abcnovels
Chapter 44
Chapter 44
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
Chapter 44
Dawn.
I returned home and stared at my status window for a long time.
+
?Status Window
1. Name: Hong Baekya
2. Class: Pyromancer (A-)
3. Titles: Sun of Humanity, Bringer of Dawn, Master of Fire, First and Greatest Climber...
4. Regional Server: South Korea
5. Ascension Level: 7th Rank: Angelus/Angel
6. Skills: Satellization (S+) Dragon's Breath (S+) Law of Light (EX) Radiant Sword (S+) Radiation Beam (S+) Resonance Wave (S+) Wave of Fire (S+) Accretion Disk (S+) Elementalization (S+) Sunrise (S+) Veil of Extreme Light (S+)...
7. Stats: [Strength 500] [Agility 520] [Health 550] [Mana 750]
8. Condition: Overload (98% recovered)?
+
The damage from the descent had almost completely healed.
Considering the upgraded armor I would be wearing, I was now at a level where I could start climbing the Tower again.
Just by ascending one floor, I could expect an S-Rank recovery, and I was confident I could get at least an A+.
If I climbed a couple of floors, I would be able to regain the stats of a world-class High-Ranker.
Of course, this was both an opportunity and a crisis.
The moment I enter the top 300 in the rankings, people will have a way to know I exist.
If I enter the top 100, it will start to be displayed on the walls of the Tower.
The whole world will know about my return.
Including the Regressors who killed me.
From the top 100 rankings, it was really difficult to climb even a step or two.
It wasn't just about stats; all sorts of bizarre titles, traits, and classes appeared.
The 'Ascension Level', which signifies the connection with a Constellation, also becomes incredibly important.
Cheong Siyeol, Na Jeongwon, and Lee Eunwoo are all High-Rankers in the top 10.
They have grown to the highest levels in every possible area.
Fighting them while climbing the Tower will not be easy.
Of course, I had no intention of giving up.
Nothing has ever been easy.
I admit that I became strong without much effort compared to other Hunters, thanks to being chosen by Sunny.
But I never used that power for my own safety or comfort.
What I want, now and always, is just one thing.
The 100th floor of the Tower.
No one has said it, but everyone knows.
There, a sea of stars stretches above and below.
Those who reach there are freed from the cycle of reincarnation and the laws of all things.
I will definitely reach there.
To do that...
Creak.
Lost in thought, I heard the sound of a door opening from the living room.
Looking out the window, I saw that dawn had passed and morning had arrived.
It was time for Wolha to wake up and start studying.
Perfect timing.
I went out to the living room and asked—
"Wolha."
"You were already up?"
"Want to go out and have some fun today? I heard the new movie is good."
"I need to keep up with my studies..."
Wolha trailed off.
But I saw the smile that appeared on his lips.
After a long time, the two of us went out to downtown Seoul.
We watched a movie.
We ate delicious food.
We bought nice clothes.
"No. You're buying another expensive outfit?"
"Hey, I got a job now. Just wear it."
"I'm studying for the civil service exam! I'll never have a chance to wear a suit."
"Think of it as a pre-celebration for passing."
"Celebrate when I actually pass. Don't count your chickens before they hatch."
"If you pass, I'll buy you a watch then. A car would be nice too."
"Sure, buy me everything if I pass. If I pass."
Wolha still nagged like the head of the household.
But it wasn't as severe as before.
He was no longer the young boy who had to take care of his sick and delusional older brother.
His neatly tied bobbed hair shone, and his delicate face was filled with the vitality of someone who turns luck into happiness.
"You're nagging less?"
"You won't listen anyway!"
"That's right! You're finally starting to understand me."
He looked like any other well-loved, decent young adult starting their career.
He glanced at me and mumbled softly.
"...Thank you."
He thought he hid it well, but he couldn't fool the ears of an A-Rank Awakened.
"What was that? Can you say that again?"
"Huh? I didn't say anything?"
He played dumb.
With a rather sly smile.
That's when I knew.
It was time to end this game.
It was time to return to my rightful place.
His civil service exam was coming up soon.
Once his exam was over, I would challenge the Tower.
And then I would come back and reveal everything.
The moment I thought that...
My Constellation's shout erupted in my mind.
?"Run!"?
?Your Constellation 'Sunny' yells at the top of their lungs.?
"Excuse me?"
?"Grab that fake brother of yours and run. Now!"?
An Aitel notification popped up in my vision.
?Warning! Warning! Warning!?
?Aitel Special Alert: Rank 1 Gate Outbreak!?
?Seoul 37.50..., 127.00...?
?Finale Story: The Fallen Demon Commander's Charge?
At 1:48 PM, a Rank 1 Gate Outbreak occurred.
* * *
The Regressors' secret chat room was in an uproar.
[Joo Suhyeok: How the hell did this happen?]
[Joo Suhyeok: None of our calculations predicted this outcome.]
[Joo Suhyeok: It was definitely a Rank 2. Definitely.]
[Cheong Siyeol: I don't understand why this became a Rank 1 Gate.]
[Joo Suhyeok: What's the difference?]
[Lee Eunwoo: Weren't we supposed to have cleared up to the 51st floor by now?]
[Lee Eunwoo: The month we killed Baekya this time, we cleared the 50th floor, and we were just about to enter the 51st. It's possible this is related to the Tower's Epilogue Story.]
[Lee Eunwoo: Or it could be a matter of probability. The more high-ranking Awakened there are, the lower the chance of a Rank 1 Gate outbreak. When Baekya was around, the probability was so low that Rank 1 Gates almost never appeared. Now, it might have increased.]
[Lee Baejeong: Enough with the praise and worship.]
[Lee Baejeong: Blue House has declared a national emergency and re-imposed martial law.]
[Lee Baejeong: A mobilization order has been issued according to the special law, so everyone, get your asses over here.]
[Lee Baejeong: Let's communicate on the official Ranker channel, not this chat room. Everyone, move over there.]
The Gate Management Department was also in chaos.
"Mobilize all agents! Tell the Awakened Support Agency to cooperate!"
"Which guilds have we contacted?"
"Are there any S-Ranks who have left the country? There aren't, right?"
"We've contacted Cheong Siyeol of the Azure Sky Sword Sect. He and his guild members happened to be near the area!"
"We've also contacted Lee Eunwoo of the Iron Blood Legion. He and his guild members happened to be near the area too!"
"What?"
"They're saying the same thing! Quickly summon the Magic Tower, the Holy Church, the Murim Alliance, and all the major corporate guilds!"
"Everyone, get a grip. This is not a drill. If we can't stop this, we'll be bankrupt overnight, no... we won't even have anything left to be bankrupt with."
Even 15 years after the advent of Aitel, a Rank 1 Gate outbreak remained an existential threat to the nation.
It wasn't about the economy collapsing or anything like that; it was a matter of physical existence.
So far, South Korea has been quite successful in defending against Rank 1 Gates.
Because Baekya had vaporized all the monsters.
But the beacon that once banished the darkness had been extinguished.
Now, it was time to light their own way.
* * *
?Absorption in progress...?
Rumble. Rumble. Rumble!
A black, hemispherical force field rapidly expanded.
Seoul's towering skyscrapers that pierced the sky and the countless people filling the streets were instantly swallowed into the force field.
"Kyaaaah!"
"Run!"
"Mom, Mom!"
Koreans usually reacted calmly to most Gates.
This was because the response time of Hunters was the fastest in the world, the survival rate of non-Awakened caught in Gates was the highest, and safety education was well-implemented.
But Rank 1 Gates were different.
Rank 1 Gates were akin to large-scale natural disasters like meteorite impacts or the eruption of Mount Baekdu.
At the point where destruction became visible, all the safety education they had received became meaningless.
Even the arrogant Awakened were screaming and running for their lives.
C-Rank Awakeneds pushed people aside as they ran, while F-Rank, E-Rank, and D-Rank Awakened couldn't even move.
It wasn't because they were more conscientious or stupid than C-Rank Awakened.
They were completely overwhelmed by the mana of the Rank 1 Gate and couldn't even bring themselves to move.
"Hyung!"
Wolha grabbing Baekya's wrist—
"Run!"
It was an act of sheer desperation, a plea born from a love that transcended reason.
But Baekya, with a touch both tender and resolute, gently pushed his hand away.
"Are you crazy?!"
Wolha thought he had lost his mind.
He raised his hand and slapped Baekya's cheek.
Slap!
"Run! We have to run! Please!"
"Too many people have been sucked in. I have to go..."
"Why are you going there?!"
"The people..."
The people?
What about the people?
Wolha clenched his fists and shouted—
"Since when did you start caring about people?! You never cared about yourself or me!"
People were running from all directions towards the opposite side of the Gate.
The roads became a tangled mess of abandoned vehicles, their drivers having joined the panicked exodus on foot.
In the midst of the chaos, Wolha stopped and shouted—
"We were finally starting to live a good life! We finally had a future! Why is this happening?!"
"...."
Baekya couldn't answer.
That wasn't something he could do.
He could only urgently push Wolha towards the entrance of a building, blocking a car that was rushing towards them.
"I'm sorry."
Crash!
The oncoming car slammed into Baekya.
But the car's bumper didn't hit Baekya's legs and sent him flying.
Because Baekya had reached out with one hand and pressed down on the car's bumper.
Crack!
The bumper crumpled under his palm, the front wheels dug into the sidewalk, and the car screeched to a halt.
People who had been crouching down looked at Baekya with surprised expressions before running away.
Wolha felt the gap between him and his brother.
"We had a good time today. Please, let's just go home."
His voice was mixed with tears.
Baekya nodded readily.
"Yeah. We had a good time today."
If it had been a Rank 3 or even a Rank 2 Gate, he might have just run away with Wolha.
'Let's see how well you guys do after killing me.'
But this was a Rank 1 Gate.
A Rank 1 Gate that even he, at his peak, had to be wary of, that he had to fight with all his might and every means available.
He was right not to trust his disciples.
That was the normal thing to do.
Anyone who said they could definitely win against a Rank 1 Gate needed to be beaten back to their senses.
1:53 PM, absorption process complete.
?Absorption Complete?
?Time until Release: 00 days 00 hours 09 minutes?
A black hemisphere, spanning 1 km, had swallowed countless people in the heart of Seoul.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump—!
A helicopter squadron flew in from one side of the sky.
They bore the emblems of the Azure Sky Sword Sect and the Gate Management Department.
The propellers of the low-flying helicopters created a strong wind.
Baekya stood under that wind and smiled serenely.
Even as the turbulent wind ruffled his hair and clothes, the halo above his head continued to shine in place.
'I gave him the Aesthetics of Reversal, so he should be able to get back alive.'
"Stay inside. I'll definitely come back."
He turned his back on Wolha without a second glance.
Amidst the screams of everyone trying to get as far away from the Gate as possible, he alone went against the flow.
Wolha reached out towards his back.
His hand, trying to grasp at the air, eventually fell.
"...Hyung."
Baekya continued forward without looking back.
'Mantle of the Demon Marquis, activate.'
He focused his thoughts and poured mana into the armor.
The white shirt he was wearing under his suit jacket wriggled as if it were alive.
The white shirt sprouted red tissue.
It had a strange texture, somewhere between biological tissue and a metal framework.
In no time, Baekya's body was completely encased in a sturdy plate armor.
It was neither Eastern nor Western in style, a white armor adorned with red accents.
It was an artifact created by combining the 'Haneol Bladesmith's Armor' with the 'Mantle of the Demon Marquis'.
?Mantle of the Demon Marquis (Heroic)?
?'All Stats +550' is being activated.?
His new armor.
He opened his inventory and pulled out the 'Fire Dragon Sword'.
He took a step into the Gate.
?Would you like to enter 'Finale Story: The Fallen Demon Commander's Charge'??
?Y / N?
When he opened his eyes, he saw—
A crimson sky and a scorched black earth.
And a demon charging towards him.
?'Mid-Rank Demon, Blazing Beheader (B-)' shows strong hostility towards you.?
["Kaaaaaaaak!"]
The demon had a lean, muscular body and red skin.
A pair of black horns sprouted from its head, and it held a flaming longsword in its hand.
Baekya swung the Fire Dragon Sword, glowing orange, deflecting the demon's sword and striking its neck.
Slice!
The demon's head flew into the air.
The sword was imbued with the mana of Law of Light, so the dead demon's body slowly burned, its mana being absorbed.
His Constellation laughed in his mind.
?"I knew you wouldn't listen even if I told you not to go in, so I didn't even bother saying it."?
?"Demonic mana is highly pure, so let's absorb it to our heart's content."?
?Your Constellation 'Sunny' bursts into a carefree laughter.?
But Baekya couldn't hear even the voice of his revered Constellation.
'Ah.'
His grip on the longsword weakened.
His heart pounded uncontrollably.
His gaze was fixed on the figure before him.
"Which guild are you from?"
A multitude of blue halos, resembling swords, shone above his head.
"Please answer me."
The real Cheong Siyeol stood before him.
[Translator - Hestia
[Proofreader - Kaya]