his level, he could freely take part in the scenarios.


    "Let''s collect some people, shall we?"


    In his past timeline, YuWon had hastily killed or let go of some powerful individuals. This time, he was nning to recruit them, by hook or by crook.


    Just because he didn''t intend to fight the scenarios didn''t mean he was about to let go of his old ways. Climbing over the terrace walls, YuWon looked around for the first person he''d recruit this time around.


    In less than ten minutes, the ce had turned upside down. People were trying to escape with little goblins chasing after them. But in the middle of it all, YuWon saw it: the first monster to give him so much trouble.


    "Found you..." he smiled, staring at the hobgoblin.


    Why was he looking for the Hobgoblin? To lead YuWon to Soo-Ah, who was practically the stronger awakener in the tutorial.


    If YuWon went to look for her in the chaos, it would take him hours. But if he followed the Hobgoblin, he''d lead him to Soo-Ah. If he saved her from the beast, wouldn''t she feel indebted to him?


    "Sorry, Min-Joon. I''ll be taking your girl this time."


    ***


    Soo-Ah stood in the dimly lit utility room, panting wildly. A bloodied baseball bat remained in her hand. It was an odd sight, but without the baseball bat, she''d be lying on the floor instead of the goblin.


    She had just returned from her practice when she saw it. A small green-skinned creature hiding inside, waiting to pounce on its target. She dodged the initial attack purely on instinct, grabbed the bat, and kept hitting the beast until it died.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I... I did it," she whispered.


    She nced around the empty room, half expecting more monsters to burst through the door. But she was all alone. Just as she was thinking she was safe, something unexpected happened.


    The goblin''s corpse twitched. Soo-Ah jumped back and raised the bat again, ready to strike. But then she stopped. As the creature stood up, its flesh and skin slipped off, leaving a bare skeleton behind.


    The skeleton looked at her for a moment, then to her astonishment, it kneeled before her.


    [You have gained a subordinate.]


    "What the...?" Soo-Ah gasped, lowering the bat slightly. Enjoy exclusive content from m v -NovelBin


    As she stared at the skeleton, she realized it wasn''t menacing at all. It tilted its head in a way that reminded her of a curious puppy. Despite herself, she found it oddly... cute. Still, she had to be sure.


    "You will not attack me, would you?" she asked hesitantly.


    The skeleton shook its head¡ªor at least; it seemed to. Soo-Ah let out augh. This was insane. All of it. But she couldn''t help but remember a teddy bear she''d cherished as a child when she looked at the skeleton.


    "Mickey," she whispered. "I think I''ll call you Mickey."


    Suddenly, the ground shook. Then it shook again. Something big was headed her way. She carefully peered outside and saw another goblin, but it was different.


    Not only was it bigger than Mickey, its skin was a lighter shade of green and it seemed to be heading her way.


    "Oh, crap!"


    She didn''t want that thing to get anywhere close to her. Soo-Ah quickly adjusted her sneakers and made a break for it. The hobgoblin roared when it saw her, but she didn''t dare look back.


    But the sound of a shattering floor caught her off guard. Soo-Ah risked a nce over her shoulder, expecting the worst.


    To her surprise, she saw a pile of desks and benches crashing down onto the hobgoblin. But that wasn''t all¡ªnext to the heap of debris stood a couple.


    Before she could ask them anything, the man grabbed her hand.


    "Don''t stop, run!" YuWon yelled.

 Chapter 163: Chat Room

    Soo-Ah panted, with her hands on her knees. Sweat dripped down her face as she nced back. YuWon and Lilith weren''t faring much better than her.


    But she didn''t know the two weren''t tired at all. Still, they continued to y their parts convincingly, breathing as if they were too exhausted to move.


    "You... who are you two?" Soo-Ah asked.


    She had wanted to ask them before, but with the hobgoblin chasing after them; she didn''t get a chance.


    "I''m YuWon," he said.


    YuWon then gestured to Lilith, thinking for a moment, and said, "And this is Sena, my... girlfriend."


    Lilith smiled mischievously at the introduction. She tilted her head, raising an eyebrow at her master. YuWon rolled his eyes, and she chuckled, but didn''t correct him.


    "Nice to meet you," Sena told Soo-Ah.


    "I''m Soo-Ah." She extended a hand toward YuWon. "Thanks for... saving me back there."


    YuWon was about to shake her hand when Mickey stepped between, offering his hand instead.


    "Mickey!" Soo-Ah panicked, wondering how YuWon would react.


    But to her surprise, YuWon smiled and shook Mickey''s bony hand as if meeting an old friend.


    "Nice to meet you, Mickey," he said.


    "You''re... really okay with this, huh?" she asked, nodding at Mickey.


    "Believe it or not, I''ve seen weirder things."


    Lilith patted Mickey''s head before linking arms with YuWon. He was taken aback by her action, as it was thest thing he expected. But


    Sena


    was only ying her role.


    Before they could continue, a mission prompt appeared before them.


    +++


    Quest: Escape the College!


    Scenario: Countless goblins have appeared in your vicinity. Either kill their leader or escape the campus to survive.


    Task: Awakeners must avoid or eliminate all the monsters to clear the quest.


    Time Limit: 2 days


    +++


    "Mast¡ªI meant, YuWon, this¡ª" Lilith mumbled, but YuWon cut her off.


    "I know."


    It differed from what YuWon remembered. Thest time they only got their first mission after he killed the hobgoblin, the Goblin Monarch appeared. But this time, they were given a task as soon as the goblins appeared.


    They''ve begun interfering in the scenarios.


    The gods were changing things. It was the only exnation YuWon coulde up with. Their agenda behind it was simple. They wanted to sow discord among the awakeners.


    Unlike before, they had given them two ways to clear the trial. Either kill the monsters or escape by yourselves. YuWon knew everyone would quickly choose thetter option. But even then, they won''t have the guts to venture outside.


    With the goblins being coordinated, it was unlikely they''d escape the campus without fighting. But most of them won''t fight. The weak won''t fight, but expect the others to make way for them. Simrly, the strong would refuse to do all the work and risk their lives.


    Hence, they''d be stuck in a loop, breeding discontent and hostility towards one another.


    Well yed.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "We have to escape?" Soo-Ah questioned.


    "Not yet," YuWon mumbled. "For now, we should run."


    No sooner had he said the words that the Hobgoblin appeared behind them. He was bruised from all the desks and chairs that hit him. But the pain only fueled his rage.


    YuWon rolled his eyes inwardly. Killing the hobgoblin would be a piece of cake for him. But he didn''t want to ignore Ereshkigal''s words. Besides, it was too early for the monarch to appear.


    "Run!"


    "How far will we run?" Soo-Ahined.


    Even an olympian like her was getting tired from running. But when she saw YuWon and Sena, they didn''t seem tired like she did.


    "I know a ce," YuWon said, jumping down a flight of stairs. "The ground floor auditorium. We''d be safe there."


    ***


    [You have entered a safe zone.]


    A text shed before their eyes. Soo-Ah''s eyes darted back, and suddenly, the goblins chasing them stopped. They looked confused, as if staring at a mirror, before begrudgingly stepping away.


    "We''d be safe for now," YuWon announced.


    "How did you know¡ª?" Soo-Ah asked.


    "A little birdie told me about it."


    YuWon refused to borate and instead fixed his gaze upwards. There, he could see the faint outline of an eye staring down at them. It wasn''t something he had seen before, but he knew about it thanks to the item he bought from the special store.


    [Updated Rulebook] was an item that told YuWon about the many changes made to the game. Like Ereshkigal told him, this time the gods had an active role to y, and they had heavily reduced the angels'' influence this time around.


    The eye watching over them belonged to a god, overseeing the game and probably choose a pdin¡ªan awakener connected to them. It was like how Yeji was bonded to Sekhmet.


    But this time, the gods didn''t have to wait for the World Tree to appear to make someone their pdin. They could do it any time as long as the awakener epted their offer.


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    That''s what makes this timeline even worse.


    In the past, YuWon could predict one''s strength without using the pendant. But now, there was no way to know that, as anyone could be a pdin and no one would know about it.


    The same went for him as YuWon was already a pdin, Ereshkigal''s pdin, to be exact. The special shop was a perk he enjoyed because of that.


    But it didn''t seem Ereshkigal was keen on helping him beyond that. Which was fine, considering her concern about saving the cosmic tree.


    [First Awakeningplete.]


    [Awakeners can now ess the <Community> tab.]


    YuWon didn''t wait and immediately clicked the said tab. A bunch of screens appeared before him like he was essing a web browser.


    This is new.


    The ce was like a game website with strategies, loot drops, and even chat rooms avable. However, YuWon could only ess one chat room named Zone No. 23, South Korea. It already had a few messages.


    Anonymous User 202: Hello~ I would like to im this chat room as my harem. Cuties can DM me for the list of requirements~.


    Anonymous User 117: I Need A Weapon.


    Anonymous User 10: Someone, please get this man a gun.


    YuWon sighed and shook his head. Even in the apocalypse, people would never change their habits. But then a name caught his eyes.


    Lucifer: I''ll be waiting for you.

 Chapter 164: Raising The First Weapon (1)

    As time passed, more people discovered the chat room. They kept talking about nonsense, treating it like a game more than an apocalypse. However, YuWon''s eyes remained glued to that one text he had seen earlier.


    [Lucifer: I''ll be waiting for you.]


    Lilith noticed theplex emotion in YuWon''s eyes. It was the first time he had been serious since returning to the start.


    "Are you¡ª?"


    "I''m fine," YuWon cut her off, typing a response of his own.


    He wanted to save many people in this life. Well, not everyone¡ªjust the ones he thought were worth raising. But to do that, he needed to keep them under his control.


    To have that hold, I must aplish something first.


    YuWon considered using force to make them obey. But that would only make them resent him and create more trouble than it was worth. Earning their admiration seemed like a better idea. That''s why he needed to achieve something big first.


    I guess we''d have to eliminate the Hobgoblin now.


    But before that, YuWon sent the message he wanted.


    [Anonymous User 01: I found a safe spot at Seoul University. It''s in the cultural building, ground floor auditorium. Those goblins can''t get inside here.]


    Sure enough, people were skeptical of such an offer. It was more likely someone was trying to lure them for some sinister n. Messages poured in, cursing


    Anonymous User 01n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    , but there were a few who thought it was worth checking out.


    Either way, it didn''t matter to YuWon. He did what he could to save them. Now he had to go on a hunt... with Soo-Ah, of course. After all, she''d have to kill the hobgoblin, not him.


    "Let''s go," he said.


    Lilith followed behind, while Soo-Ah stared at them. They barely survived against the hobgoblin and now the two were eager to leave the safe zone?


    "Um... what are you doing?" she asked the two.


    YuWon turned to Lilith and then to Soo-Ah before smiling.


    "Hundreds of people are probably heading this way," he said calmly. "How many do you think would make it inside this room?"


    Soo-Ah tilted her head. Her mouth fell open when she realized what YuWon was on about.


    "The hobgoblin..." she mumbled.


    They had brought the hobgoblin to the safe zone. If others wanted to get here, they''d meet the hobgoblin first. It would be a massacre out there. Dozens would lose their lives because of them.


    YuWon nodded and turned. "Since it was my idea to retreat to the safe zone, it''s only right for me to act decoy so others can get here safely."


    Soo-Ah was stunned when she heard YuWon''s reasoning. He didn''t ask her for help, even though she was the one the creature was chasing. Instead, he took the me on himself.


    With nothing left to say, YuWon walked to the exit, slowly. He had nted the seed of righteousness in Soo-Ah''s head. Now he waited for it to bear fruit. Just as he was about to step out, Soo-Ah yelled.


    "Wait! I''lle with you."


    Checkmate.


    "I can''t¡ª"


    "I will follow you," Soo-Ah interrupted. "Either way, that monster seems to be after me. It''s only right for me to fight it."


    YuWon and Lilith pretended to consider her words before nodding.


    "The more of us there are, the better it''s be." Lilith smiled, holding Soo-Ah''s arm.


    "But before that, take this," YuWon said, handing a bracelet to Soo-Ah.


    It was no ordinary bracelet, but something YuWon had bought from the [Special store] earlier.


    +++


    Sage''s bracelet: Increases user''s mana and mana regeneration by 50%


    +++


    "Since you use mana to create more skeletons," YuWon said. "It''d be the perfect item for you."


    Soo-Ah looked at YuWon and then at the bracelet before nodding. Just then, another unfamiliar notification appeared before YuWon.


    [User: Soo-Ah''s affection towards you has increased.]


    [User: Soo-Ah views you in a favorable light.]


    YuWon raised an eyebrow before dismissing the notification. It seemed Ereshkigal didn''t trust him not to fuck everything up and even introduced and favorability option to his updated system.


    But YuWon was thankful nheless. It would make it easier for him to manage the people under him.


    "I''ll cherish it," Soo-Ah said, putting it on.


    "I want you to use it," YuWon smiled. "Not cherish it."


    ***


    It didn''t take long for the hobgoblin to find them once they were out of the safe zone. The creature''s hormones should be off the chart for it to locate them so easily. Either way, it was time to act.


    Soo-Ah stood alone in the corridor with YuWon, Lilith, and Mickey hiding nearby. She gulped her saliva, turning towards YuWon, who nodded.


    A few minutes ago...


    "So, I just need to lure those goblins over, right?" Soo-Ah asked.


    "Yes," YuWon replied. "Get those goblins away from the hobgoblin. Once they''re away, your skeletons will deal with them and the three of us will attack the hobgoblin together."


    "But the goblins would turn back if their leader is under attack, right?"


    "We''ll have to end the fight before that happens," Lilith chimed in.


    Soo-Ah nodded. She still wasn''t sure if the goblins would follow her, as YuWon suggested. But she remembered everything he had said till then had been correct and for some reason, she trusted him.


    "Alright, I''ll do it."


    Back to the present...


    The goblin noticed Soo-Ah and on the hobgoblin''smand immediately rushed towards her. As she ran, the hobgoblin smiled and put down his club.


    She isn''t an Olympic runner for nothing.


    Once they were at the mark, Soo-Ah turned and jumped over the goblin, one after the other. The goblins tried to catch her, but she was too quick. They tried to run after her, but then a swarm of skeletons blocked their way.


    In the hour it took for the hobgoblin to find them, YuWon and Lilith collected twenty-eight goblins for Soo-Ah to resurrect. Half of them would keep the goblins busy, while the other half, led by Mickey, would join the fight with the hobgoblin.


    YuWon stayed back, sending Lilith in his ce.


    "Let''s see how you survive this."

 Chapter 165: Meeting Hoon Again...

    The hobgoblin swung hisclub, but Lilith blocked the attack with the noir de. Soo-Ah noticed the pristine sword, wondering where she got it from. But there was no time to ponder on such things.


    Soo-Ah grabbed Mickey''s hand and threw him towards the hobgoblin. The other skeletons followed. Some slid between the hobgoblin''s legs, attacking him from behind.


    The hobgoblin hadn''t expected such a bold assault from the humans he had been chasing. He was taken aback and yelled at the top of his lungs. The goblins noticed their lord was in danger and were about to rush to his aid.


    But a wall of skeletons stopped them. Even if they could break through the skeletons, YuWon''s intimidating aura was enough to make them flee. They took a final look at their fallen leader and ran away.


    "Good choice." YuWon scoffed. "What are you waiting for? Help the rest."


    The skeletons looked at one another before jumping in to attack the hobgoblin. Within minutes, the skeletons stomped the hobgoblin to death.


    YuWon sighed once the hobgoblin had died. The monster who had given him so much trouble before died at the hands of skeletons, of all things.


    Soo-Ah panted, looking around her. They defeated the hobgoblin, but they had taken some losses. Only ten of her skeletons survived the fight, including Mickey.


    In contrast, YuWon and Sena showed no signs of fatigue. Moreover, they had treasures no one else had, like that ck sword and the bracelet YuWon gave her.


    Something is off about them.


    Soo-Ah thought, but was interrupted.


    "Raise him," YuWon instructed, pointing at the hobgoblin.


    "...right."


    Unlike thest time, Soo-Ah had enough mana to raise Skullee without help. It was all thanks to the bracelet YuWon gave her.


    As Soo-Ah raised her hand, the hobgoblin discarded its skin and high-five Mickey. It was as if the two already knew each other. Even YuWon found it weird but chalked it up as overthinking things.


    "Li¡ªSena," YuWon said, picking up a fallen key. "You guys return to the safe zone. I''ll be back in a second."


    "Where are you going?" Soo-Ah asked. "At least take some skeletons with you¡ª"


    "It''s fine. I can deal with those goblins alone."


    With that, YuWon waved them off and headed towards the stairs. He wouldn''t be a good husband if he ignored his wife.


    ***


    While YuWon and the rest were fighting the hobgoblin, people started showing up in the safe zone. At first, they were taken aback by skeletons waiting for them, but after Soo-Ah told them about her ss, they rxed somewhat.


    Thanks to YuWon posting about it earlier, more people survivedpared to his past life. This was both good and bad. It was good because having more people meant they might have a better chance against the Monarch. But it was bad because more people also meant more arguments and disagreements.


    More importantly, this time Hoon wouldn''t have any grip on the people. After all, it wasn''t he who discovered the safe zone this time. But YuWon did, but they didn''t know that yet.


    It''ll be fun.


    YuWon thought, standing at the entrance with Gina in toe. He didn''t know why, but this time, even Gina looked more tame than before.


    It was probably because they killed the hobgoblin much earlierpared to before. Either way, YuWon wasn''tining about the change. As he was about to step him, Gina grabbed his hand.


    Right... her possessiveness won''t ever leave me.


    "I''ll be right back," YuWon smiled and patted her head.


    Surprisingly, Gina ran to hug him but tripped YuWon, and they both tumbled into the room. YuWon was shocked because earlier, no monster, including Gina, could enter the safe zone. But this time, she stepped in with no trouble.


    People were stunned to see a monster and a human cuddling there. But before they could say anything, Lilith and Soo-Ah rushed towards them.


    "You''re here!" Soo-Ah greeted YuWon affectionately.


    However, her affection made Gina hiss at her. Soo-Ah was taken aback, but when YuWon ced a hand on her head, Gina immediately backed down.


    "She''d a friend," YuWon exined. "Treat her with kindness."


    "...I''ll try," Gina replied.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "What is he doing here?" Hoon''s voice rang out. "Throw that freak out of here!"


    People were about to raise their voices in solidarity when YuWon stood, and they all got silent. He wasn''t the frail-looking man they knew before. He now had an intimidating aura around him. YuWon didn''t bother replying and got up, turning to Soo-Ah.


    "How''s everyone?" he asked.


    "We have a lot of injured people," she replied. "But a healer is healing them."


    YuWon nodded, his eye shifting towards Yeji. It was weird seeing her averting her gaze after everything they had been through. But it was what he signed up for.


    "Don''t ignore me!" Hoon yelled, rushing towards YuWon.


    Big mistake.


    Soo-Ah''s skeletons, Lilith and Gina reacted simultaneously, surrounding YuWon. Their quickness took aback everyone. But none more than Hoon.


    He was used to picking on YuWon when no one was there to back him up. But now that others were standing up for YuWon, it caught him off guard.


    "You¡ª" Hoon spoke with gritted teeth.


    "Give it up," YuWon sighed, shaking his head.


    YuWon had long given up on any grudge he held against Hoon. Not because he was forgiving, but because he wasn''t interested in ying with ants anymore. He had no interest in Hoon, but to get Yeji by his side, he had to make a scene.


    "What did you say?" Hoon yelled pointing at YuWon.


    In a sh, YuWon disappeared and reappeared in front of Hoon, lifting him by his neck. People gasped, but that''s all they could do.


    "We can do this the easy way or the hard way," YuWon mumbled emotionlessly. "Easy way, you''d admit to framing me and nting those photos on my phone with the help of your buddies."


    YuWon slowly increased the pressure around Hoon''s neck before continuing, "Hard way would be tiresome for me and painful for you. So make your choice now."

 Chapter 166: Quick Resolution

    At that moment YuWon felt something strange. Hoon wasn''t struggling, he only acted like he was. Only when YuWon checked his stats did he realize something sinister. A few letters were growing bright under Hoon''s name.


    [Set''s pdin.]


    YuWon couldn''t help but smile. The little chicken had already contracted with a god, an Egyptian one at that. Set and Sekhmet were two gods whoplimented each other. He wouldn''t be surprised if the two nned it all.


    Hence, by struggling, Hoon attempted to make YuWon the hated figure, as always. But something was still amiss. Why wasn''t Yeji reacting to Hoon being manhandled?


    I thought she would be the first to help him.


    YuWon let go of Hoon and scanned the room. Yeji was still healing people at the far end of the room. She looked at him, but quickly averted her gaze.


    Find exclusive stories on m_v l|e-NovelBin


    For a moment, YuWon wondered if she remembered the past. But he quickly shook off the idea. Ereshkigal had said everything was reset, so there was no way Yeji retained her memories.


    "You brute!"


    Hoon''s words snapped YuWon out of his thoughts.


    With one hand, Hoon held his chest while the other pointed at YuWon. A few people rushed to his side, all staring at YuWon like they were going to murder him. But one look from YuWon and they all turned away.


    But YuWon wasn''t looking at them. He was staring at the gods'' invisible eyes that only he could see, thanks to his god''s seed. Since everyone had gathered there, the gods wanted to see them in action.


    I wonder what would happen if I killed a pdin.


    YuWon was quick to shake off that thought. Ereshkigal had asked him not to kill indiscriminately. Besides, Hoon wasn''t dangerous¡ªjust annoying¡ªand there were other ways to eliminate him.


    YuWon looked around until he spotted the person he was looking for.


    "Professor Ming," YuWon called out with a stiff smile. "You have the lie detection ability, don''t you?"


    Hoon''s eyes widened as soon as he heard that. Suddenly, he couldn''t feel any pain and got to his feet. He was about to ramble when Lilith forced him back down, the noir de resting on his neck.


    Others tried to intervene but were stopped by Gina and Soo-Ah''s skeletons. Only the professor was allowed to approach YuWon.


    "I-I do," she replied.


    "Good, use it on Hoon please," YuWon instructed her.


    In theirst life, she was hesitant because Hoon had saved her. But this time, things were different. Besides, YuWon had the strongest individuals on his side, and no one wanted to cross them.


    Professor agreed and ced a hand on Hoon''s forehead. He tried to shake her away, but Lilith pulled his head back with his hair, forcing him toply.


    "Did you nt Yeji''s photos on my phone?" YuWon asked.


    As usual, Hoon lied and a red mist appeared over his head. Everyone gasped, but YuWon was staring at Yeji for her reaction, and there was none. Everything was confirmed at that moment.


    YuWon ignored everyone else and walked towards Yeji. As he got closer, she began fidgeting.


    "So, you''ve returned too," YuWon whispered so only Yeji could hear him.


    But Yeji didn''t respond.


    "I asked you something."


    "Y-Yes..." came the feeble reply.


    "Why bother with the act, then?" YuWon smiled, patting her head. "You should have returned to me earlier."


    Yeji nodded, her eyes staring at the floor. YuWon had some idea how she got back. It was likely Sekhmet''s doing. Yeji was the first pdin. It would be unfair if she didn''t get any benefits from that, too.


    Sekhmet probably told her to stay away from me. Well, too bad, that won''t work.


    "Get up," YuWon ordered. "I still own you, or did you forget?"


    Yeji instinctively reached for her neck, only to realize there was no ve mark there. Yeji frowned at the realization and it made YuWonugh. He patted her head again and pulled out something from his inventory.


    "...you already have this?" Yeji asked.


    "Bought it just in case," YuWon shrugged, handing her the ve cor. "You can wear it if you want."


    Yeji looked conflicted for a moment before handing it back to YuWon. He raised an eyebrow, not expecting her to reject his offer. But as he was about to ce it back in the phantom bag, Yeji grabbed his hand.


    "What are you doing?" she asked.


    "You didn''t want it so¡ª" YuWon replied, confused.


    "You were supposed to make me wear that... doofus."


    YuWon looked at her, then at the cor, and then back at Yeji. She got embarrassed and turned away. Only for YuWon to ce the cor around her neck.


    It wasn''t envement as much as it was prevention. YuWon knew eventually Sekhmet would try to take over Yeji''s body and then he would use the cor to make her leave... again.


    Though I don''t think she''d get in my way for a long time.


    "Yeji! It''s all a lie¡ª!"


    SMACK!


    Yeji pped Hoon before he could say another word. Hoon was shocked and red at Yeji.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "How dare you¡ª!?"


    SMACK!


    This time YuWon smacked him and he barely held back. Hoon went flying out of the room. It wasn''t YuWon''s intention, but Hoonnded at the feet of some roaming goblins. All they heard were his screams, but surprisingly, no one stepped up to help him.


    Lilith looked at YuWon and shook her head, while YuWon could only shrug in response. He wasn''t nning on killing Hoon. As ridiculous as it sounded, YuWon was on the verge of enving him. He was a pdin after all, but he identally got him killed.


    There''s no point crying over spilled milk.


    With that, YuWon turned to address the rest. They appeared to fear him. It wasn''t the oue YuWon desired, but he would take what he could get.


    "Alright, listen up now!" he yelled over the murmurs. "Pack up everything useful on the campus. Food, medicines, anything useful. We''d leave in a couple of hours!"

 Chapter 167: Brother In Arms (1)

    "What do you mean, we should leave?" a professor scoffed. "This ce is the safest."


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    "Yes! We must wait here for the police or military to rescue us," a student said. "Why would we abandon¡ª?"


    "Do you see any sign of the police arriving outside?" YuWon cut them off.


    Everyone got silent. YuWon wasn''t the same guy they knew. Whenever he spoke, they couldn''t help but nod silently. It was like a parent scolding their children.


    "As for why we have to escape," YuWon continued and opened the mission prompt. "We have to escape because this thing wants us to."


    "But the goblins¡ª!"


    "Thanks to Soo-Ah, they aren''t much of a threat anymore," Lilith said with her charming smile.


    As soon as she joined the conversation, YuWon noticed the men and some women folding their arguments. That was the power of a subus. In front of Lilith''s charm, all logic and reasoning ceased existing.


    It''s good. I should have used her first. Things would have been much easier.


    YuWon turned and saw Hoon''s corpse. If only he had used Lilith before, that man-whore would have bowed before him. The only reason YuWon wanted that was because of Hoon''s status as a Pdin.


    But as usual, YuWon was quick to let go of that thought. If he wanted to save Hoon, he would have to start from the beginning and it would be a hassle. Instead, he was content with the team he had for now.


    No. There''s a ce for an idiot open in the ranks.


    Min-Joon was standing in a corner. YuWon would recruit him inter. For now, it was more important to convince the others to leave.


    "What do you mean?" a girl asked. "What did Soo-Ah do?"


    "She killed the boss monster," YuWon replied, patting Skullee''s back. "This guy used to control the goblins. With him gone, the goblins are confused."


    Just then, outside the window, they saw many goblins fighting each other. They were fighting over a corpse. As dark as it was, it was amusing to watch the goblins turn on each other, since they hadn''t done that before.


    "They are too absorbed fighting each other," YuWon said.


    YuWon jumped out the window and picked up a stone. The goblins were perplexed seeing a human. But thanks to his title, they weren''t hostile. Besides, YuWon''s aura was enough to scare them shitless.


    But YuWon couldn''t have that. From the corner of his eyes, he noticed the people staring at him from the auditorium. He had their attention, as nned.


    In the past, he had established a clear hierarchy before leaving the auditorium. But YuWon couldn''t do that now. Why? Because he didn''t intend to kill any awakeners to intimidate them. Instead, he figured it''d be enough to show strength by taking down the goblins.


    "If they are scattered, they are nothing special to deal with."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Saying so, YuWon hurled the stone at one goblin. The stone flew like a bullet, hitting the goblin before it could react. The creature died as its head exploded into pieces.


    The other goblin tried to run, but YuWon''s throw was faster and another one met its end simrly. After a quick stretch, YuWon jumped back inside. Showing off didn''t suit his nature.


    "Like I said," YuWon said. "Two hours. Collect what you can, and then we''ll leave."


    This time, no one argued. They readily formed teams to scavenge what little they could. But as they left, something didn''t sit right with YuWon.


    The hobgoblin was dead, yet there was no announcement of the Monarch''s arrival. YuWon destroyed the altar on the terrace to replicate the conditions, but there was no sign of the monarch.


    Is escaping all we need to do to clear the tutorial?


    ***


    "Is this really okay? The monster might be disoriented... but they can still kill us."


    "You think we don''t know that?"


    "The police won''t arrive. What other choice do we have? Besides, you saw what YuWon did to Hoon. If we don''t follow him, we''re as good as dead."


    The professor leading the students hung his head. The students he was so used to reprimanding were now leading the charge. It didn''t sit right with him. But with the ss of a chef, how could he fight those monsters?


    I had no choice but to follow them. But this is too much!


    "Stop yelling and find those water bottles!" the professor yelled. "Or I will make sure you idiots fail!"


    The three students looked at each other and then at the professor. Suddenly, they burst intoughter, pointing at the professor.


    "This guy... I didn''t think you were so good with jokes, professor."


    "Fail us, my ass."


    "Um... professor, being optimistic is one thing, and being delusional is another. The life we knew was gone. Credits, degree, none of that matters anymore."


    The professor looked at them and gritted his teeth. The students who didn''t dare look him in the eyes were now joking at his expense. Enraged, the professor turned to look for the bottles.


    A momentter, they stoppedughing. The professor let a sigh of relief, thinking the brats would work. But then he noticed something weird. The ce had gotten too quiet.


    Slowly, he grabbed the kitchen knife he got after ss selection and turned around. He expected to see some goblins there, but he saw a white-haired man standing over the headless corpses of those students.


    The professor''s hand trembled as he tightened his grip on the kitchen knife. He didn''t hear the man kill the students, let alone enter the room. Something about the man told the professor to run, but he couldn''t. The man was standing against the room''s only door.


    Driven by desperation, the professor lunged forward, swinging the knife with all his might. He barely saw the blur of movement before a sharp pain exploded in his shoulder. He stumbled back, dropping the knife as his arm fell limp to the floor, severed cleanly at the elbow.


    The professor screamed, clutching his arm. But it was cut short as the man ripped his lower jaw with bare hands before severing his head. As the body hit the floor, the white-haired guy looked around.


    "Not here either," he muttered. "YuWon... don''t hide from your brother like this..."

 Chapter 168: Brother In Arms (2)

    "That was easy," Soo-Ah shrugged.


    The students were relieved as the college gate came into view. But YuWon, Yeji, and Lilith were more tense than ever. If the gods were about to cause a mess, they would do it right now.


    Nothing is more entertaining than crushing everyone''s hope right before their eyes.


    But YuWon would not risk the lives of his precious pawn. He quickly selected a couple of people and used [Soul Bind] on them. Their gloomy expressions changed instantly as they ran towards the gates.


    "Let''s hurry!" someone yelled.


    Yeji wanted to stop them, but YuWon shook his head. They were under his influence. He wanted to know what the gods had nned for them.


    They waited and waited. Everyone stayed on the lookout for goblins, but no goblin showed up. Instead, a notification popped up before them.


    [Due to the elerated clearance rate, a new challenge will appear.]


    [Scenario difficulty has been increased.]


    I fucking knew it!


    With a loud crash, the two people YuWon had sent ahead were turned into minced meat. At the same time, the entire college was covered in fog. Thunderous footsteps of the new challenger echoed in the courtyard.


    "¡­What is that?"


    YuWon expected it to be the goblin monarch, but he was wrong. The head of a bull prated the fog as the monster walked towards them. It was a monster YuWon hadn''t faced before.


    "A minotaur?"


    Unlike the monarch, the four-foot-tall creature wasn''t carrying a weapon. But for a walking monstrosity, weapons were but a nuisance. One hit from the creature''s horns would tear apart anyone and anything in half.


    "Brother¡ª?" Yeji called out.


    "I''m thinking," YuWon cut her off.


    Ereshkigal had warned him not to interfere with the trials. But YuWon couldn''t help but worry.


    He didn''t think the awakeners were strong enough to take down the monarch, let alone a minotaur, as it was in a league of its own. Forget beating it; the Awakeners there wouldn''t even be able to leave a scratch on it.


    I knew things were going too smoothly.


    YuWon could imagine those bastard godsughing right then.


    "Everyone, back inside!" he instructed them.


    People were so close to the gate. Their freedom was right before their eyes and they didn''t want to lose their chance. A few people tried running away, thinking the minotaur would target the others.


    Big mistake.


    The minotaur lunged at them first. It happened so quickly that no one could react. Its massive horns tore through the separated crowd, leaving a trail of blood and corpses behind.


    The beast then let out a deafening roar. People who heard the scream lost their minds. Panic spread through the crowd like wildfire. People screamed and scrambled toward the nearest building, shoving and trampling one another to escape.


    But the minotaur wasn''t letting them go that easily. It charged straight for the building, shaking the ground with thunderous steps. Terrified of the inevitable death, everyone closed their eyes and prayed for a miracle.


    They waited for the minotaur to tear through the building with a loud crash. But nothing happened. Slowly, they opened their eyes and saw someone standing in front of the rampaging beast.


    "...I can''t believe this," a professor mumbled.


    No one else said a word, but everyone had the same reaction. YuWon was there, gripping the minotaur''s horns with both hands, stopping it in its tracks.


    His muscles burst through the fabric, ripping open the sleeves of his shirt. The minotaur kept pushing YuWon with all its might, but he didn''t budge. It was like YuWon''s feet had be one with the floor.


    Lilith and Yeji weren''t surprised. After all, YuWon had yed two disasters and gained their might. Compared to that, dealing with a minotaur was a trivial task.


    "Stop... wasting time..." YuWon yelled through gritted teeth. "Get going!"


    His words brought everyone back to their senses. Led by Soo-Ah''s skeletons, they started heading back to the safe zone. Some hesitated, not wanting to leave YuWon alone, but they didn''t have the strength to help him. Running away was their only choice.


    YuWon kicked away the minotaur as soon as thest person disappeared. The mighty creature stumbled backward, taken aback by the human''s strength.


    The minotaur let out a furious roar, its nostrils ring as it recovered from YuWon''s kick. Its eyes locked onto him as it rubbed its hooves against the ground, ready to charge again.


    "You done yet?"


    Infuriated, the beast charged at him again. YuWon let out a sigh. As the minotaur barreled toward him, he sidestepped at thest second and backhanded the minotaur in the face.


    The force sent the minotaur crashing into the side wall, leaving a gaping hole behind. YuWon jumped after the beast, only to find it wildly shaking its head, furious at YuWon''s moves.


    Killing the minotaur would be easy. But YuWon held back. His goal was to weaken the monster and have someone else, probably Yeji, finish it.


    The minotaur roared again and lunged at YuWon, wildly swinging its arms. YuWon ducked under the wild attacks with no effort. A momentter, he punched its side. He held back, still, the minotaur was flung out of the room and back into the courtyard.


    The minotaur recovered quickly, stomping the ground in frustration. As it got closer to YuWon, he didn''t hold back. He sidestepped the beast, grabbing its horn with one hand and its neck with the other.


    The creature struggled, but it wasn''t enough. YuWon poured all his strength into tearing off the monster''s horns. The minotaur yelled in pain as YuWon mmed it into the ground.


    The minotaur remained on the ground, unable to move. But it was alive.


    "Better call Yeji and finish this up¡ª"


    But as soon as YuWon turned, something fell on top of the minotaur. With gravity''s help, the man drove his feet through the minotaur''s chest. The beast let out a final, pitiful groan before its body went limp.


    "Who the hell¡ª?"


    YuWon mumbled but froze when he saw the man standing on top of the minotaur.


    "Lucifer..." Experience tales at m v|l e''-NovelBinN?v(el)B\\jnn

 Chapter 169: You Lose... Everything

    Lucifer''s appearance was nothing like YuWon remembered. His once raven-haired


    brother


    now had hair as white as snow, his frame more muscr and imposing than before. It was only then that the realization struck him.


    "An angel..." YuWon mumbled.


    The Lucifer YuWon remembered was a fallen angel. YuWon had never seen what he looked like before his fall, but if Lucifer had returned to being an angel, he shouldn''t be here. He shouldn''t even remember their shared past. Yet, the malicious look in his eyes suggested otherwise.


    "The gods and angels are immune to your... time maniption," Lucifer smirked, unfurling his white wings.


    YuWon cursed his luck under his breath. Having the gods eyeing was bad enough, but having an angel for an enemy was worse. The gods couldn''t directly harm him, but angels could.


    Fighting Lucifer wasn''t an option as his strength was iparable to YuWon''s. But he didn''t have a choice. If he stepped back, Lucifer would probably kill everyone associated with YuWon.


    I hope Yeji''s smart enough to escape with the rest.


    With that thought, YuWon grabbed the minotaur''s torn horns and lunged at Lucifer. Using the horns like two daggers, he didn''t hold back. But Lucifer smiled and didn''t even move. With a flick of his wrist, he nted YuWon face-first on the ground.


    "So... weak," Lucifer snarled. "Why was I even scared of an insect like you?"


    YuWon gritted his teeth and kicked off the ground. Lucifer crossed his arms, letting YuWon getfortable before nting his face back on the ground, this time with his leg.


    Frustrated, YuWon unleashed a flurry of strikes on Lucifer. But each time, thetter dodged effortlessly without breaking a sweat. He even yawned in between adding fuel to YuWon''s desperation.


    Then, with an almost bored expression, Lucifer plucked a feather from his wing. He held it between two fingers, inspecting it as if it were the most fascinating thing in the world.


    YuWon threw a punch, expecting to catch him off guard. But Lucifer grabbed the punch without taking his eyes off the feather.


    "You''ve gotten weaker, brother," Lucifer said.


    YuWon struggled to get away, but Lucifer pulled him closer. YuWon froze as the feather brushed against his cheek. For a moment, it felt soft, almost gentle. Then a searing pain erupted across his face.


    The feather had merely touched him but was enough to form a deep gash in YuWon''s face. Blood gushed out of the wound and all strength left YuWon. He copsed onto the ground, clutching his cheek.


    "See?" Lucifer said. "Your pathetic self can''t even handle a mere feather of mine."


    YuWon could only re at Lucifer as his body refused to move. Even Hydra''s blood wasn''t enough to keep him going and the wounds didn''t heal. It was the end of this life and probably the rest as well.


    No amount of respawns can help him beat this sack of shit.


    With a sigh, YuWon resigned to his fate. But just then, someone kicked Lucifer away. Thetter didn''t budge from his spot, but that didn''t matter. YuWon was only wondering who could be so clueless as to jump between them.


    "Are you... okay?" Gina asked.


    But YuWon didn''t have any admiration or love in his eyes, but panic. He could die himself, but he didn''t want anything to happen to Gina.


    "Gina, no!" he shouted hoarsely.


    However, Gina didn''t move. She stood defiantly, her arms outstretched as if to shield YuWon.


    Lucifer raised an eyebrow, clearly amused by the little creature. She wasn''t a threat to him before and wasn''t one this time, either.


    "Brave. But foolish."


    Lucifer raised his hand but before he could attack, more people appeared, forming a shield before YuWon. Lilith, Yeji, Soo-Ah, everyone was there. Fear was etched on their faces, but they stood before YuWon to protect him.


    Even Lucifer was surprised by their bravery. But YuWon was terrified.


    "No! Stay back!" YuWon shouted. "You can''t win against him. None of us can!"


    Lilith and Yeji rushed to YuWon''s side, but Lilith stopped when she saw Lucifer. YuWon looked at her. Being a fallen angel, she could stand against Lucifer, but the result would remain unchanged.


    Lucifer''s smile widened as she scanned the group. They were nothing more than ants trying to protect a rat.


    "Shall we make this quick?"


    Lucifer raised a hand, the light around him intensifying as his wings stretched wide, and the feathers shone like razors. YuWon had faced the brunt of one feather and knew the attack would decimate everyone. YuWon forced himself to stand, ignoring the burning pain on his face.


    "Lucifer," he said, grimacing in pain. "I''ll surrender. Just leave them alone¡ª"


    Lucifer''sugh cut him off.


    "Surrender? You?" he chuckled. "You don''t have the qualifications to strike a deal with me, imbecile."


    YuWon didn''t mind the words and stepped closer to Lucifer. Without hesitation used [Soul Grapple]. YuWon''s hand glowed faintly as he reached for Lucifer, aiming to force him into submission.


    Lucifer backhanded YuWon, hisugh reced by an icy re. Wasting no time, Lucifer aimed his wings at the mortals. A bright light suddenly engulfed them, forcing everyone to shield their eyes.


    As the light disappeared, everyone noticed a pair of luminous wings shielded them. Someone knew stood between them and Lucifer, someone on equal footing as the former fallen angel.


    The angel wore a sparkling armor, with divine patterns etched on its surface. Her silver hair flowed like liquid moonlight, and in her hand was a de that pulsed with a strange energy.


    YuWon recognized her instantly. She was the angel assigned to oversee their section of the gods'' game.


    "Sofia..." YuWon whispered.


    Sofia paid no attention to YuWon. Instead, her fiery eyes were focused on Lucifer. Her presence even surprised the boastful angel.


    "Lucifer," Sofia said. "Who do you think you are to interfere in my sector without my permission?"


    "Don''t forget your rank. A mere third sphere grunt dare to talk back¡ª?"


    "Grunt or not, there are lines even you, as a first sphere, cannot cross," Sofia cut him off.


    Lucifer''s actions were clearly against the rules of the game. Hence, Sofia, despite her small stature, was unwilling to back down. She didn''t fear the gods, either.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    In the past, she did their dirty work and even tried to get YuWon killed. But in the end, she epted the me for their failures, which led to her destruction. But this time, she would pick the right side.


    Your journey continues at m v|l-e''-NovelBin


    Sofia had already decided to shield YuWon, and with Ereshkigal''s backing, no one would dare offend her. But her confidence didn''t sit right with Lucifer.


    "Enjoy your little admin privileges while you can," he sneered, turning toward YuWon. "The game won''t protect you always,


    brother.


    "


    The next moment, Lucifer''s body dissolved into a wisp of dark smoke floating away with the air.


    With Lucifer gone, Sofia lowered her de and sighed. She put on a brave front, but facing a first-sphere angel was no easy task. Her armor disappeared, turning into a robe as she turned to face YuWon.


    "You need to be more careful," she said. "


    She


    won''t be happy if something happens to you."


    "You... know?" YuWon asked, raising an eyebrow.


    Sofia smiled but didn''t answer. Instead, she turned to face the remaining participants.


    "I apud your efforts in clearing the tutorial," she smiled. "but there''s no time to rest. Your next trial awaits."


    As she said that, a mission prompt appeared before their eyes.


    +++


    Main Quest 1: Anomaly of the Namsan Seoul Tower.


    Scenario: A series of mysterious disappearances have rattled the higher powers. Join with other survivors to investigate the anomaly and cure it.


    Difficulty grade: D+


    Time limit: 14 days


    Rewards: Unknown


    Punishment: Depending on the contribution


    +++


    YuWon''s eyes widened. This wasn''t the quest he remembered. He couldn''t believe things would change from the first quest itself. He looked at Sofia, thinking she could help, but even she shook her head.


    YuWon sighed. The gods were hell-bent on not letting him have any advantage based on his memories. Still, he couldn''t imagine they would take things so far just to take away any advantage he must have.


    Apart from my stats... I have nothing¡ªwait! What the hell?


    [The User will lose their abnormal stats.]


    [The God seed converted all stat points into unallocated stat points.]


    I guess it''s better than nothing...


    For a moment, YuWon was about to go berserk. But since he regained the stats as points, he could sigh in relief.


    "All of you should work towards increasing your stats slowly," Sofiamented, looking at YuWon.


    It was a hint, and YuWon didn''t miss it. His encounter with the minotaur and Lucifer wouldn''t go unnoticed by the gods. They must haveined about it. Hence, his abnormal stats


    disappeared


    .


    But thanks to the goddess Ereshkigal, YuWon didn''t lose his stats and merely needed to reassign them... slowly. Rushing the process wasn''t an option¡ªif he restored his stats too quickly, it would undoubtedly provoke another tantrum from the gods, and that was a risk YuWon couldn''t afford to take.


    "That''s all for now," Sofia smiled. "May the gods protect you."

 Chapter 170: Fixing The Weaklings (1)

    Sofia distributed the rewards and disappeared soon after. The small crowd expected YuWon to lead them, but he had no such intentions.


    After all, the apocalypse he lived through and the one they were stuck in were quite different. With his stats


    frozen,


    YuWon was as useless as them. Besides, he was headed toward home. Yeji''s father was still alive, and YuWon wanted to change that.


    Unfortunately, reaching their home would have to wait. With the monsters and the distance between their school and house, it would take them a couple of days to get there.


    "Let''s look for a ce to settle first," YuWon mumbled.


    As the other religiously followed YuWon, Min-Joon was stuck thinking about how he ended up there. While everyone was dispersing, YuWon sought him out and offered to take him in.


    Although he was


    offered


    the spot, something in YuWon''s voice told him if he didn''t obey, he would die. With no choice, he nodded as Soo-Ah''s skeletons patted his back, weing him to their ranks.


    Even the skeletons sympathize with me... I don''t know if it''s good or bad.


    After fighting through some estranged goblins, the group arrived at an apartmentplex. The entire ce was littered with corpses and blood. But it didn''t seem any monsters were there.


    Soo-Ah sent her skeletons to scout the ce, just in case. They found a few open, habitable apartments. When they arrived there, the stench of death hit them hard.


    Skeletons saw the apartments were safe, but paid no heed to blood and gore. Yeji, Gina, Lilith and, to some extent, Soo-Ah handled themselves, but Min-Joon immediately puked. For a berserker, his heart was quite weak. YuWon made a mental note to help Min-Joon after they were settled.


    "Clean it up," YuWon told Soo-Ah.


    No sooner he said that, the skeletons got to work. While she did that, YuWon grabbed Min-Joon by the back of his cor and dragged him outside.


    "Brother, go easy on me¡ª"


    YuWon red at Min-Joon and that shut him up. Thest time, YuWon used goblins to make Min-Joon aware of his strength. He aimed to use the same strategy, but this time with ogres. But before that, YuWon had to cultivate Min-Joon''s skills.


    YuWon opened the store and began browsing through the skills section. Berserkers prioritized two things: sustainability and strength. As a berserker, the longer Min-Joon stayed in a fight, the stronger he''d get.


    +++


    Skill name: Low-grade Regeneration


    Grade: F+


    Type: Heal


    Skill type: Growth (Potential to reach S grade: 29%)


    Information: Heals 2% of the user''s max HP per kill.


    Price: 200 gold


    +++n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    YuWon nodded. The skill was good enough. He bought the skill scroll and handed it to Min-Joon. Thetter looked confused when YuWon gestured for him to open it.


    The scroll disappeared as he did that, signifying the skill was absorbed. Admiration reced Min-Joon''s fear of YuWon. YuWon paid him no mind. He was busy browsing the store''s weapon section.


    Apart from Lilith, they didn''t have any weapons. YuWon looked above and there were no eyes on him. It was a good time to buy some weapons for them. Min-Joon was the first on the list and something immediately caught YuWon''s attention.


    +++


    Weapon name: Bloodlust Axe


    Weapon type: Two-Handed Axe


    Rarity: Rare


    Requirement: Level 5+, Berserker ss.


    Description: A weapon forged from the blood of a thousand fallen warriors, the Bloodlust Axe seeks only one thing¡ªthe blood of its foes to sate its endless hunger.


    Base Stats:


    >> Attack: 50-134 HP +10% increase per attack.


    >> Critical Chance: +15%


    Special bonus:


    >> Blood-thirst: Each attack grants a 2% bonus life steal for 5 seconds (stacks up to 5 times).


    >> Rage: Increases attack by 20% when HP drops below 30%.


    Price: 11,200 gold


    +++


    YuWon scratched his chin. The Bloodlust Axe was the perfect weapon for Min-Joon, but the price was quite high. Thankfully, YuWon had no shortage of gold.


    Min-Joon would be my right-hand man in the future. Being stingy now could bite me in the asster.


    With that thought, YuWon bought the heavy battleaxe. Min-Joon''s eyes widened when he saw the axe and was even more taken aback when YuWon tossed the axe to him.


    "Brother, no, master¡ª!" Min-Joon eximed, bowing to YuWon.


    "Stop with the nonsense," YuWon cut him off. "Now you have a weapon and a skill. You know what that means, right?"


    "...you want me to fight?" Min-Joon mumbled.


    YuWon nodded, before pointing outside the fence. A couple of Soo-Ah''s skeletons stood guard there, but further ahead, one could see a towering creature. It was an ogre.


    "I want you to kill it in under two minutes," YuWon instructed. "If you fail, I''ll take back the weapon and give it to someone more deserving¡ªmaybe one of Soo-Ah''s skeletons."


    Min-Joon''s gaze shifted between YuWon and the towering ogre. The instructions were clear. Either he obeys YuWon and continues reaping rewards, or he fails and gets abandoned.


    YuWon smiled inwardly. He knew human nature quite well. After receiving treasures like the axe and a skill, Min-Joon''s greed would have skyrocketed. He''d crave more, enough to drive him to any lengths to stay in YuWon''s favor.


    Last time, YuWon used Min-Joon''s fear to train him. This time, he opted for a more reliable method.


    "I''ll do it," Min-Joon nodded.


    "Then what are you waiting for?" YuWon asked, marking a checkpoint.


    Min-Joon took a deep breath, his hands gripping the axe tightly. As he rushed ahead, he could feel YuWon''s gaze on his back. He had two minutes to prove his worth to YuWon.


    Your journey continues at m v|l-e''-NovelBin


    With a loud yell, he charged at the ogre. The ogre turned, its eyes focused on the new target. With a growl, it raised the tree-sized club. Unafraid, Min-Joon swung the axe, aiming for the ogre''s leg.


    But before the axe could connect, the ogre swung the club, hitting Min-Joon mid-charge. The force sent Min-Joon flying. He smashed into a car, crumpling its frame like paper. A pained groan escaped his lips as he slid to the ground. He was down¡ªbut, surprisingly, alive.


    "This is going to be a long day," YuWon sighed.

 Chapter 171: Fixing The Weaklings (2)

    Min-Joon limped through the door, leaning on one of Soo-Ah''s skeleton soldiers. He was covered in bruises and winced with every step he took. YuWon followed behind, smirking.


    Although he marked a checkpoint, thinking Min-Joon would die at the hands of the ogre, Min-Joon exceeded his expectations. Not only did he kill the ogre, he did it within the time limit, with two seconds to spare.


    He''s better than I thought he was.


    YuWon felt proud, like a parent as they walked inside. Yeji, who was fiddling with her status page, saw Min-Joon''s sorry state first and rushed over.


    "What happened to you?" she asked.


    "He''s alive," YuWon casually replied. "Just got superficial injuries while training."


    Yeji stared at Min-Joon, and his injuries were anything but superficial. His arm was bent in the wrong direction, for heaven''s sake. With a sigh, she motioned for Min-Joon to sit on the couch.


    "Why am I not surprised?" she muttered.


    As Yeji began healing Min-Joon, YuWon wandered off, stepping onto the balcony. Gina was there, leaning against the railing. Her long hair swayed slightly in the evening breeze. She didn''t notice him until he approached quietly, slipping something around her neck.


    Startled, Gina turned, her hand instinctively reaching for his arm to throw him off. But YuWon quickly grabbed her wrists and pinned her gently against the wall.


    "Husband...?" she mumbled.


    "You almost threw me off the balcony," YuWon chuckled, letting her go.


    As soon as she was free, he touched her neck. Her fingers brushed against the smooth metal of the ne he had ced around her neck.


    "A ne?" she mumbled.


    "Not just a ne. Try pouring some mana into it."


    Curious, Gina nodded as she channeled her mana through her fingers. The moment she did, the metal around her neck shimmered. It fell apart, traveling down her hands as it reshaped into diamond-like ws.


    Gina gasped, holding her hands up to inspect her new ws. They sparkled like starlight in the dark sky.


    "This is... amazing," she said, amazed. "How did you¡ª"


    "Consider it my wedding gift to you." YuWon cut her off.


    The sudden romantic gesture took her aback, and her face flushed. But then she remembered something.


    "I-I didn''t get you anything."


    "You did," YuWon said, leaning closer. "You''re the gift."


    Gina shook her head. She couldn''t ept such ame response. But before she could protest, YuWon nted a kiss on her forehead. Gina gasped. Her reaction made him chuckle.


    Unbeknownst to them, someone was ring at them. Yeji worked on healing Min-Joon''s injuries, but her focus was outside.


    She nced toward the balcony, catching a glimpse of YuWon kissing Gina. Her jaw tightened as a hint of irritation appeared in her eyes. Yeji''s emotions made her magic falter, and Min-Joon winced in pain.


    "Ow! Watch it!" he snapped.


    "Stop whining," Yeji smacked him. "You''re distracting me."


    The skeleton soldier beside him cked its teeth as ifughing.


    "You''re the one hitting the patient!" Min-Joon yelped. "What kind of healer are you?"


    "The kind that can kill you."


    Min-Joon turned stiff like a statue, not daring to talk back.


    ***


    Meanwhile, Soo-Ah was taking a hot shower while she could. She wasn''t delusional in thinking things would get normal anymore. At first, she had hoped so, but now living such a life seemed impossible.


    As the water droplets traced her perfect curves, her thoughts went back to YuWon. Not only did he help her, but he also helped everyone they came across. His kindness had taken root in her heart.


    Absentmindedly, her hand moved between her legs, but she immediately took hold of her emotions. YuWon was great, but he had a wife. Even though she was a goblin, Gina was beautiful and Soo-Ah didn''t think YuWon would ept her.


    Even if he does... I don''t want to cause any grief to Gina.


    But the harder she tried to throw YuWon out of her head, the stronger his grip on her heart got. She didn''t know that at that moment Lilith was outside the shower, using her magic to amplify Soo-Ah emotions.


    "Sweet angel," Lilith smiled. "Listen to your heart. My master has enough space inside his chest and between his legs for a concubine. Isn''t that what you want too?"


    ***n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Later that night, YuWon found himself back on the balcony. He could see Soo-Ah''s skeletons patrolling around the apartment, looking for stray monsters. The life wasfortable for now. But he wondered how long it''llst.


    He was curious if others had already moved to the Namsan Tower. Although he wanted to cultivate people, he couldn''t ept a horde of people like he did in the past.


    Instead of amassing an army, YuWon wanted to make a capable assault group. They would take on the missions and clear them efficiently. Still, he did what he could for the rest. How they survived was up to them.


    "Couldn''t sleep?" Soo-Ah asked.


    "Yeah," YuWon replied, leaning on the railing.


    "I can''t me you," she smiled. "It''s... been a strange day."


    "Tell me about it."


    The two stood there in silence, watching the skeletons subdue the monsters.


    "Shouldn''t we head towards Namsan Tower too?" Soo-Ah asked. "Clearing missions and earning gold is important, right?"


    YuWon smiled and nodded. He couldn''t help but notice Soo-Ah''s adaptability to the situation.


    Unlike him, Lilith, and Yeji, she didn''t have the memories of her past life. Neither was she a monster like Gina, yet she was too calm. He wanted to ask her about it, but changed his mind.


    "Clearing missions is important," YuWon mumbled. "But rushing into things is a fool''s job."


    Soo-Ah looked at YuWon, puzzled. Wasn''t clearing quests the entire point?


    "Fourteen days. Why do you think they gave us that much time?" YuWon dropped a hint.


    It was like a light bulb went off in Soo-Ah''s head. She quickly checked the mission prompt and realized it.


    "The difficulty rating is higher than the tutorial."


    YuWon nodded. They needed to get stronger first. If anyone rushed to the tower without thinking through it, they''d die in vain. YuWon didn''t want to make that mistake.


    "There''s a lot we need to do before heading to the tower."

 Chapter 172: Night Club (1)

    With nothing better to do, YuWon switched to themunity tab. As usual, it was bustling with activity. Some were chatting about random stuff while a few were exchanging resources, and some gathered to form a monster map to help people evade unnecessary dangers.


    Themunity tab was a substantial source of information, but blindly believing anything from the tab was foolish. Not everyone had the best interest at heart. Some just wanted to gain more, while others used the anonymity of the tform to indulge their baser instincts.


    YuWon''s eyes fell on one such chatroom marked as


    Fight Club.


    The introduction to the group was straightforward. One could bet on their strength and fight other humans or monsters to death. If they won, they''d gain resources and if they lost, well... then they died.


    It wasn''t very far from their location, either. YuWon made a mental note to check it outter. For now, his attention was on something else. It was a private chat room, something YuWon hadn''t seen before.


    He clicked the lock icon and found himself in a strange chat room. People in that chat room weren''t talking about survival but pdins. YuWon realized what it was... a chatroom full of gods.


    What the hell...


    YuWon couldn''t believe his eyes. He wondered how he had gained ess to their chat. As a mere participant in their game, this should have been impossible.


    But then it hit him¡ªthe God Seed inside him. Essentially, that made him into a god. Besides, it was a great way to spy on them. So YuWon kept his mouth closed and read what the gods had to say.


    [I''m Just a Head]:


    Can we please kill them already? We waited so long for them to climb the World Tree, and now we''re stuck waiting again!


    [One-Eyed Wisdom]:


    Shut it, Mimir. You''re not the only one eager to deal with these mortals.


    [Notification]:


    Warning: "One-Eyed Wisdom," refrain from using original names in this chat.


    [Notification]:


    "One-Eyed Wisdom" has left the chat.


    A flood ofughing emojis followed the system message, as users mocked One-Eyed Wisdom for being petty and overly sensitive.


    Meanwhile, YuWon was trying to wrap his head around everything. They didn''t seem to be gods but a random discordmunity, bickering andughing about nonsense.


    [Sleeping Around Is Fun]:


    Oh? Looks like some humans have finally made it to the tower.


    [Notification]:


    User: [Sleeping Around Is Fun] has invited everyone to watch their feed.


    A small video popped up in the corner of themunity interface. YuWon clicked it as he wanted to learn more about the tower. He expected some monsters to fight, but what he saw was disturbing.


    Forget about solving the mystery. Anyone who gets close to the tower died abnormally.


    The gods enjoyed the scene and mocked the humans, even their so-called pdins. The broadcast abruptly ended as one pdin fell in battle. Still, YuWon gathered some information about the tower, though it mattered little, as most who entered met their end soon after.


    "...we need to train more."


    ***


    A weekter...


    YuWon ensured everyone was equipped with the right weapons and skills, sparing no effort in preparation. Even Mickey and Skullee received weapons of their own.


    Min-Joon frowned as the skeleton got weapons with no strings attached. Unlike him, who had to prove his worth time after time or YuWon would take his axe away.


    "Where are we going now? The Namsan tower?" Soo-Ah asked, leading the skeletons.


    "What''s the rush? We got a week left, don''t we?" YuWon replied, casually picking bone fragments off the ground.


    "That''s true... but what if someone solves the mystery before us?" Min-Joon asked. "Wouldn''t we miss out on rewards?"


    "No one''s going to clear the mystery before us," YuWon chuckled.


    "How are you so sure?" Yeji asked.


    "That''s a secret," YuWon winked.


    Throughout the week, he had watched countless feeds from the gods. From those glimpses and their conversations in the divine chat, he had pieced together a few details about the trial. But sharing what he knew with them was out of the question.


    I don''t want those damned gods to mess it all up.


    YuWon looked up and saw two astral eyes floating around. He could guess who they were. After all, most gods were interested in hovering around the Namsan Tower.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Other than Sekhmet and Ereshkigal, no god had a reason to follow them around. While YuWon focused on the eyes, everyone else looked around at their surroundings.


    Several decaying human and monster corpsesy unattended, and the shops looked ravaged, as if someone had looted them recently.


    Vehiclesy scattered, wrecked beyond repair. Soo-Ah instructed the skeletons to take what fuel they could. Resources were scarce and fuel coulde in handy.


    As they walked through, ogres and goblins appeared in their path. Soo-Ah killed the monsters, and they quickly joined her army. For now, they were going to rescue their parents.


    Find your next read at m_v l|e-NovelBin


    Soo-Ah was an orphan who didn''t like her adoptive parents and didn''t want to look for them. Min-Joon''s parents were in America, so there was no point in looking for them.


    That left them with Yeji and YuWon''s parents. Yeji dreaded the meeting. As she had retained the memories of her past, facing her father was thest thing she wanted.


    Unlike her, however, YuWon remained unfazed. He couldn''t care less about their parents, but he had agreed to search for them as a detour to track down the "Son of Luck," Hojin.


    From what he recalled, Hojin was stuck in a nightclub owned by Joon''s gang. YuWon wanted to bring Hojin to his side, knowing he would y an important role in unraveling the Tower''s mystery.


    But before that, I need to save that idiot from Joon. That''ll be a pain in itself.


    Even in hisst life, YuWon couldn''t deal with Joon. No matter how many times he killed the bastard, Joon always came back alive. Dealing with someone like that would not be easy.


    Just then, an odd thought crossed YuWon''s mind. What if, instead of being enemies, he could bring Joon and his gang over to his side? It wasn''t a n he''d hold his breath for, though. Negotiating with a gangster might be even moreplicated than battling gods.

 Chapter 173: Night Club (2)

    "We''re here," YuWon announced.


    They stopped before the blinking signboard which read


    Siren''s Coven


    . It was a well-known nightclub, but mostly known for all the wrong reasons.


    There were rumors of drug peddling and rampant prostitution surrounding the club and the girls did not know why YuWon had brought them there. Could it be he was nning to sell them?


    YuWon rolled his eyes as he could practically read their thoughts. But what caught him off guard was Yeji''s reaction. She had known him the longest, yet even she seemed to entertain the idea that he might stoop to something so vile. It stung more than he expected.


    YuWon shook his head and didn''t bother with her. Yeji noticed the disappointed look on YuWon''s face and tried to reach for him, but he shrugged her off.


    "Remember Hojin?" he told her before walking in.


    Only then did Yeji remember about him. But YuWon wasn''t in the mood to talk to her¡ªor anyone else, for that matter. All he wanted was to gather a few powerful allies and finish the quest.


    "I was not expecting this..." YuWon mumbled.


    YuWon easily dispatched the few guards stationed outside the club. But the situation inside was surprising. Half the crowdy passed out drunk, while the other half surrounded women or fought over them, with the women cheering them on.


    YuWon noticed Hojin face-first on the ground. It wasn''t clear if he passed out from drinking or from fighting. Either way, it made things easier for YuWon.


    Let''s just grab him and leave.


    People were so caught up in the fights that they noticed nothing. However, just as he was about to grab Hojin, a familiar voice rang out.


    "Who the fuck are you?"


    YuWon turned around to see Joon standing behind him, along with his burly guards.


    "A friend of his," YuWon said, pointing at Hojin. "We live in the same apartmentplex and his guardians were worried, so I came to take him."


    Joon looked at him up and down before scoffing. "Since when did our little Hojin hang out with a college student? You need toe up with a better lie, boy."


    "I don''t need to," YuWon shrugged. "But if you want to talk, why don''t you let your actual body do the talking?"


    YuWon''s words wiped the smile off Joon''s face. It was obvious he''d be surprised when a stranger learned about his well-kept secret. But as any seasoned criminal would, Joon quickly masked his surprise, giving a subtle signal for his thugs to move in.


    Your journey continues with mvl


    "I don''t know who you think you are, kid," Joon smirked. "But you''re not leaving this ce in one piece."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    YuWon sighed. He didn''t want to fight Joon. He hadn''t wanted this confrontation, but it seemed the quickest way to put Joon in his ce was to shatter his gangster pride.


    YuWon gestured for the thugs to step up. But as soon as one did, he flicked the guy''s forehead. The thug immediately fell to his knees, clutching his head in pain. YuWon''s strength surprised Joon and the other thug.


    While on his way to the club, YuWon had increased his stats a bit. Not enough to raise suspicion from the gods, but enough to get the job done. Hence, it was easy to deal with the thugs even without a weapon.


    But if they went all-out, YuWon wouldn''t hold back either. For now, he hoped that won''t be the case.


    "You want to die, kid?" Joon barked. "Can''t you read the room and know your ce¡ª"


    "Quit barking," YuWon cut him off. "I already told you. If you want to talk, bring your original body here or wait till I get there."


    Joon tried to step back, but Mickey was standing there and poked his butt with his sword. Joon jumped up to see all his men on the ground as skeletons stood over them.


    Joon was many things, but he wasn''t a fool. He knew he had lost the fight even before it began. It was better to surrender and rebuild. He could n and plot his revengeter.


    "Fine... just take the boy and leave!" Joon eximed.


    "Not enough," YuWon replied.


    "...what? You want money¡ª?"


    "What would I do with the old world''s money here?"


    "Then?"


    YuWon pointed at Joon as Skullee carried Hojin outside. Joon looked flustered before vigorously shaking his head.


    "I don''t swing that way, kid! I''d die than have a guy up my ass¡ª"


    Even the skeletons couldn''t hold back at those words and cackled. YuWon didn''t say a word. He walked over and twisted Joon''s arm.


    "ARGH! It''s breaking! My arm is breaking! What the hell!?" Joon squealed in pain. "No matter what you do, I''ll never sleep with you!"


    "Who the fuck would want to sleep with you?" YuWon growled, nearly snapping Joon''s arm. "I want to serve me. Your men, your resources, all of it should belong to me from this moment."


    "Alright, alright. I get it. Just let me go!"


    YuWonplied with Joon''s request. But the next moment, Joon turned to dust. But YuWon didn''t panic. It was all ording to his n. Instead, he sat down, casually using one of Joon''s thugs as a footrest.


    Within moments, hurried footsteps echoed, and soon Joon was dragged into the lobby. YuWon had already instructed Soo-Ah to send her skeletons in search of anyone resembling Joon. Although the one before him had vanished, the skeletons returned with seven more Joons.


    "What will it be, Joon?" YuWon asked, twirling a bone shard. "Surrender or death?"


    Seven Joons simultaneously burst outughing. No matter how hard he tried to appear threatening, they knew a kid like him wouldn''t dare kill them. One of them, growing bolder, shouted at him.


    "Kid, I''m willing to let things slide if you let us go," he sneered. "If not, I''ll kill all of you¡ª"


    Before the words left his mouth, YuWon threw the bone shard at him. The shard hit Joon in the middle of the head, killing him instantly. The remaining Joons froze, while YuWon casually picked up another shard, spinning it in his hand.


    "If you decide to speak," YuWon said, "make sure it''s what I want to hear. Or else... you already know what''ll happen."

 Chapter 174: Towards The Tower (1)

    Soon enough, the group stood before the home YuWon''s father built, a home where his murderer lived. YuWon clenched his fists at the thought. Yeji noticed it and linked arms with him, showing her support. However, YuWon sighed and stepped ahead.


    "Keep an eye out on things," YuWon told the rest. "Sena, you keep an eye on Joon. I don''t want him causing any problems."


    "Will do!" Lilith yfully saluted.


    With everything handled, he and Yeji stepped into the apartmentplex. It was teeming with goblins and some two-legged reptilian monsters YuWon had seen for the first time. But his knowledge as a manhwa addict resurfaced, and he realized what they were.


    "Kobolds."


    "I''ll deal with them¡ª" Yeji said.


    "No need," YuWon interrupted. "I''ve been itching for a fight."


    Yeji nodded and took a step back. Her earlier remark about selling them must have struck a nerve with YuWon. He probably needed an outlet to vent his frustrations without restraint, and such minor monsters were just what he needed.


    "Killing elite monsters could cause some problems for him, but it should be fine if it''s a mob," she mumbled.


    YuWon rushed in and suddenly, the snickering of the monsters turned into painful cries. Curious people peeked from the windows, only to see a young man killing the monsters that had haunted them for over a day.


    YuWon and Yeji''s parents were watching them as well. However, Yeji''s father, Seok, frowned when he saw YuWon. He had hoped the brat would have died in the chaos, instead; he was back there.


    Min-Ji, however, had tears in her eyes. She hadn''t seen her son in so long, yet he came there ignoring the dangers of saving her. At that moment, Min-Ji forgave all of YuWon''s mistakes.


    Seok saw it and couldn''t help but curse YuWon under his breath. However, as he did, he turned his gaze to him. The coldness in his eyes made Seok step back.


    Does the brat know... no, he can''t know what I did?


    Seok''s mind drifted to the past, a memory he rarely allowed himself to revisit. He had killed YuWon''s father, cleanly enough that even the police uncovered no evidence. There was no way a brat like YuWon could know the truth.


    Yes, he''s acting out because he has some power now.


    However, Seok snapped out of his thoughts when YuWon grabbed a goblin and hurled it towards them. The creature mmed into the wall near the window, its blood sttering across Seok''s face as YuWonughed and mouthed some words for Seok.


    "You''re next."


    Seok gulped his saliva. Something told him YuWon wasn''t the brat he could control anymore. That''s when he saw Yeji rushing up to YuWon.


    Seok smiled, thinking Yeji and Min-Ji would keep YuWon in check. But all that reassurance he gave himself fell short when Yeji wiped the sweat off YuWon''s face.


    Seok''s face fell open. He had orchestrated every detail and devised a perfect scheme to rid himself of YuWon and sever him from Yeji''s life. Yet here she was, tending to YuWon with an intimacy that made Seok''s stomach churn.


    Seok wondered if Yeji knew about his deception and the look Yeji gave him more or less confirmed the fact. Seok''s knees buckled, the strength draining from him. His carefully crafted ns were being unraveled, and there was nothing he could do to save his ass.


    "No monsters will threaten you now!" YuWon announced as thest kobold fell.


    People who had been hiding in their homes cheered on for YuWon. But YuWon couldn''t feel anything in his heart. He remained as hollow as the day they had cast him out.


    Back then, they hadn''t hesitated to brand him a pervert just because they heard Seok yelling at him. Seok had intentionally caused a ruckus to ensure everyone heard him.


    That led to YuWon being shunned by everyone. But now that he had saved them, they suddenly changed their opinion of him. It was disgusting.


    There''s no point in dwelling on their feelings. These fuckers would die eventually. I don''t need to waste my time on them.


    YuWon wasn''t wrong. If they couldn''t deal with goblins and kobolds by themselves, they won''t make it far in god''s game. They would die, and he wasn''t about to waste another second on their pitiful existence.


    However, YuWon was interested in causing a ruckus of his own. For that, he needed an audience. Just because he had lived countless times didn''t mean he would forget to settle the grudges he had. Just as he had dealt with Hoon, he intended to settle his scores there, too.


    "Bring your parents here," YuWon instructed Yeji.


    Yeji froze. His request came as a surprise. She had a flicker of hope that YuWon, having killed her father in a previous life, might spare him this time. But she knew better than to argue.


    Seok''s sins were unforgivable and after the incident at the nightclub, Yeji was already treading on thin ice. She couldn''t afford to push YuWon further. With a steel resolve, she nodded and turned to leave, resolving to kill her father herself if need be.


    As she reached the door, YuWon called out, tossing something her way.Yeji caught the ve cor. She realized YuWon wasn''t nning to kill her father.


    In theirst life, YuWon let Seok off, feeding him to the fire giant. But this time he would deal with Seok himself. The first step was to enve him.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Do you understand what I want?" YuWon asked.


    Yeji clutched the cor tightly and nodded. Her dear brother wanted a ve, so she would get on for him.


    Find more to read at mvl


    Watching Yeji retreat, YuWon couldn''t help but smile. For a fleeting moment, he had wondered if she might defy him. That''s why he had acted cold towards her since leaving the nightclub.


    It was all his n to y at her regret, to ensure her obedience without needing to resort to the ve brand.


    "This will be fun." YuWon smiled.

 Chapter 175: Towards The Tower (2)

    Although YuWon was eager to see the oue, he decided to leave. Yeji knew about everything as much as he did. Now he wanted to see what she''d do to please him without any interference from his side.


    Consider it a test, dear sister.


    With that, he walked out of theplex. The others greeted him outside. Lilith asked him where they were headed next, but YuWon shook his head.


    "Some of you will stay behind," he announced. "Soo-Ah, and Min-Joon, you''lle with me. The rest will stay behind."


    The moment the words left YuWon''s lips, Gina jumped before him. She was furious. How could he leave her behind while taking another woman along? YuWon smiled and pulled her in, gently coaxing her.


    "Stay behind for now. I need you to keep an eye on things for me," he said, patting her head. "When I return, we can finally start working on those kids you''ve been dreaming about."


    Gina''s face flushed, and she quickly buried her face in his shoulder. Nodding shyly when YuWon asked if she could wait for him. However, the true reason was something else.


    Lilith had informed YuWon of the turmoil within Soo-Ah''s heart. Since Soo-Ah was a crucial piece in his ns, YuWon was determined to bring her fully under his control.


    However, acting on those intentions while Gina was around was out of the question. His crazy goblin would kill Soo-Ah even if YuWon took advantage of her.


    As for Lilith, YuWon had a different task in mind. To ensure Joon became an asset, she was assigned the mission of taming him¡ªby any means necessary. YuWon knew Lilith was the ideal candidate for the job. After all, when she chose to be, she could be exceptionally... persuasive.


    Lilith understood YuWon''s n and didn''t hesitate as the trio walked away toward the Namsan Tower.


    ***


    As they walked towards the Namsan Tower, YuWon was busy scanning the [Special Store]. Since Joon wasn''t with them anymore, no god''s eye was following them, giving YuWon the perfect opportunity to arm himself.


    He wasn''t nning on dealing with the anomaly himself, but he still wanted a weapon. Something that wouldpliment his titles. In other words, he wanted an unconventional weapon.


    Just then, something caught his eye.


    [Formless de], I wonder what it is.


    +++


    Weapon Name: Formless de


    Weapon Type: Divine Morphic Weapon


    Rarity: Mythic


    Requirement: God Seed


    Description: The first weapon to be forged in the heavens. Not much is known about its origins.


    Base Stats:


    Attack: Adapts to the shape and wielder''s base stats (Scaling: +50% to wielder''s total stat).


    Critical Chance: +20% in any form.


    Attack Speed: +10%.


    Special Bonus:


    Shifting Potential: Transforms into any weapon or tool instantly. Each form grants unique passive abilities based on its shape.


    Divine Resonance: Damage scales with the wielder''s divine affinity. Provides a +10% boost to divine-type skills.


    Skills:


    >> Can be forged by the user.


    Price: 99,999 gold + 20% of the user''s stat points (including unallocated stat points).


    +++


    The price was weird. Since YuWon had hundreds of thousands of gold, he didn''t bat an eye on it. The problem was the additional price of 20% of his stats.


    It was the first time he had seen such a strange pricing system. However, it was the perfect weapon for him, so he begrudgingly bought it. But instead of a weapon, he received a fist-sized vial.


    Curious, YuWon uncorked the vial and saw a liquid gold-like substance swirling inside. Suddenly, the liquid jumped out of the vial and began orbiting his face.


    YuWon was confused, unsure of what was happening, until the liquid suddenly seeped into his skin. A strange warmth spread through him as the liquid disappeared.


    Startled, he read the weapon''s description and realized it would change ording to his will.


    YuWon raised his hand and envisioned a longsword. Instantly, a gleaming golden de materialized in his hand. With a thought, he transformed it into a dagger, then a bow, and even something as small and absurd as a toothpick.


    The weapon responded wlessly, shifting into any shape or form he imagined. While he was testing the weapon, a skeleton came running back, pointing ahead with its bony fingers.


    "We''re here," Soo-Ahmented.


    As they approached the tower, more people appeared in sight. One would''ve thought they were having a pic there if it wasn''t for their bloodied and gloomy faces. Enjoy new stories from mvl


    Further ahead, YuWon could see a few people arguing with a group wearing medieval armor. The armored guys had formed a chain around the Tower''s entrance. It seemed they weren''t letting anyone inside.


    "What''s going on?" Min-Joon asked.


    "It seems someone''s got greedy," YuWon replied.


    "They want the reward for themselves?" Soo-Ah asked.


    YuWon nodded. Although it didn''t happen in his past life, he had expected something like this. In awless world, strength was everything. Since clearing quests was the quickest way to get strong.


    It was only natural that some would seek to hoard that power, ensuring others couldn''t rise to challenge them. However, their n won''t work.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    YuWon already knew the anomaly of the Namsan Tower was a boss monster adept in assassinations. The moment anyone stepped inside the tower without preparation would get killed.


    "Wait... aren''t those people from our university?" Min-Joon asked, pointing at a small crowd near a subway entrance.


    "They made it this far, huh?" YuWon chuckled.


    Honestly, YuWon didn''t think they wouldst long enough to reach the tower. But to his surprise, they were alive. It seemed they had opted to settle temporarily inside the subway station, likely because they couldn''t enter the tower.


    "Should we¡ª?" Soo-Ah asked YuWon.


    Since YuWon was leading them, it was only right to ask him first before making a move. YuWon looked at the guards and then at the familiar faces.


    Since they survived till now, they must be somewhat useful. Besides, YuWon wanted to learn more about the situation. He looked at Soo-Ah and nodded.


    "Fine, let''s meet them if you want to."

 Chapter 176: Crusaders

    They entered the subway station, and as expected, some people were guarding it. Since two factions had formed, it was natural for them to guard their base.


    Thankfully, the guards were the people from their university. Of course, they knew YuWon, the former social outcast, and their teammate. But more importantly, their savior.


    "Huh?! What are you doing here?" one of Hoon''s formerckeys asked.


    The person guarding the entrance was Lee Jiangmu, someone who had died in the past, but this time he made it alive. It made YuWon wonder if Hoon had killed him for points and exp, but couldn''t in this life since YuWon messed up the timeline with his ns.


    "Am I not allowed to be here?" YuWon replied. "It is a free,wless world, right?"


    "Of course, I''m just surprised, that''s all," Jiangmu replied awkwardly.


    How could Jiangmu feel safe after seeing what YuWon had done to Hoon and that Minotaur? Besides, he had bullied YuWon as well. Although it was because Hoon forced his hand.


    But that didn''t change the fact that Jiangmu had bullied him. YuWon could kill him right there and no one would stop him. Not because he was being righteous, but because they won''t dare go against him.


    "Don''t worry," YuWon patted his shoulder. "I''m not here to make a fuss. Just call your leader. I want to have a chat with them."


    Jiangmu breathed a sigh of relief at hisment. YuWon wouldn''t harm him, but that didn''t mean Jiangmu wanted to be anywhere around him.


    The psycho could change his mind at any moment and kill him. The sooner he brought them to the leader, the sooner he could leave them.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I''ll take you right in!" Jiangmu smiled nervously.


    With that, Jiangmu turned around and ran inside. Min-Joon scratched his head while Soo-Ah couldn''t help but chuckle at his reaction. YuWon, however, just shrugged.


    "What did I ever do for him to be so scared of me?" he mumbled.


    "Do you not know¡­?" Min-Joon mumbled. "Or are you pretending to not know?"


    "You want to be left behind or just in dumb?"


    YuWon''s words silenced Min-Joon as they headed inside.


    "Isn''t that the person who fought the Minotaur?"


    "Whoa¡­ I didn''t think I''d see him again."


    "He looks different, doesn''t he?"


    As they descended into the subway, a few people recognized YuWon and murmured. They thought they were being discrete but YuWon''s hearing had long exceeded the human limit and he could hear even their breaths.


    It''s good they know about me. By now, they''ve probably spread information about me in themunity.


    But it wasn''t just the people who were interested in YuWon. A handful of gods also began showing an interest in him, as more and more eyes turned towards him.


    It was a strange sensation. The gods knew he was their enemy, so why were they paying attention to him?


    Oh, right. I forgot.


    YuWon wasn''t the only one walking there. The gods had flocked to Soo-Ah, who was walking behind YuWon. A couple of them even looked at Min-Joon.


    It was a matter of time before some gods began offering them the rewards to coax them. It was their usual way of making someone their pdins. But it didn''t seem their ns were working, as they seemed to get more agitated with each passing second.


    "Wait here. I''ve called for the leader, so she should be here soon," Jiangmu said, already backing up.


    "And you?" YuWon teased.


    "I-I''m not off duty yet, so I have to go."


    With that, Jiangmu didn''t wait and ran out of the room.


    "He''s too scared of you..." Soo-Ah mumbled.


    She looked at her skeletons and wondered if YuWon looked more intimidating than some walking skeletons.


    "Everyone should fear the elder brother," Min-Joon puffed up his chest, Mickey standing beside him, imitating him.


    It was a hrious scene. Especially when YuWon''s re put them in their ce.


    "Quite a few people have gathered here," YuWonmented, looking out the small window.


    Other than people from their university, quite a few people had gathered there. They were most likely residents living nearby when the monsters appeared. Discover stories with mvl


    But YuWon was more interested in the leader, who kept everything in control even though the outside was chaotic.


    "You''re back!"


    A woman eximed, rushing into the room.


    "Professor Ming?" YuWon asked.


    He was expecting anyone but Professor Ming to be the group''s leader. After all, Professor Ming was someone who despised getting into conflicts.


    It was the reason she was reluctant to use her abilities to uncover the truth about the incident surrounding Yeji. In the end, it took YuWon urging her to do the right thing before she finally agreed.


    "Professor?" YuWon asked.


    "It''s already been a week." Professor Ming sighed. "Please take a seat."


    "..."


    "More importantly, you''re alive! I was wondering why you didn''t show up for the next mission," Professor Ming smiled. "Have you eaten? We got some food to share¡ª!"


    "No, I''m fine, professor." YuWon cut her off. "But I have a few questions I hope you''ll answer."


    YuWon was getting ufortable by Professor Ming''s words, so he changed the subject.


    "Yes? What is it?" Professor Ming smiled.


    "I would like to know more about the group that has seized control over the Tower."


    " Ah¡­ Yes, I was wondering if you''re here because of that." Ming nodded. "As you can guess, they arrived before us and took over the Tower."


    Ming sighed with a darkened expression. It seemed there was more to the tale than YuWon thought.


    "At first we tried being friendly, but they turned hostile. We then tried to force them, but that n backfired." She continued. "They already have better gear and, despite having the same quest, they wanted to hog everything."


    "I see¡­"


    So far, Professor Ming didn''t give YuWon any useful information. He could already guess why that group was doing what they were doing. But it seemed Ming didn''t know much about them, either.


    "At first, I thought it was good news. Since the quests were the same, we could join forces and clear them together."


    "But it didn''t turn out that way."


    "Yes." Ming slowly nodded. "They even killed a few of us, so we had no choice but to retreat to safety and wait."


    YuWon had guessed as much. Those Crusaders didn''t look like they''d mess around with their operation. In their eyes, since they came first, the right to fight the boss was theirs. They viewed Ming''s group as intruders, so they responded brutally from the start.


    That was the problem.


    If the first group killed the boss monster, what would happen to the other factions sharing the same quest? Their quest could fail. Since the quest could carry the death penalty, no one wanted to die. Hence, they all wanted to fight the boss monster.


    "If one side kills the boss monster, the oue is unknown." Ming read YuWon''s thoughts. "We''d be fortunate if a new boss monster appears and the cycle continues, but if not¡­"


    But they had also seen the fate of those who went inside the tower. None of them made it out of there. Hence, they were waiting for a miracle to happen.


    "If I''m honest, after the beating, people on our side don''t seem too keen on challenging the boss monster. But we can''t wait here forever."


    YuWon let Ming speak, then nodded. It was a dilemma for them. They''d die if they fought the Crusaders, they''d still die if they made it inside the tower and they''d die again if they failed the quest. No matter what decision they made, death waited for them.


    "What are your ns going forward?" Soo-Ah couldn''t help but ask.


    "I want to try talking to the Crusaders first. Although, I don''t think it''ll have any positive oue."


    YuWon nodded. It would be a waste of time trying to reason with the stronger party. Both sides would argue about killing the boss for their survival, and since everyone wants to survive, no one will back down, leading to a fight.


    No matter who wins, no one could defeat the boss in such a state.


    Professor Ming probably thought the same. Hence, she wanted to talk things out first.


    "Are you sure they know about the boss monster?" Soo-Ah asked.


    "Yes, they sent a few scouts to check initially," Ming replied. "One of them sent a bloodied note back with


    Boss


    written on it."


    "Then, let them kill the boss," YuWon announced.


    "Excuse me?" Professor Ming looked startled. "Kang YuWon, this isn''t a joke. Our lives are at stake here!"


    "I never said they''ll kill the boss," YuWon smiled. "I meant they can try to kill the boss."


    Professor Ming understood what YuWon meant. If the Crusader''s numbers were reduced, they could im the tower for themselves or, better yet, slip inside unnoticed while they fought the boss. As long as they were within the tower when the boss fell, the victory would count as theirs.


    But YuWon had a feeling things wouldn''t be so easy.


    Things keep getting interesting.

 Chapter 177: Talk (1)

    Meanwhile, the Crusaders were having a meeting of their own. They had sent over a dozen scouts and warriors to scan the area around the Namsan Tower.


    However, even after losing so many people, they had only an insignificant amount of information about the mission. They were needlessly losing their numbers. Besides, it also took a toll on their minds.


    Even on the first mission, the Crusaders had no trouble dealing with the Hobgoblin or the monarch. But now, all their momentum hade to a sudden halt.


    "Even if there''s a boss monster inside the tower, the real problem is getting there." A Crusader said. "We have secured the first floor, but the losses we incurred were too great."


    "Forget about the losses. There are hoards of monsters on every floor. Looking for the boss monster won''t be easy." Another one chimed in.


    "Does the elevator work?"


    "Are you dumb or what? How will you operate an elevator without electricity?"


    Several hours had passed since the meeting began. Yet they kept going in circles. Everyone wanted to clear the mission and reap rewards, yet no one was prepared to take the risk.


    Park Kwon, the section leader of the Crusaders, kept silent, watching two factions slowly form.


    The first faction wanted to use the strangers as their hunting dogs and use them to get information instead of soldiers from their ranks.


    Discover stories at §Þ??


    Thetter faction opposed this idea. They might have killed a few people, but as crusaders, it was their job to save people, not use them as bait.


    Both factions had the same numbers, so they turned toward their leader, Park Kwon, for the final vote.


    The second faction looked like they had already given up. After all, Park Kwon was a well-known blood monger. He even killed other survivors who wanted to enter the tower. It was obvious he would side with the first faction.


    "Sir, your vote shall decide the future of the Crusaders. Please think carefully¡ª" the second faction begged.


    "Hah! I wonder how you weaklings even became crusaders," the first faction''s leader scoffed. "Getting information takes priority. Sacrificing a few people is nothingpared to our victory."


    "I don''t like it," Park Kwon said, stroking his beard. "But we got no choice. We''ll storm the tower."


    The second faction leader was speechless. But his silence didn''tst long.


    "We''ll storm the tower after all those people die."


    ***


    "So, this is what you''ve been working on?" YuWon mumbled.


    "Yes... it''s an abandoned track, but with a little digging, we might end up around Namsan Tower," Professor Ming nodded.


    After realizing that the Crusaders wouldn''t let them proceed, Professor Ming decided it was better to make a way for themselves.


    She didn''t n on telling YuWon about it, since she didn''t think her n would work. But it did. They found another way to enter the Tower without shing with the Crusaders.


    YuWon''s gaze swept over the crowd. There were far too many people here, all of them eager to lend a hand. But there was one massive w.


    There were too many eyes there. The tunnel should''ve remained a secret, but now, too many knew about it. Worse yet, someone had tipped off the Crusaders. Or, even more chilling, what if some crusaders had infiltrated their ranks, posing as survivors, silently keeping tabs on them?


    Professor Ming trusts everyone, and that''s her worst w.


    YuWon sighed. It was better to assume the Crusaders already knew about their n. But if they did, why haven''t they acted yet?


    For people who didn''t want any interference in their ns, the Crusaders seemed toox for such an important matter.


    It doesn''t make sense unless they want us to enter the tower.


    ***


    Throughout history, people have often romanticized the crusaders, mistaking them for noble champions of righteousness. But the truth was far less ttering¡ªthey were little more than pawns used by the powerful to impose their will on the world.


    Times may have changed, but the Crusaders had not. Even now, those who arrogantly proimed themselves saviors of the earth were nothing more than ruthless criminals in disguise.


    A group that would kill people like bugs and do anything for their own benefit. That was the essence of the Crusaders¡ªtheir true nature.


    However, a group of criminals alone couldn''t sustain an empire. They needed people¡ªgenuinely righteous individuals and used them as cover while doing misdeeds behind their backs.


    The first faction under Park Kwon represented the core belief of the Crusaders, while the second faction was the righteous group used to whitewash the first group''s sins.


    Park Kwon already knew about the tunnel linking the subway station to the Namsan Tower. But he didn''t act as it saved him the trouble of dragging the bait to the catch.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    That''s why he was surprised when someone from the subway approached the tower wanting to talk to him.


    "A kid?" Park Kwon asked.


    "Yes, sir. It''s a kid from the nearby university," Minhyuk, the first faction''s leader, spoke. "Says he has important business with you."


    Park Kwon looked outside his tent and saw YuWon staring right at him. But the kid wasn''t alone. He had a beautiful woman by his side.


    "¡­I don''t like the way he looks at me," Professor Ming mumbled, instinctively covering her legs. "He looks like a criminal¡ª"


    "Because he is one," YuWon replied. "Most people you see here are seasoned criminals."


    "How do you¡ª?"


    "Just a hunch."


    YuWon made such a guess because he remembered there was a detention center near Namsan Tower. Judging by how quickly the Crusaders imed the tower, it was logical to assume they had been nearby when the gods'' game first began.


    Park Kwon nodded, letting them in. However, as soon as YuWon got close, Minhyuk swung his de, aiming for YuWon''s neck. Professor Ming gasped and closed her eyes, expecting YuWon''s blood to stter all over.


    Her eyes widened when she finally dared to look. YuWon had stopped the de with a finger, mere inches from his neck.


    No, there''s something between YuWon''s fingers¡­ is that¡ªa toothpick!?

 Chapter 178: Talk (2)

    Park Kwon raised an eyebrow, curious about the neer. But Minhyuk was seething with rage. He had poured every ounce of strength into that swing, only for the boy to block it¡ªwith a


    toothpick,


    of all things?


    Everyone was surprised, but YuWon didn''t react. If he had wanted to, he could have easily disarmed Minhyuk. But he wanted to test the [Formless de].


    The toothpick''s tip was enough to stop the de. But in Crusader''s eyes, it was his strength that stopped the de, not the toothpick. YuWon would not correct them either. The fewer people knew about his weapon, the better it would be.


    "We''re not here to fight, but to talk," YuWon said, staring at Park Kwon.


    Park Kwon raised his hand and Minhyuk stepped back, albeit unwillingly.


    "We have nothing to talk about," Park Kwon replied. "I''ve already conveyed that we''re not interested in cooperation¡ª"


    "We don''t want that either," YuWon replied, looking at them disdainfully.


    Honestly, YuWon couldn''t care about the criminals. However, those who had grown sensitive to even the slightest provocation would sense he was looking down upon them. That''s what YuWon wanted. To make them lose their shit.


    "I''m listening," Park Kwon mumbled.


    "You can have the boss monster. We won''t get in your way. In return, we''d like control over the first three floors. The mobs there aren''t worth much, but it''s better than walking away empty-handed."


    YuWon continued, "Plus, we''ll give you 60% of the profits. You won''t have to lift a finger, and you''ll still rake in the gold. Sounds like a fair deal, doesn''t it?"


    Park Kwon smiled, but the next moment a sharp murderous aura surrounded everyone. Even Park''s people couldn''t hold and stepped back. It was the same for Professor Ming. The only one who stood before him unafraid was YuWon.


    YuWon''s gaze remained steady, as if analyzing the man. He knew Park Kwon had be a pdin. Without a god''s help, there was no way he could wield such an overwhelming aura, especially so early in the apocalypse.


    "Fine," Park Kwon said, retrieving his aura. "You''ve proven your strength, so I have no problem with you."


    "But sir¡ª"


    Minhyuk tried objecting, but Park raised his hand, silencing him. The former could only bite his tongue in silence as Park continued the negotiation.


    "But let me make one thing clear. If you try any tricks, I''ll kill you all with no hesitation¡­ or so I wanted to say," Park Kwon smiled. "I want some reassurance. That prettydy would suffice¡ª"


    "Keep dreaming," YuWon scoffed. "Why would I leave anyone with a criminal?"


    Park Kwon''s mouth twitched. It had been some time since anyone had dared to disrespect him like this. The youngster before him was strong, but there was no way he had much experience in fighting with weapons.


    All this confidence just because he stopped Minhyuk''s de? These youngsters certainly have a lot of nerve.


    Park Kwon took his scythe and swung it towards YuWon. However, YuWon dodged the de with no effort. Park Kwon expected such a hot-blooded youngster to retaliate, but he didn''t.


    YuWon kept staring at him as if calcting his next move. Park''s men were ready to pounce on the outsiders. YuWon could deal with them, but the problem was Professor Ming.


    Using his stat points might raise suspicion, and in this situation, he couldn''t guarantee Ming''s safety. Normally, he wouldn''t hesitate to let her die, but she was a crucial pawn with an exceptional ability. It would be a shame if she died there. That''s why YuWon didn''t want to make a hasty move.


    I don''t need to kill them. The boss would do it for me. But getting out of here is another issue.


    "Drop your weapons," Park Kwon instructed his men.


    The Crusaders were surprised again, yet theyplied without question. After a moment of silence, Park Kwon shifted his gaze toward YuWon.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "What is a monster like you doing in the outside world?" he asked.


    The others might not see it, but Park Kwon did. YuWon was no ordinary youngster. Despite his youth, there was a depth in his eyes, a sign of years of experience, skill, and power just waiting to break free. It was wiser to retreat¡­ for now.


    "I''ll ept your proposal," Park Kwon said. "The first three floors are yours. We won''t care if you die or live, so everything is your responsibility."


    "I wouldn''t have it any other way," YuWon leaned to shake Park''s hand. "Now you can tell your men to stop hiding in the basement."


    "¡­as expected," Park Kwon scoffed and left.


    Just like that, YuWon struck a deal with the Crusaders. However, he wasn''t naive enough to think they would honor their word. In fact, he suspected the Crusaders would likely try to kill them before attacking the boss, ensuring no one stood in their way. Find exclusive stories on §Þ??


    I''m eager to see what dirty tricks youe up with, Park Kwon.


    ***


    Sometimeter¡­


    "¡­you''re fearless, YuWon," Professor Ming sighed. "I was so scared when he demanded me to stay back. I can''t even imagine what would''ve happened to me if you hadn''t been there."


    "Forget about it now," YuWon replied. "It''s time to arm ourselves. There''s probably a shop inside the subway station. Tell everyone to stock up on gear and anything else they might need for the tower."


    "I will¡­ but can we trust them?"


    "Of course¡­ not. They are criminals from the heart. Backstabbing is like second nature to them. I''m pretty sure they are already nning on how to ambush us."


    "¡­those detestable bastards!" Professor Ming cursed out loud.


    YuWon stopped to look at her. It was strangely funny to see the professor, who had always been fixated on manners and etiquette, use suchnguage before her student.


    "Don''t look at me like that!" Professor Ming looked away. "We all need to adapt to the world."


    YuWon chuckled, but said nothing. In the end, Ming was the one who broke the silence.


    "Are you sure¡­ we''ll be fine?" she asked.


    "For thest time, don''t worry about them. Just focus on killing the mobs and leave the rest to me."


    YuWon had selected a target. So there was no reason for Professor Ming to worry about the criminals anymore. After all, those bastards won''t ever walk out of the tower.

 Chapter 179: Im Enough (1)

    "He''s a cheeky brat," Park Kwon mumbled.


    His recent encounter with YuWon had shaken him more than he cared to admit. Even his patron god, Ares, warned him to be wary of YuWon. In all the time Park Kwon had served the god of war, he had never heard such amand before, hence Park Kwon was curious.


    The Crusaders surrounded the tower. Every floor was teeming with monsters. The odds were overwhelmingly stacked against YuWon. Yet the god warned him to not underestimate YuWon.


    However, the more Ares warned him, the more excited Park Kwon became. His life in the detention center had be dull.


    Park''s life had turned into a monotonous existence that left him craving excitement. That craving had found an outlet the day a monster appeared. The feeling was exhrating when he killed a goblin.


    But he didn''t stop there. He killed more. Anything that he set his eyes on died. Monsters, the guards, and even a few prisoners. He spared no one.


    That''s when he heard a voice. That was how he met Ares, the god of war, drawn by Park Kwon''s insatiable bloodlust. Ares wanted Park Kwon to be his disciple.


    Park Kwon didn''t hesitate. He pledged himself to Ares, serving as his eyes in the mortal realm. Under the god''s guidance, he had increased his power exponentially. For the time, it seemed nothing could stand in his way.


    Until YuWon appeared.


    On one hand, Ares had asked Park Kwon to stay wary of him and on the other he wanted Park Kwon to kill YuWon if possible.His eyes glinted with malice as a grin appeared on his face. He no longer cared about killing the boss. YuWon was his target now.


    ***


    "What is this ce¡­?" Soo-Ah mumbled.


    Till now, they had been fighting monsters in their environment. But now, they found themselves deep within the heart of the monster''s domain¡ªa dungeon.


    What should have been the area beneath the Namsan Tower had transformed into a dark, oppressivework of caves.


    While most of the group entered the Tower through the entrance, YuWon led a Soo-Ah and Min-Joon into the basement of Namsan Tower.


    When he had been around the tower the previous day, he had noticed something peculiar underground, a strange aura that shouldn''t have been there.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Intrigued by the possibility of uncovering a hidden boss or treasure, he took the route to the basement. Since he was nning on cultivating talents, it was natural for him to take Soo-Ah and Min-Joon with him.


    "Keep your eyes open¡ª"


    As soon as YuWon said that, there was a screeching noise. A rat-like humanoid creature jumped at them. Min-Joon was quick to react and sliced the beast in half while Skullee smashed another one under its feet. Min-Joon and Skullee gave each other a thumbs-up while Soo-Ah shook her head in dismay.


    A momentter, the group found themselves surrounded by the creatures. However, Soo-Ah''s skeletons made quick work of them. The sight was almostical¡ªskeletons fighting with torches strapped to their heads.


    Before heading underground, YuWon had spent some gold to equip them with the torches, but he didn''t think the rat beasts would be so terrified of light and hurry away when hit by light.


    Just then, a notification appeared before YuWon. He opened themunity for a small price of 200 gold. People could make private chat groups. YuWon had made one with Professor Ming, and right now she messaged him one sentence.


    [Park Kwon knows! He''s heading downstairs with his men.]


    "Excellent," YuWon smirked and quickly typed a response.


    [Don''t stop them. Stick to the first floor.]


    YuWon''s n was finally taking shape.


    ***


    Sometime ago¡­


    "Are you sure?" Park Kwon asked.


    "Yes sir, I saw them heading into the tunnel myself."


    As YuWon suspected, a few Crusaders were hiding amidst the survivors. As soon as YuWon entered the tunnel, they informed Park Kwon about it. At first, he didn''t care, but when he realized YuWon wasn''t with the crowd on the first floor, he sensed something was off.


    "No wonder he gave up on the boss so quickly," Minhyuk spat. "I won''t be surprised if there''s another boss monster other than that overgrown snake hiding in the basement. Boss, we must kill them."


    Fighting the boss on the top floor wasn''t easy. How could they defeat something like the Great Basilisk so early in the game? YuWon probably knew about the boss and realized they couldn''t defeat it.


    Either that or YuWon knew the basilisk wasn''t the true boss, just a decoy meant to mislead them. Maybe that''s why he gave up and told the Crusaders the boss was theirs. He must have hoped they''d meet their end against the beast and the Crusaders would perish without his lifting a finger.


    "How convenient¡­" Park Kwon nodded.


    If Minhyuk hadn''t nted spies among the survivors, they''d never known about YuWon''s true intentions and might have died fighting the basilisk.


    "Gather everyone!" Park Kwon yelled. "I want that YuWon''s head at my feet!"


    Back to the present¡­


    Park Kwon''s men hurried down the stairs, only to meet with the pitch-ck basement. Once inside, they couldn''t even see their hands. It was risky to go down in such darkness as monsters could hide there waiting for someone to walk down the stairs.


    As the men hesitated, Park Kwon lost his patience and kicked a few of them.


    "Go down."


    Those words sent a chill down their spines, and they entered the basement. However, as they walked, they stumbled upon a gruesome sight. Dozens of monster corpsesy scattered everywhere. Although they couldn''t see much, they could feel the still warm bodies under their feet.


    "Took you long enough."


    A voice echoed in the basement. Everyone turned around like morons trying to look for someone in pitch-ck darkness. Sensing the brewing danger, Ares immediately gifted the divine sight to Park Kwon, enabling him to see in the dark.


    YuWon was right in front of him, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

 Chapter 180: Im Enough (2)

    "I already gave you the boss," YuWon sighed. "What more do you want?"


    "You gave us the boss?" Park Kwon scoffed. "Everything in this building belongs to us. Even you."


    "Kinky, unfortunately, I got a wife and someone else who I fancy. So why don''t you fuck one of your crusaders like you did in the detention center?"


    "Is this guy crazy?" Minhyuk red at YuWon.


    The crusaders unsheathed their weapons


    "You dare insult us? Do you want to die?"


    "Looks like you slept with a lot of guys, damn." YuWonughed.


    The Crusaders kept ring at YuWon. Their reactions were natural. Some were angry because of his remarks; others were furious at the loss of so many men to the Basilisk. Still, it didn''t seem like YuWon cared about them.


    But for Park Kwon, the situation was more unsettling. Two dozen crusaders surrounded YuWon, yet he showed no signs of fear. Instead, he acted recklessly, almost as if daring them to strike. A person wouldn''t act like unless they had something or someone backing them up.


    Could it be a god?


    To Park Kwon, gods were the ultimate power. Their blessing could make or break anyone in their little game. That made him suspect YuWon had received some divine favor and was acting so recklessly.


    "How did you know we''de?" Park Kwon asked.


    "You think you''re the only ones who can nt spies?" YuWon smiled.


    YuWon didn''t have a spy, but he knew how to make them believe he did. He already had a n in motion. No one noticed, but a wisp left YuWon''s arm and headed toward Minhyuk.


    Minhyuk couldn''t shake it off and soon found himself possessed by YuWon. Now was the time to deal a blow to Park Kwon.


    "A spy, here?" Park Kwon scoffed. "You take me for a fool?"


    He had brought the people he trusted from his prison days. No one there would dare betray him.


    Unfortunately, his trust was about to be shaken to the core.


    "A fool? Nah, I don''t give that much respect to people like you," YuWon smiled. "As for your im, would you like to correct him, Minhyuk?"


    Park Kwon was stunned. He believed YuWon was trying to sow discord among his people. But to his horror, Minhyuk, his most trusted man, smiled and hurried to YuWon''s side.


    The crusaders gasped in horror. Never in their wildest dreams had they imagined Minhyuk would betray Park Kwon.


    Meanwhile, Minhyuk bowed to YuWon, which infuriated Park Kwon even more. After all the years they had spent together, Minhyuk had never bowed to anyone¡ªyet now he was doing so to someone like YuWon? He couldn''t possibly get any angrier than he was.


    However, it was just the beginning.


    "W-What is this madness?" Park Kwin yelled, clenching his fists. "Minhyuk, you get back here right now!"


    "He won''t," YuWon said right before he snapped Minhyuk''s neck.


    Park Kwon''s eyes widened in shock. Why did YuWon kill Minhyuk? He was supposed to be on YuWon''s side. But before Kwon could process the thought, YuWon smiled and gestured toward the crowd.


    "He outlived his usefulness," he said. "But he wasn''t the only spy I had. Though I doubt any of them woulde forward if I called them out now."


    Park Kwon suddenly felt as if he were surrounded by enemies. YuWon might be lying, but could he trust anyone? Even Minhyuk, who was like a younger brother to him, had betrayed him. Thus, anyone could be his enemy there.


    The Crusaders were thinking the same thing. Anyone among them could be a spy, ready to strike when they least expected it. They couldn''t turn their backs towards their allies, or they''d be handing their lives to the enemy.


    YuWon smiled inwardly. With just a few well-chosen words, he had turned the once-unified crusaders into a group of backstabbers.


    "Take your men and leave," YuWon said, waving them off. "Sort out the mess with your people first and forget about killing the bosses. Alright?"


    Park Kwon clenched his fists and beganughing.


    "Leave? Why would I do that?" He snarled. "Now that it hase to this, no one but I will leave this ce alive!"


    Just like that, Park Kwon swung his scythe, killing a couple of his own men. YuWon didn''t move, he didn''t even raise his hand, yet Park Kwon''s de stopped before hitting YuWon.


    "What trickery is this!?" Park Kwon yelled.


    "Trickery? Are you blind?" YuWon smiled.


    A skeleton appeared from behind YuWon, holding on to the scythe''s edge. Skullee pushed Park Kwon away, and YuWon jumped at him. Park Kwon instinctively raised his right arm to block, but it was no match for the force of YuWon''s punch.


    A deafening crash followed as Park Kwon was sent flying, mming into his own men. In the darkness, they mistook the impact for an attack and began striking at each other in panic. Several more crusaders fell because of the confusion.


    "Return to Soo-Ah," YuWon instructed Skullee. "She''d need your help."


    Skullee grunted before heading deeper into the dungeon. Meanwhile, the Crusaders remained in disarray, turning on each other. Park Kwon had be a part of the chaos, constantly under attack from hisrades. The only one untouched was YuWon, their target.


    YuWon smiled before opening themunity tab and typing something quickly for Professor Ming.


    [Clear the floor. I''m heading upstairs now.]


    Professor Ming received the word and hurriedly told everyone to step out. YuWon wasing their way, and the Crusaders would undoubtedly follow him.


    She wasn''t sure what had transpired downstairs, but YuWon had specifically told her to stay away from the Crusaders when they returned upstairs. She could only assume the worst and follow his advice.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    YuWon jumped over the fallen Crusaders and ran ahead. Behind him, Park Kwon struggled to rise, his breaths ragged. But the moment he found his footing, he snatched the nearest man by the cor and crushed his skull.


    The Crusaders were stunned and stopped infighting. Park Kwon''s re turned on them as he growled.


    "Spy or not, I''ll kill anyone who doesn''t chase after that bastard!"


    "L-Leave it to us, Boss!"


    The Crusaders yelled simultaneously as they scrambled to obey, bolting after YuWon.

 Chapter 181: Im Enough (3)

    The Crusaders tried to run, but someone was waiting for them on the stairs.


    Crack!


    Blood sttered everywhere as a crusader fell backward. Those behind him were stunned. A headless corpse greeted them.


    "Huh?"


    Then came the thudding sound of something rolling down the stairs. The crusader''s severed head dropped to the floor, rolling around, marking everything with blood.


    Those rushing towards YuWon came to an abrupt halt. Even Park Kwon was shocked to see such cruelty as they watched the beheaded body twitch on the ground.


    Something sharp had severed the man''s head. Because of the darkness, they couldn''t see what it was as Park Know grabbed his scythe with his broken arm.


    "Who dares to kill my men!?" Park Kwon yelled.


    "Dare?" a madman''s voice replied.


    Park Kwon pushed through the crowd only to see a man blocking their path, a bloodied axe resting on his shoulder.


    "Dare isn''t a word weaklings like you should use," Min-Joon said, showing off an unsettling smile.


    His eyes had long since turned entirely crimson. As a berserker, he had been relentlessly hunting the rat creatures alone. His sanity had long since left human norms. Consumed by bloodlust, he only wanted to mirror the color of his gaze¡ªto drown the world in blood.


    Swinging the axe freely in the air to shake off the flesh and blood, Min-Joon taunted the Crusaders, pointing above and below.


    "You''re not going anywhere," he snarled. "Neither above, nor below."


    "You think you can stop us by yourself?"


    "I''m enough to deal with the likes of you."


    Under normal circumstances, the crusader might have cursed loudly or evenughed at Min-Joon''s deration and charged at him. It wasn''t their first time dealing with such a nuisance guy.


    But they couldn''t.


    Just one look into Min-Joon''s eyes had them frozen with fear.


    Is he really human?


    That was the only thought inside the Crusaders'' heads. It was ridiculous that they feared a barely adult boy. All of them were criminals, yet they feared one person.


    At that moment, the Crusaders wished Min-Joon would leave and YuWon would take his ce. As strong as YuWon was, he was sane and... human, unlike the monster before them.


    It''s those eyes¡­ they don''t have a shred of emotions in them.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The calm crimson gaze filled with annoyance towards the crusaders like they were some insects ruining a lion''s lunch.


    "Fucking bitch!"


    Park Kwon clenched his teeth. Then, with his intact left arm, he grabbed the chain scythe and shouted.


    "Kill all these bastards!"


    Park Kwon''s roar invigorated the Crusaders. How could they back down against a child? That would never happen. They had the number and as long as they charged together, they could kill the man.


    The Crusaders charged at Min-Joon all at once. Roughly twenty of them charged at the boy. Even then Park Kwon felt slightly troubled. He had pushed them towards the boy, but the unsettling feeling didn''t leave him.


    "Yes¡­e together," Min-Joon licked his bloodied lips. "So I can deal with you quickly."


    Min-Joon swung the axe at a man charging at him. The de ripped the man in half, bending his arms and waist like a sheet of paper as the crusader''s corpse stered the wall with his blood.


    "Surround him!"


    Another crusader ran from behind with a dagger held high, aiming for Min-Joon''s shoulder. He could have dodged, but he didn''t, letting the de pierce his shoulder.


    As the blood gushed out of his wound, the crusaderughed. Min-Joon was no monster. He was a man. A man who could bleed. With that thought, the crusader twisted the knife embedded in his shoulder, thinking he wouldn''t be able to use the axe with one hand.


    But that was his misconception.


    Min-Joon deliberately let the man''s de hit him because there was no need to dodge. Such superficial wounds would get healed in seconds. But the crusader won''t.


    A secondter, the crusader''s head got cut in half. The taste of blood was like a drug for Min-Joon. The more he killed, the more he wanted to kill.


    With one hand, he pulled the knife from the shoulder. More blood gushed out, but the wound inflicted by the knife closed up cleanly within seconds. It was like the knife had never hit him.


    Chapter Experience:


    "You can''t kill me¡­" Min-Joonughed hysterically. "You can''t! No one can!"


    Being inside a dungeon with no light inside made it difficult to track Min-Joon''s movements. But Min-Joon didn''t have that problem as he could smell their fear, a perk he gained while killing the rats earlier.


    The Crusaders tried many ways to push Min-Joon out of the way. But they couldn''t. Meanwhile, as he more people, his regeneration speed increased, and he kept gaining bonuses thanks to his berserker ss.


    "S-Save me¡ª!"


    Min-Joon swung his axe at the waist of a fallen crusader, severing it in half.


    "Fuck! My arm, my arm!"


    At the same instant, he twisted and ripped off a man''s arm, using it as a second weapon. It was then a strange thought crossed his mind.


    Even the goblins weren''t this easy to kill. Pathetic.


    There was a reason Min-Joon felt it was easier to kill humans than goblins. The goblins were monsters. They were raised to fight since birth and even in the face of danger, they would usually fight instead of fleeing.


    Unlike them, humans have too many thoughts in their heads when they fight. Some would be scared, some frustrated, and some might even kill themselves in despair. But lost in his lust for blood, Min-Joon couldn''t care about such things.


    "¡­we''re doomed."


    A crusader mumbled as he fell to his knees, mere seconds away from getting his head chopped. Half of the Crusaders were already dead, and they hadn''t even made it to the stairs.


    Park Kwon was standing away from the Crusaders, staring at Min-Joon. After killing ten people, he expected the brat to show some sigh of fatigue.


    But it was as if every kill energized Min-Joon instead. It was another perk he received from his ss, but the Crusaders didn''t know that.


    There''s no point dragging this out.


    Park Kwon thought, his grip tightening on the scythe. He could no longer watch his subordinates get indiscriminately ughtered and charged towards Min-Joon. It looked like Park Kwon had gone mad, but in his mind, he had already won.


    He''s strong, but I can deal with him.


    The Crusaders feared Min-Joon more than YuWon, but Park Kwon knew Min-Joon wasn''t as strong as YuWon. Besides, he had Ares''s support. How could he lose to someone like Min-Joon? However, one thing was troubling him.


    His right arm.


    Even though he had blocked Skullee''s attack, the impact had broken his arm. A weapon like the scythe he had wasn''t easy to use with one arm. However, Park Kwon didn''t have a choice. He had to fight him to the end.


    Min-Joon quickly noticed Park Kwon and pushed everyone else away. After killing so many people, he wanted to face a challenge.


    As the axe swung towards his head, Park Kwon pulled one of his men who was rushing from the side to his front.


    "Sir? SIR¡ª!"


    The guy''s head rolled down, but Park Kwon still used what was left of his corpse as a shield. Once he got close enough, he discarded the corpse and reached for the chain scythe hanging on his waist.


    "Commander''s revenge!"


    It was a skill bestowed upon him by Ares. As long as he got arade''s blood on his hand, Park Kwon''s touch could kill the one who took their life. He didn''t want to use the skill against Min-Joon, because it only worked once a day, but he had no choice.


    I can figure something outter. For now, I must kill this bastard!


    Since Min-Joon wasn''t a pdin like Park Kwon, a touch of his scythe would kill the brat.


    Unfortunately, things don''t always go ording to n.


    What¡­?


    Park Kwon suddenly felt light. He couldn''t register the pain, but when he tried to swing the scythe, nothing happened. It wasn''t until he felt a searing pain did he realized what had happened.


    Min-Joon''s attack had not only killed the crusader but had also struck Ju-won''s remaining arm. The impact was so brutal that Park Kwon''s left arm got ripped off.


    "Useless bastard," Min-Joon spat, looking annoyed.


    He had expected a good fight from Park Kwon, but the fight was over even before it began. To let out his frustration, Min-Joon kicked him away as Park Kwon fell helplessly on the ground.


    "YuWon lied to me. He''s nothing special."


    Min-Joon muttered before immediately turning away. He no longer cared about the fallenmander.


    But Park Kwon couldn''t take his eyes off Min-Joon even though he was in pain. He couldn''t wrap his head around what had happened. He was a pdin, yet a mere awakener severed his arm off? It made no sense.


    "My lord! Give me more strength!" Park Kwon yelled, staring at the floating eye above.


    However, as soon as he said those words, the eye disappeared. His patron god had abandoned him.


    This¡­ can''t be happening¡­


    Park Kwon thought as his life slowly slipped away. He had lost too much blood. Yet, Min-Joon hadn''t even deemed him worth finishing himself.


    But his men, the Crusaders, didn''t care about the corpses. They simply trampled over his broken body in their frantic scramble to escape the dungeon, their boots crushing Park Kwon thoroughly.


    It was ironic. Park Kwon had used the Crusaders as his meat shield, only to be trampled to death by them.

 Chapter 182: Throwing A Snake A Bone (1)

    "You left Min-Joon to fight the crusaders alone!?" Professor Ming yelled. "Are you out of your mind?"


    YuWon sighed. He knew the professor would react like this, hence he didn''t tell her about his n. Min-Joon was a politician''s son, so it was obvious Professor Ming was worried about him.


    She''s still gued by the norms of the old world¡­


    A politician? Even the president won''t have much power in their situation, yet she was worried about a mere politician.


    "He''s not a child," YuWon replied. "He''s more than enough to take care of Park Kwon. Besides, why are you following me?"


    Professor Ming got flustered at the question. She had followed her instincts as a teacher and couldn''t let YuWon fight the boss alone. SHe was worried about him too, not just Min-Joon and Soo-Ah.


    "The crusaders are strong¡­ I''ve seen them kill before¡ª"


    "Have some faith in your student," YuWon interrupted her.


    Park Kwon was strong, YuWon wasn''t dismissing that fact. He was merely stating that Min-Joon was stronger. After all, despite being an avatar, Park Kwon didn''t have one important thing.


    Someone to cultivate his talents.


    Min-Joon had YuWon and, by extension, he had ess to the [Special Store]. YuWon had given Min-Joon a splendid weapon and a skill for continuous healing. All the things that one would gain muchter.


    If Min-Joon dies after all this, then he wasn''t fit enough to be raised by me.


    YuWon wanted fighters who would eventually face the goods. If Min-Joon couldn''t even deal with a bunch of humans, then there was no point in raising him.


    "Can we defeat that¡­ basilisk?"


    Professor Ming asked what had been on her mind for some time.


    In her mind, the Crusaders were much stronger than all of them. Yet they couldn''t even scratch the snake. Yet YuWon was confidently marching up the stairs to face such a beast.


    YuWon had faced disasters, hence fighting a snake didn''t seem like much of a challenge for him. Still, he couldn''t be cocky. After all, he wasn''t the one who would kill the boss.


    Why would I let Professor Ming follow me if I wanted to do it alone?


    At first, YuWon nned to hold off the basilisk until Min-Joon caught up to him. However, when Professor Ming arrived instead, he thought he''d let her take the kill¡ªprovided Min-Joon didn''t show up in time.


    Though it''ll be a shame if she chooses not to follow me after, at least Soo-Ah will gain the most from this fight.


    "YuWon?"


    "Defeating it alone might be difficult," YuWon lied. "But with your help, it should be fine."


    "Eh? I don''t know how to fight!"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Didn''t you say there''s always a time to learn?"


    "Sociology differs frombat¡ª!"


    "Potayto-potahto."


    YuWon had always been into mythology. Hence, he knew a lot about different beasts named across various myths. Basilisk was one such creature.


    Although deadly, Basilisk had many weaknesses. Some were practical, while others were downright hrious.


    Being a distant rtive of Medusa, Basilisk also could turn people into stone. Hence, it shared a simr weakness, as its reflection could petrify it. But the most hrious weakness the basilisk had was chickens.


    The Basilisk was a creature of death and decay, while the rooster symbolized life and dawn. Thus, it was believed that the rooster could defeat the snake-like beast.


    But just because YuWon knew its weakness didn''t mean the basilisk was easy to defeat.


    "Here we are¡­" Professor Ming mumbled.


    They had reached the rooftop. The basilisk was supposed to be behind the door. YuWon took a deep breath and kicked it open. However, he wasn''t expecting such a sight before his eyes.


    Stone statuesy scattered all over the terrace. They were the victims of Basilisk''s petrifying gaze. Almost all the statues had the Crusader armor on them.


    Finally, YuWon understood why Park Kwon was so enraged. Losing more than half his team to the basilisk had been a devastating blow. Professor Ming looked taken aback, perhaps reconsidering the decision to follow him.


    "You can leave if you want," YuWon shrugged. "I won''t hold it against you."


    Professor Ming looked at him as if considering his words before shaking her head. YuWon didn''t ask for her reason and walked ahead.


    Apart from the hundreds of statues, many dried-up corpsesy scattered around. Perhaps these were the unfortunate people who had fallen prey to the basilisk''s hunger.


    "Pitiful humans, never learn¡­"


    YuWon paused when he heard the slithering voice.


    He had never seen a basilisk in hisst life, yet it didn''t look as threatening as the hydra, or even the disaster mole, for that fact. What truly caught him off guard, however, was the fact that the snake could talk, something neither of the disasters he faced could do.


    The white serpent coiled around, turning its icy gaze towards YuWon, who quickly turned away. But he saw its massive fangs dripping with venom and the icy scales that protected it.


    As if that weren''t terrifying enough, a toxic mist covered the creature''s mouth. A mere whiff of it could kill thousands of humans.


    "It''s not my time to feast¡­ be wise and retreat. I, Valkith, shall let you live¡­"


    A monster with a name? That''s a first.


    As for the creature''s request, YuWon had no intention of following it.


    "I''m afraid you''re not in a position to make such demands, great beast," YuWon shrugged.


    YuWon quickly turned [Formless de] into a javelin before handing it to Professor Ming.


    "What¡ª?"


    "You were a javelin thrower before, right?" YuWon cut her off. "I''ll keep the snake busy. When you get the chance, throw it into its eye."


    "But¡ª"


    "You have to do this. If you miss, I''ll turn into a statue and you''ll be the snake''s desert. Do you want that?"


    Professor Ming shook her head. But it had been years since shest picked up a javelin. She didn''t know if she could hit the creature, let alone its eyes.


    However, she had no choice. The basilisk, like any snake, possessed incredible reflexes. No matter how hard YuWon tried, he wouldn''t be able tond a hit on it alone.


    Someone had to distract the creature, and since Professor Ming wasn''t fit for the task, YuWon took it upon himself, leaving the professor to focus on hitting the eye.

 Chapter 183: Throwing A Snake A Bone (2)

    "Throw it when I give the signal, now go hide," YuWon whispered.


    Although Professor Ming wasn''t entirely convinced by his n, she trusted him. YuWon had fought a minotaur alone, so dealing with another such creature didn''t seem too farfetched.


    Little did she know YuWon no longer had such strength. He could put his stats back, but that would create problems for himter. For now, he would stick with the n and hope Soo-Ah pulled through before he died.


    "Admirable, yet foolish¡­" Valkith shook his head.


    The statues and the corpses around the terrace were proof of his strength. Yet, a spark of curiosity flickered in his golden eyes¡ªwhat would the new challengers bring to the table?


    Valkith unleashed his petrifying gaze at YuWon. But YuWon was quick, ducking behind a statue just in time. Professor Ming took advantage of the situation and ran to safety.


    [Checkpoint marked!]


    I hope I won''t need to use it, but it''s good to have some reassurance.


    YuWon darted to the other side of the terrace, weaving between the statues. The symbols of the basilisk''s strength had ironically be blessings for his enemies.


    Valkith seethed with restrained fury. He yearned to crush YuWon, but the terrace''s limited space worked against him. For a creature of his size, one reckless move and he would topple over the edge. No matter how strong a monster might be, a fall from this height would not end well for it.


    YuWon kept running between the statues. Soon, Valkith lost hisposure and with a guttural snarl, the beast charged straight at him.


    Then, out of the corner of his eye, Valkith caught a glint of something hurling his way. Instinctively, he twisted to dodge, but YuWon jumped and shoved him directly into the spear''s path.


    "ARGH!!!"


    Valkith roared in agony as the spear hit his eye. Before the beast could recover, YuWon extended his hand and summoned the [Formless de]. The spear disappeared, reshaping itself into a gauntlet for YuWon.


    YuWon clenched his fist and swung with all his strength. The impact was devastating. Valkith''s scales were immune to piercing weapons, but crumpled under the blunt force of the punch.


    Simultaneously, shards of shattered scales were driven deep into Valkith''s flesh, evoking another roar of pain as the monster staggered back.


    "Nice one!" YuWon eximed, giving Professor Ming a thumbs up. "Now, run! Tell everyone to evacuate the building."


    "What? Why¡ª?"


    "For a professor, you ask too many questions. Just do as I say and go!"


    "You better not die!"


    Professor Ming replied before running away.


    "As if dying was ever an option for me."


    YuWon chuckled, focusing on Valkith. With one of its eyes destroyed, the creature''s petrification radius had shrunk, leaving YuWon with more room to maneuver.


    I just need to buy some time for Soo-Ah and Min-Joon.


    Valkith whipped his tail at YuWon, who ducked and rolled away. The lizard''s rage was a fortunate twist for YuWon. In his rage, Valkith would have trouble keeping himself in check.


    "You dare¡­ a human dares!"n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Stop screaming. I can hear you just fine without all that."


    Valkith gritted his teeth. YuWon''s punch hadn''t just hurt physically¡ªit had wounded his ego. The idea of a mere human daring to strike him was humiliating, something that other creatures would surely mock.


    Enraged, Valkith thrashed wildly. Each swing was a desperate attempt tond a single blow on YuWon, but no matter how hard he tried, he missed again and again.


    With an eye gone, it was difficult for Valkith to see YuWon. Thetter had gotten so fearless that he openly checked themunity while fighting the boss.


    Finally, he received the message he had been waiting for.


    [Skeleton Baby: I''m done here. We''re heading your way now.]


    "Skeleton baby¡­ Soo-Ah and her weird naming sense."


    With the preparationsplete, YuWon stopped dodging and began hitting Valkith. Valkith had lost his mind to rage, and every blow added more fury to his heart.


    Suddenly, Valkith stopped.


    "You''re up to something," he said.


    The basilisk realized that no matter how hard YuWon hit him, the blows wouldn''t be enough to kill him. Yet, the human kept relentlessly striking him.


    Suddenly, Valkith nced back and noticed he was teetering on the edge of the terrace. A few more punches and he would have toppled over. A few more punches, and he would topple over. Consumed by his rage, he might not even realize it until it was toote.


    "Using such tricks¡­ I''m impressed, human. But it won''t be enough!"


    Valkith unleashed his poison breath at YuWon. The mist enveloped YuWon and Valkithughed, confident that his victory was certain.


    "You are one of a kind, human, toe this far," Valkith sneered. "But did you think your little tricks would work on me?"


    p. p. p.


    The unexpected sound broke Valkith''s monologue. Hisughter turned to a scowl. He looked deeper inside the smoke. There, amidst the dissipating mist, YuWon stoodpletely unharmed.


    "Well done, Valkith," YuWon said, his voice calm but cutting. "To think you''d figure out a n that I never had in mind. You truly are something else."


    "How are you unaffected¡ª?"


    "Antidote," YuWon smirked.


    In truth, it wasn''t the antidote that saved him¡ªit was the Hydra''s blood coursing through his veins. Hydra was among the most poisonous creatures ever, so how could a mere basilisk''s poison affect someone infused with Hydra''s blood?


    But YuWon didn''t want to exin all that to Valkith, nor to the dozen eyes hovering overhead. Since someone had pushed the basilisk to the edge, it was natural for the gods to be viewing them.


    YuWon didn''t mind either. After all, he had used no underhanded means in their fight. No matter how much the gods wanted toin, he was clean to a fault.


    "Your tricks won''t work on me, human!" Valkith roared. "You cannot kill me!"


    "You''re right, I can''t kill you," YuWon nodded. "From the beginning, I had no intention of killing you. But I will be the reason for your death."


    The next moment, the floor underneath Valkith gave away, sending him hurling below.

 Chapter 184: Throwing A Snake A Bone (3)

    Valkith''s eyes widened in panic as he plummeted downward. With no ws or limbs to cling to the surface, he could do nothing but fall to his doom. The sudden development shocked the gods as they stared at YuWon strangely.


    YuWon had surprised them countless times before, and this moment was no exception. Yet, they couldn''tprehend how only the floor beneath Valkith had copsed, leaving YuWon unharmed. They were eager to know what trick YuWon used this time.


    However, YuWon didn''t bother to exin. Instead, a sly grin spread across his face.


    Looks like the weasel did its job.


    The Crusaders had suspected there were two bosses in this quest, and their assumption was partially correct. The tower was indeed home to two mortal enemies: the basilisk, Valkith, and a cunning weasel imprisoned under the tower on Valkith''s orders.


    Valkith ruled over the Namsan Tower and the quest. Hence, he had collected the beasts and monsters from all over the region to fortify its stronghold. But it wasn''t to stop the humans from climbing the tower.


    No, the true reason was far more personal.


    The weasel was a predator Valkith couldn''t defeat. Immune to both his venom and petrifying gaze, the weasel was a counter to the basilisk''s overwhelming power. It wasn''t farfetched to say that the weasel was his predator.


    To survive, Valkith had ordered every creature under itsmand to trap the weasel within the dungeon, ensuring it couldn''t escape. Hence, he stayed on the terrace while the weasel rotted in the basement.


    That''s why the ratlings were guarding the dungeon. It was also why they had attacked YuWon''s group when they ventured into the dungeon. It was so no one could free the weasel from the dungeon.


    Unfortunately for Valkith, someone freed the weasel, and now it wasing to finish their fight. Most monsters were dead, so nothing could stop the weasel. However, there was a twist.


    "Soo-Ah killed the weasel and resurrected it as her summon," YuWon smirked. "The weasel will kill Valkith, but it will count as Soo-Ah''s victory."


    YuWon peeked over the gaping hole, watching Valkith fall deeper. The fall wouldn''t kill it, but the one waiting in the end would.


    "I should head down, too," he murmured. "After all the stalling I''ve done, it''s only right that I witness the end of this fight."


    ***


    I won''t die from this measly fall!N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Valkith thought as he plummeted through the air.


    Rage burned within him as the wind whipped past him. As long as he survived, Valkith swore vengeance against that wretched human.


    But mid-fall, something caught Valkith''s attention. The hordes of monsters he had gathered were gone, nowhere to be seen. All he saw were some skeletons watching him fall.


    By the time Valkith realized something was off, it was toote.


    Valkith fell into the dungeon¡­ the one ce he didn''t want to be in. Pain shot through his battered body, leaving him weak and exposed.


    But worse, he was vulnerable in thest ce he wanted to be. For the first time in ages, fear wed in his heart as he smelled the familiar smell of death looming over him.


    "This¡­ can''t be!"


    Valkith roared as the skeletal frame of the undead weasel emerged from above. The damned weasel had torn through the tower to lure Valkith into its domain.


    "You think I''ll fall so easily?!"


    Horrified, Valkithshed out with his tail, aiming to crush the weasel in one swift strike. The ground cracked under the force of his blow, but the weasel twisted and jumped,nding silently on the ground.


    Before Valkith could attack again, the weasel charged ahead, its ws shing at the basilisk''s injured side. The wounds YuWon had given Valkith were now hurting twice as much.


    Valkith roared in pain as blood dripped from the fresh wound. He opened his massive jaws, nning to bite off the weasel''s backbone. The weasel jumped and turned around, so Valkith''s fangs met the weasel''s ribcage. Instead of crushing the bone, the fangs shattered on impact.


    "Impossible!" Valkith gasped.


    With the fangs broken, Valkith''s venom endlessly spilled on the ground. The venom burned through the ground, but the intended target remained unaffected.


    As the weasel aimed for Valkith''s underbelly, the basiliskshed out again, his tail whipping in a wide arc. The weasel jumped again, but the small dungeon didn''t offer him much space to move.


    This time, Valkith''s attack connected. The impact sent the weasel flying into a wall, but when the dust cleared, it was already moving again, unaffected by the attack.


    The weasel lunged again, too fast for Valkith to dodge. Its ws tore through his scales, leaving deep gouges along his spine. Blood pooled beneath him, weakening him further.


    "No... I cannot... die here!"


    Valkith noticed a narrow passage ahead and dragged his battered body forward. If he could escape, he would recover and rule over the monsters once again.


    But the weasel didn''t allow it. It jumped on Valkith''s back before he could retreat, its bony ws driving into his neck. Valkith writhed in pain, trying to throw it off, but the undead predator clung tighter than its ws dug deeper into Valkith''s flesh.


    But the ws weren''t enough, so the weasel dug its teeth into Valkith''s head. Valkith''s vision blurred as the world spun around him. His body twitched once, then fell limp.


    The weasel kept chopping at Valkith''s head until it severed it from the rest of his body. The weasel remained atop its fallen prey, motionless for a moment, as though savoring its victory.


    [Main Quest has been cleared!]


    [The participants will receive their rewards shortly.]


    ***


    "¡­it worked."


    Professor Ming couldn''t believe her eyes as the notification shed before them. The basilisk was dead!


    The gods were equally stunned. They had envisioned countless scenarios in which the basilisk might be defeated, but this oue was beyond anything they had imagined.


    However, only the goddess Ereshkigal smiled.


    She had doubted YuWon, thinking he would have to kill the basilisk since no one else could do it. Yet he defied all expectations.


    If things continued on this trajectory, YuWon was bound to nurture other awakeners who could rival his strength¡ªor perhaps even surpass it.


    "I eagerly await that day..."

 Chapter 185: A Cockroach Never Dies (1)

    [Because of quest abnormality, the next main quest will activate after a certain time or upon fulfilling conditions.]


    Sofia, at least, try toe up with a better excuse.


    YuWon shook his head after noticing the message. Since they hadpleted the quest before time, it was natural for the next quest to take some time as preparations might not beplete.


    Besides¡­ why are these fuckers following me?


    YuWon looked above and noticed a lot of eyes following him. He had put on a show, but since the gods hated him; he didn''t expect so many of them would begin following him around.


    Who could me them? Although the clearing reward went to Soo-Ah as her minion dealt the final blow, everyone knew who the real star of the show was. Had it not been for YuWon, the basilisk would have killed everyone. At least that''s what the gods thought.


    In reality, even YuWon knew they won because of their group effort. Sure, they might have been his, but without everyone ying their roles, their victory was impossible.


    "Is anyone dead?"


    YuWon asked as soon as he arrived at the spot.


    No matter what, they had caused a 774-foot-tall building to copse. The ruckus from it should''ve been enough to cause multiple deaths. But thankfully, no one on their side died, only the Crusaders fell victim to the copse.


    "Who cares about them?"


    YuWon scoffed when Professor Ming informed him about it.


    Soo-Ah and Min-Joon also joined them. YuWon checked their stats and, as expected, Soo-Ah had leveled up quite a bit.


    Min-Joon had leveled up too, but his growth was more modest. Since he hadn''t contributed to the battle against the basilisk, his rewards only came from the crusaders he''d taken down.


    Still, it''s better than I expected.


    Min-Joon was covered in blood from the head to the toe. Everyone made weird faces at Min-Joon, but his eyes remained fixated on YuWon, who smiled and patted his shoulder.


    "You did well."


    Those three words lit up Min-Joon''s face. Even Soo-Ah''s skeletons were happy and high-fived him and only stopped when she rolled her eyes.


    "What about this?" Soo-Ah asked, pointing at the massive weasel.


    "Keep it. It''s a boss monster, after all."


    Soo-Ah clicked her tongue after hearing YuWon''s reply. She had hoped to let go of the weasel and take the basilisk instead. After all, having a badass monster like the basilisk was better than a massive weasel.


    "The basilisk is useless," YuWon told her as if reading her thoughts.


    "Why¡ª?"


    "The basilisk skeleton won''t have eyes, hence it can''t petrify enemies. Its broken fangs prevent it from poisoning anything. Without its scales, it has no defense. Why would you choose such a worthless creature over the skeletal weasel?"


    YuWon''s words were like a gentle p to Soo-Ah. She was so lost in appearing cool she forgot the important things. But YuWon wasn''t done and leaned in.


    "Besides, without its scales, it can''t even move properly."


    "¡­I understand."


    Meanwhile, the weasel turned away from Soo-Ah. It wasn''t pleased to see the master wanted to abandon it. But everything calmed down when YuWon told Soo-Ah to soothe her rtion with her summon.


    With that, the three of them left the tower. But YuWon saw someone waiting for him.


    "So¡­ you''re leaving?" Professor Ming asked.


    "That''s the n. Nothing worth staying here for." YuWon replied.


    "I see¡­ What will you do now?"n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Nothing much. Go around sightseeing maybe?"


    "Sightseeing¡­?"


    Professor Ming shook her head. If YuWon didn''t want to tell her his ns, then there was no point in asking him about it. From their brief encounters, she had understood that much.


    "Can I¡ª?"


    "If you join us, who will take care of them?" YuWon said, cutting her off.


    Professor Ming looked at her survivor''s group. She had hoped YuWon would take the leader''s role and lead them. However, he had no such intentions. He didn''t want to be a shepherd but a pride''s leader.


    "Then what if I need help?"


    "You already have my contact information," YuWon replied. "Send me a message when you need me. I''ll do what I can to help."


    With nothing else to say, YuWon turned to meet the rest of the crew. He was eager to see how Yeji had dealt with her father. If she didn''t do a satisfying job, then he might have to teach her a lesson instead.


    ***


    She actually did it¡­


    YuWon couldn''t believe his eyes when he entered theplex and saw a surreal sight before him. Seok was suspended in the air, trapped in a crude cage pieced together from mangled car parts.


    Below him, a cluster of goblins with severed legs writhed and wed desperately at his dangling feet.


    Seokshed out with frantic kicks, keeping the monsters at bay. Still, it was a fun sight. A ve brand could be seen around Seok''s neck, telling YuWon Yeji had turned him into her ve.


    "You bastard! What did you do to my daughter!" Seok yelled as soon as he noticed YuWon.


    "Your mouth is as sharp as ever¡­"


    YuWon rolled his eyes and continued on.


    Seok kept yelling at him, but his yells turned into shrieks when he suddenly got lowered even further.


    "I''m sorry! I''m sorry! Pull me up! Please!!!"


    YuWon looked up and was surprised to see the one pulling the strings of Seok''s life. It was his mother, but the warmth and affection she always showered on Seok were nowhere to be found.


    Just how did you aplish this, little sister?


    YuWon had little time to think as Yeji and Gina came running at him. Gina threw her arms around him with such force that he nearly fell over, while Yeji could only wait patiently for YuWon''s praise.


    "I will never leave you alone!"


    Ginained but immediately folded when YuWon pinched her cheek. The lower ones.


    "Don''t worry, I remember my promise."


    YuWon whispered and Gina immediately went silent. Then, he turned his attention towards Yeji. She smiled, feeling the light tingle of electricity around her neck. But a momentter, her smile vanished.


    "I¡­ have something to show you."


    Yeji opened hermunity tab and showed YuWon a message.


    [You''ll pay for betraying me, bitch.]


    The message wasn''t of importance, but the sender''s name was.


    "Hoon¡­"

 Chapter 186: A Cockroach Never Dies (2)

    "How is he alive?" Yeji asked.


    YuWon didn''t have an answer. They all had seen Hoon die with their eyes, yet Hoon was sendingmunity messages to Yeji.


    Someone could pretend to be Hoon. But I don''t think that''s the case here.


    Establishing a private chat within themunity took upwards of two thousand gold or more. Only a few would have such kind of money to spend just to send a text.


    But Hoon was a pdin. It was possible he got some god from his patron god and used it.


    "Hoon isn''t used to losing," YuWon mumbled. "Since he lost you, it isn''t farfetched he would y such tricks¡­ assuming he is alive."


    Everyone fell silent. It didn''t matter how much they butt their heads together, all theories they came up with depended on one scenario¡­ whether Hoon was alive.


    "Alright, I''ll deal with itter," YuWon yawned.


    As much as he was worried about Yeji, other things required his attention.


    But Yeji looked aggrieved. In her eyes, YuWon didn''t care about her because he hadn''t forgiven her. She immediately concluded that YuWon was unhappy with how she treated her father. The punishment wasn''t enough. That must have been the reason for his dismissal.


    As everyone left the meeting, Yeji immediately walked out. When Seok saw his daughter, he immediately began apologizing to her. He didn''t know how Yeji knew about what he did or why she was taking YuWon''s side. But he knew his Yeji wouldn''t mistreat him for long.


    At least that''s what he thought when Yeji entered his makeshift prison. The goblins saw her and immediately huddled in a corner. After the treatment she had given them, fear was a natural reaction when they saw her.


    Yeji ignored them, heading towards her father. Seok thought she was there to save him, but the next moment, his painful scream echoed everywhere.


    "Because of you¡­ brother doesn''t care about me anymore," she snarled. "If he hears your screams, he will forgive me, right?"


    "Yeji¡­ I''m your father¡ªARGH!"


    Yeji picked up a goblin''s dagger and dragged it across Seok''s face, ignoring his desperate cries. But she didn''t stop there.


    To her, his body was a nk canvas, and she was determined to craft a masterpiece¡ªone that would scream her sincerity to YuWon. If she could present such a creation to her brother, he would surely forgive her.


    The mere thought of YuWon forgiving her and pulling her into an embrace sent Yeji''s mind spiraling. Her cheeks burned as she became lost in her wild thoughts.


    Distracted by the thoughts of YuWon exploring her body, Yeji plunged the dagger deeper than she had intended.


    Seok''s scream brought Yeji out of her wild thoughts and she realized she had poked one of her father''s eyes with the dagger.


    She showed no remorse. With a casual flick of her wrist, she stopped the bleeding, though she did not restore the unintended damage.


    A ruined eye looked good on Seok''s face, or so she thought.


    "You can''t die¡­ no no no. If you die, then how will I ask for YuWon''s forgiveness?"


    Yeji whispered with a twisted smile on her lips. Seok stared at her, wide-eyed and trembling. He was certain that his daughter had descended into madness. No one with a right mind would do what she was doing to her father.


    ***


    "She has lost it," Lilith said, hugging YuWon from behind.


    YuWon didn''t reply, intently watching Yeji create her masterpiece for him. He didn''t think his words had such a profound effect on her, but oddly enough, the sight before him made him happy.


    Seok had probably done worse things to his father. Now, karma bit the bastard in the ass and his daughter was busy torturing him.


    "You''re too close," YuWon mumbled.


    "Don''t be like that¡­" Lilith pouted.


    YuWon looked over his shoulder, and Gina was deep in sleep, only a nket covering her otherwise naked body. With Lilith''s help, he satisfied herpletely, but there was one problem.


    The damned subus had gotten aroused.


    He hadn''t imagined someone like Lilith would find him appealing. Yet the sensation of her bare chest pressed against his back made him question that assumption.


    As she clung to him tightly, her hand freely roamed over his exposed skin. He had ignored her advances earlier, as his thoughts were consumed by worry for Yeji, but now that concern had lifted.


    And with no more distractions, he saw no reason to hold back.


    He pinched Lilith''s butt, snapping her out of her trance. Gina had already drained him, more or less. He didn''t want to even try to satisfy a horny subus. Not when he had more concerning matters to deal with.


    "Ouch!" Lilith eximed, caressing her cheeks.


    "Good, now that you''re not thinking about getting into my pants, let''s get some work done."


    Lilith huffed and puffed, but took YuWon to Joon. YuWon needed help to find Hoon. Most of the people he knew were people Hoon knew orcked the skills required, so he needed someone talented enough to handle the job and not known to Hoon.


    But letting Joon move freely was out of the question. He was too dangerous, and YuWon couldn''t afford to take chances. The usual method of control, the ve brand, wouldn''t work on him. The bastard''s ability to inhabit multiple bodies made sure of that.


    Fortunately, the answer was closer than he expected.


    The special store has everything I need.


    ***


    "Why are you doing this to me!? I''m on your side!" Joon yelled at the top of his lungs.


    "You want to be freed, right?" YuWon asked. "I''m here to fulfill your wish."


    Joon frowned. He could spot a cold-hearted bastard from a mile away, and YuWon was at the top of the list. Now there he was, suddenly iming he''d let him go. As if Joon would fall for that.


    Honestly, the thought of freedom lingered in his mind, but Joon hesitated. He couldn''t shake the fear that if he dared to agree, the kid would rip his head off and grant him freedom¡ªeternal rest in the afterlife.


    Normally, Joon wouldn''t have been concerned about trivial things like death. But this time, all seven of his bodies were firmly under YuWon''s control. Switching to a new one wouldn''t make a difference. He would still be under YuWon''s control.


    Lost in thought, Joon barely noticed when YuWon grabbed a stack of papers and smacked him on the head with it.


    "Here." YuWon tossed the papers onto the table. "If you want to leave, just sign this."


    Joon rubbed his head, grabbing at the papers.


    "What''s this?"


    "Think of it as an IOU."


    "Does that even matter in a ce like this?" Joon frowned.


    "Are you signing or not?"


    Joon stared at the papers, wondering what YuWon had nned for him. YuWon had always been a cunning man, a master at getting what he wanted. And now he was letting Joon go¡­ in exchange for an IOU?


    Was this some borate trick? Or had YuWon actually lost his mind?


    Joon genuinely wondered if YuWon had hit his head somewhere.


    As a gangster, Joon had never concerned himself with the intricacies of legal jargon. He only cared that as long as he signed the contract, he would be a free man.


    The first thing I''ll do when I''m out is kill you!


    Joon cursed YuWon in his thoughts but maintained a smile on his face. But there was something he wanted to ask YuWon before sealing the deal.


    "Can I take¡­ all of my bodies with me?"


    Joon held his breath wondering how will YuWon hit him. A hit, a smirk, augh¡ªhe expected anything but the calm nod YuWon offered.


    "Yes. You can."


    Joon didn''t waste another second before signing the ten-page document. Once he was done, he handed the papers over to YuWon, bowed, and was about to leave when YuWon''s voice boomed.


    "Sit your ass down."


    Joon turned and was about to smile when his body moved without his input and sat down across from YuWon. Confused, Joon looked at YuWon with a bewildered gaze, but YuWon and Lilith shared a knowing smile.


    "What is the meaning of this¡ª!"


    "Quiet."


    Before he could protest further, his body obeyed themand without hesitation, leaving Joon even more unsettled.


    The YuWon brought out another stack of papers, cing them in front of Joon.


    "Sign away."


    With a casual flick of his hand, YuWonpelled Joon''s body to obey. Against his will, Joon''s hand moved, scrawling his signature across one contract after another. The gangster could only stare at YuWon with rage as he finished signing the final document.


    YuWon picked up the stack, flipped through it with a disinterested nce, and then tucked the documents into his [Phantom Bag].N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Joon''s lips twitched. The urge to curse YuWon was getting unbearable, but even his thoughts no longer felt like his own.


    Each contract he had signed had slowly turned him into nothing more than a puppet in YuWon''s hands.


    Joon realized toote that the papers he had signed weren''t ordinary documents. They were something YuWon had likely gotten from a shop, and by signing them, Joon had unknowingly surrendered control over his emotions, thoughts, and actions to YuWon.


    "Good, now that you''ve earned your freedom," YuWon smirked. "I would like you to do something for me."


    YuWon threw a photo of Hoon before him.


    "Take your bodies and bring this man to me."

 Chapter 187: Pack Up

    YuWon watched Joon leave with all his bodies. Unlike the ve cor, the contract from [Special Shop] ensured that the terms bind all his bodies, the one he has now and the ones he would create in the future. It was better than any ve brand ever would.


    The price reflected its worth. Together, the contracts had cost an exorbitant twenty-two thousand gold, but YuWon deemed it a necessary investment.


    "Will it be fine?" Lilith asked, her arms crossed over her chest.


    "It will," YuWon nodded. "Hoon doesn''t know him and with seven of him searching, they are bound to find him."


    Lilith nodded, but said nothing else. She couldn''t help but notice the subtle changes in her master. The YuWon she remembered was still there, yet something fundamental had shifted.


    He had grown calcted¡ªdecisive in a way that was admirable, even necessary. But in the process of bearing the responsibility given upon him by Goddess Ereshkigal, he seemed to be losing pieces of himself.


    Only a couple of them knew the truth about their past. Since Yeji had gone crazy, Lilith took it upon herself to hold YuWon together. Watching the subtle chilly winds ruffle his hair, Lilith''s admiration had only grown after she learned about YuWon''s past.


    She was there when Yeji told Min-Ji all about her father''s deed and, through a mother''s cry, Lilith pieced together YuWon''s life that she didn''t know about.


    To her, YuWon had always embodied unshakable strength and resilience. Yet now she saw the cracks beneath that exterior¡ªthe vulnerability he had suffered after countless betrayals by his family, friends, and everyone he trusted.


    It was a wonder he hadn''t snapped and sought vengeance on the world that had wronged him.


    "C-Can we talk¡­?"


    A feeble voice interrupted Lilith''s thoughts.


    She turned around and saw Min-Ji standing there. YuWon heard her voice and sighed, but this time, he didn''t berate her like before.


    "Lilith."


    Lilith bowed her head and stepped away, leaving mother and son to face each other in silence.


    "Do you need something?" YuWon asked, without looking at Min-Ji.


    "I¡­ I wanted to apologize¡ª"


    "There''s no need for that."


    For a fleeting moment, Min-Ji looked hopeful, but YuWon''s next words crushed it.


    "I will never forgive you," he said.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon had no reason to forgive his mother. Unlike Yeji, Min-Ji wasn''t an innocent bystander, nor was she remotely useful to him. Besides, Yeji was an outsider; YuWon expected little from her in terms of loyalty.


    But Min-Ji? She was his mother. She should have known better than to blindly trust her husband''s every word and enable his cruelty without hearing his side.


    She had wounded him in ways no one else ever could. Forgiveness was a luxury YuWon didn''t feel inclined to offer her.


    YuWon her his mother''s sobs, but he felt nothing in his heart. That''s when he knew he had no feelings towards Min-Ji. She wasn''t his mother. She was just the person who had brought him into this world¡ªan egg donor and nothing more.


    Still, he didn''t want to be called unfilial, so he let her stay within the safety of their apartmentplex. With Lilith and Yeji around, most monsters won''t stand a chance to harm anyone. It was more than what Min-Ji deserved.


    Did she think torturing her husband would make up for everything? Did she truly believe that was enough for forgiveness?


    Such questions swirled in YuWon''s mind, but he quickly suppressed them. He wasn''t in a ce to afford such luxuries. Ereshkigal wanted him to save the world, not tie up his personal matters.


    Min-Ji wiped her tears before saying the most absurd words that YuWon had heard.


    "I''ll¡­ make you acknowledge me as your mother again. I know I have no right to ask it, but can you at least give me that chance?"


    YuWon rolled his eyes, but Min-Ji couldn''t see him with his back turned towards her.


    "Do what you will," he said, dismissively waving his hand around.


    It was the kindest response she would ever get from him.


    With nothing more to say, Min-Ji turned and left. YuWon remained where he was, staring at the starry sky.


    "I''m doing the right thing¡­" he mumbled. "Right, dad?"


    YuWon waited, as if expecting an answer that would nevere. Then, with a wry smile, he turned back inside. He had enough drama for the day. Now was the time to rest.


    ***


    The next morning, YuWon prepared to set out again. This time, he was taking the scared Hojin with him. After helping Soo-Ah and Min-Joon grow stronger, it was Hojin''s turn.


    At least, that''s what YuWon told everyone. In truth, he had a different purpose. He wanted to test Hojin¡ªto see if he was worth investing in or if he''d have to be left behind.


    Hojin''s high luck stat was one thing, but in his past life, he wasn''t was much use and always led the group into trouble.


    But YuWon couldn''t say that out loud, so he was taking the other way to assess Hojin''s strength.


    However, before they could leave, Yeji came running towards YuWon. With heavy bags under her eyes and bloodied hands, YuWon realized Yeji had spent the entire night turning Seok into her masterpiece.


    She didn''t say a word, just grabbed YuWon''s hand and dragged him towards the cage.


    Seok was unconscious inside, his entire body marred with scars that his daughter had graciously given him. Yeji expertly etched words like traitor and murderer into his face.


    It was a scene that could unsettle anyone¡ªbut not YuWon. A faint smile tugged at his lips as he rested a hand on Yeji''s head. Like a cat, she melted in his embrace, eagerly waiting for more praise.


    "It''s good progress," YuWon said.


    Her smile faltered. Good progress? Did that mean he considered her work iplete? That it wasn''t good enough yet?


    Yeji looked at him with questions in her head. But when YuWon looked at her, she shook her head.


    If YuWon believed the project wasn''tplete, then she would make it better. She''d work harder, push further¡ªuntil she truly earned his praise and forgiveness. Only then would it be enough.


    In reality, YuWon wanted her to be busy or else she would cling to him and won''t let him focus on rasing other awakeners.


    "Take some rest and then keep working on it," YuWon said, kissing her forehead. "I expect great things from you."


    With that, he turned and left a dazed Yeji behind.

 Chapter 188: Dungeon Diving (1)

    "I get you want to train me¡­" Hojin mumbled. "But why am I the one leading us¡ªOUCH!"


    The moment the words left his mouth, YuWon whacked him across the back with a stick.


    "Less talking. More walking."


    Hojin opened his mouth, probably to argue, but thought better of it. He grumbled quietly, rubbing his back as they moved on. YuWon trailed behind, his eyes fixed on Hojin as if analyzing him.


    YuWon wanted to test Hojin''s luck again. So far, every path Hojin chose was uneventful. A few stray monsters here and there, but nothing worth mentioning.


    For someone with 999 luck, he sure sucks at finding treasures.


    By treasures, YuWon meant stores or rare creatures¡ªlike named monsters or elites. But his primary concern was finding a store.


    The items in the [Special Store] were impressive, sure, but sometimes the prices felt unreasonably high. That''s why YuWon wanted to find traditional stores to get some supplies.


    But his interest in finding a store wasn''t purely practical.


    All these damned eyes¡­


    YuWon had given all the glory for ying the basilisk to Soo-Ah, yet the annoying eyes of the gods have been following him since the quest ended.


    Since he had Hojin with him, the number of observers following him had increased exponentially. It seemed every god watching was eager to see the so-called "Son of Luck" in action.


    While YuWon was off clearing the quest, it seemed Hojin got contracted with the goddess of luck, Tyche. That''s why the gods were following them excitedly.


    "There¡­ something is there."


    Hojin pointed to the far right, drawing YuWon''s gaze. He nodded. Something had to be there. The ce looked too clean to not have something inside.


    The surrounding area was a scene of chaos¡ªshops ransacked, windows shattered, and debris scattered like a battlefield. Yet, an ordinary store remained unaffected by the carnage around. If any ce screamed Safe Zone, it was that store.


    "Alright, stay behind me," YuWon pushed Hojin back, handing him the stick. "Follow me."


    As they headed towards the store, two people appeared before them. They wore mismatched armor made from scraps and wielded rusty, barely functional weapons, probably taken from a goblin.


    "You cannot enter this ce!" a man roared, holding the spear.


    "This dungeon''s ours! We imed it, so turn around and¡ªwait, what the hell are you doing?"


    The men were still arguing, but they didn''t notice when YuWon slipped past them and was busy looking inside the store. It was a dungeon, so obviously YuWon was interested in seeing what was going on inside.


    But as YuWon attempted to step inside, an invisible barrier pushed him back. He frowned, pressing his hand against the barrier. Then it clicked.


    Of course. The entry limit.


    He recalled a simr situation from a dungeon he''d explored before. Each entrance had its limit, and it seemed someone had already used this one. If YuWon wanted to get inside, he''d need to find another way in.


    "Ah¡­ so this is a dungeon," YuWon scratched his head. "I''ve never seen one before, so I got a little excited. Sorry for causing any trouble. We''ll leave now."


    The guards exchanged nces before puffing out their chests, clearly emboldened by YuWon''s words. In their eyes, they had intimidated YuWon¡ªa clueless guy with no gear on him, unlike them, who had armor and weapons.


    But Hojin knew better. He tugged lightly at YuWon''s sleeve, urging him to move. He wasn''t worried about the guards intimidating YuWon, but worried about what would happen if they said the wrong thing.


    Hojin could already picture the scene of YuWon smashing their skulls in with his bare hands, as he did with Joon''s guards back in the nightclub.


    "It''s fine¡­ just don''t go barging into other people''s property," one guard said. "Not everyone is as lenient as us."


    "Thank you, brothers."


    YuWon politely smiled and walked away, leaving the guards basking in their imagined victory.


    It wasn''t until the store was well out of sight that Hojin let out a sigh of relief. For a moment back there, he had genuinely believed YuWon might snap and kill them over thatment.


    But now, staring at YuWon''s back, Hojin felt like the guy calmly walking ahead was different. YuWon almost felt like a strangerpared to the one who had stormed into a nightclub and left a trail of broken bodies.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    He''s not that bad after all¡­


    Being kind by nature, Hojin wanted to tell YuWon he made the right decision.


    "For a moment, I thought you would attack them," Hojin mumbled.


    "Attack them? What for?" YuWon asked. "I''m not some mindless beast thatshes out at people without reason."


    Hojin nearly choked on his words, wanting to refute that ridiculous im, but he held his tongue. But one thing piqued his interest.


    "No, I meant you let them have the dungeon¡ª"


    "Let them have the dungeon? When did I do that?"


    YuWon stopped and turned to Hojin. Thetter saw a malicious glint in YuWon''s eyes and immediately retracted his thoughts from before. Any illusions he''d entertained about YuWon being a different person evaporated in an instant. No, he hadn''t changed at all.


    "Isn''t there a saying?" YuWon smiled. "When one door closes, god opens another?"


    Hojin realized what YuWon wanted. He was going inside the dungeon, but taking a different path, that''s all.


    As the protector of the "Son of Luck," who had worked so hard to find the dungeon, YuWon couldn''t let anyone else take the treasures. It would be out of character for him to leave them alone.


    But there was a problem. He couldn''t ess the [Special Store] with so many eyes watching. Pretending to stumble across the store''s vending machine and use it discreetly might work, but he doubted the gods would fall for such a transparent ploy.


    That left him with only one option.


    I hate relying on that mole''s skills, but there''s no other way.


    The disaster mole had an inherent skill, one that enabled him to look for anything he desired within a certain radius. Since they were so close to the dungeon, it was the perfect skill to look for another entrance.

 Chapter 189: Parenting Is Tiring

    "We''re here," YuWon announced.


    The duo stood in front of a different store, but unlike the previous store, this one was rundown. Monster corpses were everywhere, along with a few human ones.


    Hojin instinctively covered his nose and mouth, recoiling from the rotting smell. YuWon, however, remained unfazed. He had long grown ustomed to scenes like this. It was neither the first nor thest time he''d encountered such grim sights.


    He looked at Hojin and pped his hand away.


    "The sooner you get used to this, the easier life will be for you."


    Hojin slowly nodded.


    Among the wreckage, one thing stood out¡ªa door. While the rest of the store was in shambles, that door remained unscratched.


    YuWon approached the door, carefully analyzing it. Hojin joined him, looking at the door, but the next moment YuWon kicked him inside as Hojin went tumbling down.


    "Wait¡ª!"


    Hojin''s voice was cut off as he fell. He squeezed his eyes shut, bracing for the inevitable impact. But to his surprise, hended on something soft and wrinkly. Relief washed over him as he silently thanked every god he could name.


    At least until the notification appeared before him.


    [You''ve entered the boss room.]


    "You want to be the boss''s dinner?"


    YuWon''s voice jolted Hojin back to reality. Only then did he realize he was still on top of a pile of corpses, wrapped in a sticky fluid. Hojin was disgusted and confused when YuWon yanked him out of the trap and handed him a weapon.


    It was a massive hammer that felt out of ce in Hojin''s skinny hands. He blinked down at it, bewildered. Why would YuWon give him such a weapon?


    It looked heavy enough to crush Hojin if he tried to swing it. But the moment he lifted it, he froze. The hammer almost felt weightless in his hands.


    "What is this¡­?" Hojin mumbled, staring at the hammer.


    "An item I''m loaning you," YuWon replied. "If you do well, then I''ll consider letting you have it."


    "But why are you giving it to me?"


    "Because we gotpany."


    As if on cue, over four dozen human-sized insects swarmed into the room. Just from looking once, YuWon could say they had strong exoskeletons. Sharp objects would have a difficult time hurting them.


    That was precisely why he''d handed Hojin the hammer¡ªa blunt weapon perfectly suited for smashing through the armored creatures.


    It was easy to wield and had a secret function that suited Hojin the best. The weapon''s strength heavily depended on the user''s luck stat.


    The higher someone''s luck was, the harder the hammer hit. And with Hojin''s 999 luck, every swing of the hammer was bound to be devastating.


    As for YuWon, he opted for a traditional weapon, a spear. The [Formless de] turned into a golden spear. He spun it in his hand before vaulting over the horde of insects to the room''s entrance.


    Hojin could deal with the little critters. YuWon had no interest in them. But he wanted to weaken the boss before handing it over to Hojin. It was the fastest way to grow Hojin.


    "Wait¡ªwhere are you going?!" Hojin yelled.


    In his excitement to kill the little monsters, Hojinpletely forgot about YuWon and by the time he noticed, YuWon was standing at the chamber''s end.


    "Just keep smashing those bugs!"


    Since they had entered the boss'' room directly, all the dungeon monsters converged on their position. YuWon knew it wouldn''t be long before the other awakeners, who had entered through the dungeon''s main gate, caught up with them.


    If they arrived in time to encounter the boss, things could get messy. YuWon wasn''t interested in helping strangers; his focus was solely on Hojin''s growth.


    YuWon wanted to stop them. Hence, to buy time, YuWon raised the spear and hurled it towards the ceiling with all his might. The spear hit the ceiling and closed the path to the boss'' room from any unwee guests.


    Now, other than YuWon and Hojin, no human could enter the boss room and intervene in their hunt.


    YuWon quickly recalled the [Formless de] that morphed into a gauntlet. The next second, there was a loud nging sound. Hojin looked at the entrance to see a massive praying mantis standing there. One of its arms stood on YuWon''s gauntlet.


    How had he missed it? The beast''s enormous size should have been impossible to overlook, yet Hojin didn''t notice it.


    But YuWon reacted faster than Hojin could process, intercepting the strike with a single arm. Hojin blinked in disbelief. How did it even make sense?


    "I was expecting a cockroach," YuWon mumbled. "But you''ll do."


    With a sharp twist, YuWon gripped the mantis''s de-like arm and tore it off with ease. The mantis let out an ear-splitting shriek, stumbling backward in pain. But YuWon didn''t stop there. He used the mantis''s severed foreleg as a makeshift scythe and began hacking away at the monster''s other legs ruthlessly.


    The mantis iled in desperation, trying to retreat, but YuWon was relentless. He stuck to the creature like a leech, continuously attacking it. In mere moments, YuWon reduced the dungeon boss to a limbless insect quivering on the ground in fear.


    Yet YuWon didn''t deliver the final blow.


    "Oi! Are you done yet?" YuWon yelled.


    Hojin, standing amidst the shattered remains of smaller creatures, blinked. He hadn''t even realized he''d been fighting while staring at YuWon and the mantis, let alone ughtered every one of the lesser monsters, and got drenched in their blue blood while at it.


    YuWon grabbed what was left of the mantis boss and dragged it toward Hojin. Thetter stared at him, confused, as if asking whether YuWon was serious. This was YuWon''s kill, so he should im the reward.


    "Either you kill it or I''ll kill you."


    Hojin didn''t bother asking another question. He lifted the hammer and hit the mantis on the head.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    [You have cleared the dungeon!]


    [You are the first yer amongst all to clear this dungeon!]


    [An additional 1000 gold will be awarded as a bonus.]


    Meanwhile, YuWon got a separate reward.


    [Achievement Unlocked: Coach Never ys The Field!]


    [Gained after helping four awakeners reach level 20.]


    [Effecting: Teaming up with lower-level yers will award them bonus exp, gold, and stats.]


    Not bad. This wille in handy.


    It was the perfect support achievement for YuWon, who had to raise others to his level or beyond.


    "Um¡­ YuWon, the monster dropped something."


    "Keep it. I''ll check itter."


    "¡­sure."


    With nothing left to do, they gathered what they could and headed outside.


    At that very moment, a group of awakeners found their way to the boss'' room, only to find a wreckage blocking their path. They had suffered constant attacks from the insects to get this far; they weren''t going down without a fight.


    It took a few hours for them to break past the barrier. Their leader, a pdin, had prepared them for a deadly fight, but when they entered the boss room, insect corpses were all they found.


    "Do you see anything?"


    "Nothing here¡­ are you sure this is the dungeon the patron god talked about?"


    The man stared at their leader, but he was equally stunned. So was their patron god. He couldn''t understand what happened until he opened the gods'' chatroom and found othersughing at him.


    [Track-Star: Which one of you fools messed with my dungeon!?]


    [Announcement: The chat is being spammed by emoticons. Please maintain decorum.]


    [777: Please don''t get so upset, father.]


    [Track-Star: It was you? Tyche, why would you do something like this!?]


    [Announcement: User <Track-Star> please do not use real names in this chat. This will be your only warning.]


    [777: Technically, I didn''t.]


    [All-Daddy: This will be fun.]


    [Track-Star: Not you too, father!]


    [All-Daddy: What did you say?]


    [Track-Star: ¡­nothing.]


    [All-Daddy: That''s what I thought. Don''t dwell on these things and continue raising your mortals.]


    [Track-Star: Yes, father.]


    The god, Hermes, had focused on raising his human and ignored everything else. That''s why he didn''t know YuWon and Hojin had cleared the dungeon beforehand.


    Since he didn''t focus on entertainment, unlike the other gods, no one would tell him what happened to the dungeon.


    As frustrated as Hermes was, there was nothing he could do about it other than sulk in a corner. To make up for it, he quickly distributed some gifts to his pdin before ending the stream.


    [777: I feel bad about what happened. Since my pdin was involved in this mess, it''s my responsibility to make things right.]


    Hermes was taken aback by his daughter''s message. Tyche wasn''t one to help someone without seeking profits, even for her family. However, Hermes had nothing to lose, so he listened.


    [Track-Star: What is it?]


    [777: A new dungeon. I bought the information from an angel so it''s credible.]


    [Track-Star: And what do you want?]


    [777: Nothing father. I want to ease my guilt. That''s all.]


    [Track-Star: Tell me more.]


    [777: The dungeon is in what the mortals call a subway station. Some awakeners are using it as their base. You''ll have to deal with them yourself. I''ll send you the location privately.]


    [Track-Star: Alright¡­ but this better not be a trick.]


    Hermes waited for a response, but none came. He had a feeling his daughter was ying tricks again. But he doted on her too much to scold her.


    Being a father is tiring, even for the gods.

 Chapter 190: Not Everyone Is The Protagonist

    Five dayster¡­


    YuWon had been online when Tyche and Hermes started chatting. Thanks to Hermes''s inability to keep quiet, YuWon knew the details about a dungeon where Hermes nned to send his pdin.


    Determined to get there first, YuWon set off with Soo-Ah and Gina in tow. YuWon, having leveled up the others a bit, shifted his focus to Gina, aiming to enhance her abilities. Perhaps this dungeon might even hold the key to unlocking hertent mana pool.


    It was odd that Gina had more mana than Soo-Ah, yet shecked any special abilities. Even in his previous life, YuWon had only ever seen her fight as a brawler. That''s why he thought if he could find a way for her to tap into her potential, Gina could easily be the strongest among them.


    YuWon had considered bringing Min-Joon along, but thetter was determined to continue his search for his parents. Respecting his choice, YuWon didn''t push him. He suggested taking Hojin instead, but Min-Joon declined, insisting Hojin stay behind to help Yeji and Lilith defend the base.


    I just hope he''s okay. I''d hate to lose my investment if anything happened to him.


    YuWon shook his head. He was in a dangerous dungeon. He couldn''t afford to let his mind wander.


    "Alright," YuWon said. "Let''s get this done and hope the next mission is active by the time we''re done here."


    ***


    Somewhere else¡­


    Min-Joon wiped the ogre''s blood from his face before pressing the doorbell to the apartment. Much like every other apartmentplex, the high rise in Gangnam wasn''t an exception and was filled with monsters.


    It took him hours to climb the stairs while fighting monsters. However, he didn''t see a single survivor during that time. Blood and gore were everywhere, painting the hallways in red.


    The chances of his family''s survival were next to none. But Min-Joon shoved such practical thoughts out of his head. His parents were alive. They had to be.


    Fourth floor¡­ please be safe everyone.


    This was where his parents lived with his elder sister. Given his family''s solid military background, Min-Joon believed his father and sister could hold their own against the monster he had found so far. But since he hadn''t seen them in any chatroom, he got worried and rushed over to Gangnam.


    Yet now, standing in front of the door, something felt off because no one answered the bell.


    Since he didn''t get a response after ringing the bell, Min-Joon tried unlocking the door. But someone had secured the door from the inside. It brought Min-Joon some relief but also worried him.


    What if it wasn''t his family? What if someone else had taken over the apartment?


    Min-Joon didn''t want that to happen but he couldn''t help and get anxious at the thought. He wanted to call out for them, but didn''t want to alert any monsters who could be hiding there.


    "Fuck this! If anythinges, I''ll kill them all."


    With no way left, he raised his axe and hit the door with all his might. The metal door couldn''t hold against his strength and broke in half.


    "EEK!"


    The sharp, shrill noise startled him. Min-Joon rushed inside, scanning the living room. There, crouched over something on the floor, were two goblins.


    "How¡­?"


    His eyes fell on the balcony door behind the goblins. It was open. The beasts must have entered the apartment by climbing the windows. But having the goblins inside the apartment wasn''t good news.


    Enraged, Min-Joon charged at the goblins. Before the creatures could react, he swung his axe, cleaving them in half. Their blood and gut sttered across the walls, but he couldn''t take his eyes off the floor.


    "No!"


    He gasped when he noticed what the goblins were feasting on. Min-Joon''s axe slipped from his fingers, ttering to the floor.


    It was a woman''s corpse. The goblins ripped open her chest and stomach, tearing away chunks of flesh and two daggers had impaled her back. The goblins must have struck her when she was watching the TV.


    "Mom¡­?"


    The world came to a halt as Min-Joon fell to his knees beside his mother''s corpse. Trembling, he reached out to hold her lifeless hand, which had turned cold many days ago. Tears blurred his vision as he couldn''t even see his mother''s face onest time because the goblins had torn it off.


    This wasn''t the scene he had imagined before setting off to find his family. Since YuWon had found his family safe and sound, he had hoped he''d find his family safe as well.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    But it was far from the truth.


    In his family, his mother was the only one who believed in his dreams of pursuing sports. His father and sister had pushed him to follow in their footsteps and join the army, but his mother had stood by him. She had been his greatest supporter.


    And now she was gone.


    But he couldn''t dwell on it. He got up, looking at the other rooms. Thankfully, there was no sign of his father or sister. So¡­ he returned to his mother''s side, wishing it all was a nightmare and she would wake up, caressing his head as she always did.


    "Mom... you were alone when the monsters came, weren''t you?" he mumbled. "I can''t even imagine what they did to you..."


    It made sense why she was alone. His father and sister would be at the military base, probably called in when the monsters first appeared. His mother must have been worried for him and didn''t pay attention to the open balcony door.


    Min-Joon med himself for everything. If only he''de here sooner, his mother wouldn''t have been worried about him and properly protected herself. If only he hadn''t wasted time after the tutorial, maybe, just maybe, he could have saved her.


    While he was lost in his grief, a message popped up before him.


    [YuWon: Are you done there?]


    Min-Joon wiped his tears with the back of his hand and quickly responded.


    [MJ: I need to cremate someone. I''ll join you guys shortly.]


    [YuWon: ¡­send you location. I''ming over.]


    Min-Joon did not have the energy to argue back and just slumped next to his mother''s corpse, still holding her hand.


    "Mom... I''m sorry," he murmured, tears running down his face.

 Chapter 191: Funeral

    The rooftop of the apartment building was cold and quiet. The sky above was a dull gray, the sun hidden behind clouds as if even the world mourned her loss.


    Min-Joon stood in the center, his mother''s lifeless bodyid carefully on a pile of broken furniture and splintered wood he had gathered. It wasn''t perfect or close to the farewell his mother deserved, but it was the most Min-Joon could do.


    Soo-Ah and Gina stood silently to the side, their heads bowed in respect. YuWon arrived a few minutester, holding a small ss jar filled with a fiery liquid, and handed it to Min-Joon without a word.


    Since simply lighting a fire would prove troublesome and the smell of burning flesh would attract the monsters, YuWon bought something from the store.


    They had tried dissuading Min-Joon from a cremation, but he didn''t listen. How could he when his mother always wanted to be cremated when she died?


    He couldn''t protect her, so fulfilling her wish was thest thing he could do.


    Besides, it wasn''t the time for logic or strategy. They had seen the grief in Min-Joon''s eyes, and YuWon would not take this away from him.


    "This is liquid fire," YuWon said. "It''ll burn fast. We can be off before any monsters appear."


    Min-Joon nodded, gripping the jar tightly.


    YuWon turned his gaze to the makeshift pyre. Min-Joon unscrewed the jar''s lid, the sharp scent of the liquid fire stinging his nose. He took a deep breath and poured the contents over his mother''s body.


    The liquid fire ignited upon contact, engulfing the pyre in bright blue mes. The heat was intense, forcing Min-Joon to step back, but his eyes never left the fire.


    The mes roared, and with them came the unmistakable stench of burning flesh. It was a sickening smell that made most men turn away or lose their stomachs. But Min-Joon didn''t flinch. His fists remained clenched by his sides as he gritted his teeth.


    Everyone expected him to cry, but Min-Joon had already cried his heart out. There were no more tears left.


    YuWon stood a few feet away, watching in silence. He didn''t console Min-Joon or tell him it was going to be okay. They both knew it wouldn''t be. When the mes died down, only then did Min-Joon turn to YuWon.


    "¡­it''s done. Let''s go¡ª"


    "Take some skeletons and go back to the base," YuWon said, cutting him off. "You''ve been through a lot, so take some time off and heal."


    However, Min-Joon shook his head.


    It was because he rested and wasted time that his mother died. He won''t rest again, not until all the monsters in the world were dead.


    There was a fire in his eyes more intense than the liquid fire. However, it wasn''t anger but something darker, something YuWon had felt before.


    "Fine. Do what you want," YuWon sighed. "I won''t stop you. But don''t get yourself killed out there."


    "I won''t," Min-Joon nodded. "But I need to find my father and sister."


    Without another word, Min-Joon turned and headed for the stairwell, his axe slung over his shoulder. He wasn''t heading to the next quest like them, but YuWon hoped he wouldn''t make any stupid decisions along the way.


    YuWon stayed behind for a moment longer, watching thest of the mes flicker out.


    "What a fool¡­" YuWon mumbled.


    However, there was no judgment in his words. Only respect.


    Just then, a notification shed before their eyes.


    +++


    Main Quest (2):


    Title: Circus of Errors.


    Introduction: Head to the Lotte World Amusement Park and take part in the quest.


    Reward: Progress based.


    Difficulty level: ??


    Penalty for failure: Be Loki''s doll.


    +++


    "¡­what a strange quest this is," Soo-Ah mumbled.


    YuWon agreed. The quests before had been vague, but this quest gave them no information about the quest.


    "I have never been on a ride, so it might be difficult for me."


    "What are you talking about?" YuWon asked.


    Soo-Ah raised an eyebrow before showing him her quest.


    +++


    Main Quest (2):


    Title: Fun Times Never Last


    Introduction: Head to the Lotte World Amusement Park and ride all the attractions there.


    Reward: Progress based.


    Time Limit: None.


    Penalty for failure: Overall stat decrease.


    +++


    "That''s¡­ not the quest I got."N?v(el)B\\jnn


    As soon as he said that, YuWon could feel the eyes on himughing. Since Sophia was on his side, she wouldn''t intentionally change his quest from the others.


    However, someone could have done it.


    That damned bastard Lucifer!


    YuWon should have expected it. Wounded pride was something Lucifer wouldn''t let go of without avenging. Unable to target Sophia directly, he must have used his authority to manipte his quest instead.


    With a heavy sigh, YuWon resigned himself to the situation. The quest was beyond his control. Besides, he wouldn''t even know anything about the quest till he reached the amusement park.


    Yet, the thought of whaty ahead gnawed at him. If Lucifer had altered the quest once, there was no guarantee he wouldn''t do it again and in time might even give him an impossible task to aplish.


    At that moment, YuWon wanted nothing more than to twist that bastard Lucifer''s neck and carry it like an essory.


    Another thing troubling him was the punishment for failure.


    Be Loki''s doll¡­ what does that even mean?


    ***


    A few hourster¡­


    "This has to be a joke," YuWon muttered.


    Soo-Ah and even Gina stood frozen, too stunned to respond. The amusement park before them was unrecognizable, its atmospherepletely transformed. But it wasn''t the decorations or the cheerful lights that left them speechless¡ªit was the monsters.


    What had once been fearsome creatures were now ying the roles of vendors and staff throughout the park. They danced to lively tunes, sang upbeat songs, and interacted with other awakeners as if they''d never been enemies.


    There was no trace of the hostility they once exuded. Instead, it felt bizarrely natural, as though monsters and humans had coexisted for generations, seamlessly blending into daily life routines.


    However, there was something strange. Every monster and Awakener had vacant, lifeless, white eyes.


    "Dolls¡­"


    YuWon realized what the punishment for failing the quest truly meant.

 Chapter 192 Haunted House (1)

    [Conditions met. Quest information will be revealed now.]


    +++


    Main Quest (2):


    Title: Circus of Errors.


    Introduction: Head to the Lotte World Amusement Park and save as many dolls as possible.


    Reward: Progress based.


    Difficulty level: ??


    Penalty for failure: Be Loki''s doll.


    +++


    The notifications appeared as soon as YuWon stepped through the gates. However, YuWon had another problem to focus on.


    Gina couldn''t enter the amusement park. Much like the safe zone of the past life, an invisible barrier was stopping her. YuWon gritted his teeth.


    He''d expected this. Lucifer was in charge of the quest, and the demon was going out of his way to make things as difficult as possible. The sudden barrier interruption of the barrier was just the beginning.


    "Gina, you''ll have to stay back."


    But Gina wasn''t having it. She wed at the barrier, her frustration growing as her nails scraped against the invisible wall. Atst, YuWon had to step in and he grabbed her hand.


    "Gina," he said, gently stroking her face.


    Gina red at him as if he had put the barrier in ce. Without a word, YuWon leaned closer, pressing a kiss to her lips through the barrier.


    Gina''s resistance faltered. Slowly, her hands fell to her sides.


    YuWon had long since mastered this method of calming her down, and once again, it worked. The fire in her eyes dimmed, her anger cooling enough to stop her attack on the barrier.


    YuWon didn''t care about the barrier, but he was worried about Lucifer''s reaction. That bastard would look for any reason to hurt those around YuWon, and he didn''t want that to happen, at least not to Gina.


    YuWon gently stroked Gina''s cheek onest time before stepping back.


    "Stay here, Gina," he said firmly. "I''lle back for you."


    She hesitated but finally nodded. YuWon gave her a reassuring smile, waved her off, and turned around. Not far behind him, Soo-Ah followed silently after leaving some skeletons with Gina.


    I didn''t think a kiss would have such an effect on her.


    Soo-Ah had always been easy to read, and her feelings for him were no secret. She tried to hide it, but the way she looked at him sometimes told YuWon everything he needed to know.


    Her face was pink, her blush spreading from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. She didn''t meet his gaze when he nced back, but she kept following him, her pace quickening whenever she got left behind.


    Without Gina in the way, it''ll be easy to win Soo-Ah''s heart.


    That''s what Lilith told him, and it seemed she was right.


    He slowed down a bit, letting Soo-Ah catch up. Just then, a doll approached them. Without saying a word, it offered YuWon a flyer and ran off.


    It was a strange sight. He could swear the dolls were alive, but other than robotic actions, they didn''t do much. Even when Mickey went around stabbing their butts.


    "What does it say?" Soo-Ah asked, leaning in.


    "Some ghost house discount coupon¡­" YuWon mumbled. "Wanna go¡ª?"


    A sudden shriek startled YuWon. They turned around and saw the doll that had handed him the flyer screaming at the top of his lungs.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    For a moment, it seemed the man had regained control of himself¡ªbut just then; he twisted his own neck with a sickening crack and crumpled to the ground.


    His body had barely hit the floor when the surrounding dolls rushed in. In less than ten seconds, every trace of the corpse was gone, as though nothing had happened. The dolls worked efficiently, ensuring the amusement park''s cheerful atmosphere remained undisturbed.


    "Ah, a discount coupon! How wonderful!"


    A doll''s cheerful voice interrupted them. YuWon looked her up and down and his eyes widened in disbelief.


    "Professor Ming?" he blurted out.


    But Professor Ming didn''t reply. She had an eerie smile stered on her face and her nk eyes kept staring at the flyer in his hands.


    Soo-Ah was just as stunned as YuWon. But their actions never got a reaction from the professor. She had turned into a doll.


    It wasn''t just her. Every single one of them... was an awakener who had failed the quest and got cursed to exist as lifeless dolls as a penalty, forced to forever serve as an employee of Lucifer''s twisted Lotte World.


    "Follow me! I''ll guide you to the location," Professor''s smile widened. "We even have special routes designed for couples, ensuring you plenty of intimate moments."


    "C-Couples¡ª?!"


    Soo-Ah''s face turned crimson as she instinctively opened her mouth to correct her. But before she could say a word, YuWon casually slid an arm around her waist, pulling her close.


    "We would love to explore the special route." he said.


    "Excellent!" The professor pped his hands together, beaming. "Unfortunately, I''ve just been assigned elsewhere. But fear not! I''ve got you covered."


    The professor pped, and instantly two ogres with saddles strapped to their backs rushed in.


    "These fine gentlemen will escort you to the stage. Once you emerge on the other side, you''ll be able to im your reward for enduring the challenge."


    With that, the professor waved them off before disappearing. But as she did, YuWon saw a teardrop rolling down her face. The dolls were alive, capable of emotions, but tragically unable to act on them. If they tried, they''d meet the same end as that man before.


    Filthy bastard¡­ I will kill you one of these days. I swear on my life.


    Explore stories on empire


    YuWon clenched his fists. The rage within him kept bubbling. But neither he could do any harm to Lucifer, nor vice versa, at least not directly. That''s why that bastard was pulling such tricks to toy with YuWon''s emotions.


    ***


    As YuWon and Soo-Ah approached the gate, an employee dressed in a neat uniform stepped forward, smiling politely. Without a word, he took the flyer out of YuWon''s hand and gestured toward the gates. A bunch of goblins appeared and opened the door for them.


    "Wee," the employee said, bowing slightly. "I hope you have a great time there."


    YuWon nodded and stepped inside, and Soo-Ah quickly followed him. However, the employee raised a hand toward Soo-Ah''s skeletons, stopping them.


    "I''m sorry," the man said, "but they can''te in."


    "What? Why not? They''re part of my team."


    "Your coupon only allows a couple, not the family."


    Soo-Ah was ready to argue more when YuWon gently grabbed her hand. Without saying a word, he gestured towards the man.


    Like before, the doll was smiling, but tears continuously ran down his face. He said nothing, but it was clear he was silently begging her not to push further.


    After seeing the man Soo-Ah hesitated, confused.


    "What''s wrong with him?" she whispered.


    YuWon''s sharp eyes caught on the trembling in the employee''s hands. That''s when it clicked. The doll wasn''t acting on his own will¡ªhis life depended on keeping the skeletons out.


    Yet, he couldn''t directly force them to leave. It was against the rules for dolls to physically stop guests from doing anything.


    "We''ll leave the skeletons outside," he said, pulling Soo-Ah gently toward the gate.


    YuWon wasn''t feeling kind, but since it was his quest to save as many dolls as he could, he had no other choice but to stand back.


    "But¡ª!"


    "It''s fine. I''m here, aren''t I?"


    Reluctantly, Soo-Ah dismissed her skeletons with a wave of her hand. The doll gave them onest sorrowful look before bidding them farewell as the doors closed behind them.


    Then, without warning, the lights flickered once before going outpletely.


    "Ack!" Soo-Ah yelped, grabbing YuWon''s arm in a panic. "What happened to the lights?!"


    Instead of replying, YuWon chuckled. Who would have thought a necromancer would fear the dark?


    "Rx," he said, patting her head.


    [Checkpoint marked.]


    [The user will respawn here upon death.]


    However, Soo-Ah shook her head, refusing to let go of him. However, before he could say anything else, he felt a strange presence. YuWon couldn''t even react as his vision blurred, but strangely, he could see his body as he fell.


    [You''ve died.]


    ***


    "DUCK!"


    YuWon yelled, pulling Soo-Ah down with him. She fell on top of him, not knowing an invisible de had passed over their heads. If YuWon had been a secondter, both of their heads would''ve gone flying off.


    After inheriting the disaster mole''s stats, YuWon could see in the dark. But for some reason, he couldn''t see a thing inside the haunted house. YuWon could only curse Lucifer under his breath before getting up.


    Just then, there was a burst of light, and two orcs appeared before them. YuWon pulled Soo-Ah behind him before kicking one orc and punching the other with the [Formless de] gauntlet.


    "What the hell¡­?"


    YuWon couldn''t believe it. He had put all his strength into that attack, yet the orcs remained unaffected by the attack. But before he could do something about it, the orcs ran away.


    "What''s going on?" Soo-Ah asked.


    "I have no idea," YuWon replied.


    "That''s why I wanted my skeletons here¡­"


    "¡­let''s move on."

 Chapter 193 Haunted House (2)

    YuWon hadn''t expected to die so many times at the start of their journey. Yet, here he was¡­ dying repeatedly. he couldn''t remember thest time he had struggled so much. His senses were inplete disarray, much like Soo-Ah, who couldn''t stop trembling.


    It wasn''t the monsters that unnerved them, but something about the haunted house itself. The ce amplified their fears and dulled their senses, leaving them vulnerable.


    Even with his rudimentary understanding of the haunted house''syout, YuWon couldn''t shake the anxiety each time he encountered forks in the path, traps, or lurking monsters.


    Every decision felt like stepping onto andmine that would blow their faces. But they didn''t even have time to think. Monsters would be right after them, and if they hesitated before deciding, they''d get killed.


    Once YuWon took a path and saw Anna''s face, he was stunned for a moment, until a monster jumped from behind, killing him.


    Even with his rudimentary understanding of the haunted house''syout, YuWon couldn''t shake the anxiety each time he encountered forks in the path, traps, or lurking monsters. Every decision felt like stepping onto andmine.


    Only then did he realize the haunted house wasn''t a test of strength, but a test of survival.


    He had been ying the game wrong, that''s why he was suffering.


    With that thought in mind, YuWon turned to Soo-Ah, who looked like she was seconds away from copsing. Without a word, he scooped her up into a princess carry.


    "W-What are you doing!?" Soo-Ah stammered, her face instantly flushing red.


    YuWon couldn''t see her face, but she was probably blushing right about then. As much as he wanted to tease her about it, he couldn''t. There was no time for such silly actions.


    "Hold tight," YuWon told her. "Things might get rocky from here."


    Without hesitation, YuWon allocated twenty points to his agility stat and bolted down the corridor. Traps triggered as usual, but with his speed, he dashed through before they could fully activate.


    The monsters roared and gave chase, but YuWon didn''t spare them a second nce. He would not waste energy on enemies he couldn''t defeat.


    Meanwhile, Soo-Ah clung to him tightly, burying her face against his chest. She was too stunned to speak, but she wasn''tining at all. In fact, her heart was pounding wildly as she heard YuWon''s heartbeats.


    She looked up, but couldn''t see YuWon''s face, just his ragged breaths as he carried her. But then a strange thought entered her mind.


    Am I¡­ too heavy?


    Only a woman could worry about her weight in a life-or-death situation. But despite her fears, Soo-Ah felt weirdlyfortable. As long as YuWon was with her, even death wouldn''t darey a finger on her.


    ***


    After about fifteen minutes of chaos, they finally burst out of the haunted house. The doll from before was waiting for them on the outside, along with three others.


    It was only then that YuWon noticed something strange about them: they all wore identical nes that glowed faintly whenever they spoke.


    He wasn''t sure, but YuWon thought those nes might be some kind of mind-control device, used to manipte the dolls.


    The nes reminded him of ve cors, though there was one key difference. A ve cor allowed its wearer to keep their personality, but the nes stripped the dolls of everything. The doll couldn''t openly show their emotions or personalities without suffering.


    "Congrattions!"


    The dolls began pping in eerie unison.


    "You''ve cleared the haunted house in record time! For such dedication, you''ll receive additional carnival points!"


    As the doll spoke, the others stepped forward, handing over a small stack of coupons. YuWon took them and nodded. Everything about the amusement park was the same, yet drastically different.


    Much like before, the participants earned coupons bypleting challenges¡ªlike finishing a course in record time or staying on a mechanical bull the longest. They could then exchange these coupons for prizes at the souvenir store.


    "These gentlemen will escort you to the store," the lead doll said, gesturing to itspanions. "I hope you enjoyed your time in the haunted house!"


    ***


    "Everything feels weird about this ce¡­" Soo-Ah whispered.


    "I''d be concerned if that wasn''t the case."


    YuWon and Soo-Ah followed the dolls down a brightly lit path that led to the souvenir store. The ce was surprisingly lively, with colorful lights shing and cheerful music ying in the background.


    The store itself looked more like a carnival tent, filled with shelves stacked high with all sorts of strange and colorful items.


    As they stepped inside, YuWon''s eyes scanned the disys. Plush toys, masks, gadgets, and even glowing trinkets lined the walls. But then something caught his attention. It was a familiar item.


    On one shelf, tucked between rows of fancy keychains and bracelets, was the ne. The same ne the dolls were wearing.


    They''re selling this¡­?


    Soo-Ah noticed his gaze and gasped.


    "That ne?" She said, tilting her head. "Why would anyone buy something so creepy?"


    Ignoring herment, YuWon stepped closer to the shelf and picked one up. The gemstone flickered faintly as he held it.


    "What are you doing?" Soo-Ah asked, frowning.


    "I''m buying it," YuWon replied.


    "Why? You saw what those things do! They turn people into¡ª"


    "I know," he said, cutting her off. "But I need to know how they work. If these are what I think they are, they might be usefulter."


    Soo-Ah didn''t look convinced, but she sighed and crossed her arms.


    "Fine," she said. "Just don''t put it on me as some romantic gesture."


    YuWon shook his head and walked over to the counter, where yet another doll stood waiting with her cheerful smile.


    "That will be ten coupons," she said.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    YuWon handed over the coupons, thinking they were too cheap. The doll took them, then handed him a small box containing the ne.


    "Thank you for your purchase! Enjoy your time at the amusement park!"


    YuWon didn''t respond. He stared at the box for a moment before slipping it into his pocket.


    "Let''s go," he said, turning to Soo-Ah.


    As they left the store, Soo-Ah couldn''t help but nce at him. A flicker of worry on her face.


    "You better not put that thing on," she warned.


    YuWon chuckled. "Don''t worry. I''m not that stupid."


    "Are you sure?"

 Chapter 194 Monster Parade (1)

    YuWon and Soo-Ah found a quiet spot near the souvenir store, away from the dolls. The cheerful music of the amusement park yed in the distance, but YuWon''s mind was focused on the ne in his hands. He held it up to the sunlight as if trying to look through the ne itself.


    Soo-Ah watched him curiously.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Trying to figure out how this works," he replied. "It''s part of my quest."


    "Right¡­ I almost forgot about that," Soo-Ah awkwardly said. "You need to save those dolls, right?"


    YuWon nodded, cing the ne on the ground. To save the dolls, he needed to know what was turning them into dolls. As long as he found that, he could form a n toplete the quest.


    With that thought, he summoned the [Formless de]. YuWon quickly morphed the weapon into a collection of tools¡ªa screwdriver, a pair of pliers, and something resembling a scalpel.


    "Uh¡­ what are you doing now?" Soo-Ah said, squatting beside him.


    "Taking this apart," YuWon said, kneeling down. He didn''t bother looking up at her as he spoke. "If I can understand how it works, I can figure out how to free the dolls from it¡­ or that''s what I hope to achieve."


    "Will this take time¡ª?"n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "You won''t miss the next ride if that''s what you''re asking," YuWon replied.


    Unlike his timeless quest, Soo-Ah was on a schedule. After all, the rides in the park were operated at regr intervals. If she didn''t get to the next attraction by then, she wouldn''t be able to take that rideter.


    Meanwhile, YuWon pried open the metal casing around the gemstone with the help of a screwdriver. Any ordinary tool would break if he tried, but the [Formless de] was just right for the job.


    It took a bit of effort, but eventually, the small, glowing stone popped free. He held it up, inspecting it. The gemstone pulsed faintly in his palm as if it had a heartbeat.


    +++


    Item Name: Hearthstone of Dominion


    Item Type: Cursed Gemstone (Inactive), needs a conductive circuit.


    Rarity: Mythic


    Requirement: This is only usable by beings who master souls or mind maniption (including god-like entities).


    Description: A dark gemstone that pulses with a faint heartbeat, as if alive. Forged in the depths of forgotten realms, the Hearthstone of Dominion grants its wielder terrifying control over the minds and souls of others.


    Base Stats:


    Control Power: +50% effectiveness on mind control and soul-shackling abilities.


    Mana Regeneration: +10% per second while the hearthstone is active.


    Health Drain: -2% Max HP per minute of continuous use.


    Special Bonus:


    Dominion Aura: Within a 15-meter radius, enemies with weaker wills (lower level or intelligence stat) get charmed for 3 seconds upon entering the area.


    Cooldown: 15 seconds per enemy.


    Skills:


    Mind''s Chain (Active):


    Sends out spectral chains from the gemstone, shackling up to 3 targets within a 10-meter range. A new gemstone might emerge on their necks after continuous exposure.


    Cooldown: 18 seconds


    Mana Cost: 75


    Cursed Object: Extended use of Hearthstone slowly erodes the wielder''s sanity, reducing resistance to mind-affecting abilities and causing hallucinations. Force use of the gemstone would lower the user''s divinity.


    +++


    Thest line stuck with YuWon. The gemstone was a mind maniption device, but he had never thought Lucifer would use such an item just to toy with him. But it also showed his determination. After all, he was willing to lose his divinity if it meant he could get his revenge on YuWon.


    "¡­only works with a conductive circuit," YuWon muttered under his breath. "So, it only works when it''s inside the circuit, or the ne."


    He nced back at the now-empty ne lying on the ground. Without the gemstone, it looked in and powerless.


    "So, what does that mean?" Soo-Ah asked, still watching from the side.


    "It means," YuWon said, standing up and pocketing the gemstone, "if we remove the gemstones from the nes, everyone will wake up, and I''ll be done with this stupid quest."


    "That''s it? Just take out the gemstone?"


    YuWon looked at her and shook his head. Taking the gemstone off the ne was straightforward enough, but prying the ne off the dolls was a different story.


    The ne, in a sense, was the source of their life. Because of this, the dolls would stop at nothing to prevent anyone from removing it. That was the real challenge of the quest.


    "We''ll test it outter. For now, let''s move on to the next ride."


    With that, YuWon retrieved the [Formless de] and walked away. He would need a n before he rescues people. If Lucifer sensed something was off, the bastard would make his life more difficult.


    ***


    "¡­Just kill me already."


    Soo-Ahined as she barfed on the floor. The quest was supposed to be simple¡ªjust ride the attractions in the amusement park. Easy, right? Wrong. In the four rides she took, she nearly died a dozen times.


    The nightmare began with the rollercoaster. What started as a typical thrill ride quickly devolved into chaos as the track disintegrated piece by piece. Soon enough, the cars had vanished entirely, leaving them to cling to the wheel axles for dear life.


    As if that wasn''t enough, some flying monsters attacked them, trying to pry their hands off the wheels.


    Next came the water slide. It seemed safe¡ªuntil the end of the slide revealed a gaping maw of a sea monster waiting to swallow them whole.


    If YuWon hadn''t used [Soul Bind] to possess the beast, they would have ended up in the monster''s belly.


    The Ferris wheel? Another death trap. Midway through the ride, it copsed, sending them hurtling toward the ground. YuWon barely transformed the [Formless de] into a massive cushion to soften their fall.


    And the gyro wheel? Soo-Ah could barely process what happened. One second, they were spinning; the next, they gotunched into the sky. She had no memory of how they survived thending¡ªjust that YuWon had somehow made it happen.


    By the end of it all, she was done. Completely done. The park manager could kill her for all she cared.


    "I don''t think that''s going to be a problem," YuWon replied, staring at the clock tower.


    "What do you mean?" Soo-Ah gasped.


    "We''ve run out of time."


    The clock tower rang, and the power went off, plunging them into darkness.


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