Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 275: Star, the U.S. (10)

Chapter 275: Star, the U.S. (10)

“Kill… me…!”

Looking at the mummy panting on the ground beside his feet, Chang-Sun concisely assessed, “You’re weak.”

The mummy—no, Francois Prelati had so many things he wanted to say. Chang-Sun nonchalantly instructed Francois to use [Space Severance] on him, but using it was by no means easy. Francois had to establish the space he would materialize in his mind first, infuse his mana into the space, and anchor the space down using an Authority… He felt as if both his body and soul shriveled up every time he used it.

That was why Francois had only activated [Space Severance] a few times so far. He believed that he should gain a deeper understanding of the Authority first before constantly using it, so he only ever used it in times of emergency.

However, Chang-Sun had made Francois activate [Space Severance] eleven times already. Eleven times! Whenever it deactivated, Chang-Sun would feel as if something was lacking, so Francois would activate it again before he could take a break.

It depleted Francois’ mana first, ruining his magic organ, then it depleted the vital force in the life vessel that he had previously stored to serve as his extra set of life. It also exhausted his spiritual energy and destroyed his Class, drying up his soul and causing him to lose his rank as an Elder Lich.

As an Elder Lich, Francois felt as if he could do anything, but his Elder Lich abilities were gone now. He wasn’t even as strong as an ordinary Lich anymore. In fact, he was now weaker than a skeleton mage as indicated by his skin and bone state. Ghoul? Zombie? Francois received a message telling him that he was reduced to such a state, but he couldn’t even remember it due to his lack of energy.

The only desire Francois had now was to escape from this hell. He had already given up on running away long ago. How in the world was he supposed to run away from a monster who became twenty percent stronger every time [Space Severance] was activated?

Death was the only way to escape from the man who was far more malevolent than a devil, which was damningly ironic, considering Francois turned into a Lich due to his hideous desire to live forever.

‘Four years… He repeated four years eleven times! How! How is he even human?!’

Chang-Sun couldn’t hear Francois’ internal screaming, though.

“Lead a proper life next time.” Chang-Sun held up his right foot high and smashed Francois’ head.

Smasssh!

* * *

[You have killed the Boss Monster!]

[The Dungeon Quest has been completed.]

[Compiling the final ranking.]

[Dungeon Ranking]

First Place: Lee Chang-Sun

…

[You have absorbed a part of the <Starlight> that the Boss Monsters possessed.]

[As a reward, you have acquired a part of the information about the Quirinale, the forgotten ancient knowledge.]

…

[The Dungeon is closing.]

[5.]

[4.]

‘…It really is Ithaca’s power.’ Chang-Sun’s face darkened after scrolling through the list of rewards.

He already knew about the Quirinale. Among the Elder Celestials’ many clans, the Quirinale was the one that controlled space.

Chang-Sun seemed to have acquired the ability along with Ithaca’s <Starlight> when he eliminated Francois. However, he wasn’t sure how to use it, maybe because he did not have enough <Starlight>.

[1.]

[0.]

[The Dungeon is now completely closed.]

[Great work, everyone.]

The magic barrier over the building was completely lifted, and all the monsters disappeared, leaving behind a ruined building that could break down any minute.

“… Gosh.” Executive Director Oh Shi-Hwan let out a very long sigh. He seemed so tired that he looked as if he aged decades. Seo Jeong-Gwon had persuaded him to swear his loyalty to Chang-Sun, who killed Francois so easily that it still shocked him greatly.

Francois anyway was one of the Thirteen Great Elders of the White Tiger Clan’s Council of Elders. He was also respected by the members of the Jaynix Company, one of the Five Great Clans. Having already gone through <Exuviation>, he was about to <Transcend> to become a Celestial, and he even called himself a Transcended Demon due to his claim that he would soon surpass his limit as a demonic being.

However, Francois was far from a Transcended Demon. He talked big, but he couldn’t even leave a scratch on Chang-Sun. That was how big the difference was between their levels.

“Oh Shi-Hwan.”

Executive Director Oh came to his senses when he heard Chang-Sun call for him. Jeong-Gwon, who was standing beside Executive Director Oh, snapped back to reality as well. Getting a glimpse of Chang-Sun’s power in person left their minds blank.

They stood in awe of Chang-Sun. The strong desire to become as powerful as him grew inside Jeong-Gwon’s heart.

“You know what to do from now on, right?” Chang-Sun asked.

“… I’ll make all the necessary preparations with Jeong-Gwon,” Executive Director Oh replied.

Chang-Sun was already too busy tracking down Heoju, who was probably up to something, so he left it to Executive Director Oh to prepare for a smooth takeover of the White Tiger Clan, which would soon fall apart.

‘... Director Gwon Hyo-Hae isn’t far from here,’ Chang-Sun thought.

He had already received all the information that he needed from Jeong-Gwon. Kali’s priests had set up camp around the Rocky Mountains as a guerilla army, but upon receiving news about ‘Doomsday City,’ many of them had come to Chicago. To exterminate them, Director Gwon had set up a trap, so Chang-Sun had to scratch his original plan to prioritize clearing ‘Doomsday City.’

The moment the operation was put in motion, Kali’s remaining priests on Earth would surely get killed. If that happened, Chang-Sun would be too ashamed to face Kali, who had asked him for their safety, again.

Hence, Chang-Sun decided to save them and make sure everyone was safe first. Afterward, he would take over the White Tiger Clan while minimizing the damages he dealt to it.

‘Director Gwon was Executive Director Oh’s biggest obstacle. If Executive Director Oh still fails to seize control of the White Tiger Clan with Director Gwon out of the picture, I will have to choose a different pawn.’

This was the first and last chance Chang-Sun was giving to Executive Director Oh.

Without saying anything else, Chang-Sun left the site.

Paaah…!

When a gust of wind blew, his many subordinates disappeared as well.

“… Phew!”

“I feel like I just got back from the grave.”

Executive Director Oh and Jeong-Gwon let out a sigh of relief when the pressure on their shoulders disappeared. Everything that happened seemed so surreal that they felt as if they were dreaming. However, the thick, burning smell in the building that was making Executive Director Oh’s heart race evidenced that they weren’t.

‘...The other end of the Channeling has really changed to a different person,’ Executive Director Oh realized.

To survive, Executive Director Oh had to change the White Tiger Clan’s owner to Chang-Sun Using any means necessary. No, he wanted more than just his survival. He wished to be in a position of power once more!

Executive Director Oh’s desire to survive changed to an ambition for a higher seat. He no longer wished to remain as the second-in-command or a pawn that assisted Munseong. Chang-Sun would have Earth all to himself, and on that planet, Executive Director Oh wanted a seat that no one would dare covet.

His first task… would be recovering the command of the Future Strategy Department. Executive Director Oh’s eyes turned cold, and…

“E-Executive Director Oh! P-please h-hear me out—!”

… turned his head to Department Head Shim Geon-Ho, who had gone pale while trying to come up with an excuse. After eliminating all the other Ghost Soldiers, Jin captured Geon-Ho alive and left him with Executive Director Oh.

He didn’t leave Geon-Ho in good shape, though. Covered with frost, his limbs dangled as if they would break off and drop to the floor any minute. Half of his face had also been ruined.

“I-I-I w-was trying to fool Di-Director Gwon! Y-yes! Yes! Director Gwon! This was my tr-trap to fool Director Gwon! I’m sure you’ll recognize my loyalty—!”

“Department Head Shim.” Executive Director Oh looked at his old so-called right-hand man with cold eyes. “You were just a hound, so if you wanted to bite off your master’s neck, you should have done it right. You wouldn’t have ended up in this mess otherwise.”

“W-w-wait—!”

“Enjoy death befitting a poorly-skilled hound,” Executive Director Oh said quietly, his small shadow suddenly growing bigger and attacking Geon-Ho.

“Arrggggh!” Geon-Ho’s scream echoed throughout the abandoned building.

* * *

[Your ownership percentage of the Order ‘White Tiger’ has increased!]

[Current ownership percentage: 19%]

…

* * *

After wrapping up the whole Executive Director Oh situation, Chang-Sun immediately hunted down Director Gwon. At the same time…

“… The 72nd Branch has been killed.”

The report made the ‘Ninth Branch,’ Kali’s priest and commander of the guerilla army on Earth, slowly open his eyes. The Ninth Branch didn’t look really any different from the other Branches, but none of his comrades disrespected his authority or talked back.

That was how serious the title of Ninth Branch was. Kali had thousands of priests, and those who were assigned single digits had spent a very long time with her. The closer the Branches were to the root, Kali, the stronger they were and the more respect they commanded.

The Ninth Branch, whom the other Branch siblings call Nain, had the title of a cardinal for a good reason, but he had actually been feeling a lot of regrets nowadays.

‘Am I really walking down the right path?’ Nain wondered.

Albeit with difficulty, he managed to raise a guerilla army by bringing in Kali’s priests who were scattered all over the universe. Gathering four hundred twenty-one Gray Elves in one place wasn’t easy. Nevertheless, after learning about the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials’ schemes, the Branches then began waging a war against them on Earth. Nain’s guerilla army actually yielded the greatest results among the numerous past resistance armies. However, they couldn’t do any more than that.

‘We now have over a hundred casualties… Over thirty percent of us have already been sacrificed.’

The casualties they suffered were technically worse. Three of their platoons had been exterminated, and four of their two-digit numbered Branches, the bishops, had been killed. That was no different from half of the guerilla army being annihilated.

‘Yet we still failed to enter the Dungeon.’

R’lyeh, the Source that the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials were desperately trying to get their hands on, could also be viewed as the center of the universe. The Branches had been trying to stop the Celestials from getting their hands on it using any means necessary, but the White Tiger Clan members kept ferociously fending off the Branches that were trying to head to ‘Doomsday City’.

‘White Cowl Tiger's Fang Gwon Hyo-Hae… Unless we take him and the Council of Elders out…’

However, the White Tiger Clan and Jaynix Company were closing in on the Branches more and more each day, driving them into a corner. At this rate, they would likely discover the Branches’ hideout soon.

Nain’s agony deepened, his eyes fixed in one direction.

Noticing Nain’s state, the 102nd Branch stopped reporting and worriedly said, “9th Branch, after we came to Earth, I heard many epigrams, but there is one proverb I like in particular.”

“A proverb? What is it?”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

Nain didn’t answer.

“I know what you’re worried about, 9th Branch, but it wouldn’t be too late to worry about the future once we have completed our goal, would it?” the 102nd Branch asked.

Nain was actually pondering a very simple question—the future of the resistance army.

Several days ago, Nain and the other resistance army soldiers met a team of emissaries that introduced themselves to be from a mysterious group called <Troop>. According to the emissaries, they created their own organization due to the differences in their opinions with the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials. They also offered to work together with the Branches in clearing ‘Doomsday City,’ claiming that many of Kali’s priests were already with them. In fact, one of the emissaries was Kali’s Branch, just like the resistance soldiers.

Ever since the meeting, the resistance army soldiers began to be torn. If those <Troop> emissaries just offered to work together, the Branches would have turned it down without giving it a second thought. Even though the <Troop> members had parted ways with the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials, the <Purple Star Astrology> executives had still done something unforgivable to Kali.

However, one of the Branches was part of the emissary team, which meant the <Troop> members were trustworthy to a certain extent. Besides, the resistance army soldiers were reaching their limits now.

Nevertheless, Nain was hesitant about working with the <Troop>. He feared that they would take over the entire resistance army. No <Society> would refuse to have Kali’s priests, the Himavat Ascetics, on their side. However, since the <Troop> had already merged with big and small organizations made by Kali’s priests, they would have most of Kali’s legacy the moment Nain and the other resistance soldiers joined them as well.

‘In that scenario, we won’t be able to prioritize our initial goal anymore. We won’t even be able to dream about our goddess’ resurrection,’ Nain thought.

Or worse…

‘… They might try to hold her hostage after she is resurrected.’

Although Kali’s ordinary priests weren’t aware of this, Nain was her cardinal, so he knew that although it wasn’t the case for other Celestials, Kali could freely resurrect through cuttings because she was a World Tree. Hence, Nain actually considered becoming Kali’s new main body himself, but he had been assisting Kali for a long time. He had to meet the requirement of acquiring Kali’s Divinity to do that, but he didn’t even dare try because becoming Kali herself felt like blasphemy to him.

Unlike him, however, the <Troop> members would see Kali as a tool, so they would definitely try to resurrect her. Since he doubted the <Troop> members more than he trusted them, he really couldn’t accept their offer.

However, contrary to his opinion, many of the resistance army soldiers were starting to talk about reviewing the alliance offer of the <Troop> in a positive light to overcome their limits. Even the 102nd Branch, Nain’s aide, was actively expressing their opinion, further deepening his agony.

No matter how high Nain’s authority was, he couldn’t suppress his siblings out of intuition alone.

‘… Is Twilight really not on this land?’ Nain wondered bitterly, recalling Kali’s instruction to wait for ‘Divine Twilight,’ who would return someday.

After a moment, he heaved a very long sigh. Aside from stopping the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials, he also came to Earth to track down ‘Divine Twilight.’ However, his search for him had yielded no great results yet.

Now, Nain wasn’t even sure anymore if he and the other Branches simply didn’t try hard enough or if the return of ‘Divine Twilight’ was just Kali’s groundless hope. Still, he faintly hoped that the ‘Divine Twilight’ could make miracles if he did return.

“9th Branch,” The 102nd Branch called Nain, who had been staying silent.

Nain broke away from his thoughts. Even in this minute, their enemies were closing in on them, so he couldn’t afford to contemplate for too long.

“Phew…! When exactly will the next <Troop> emissaries arrive?”

“They’ll be here in three hours, so around nine in the evening based on Earth time. We have to come to a decision before that,” 102nd Branch urged.

“The previous emissaries said they’ll bring more of our siblings, right?”

The emissaries actually said that they were going to bring a surprise, but Nain didn’t know what it was exactly. Hence, he just assumed that the present would be the other Branches.

“Let’s make a decision after meeting them. If many of our siblings are really with them and they’re good enough to discuss the restoration of Himavat… then we’ll join them.”

The 102nd Branch brightened up. “You made the right decision. If the goddess was here, she would have been hap—!”

Boom, boom, boom!

However, before the 102nd Branch could finish its sentence, explosions went off all around them, shaking the ground hard.

Woosh?!

A strong, heated gust of wind struck the Branches’ hideout.

“W-what’s going on?!” Nain sprang up from his seat in surprise. As he did, a message popped up before him.

[An invasion of the Clan ‘White Tiger’ has started!]