novel
| ← Ch.084 | Ch.086 → |
Translated by: ShawnSuh
Edited by: SootyOwl
Backed against the wall and frightened, Ho Sung shook uncontrollably, a visible look of shock on his face. Being in the vicinity of the champion and the demon was more than enough to show just how great of a fear the demon had experienced.
"I-I'm sorry, sir. I'm having trouble getting up. So sorry. Just give me a moment..." Ho Sung said, still in panic. However, his legs didn't seem to respond to him.
"Potions?" the champion asked.
"I have some."
"Take as many as you need, get some rest, and meet me in front of the water tank, " the champion said, turning around and walking out of the cave. After that, Ho Sung looked toward the demon, who had been reduced to a puddle of red liquid seeping into the ground. Staring into the air dazedly, Ho Sung hyper-ventilated.
—
Moving across the dungeon like the wind, the champion went searching for the seals that the demon had mentioned. Although the demon's vague description of the seals' whereabouts made the search somewhat difficult, Min Sung was able to find one of the seals eventually. On a large magic circle, was a statue of a demon and an altar, where a stone about the size of the champion's fist lay. That had to be one of the keys that opened the water tank.
Walking up to the altar, Min Sung picked the stone up without hesitation. At which point, the seemingly average-looking stone started to glow gold, and the altar turned to powder. As the wind carried the powdered debris of the altar away, the stone returned to its dull appearance.
'Three more to go, ' the champion thought. At that moment, Min Sung furrowed his brow at the growling sound coming from his stomach. Looking down, Min Sung realized that he hadn't eaten since he had started hunting the monsters that were threatening the city and living within the labyrinth. Although it was nowhere near the level of hunger he had experienced during his time in the Demonic Realm, the champion had simply grown too accustomed to his life on Earth. With an irritable look on his face, Min Sung put the stone in his inventory and resume the search, anxious for a meal.
—
Standing in front of the water tank, Ho Sung waited for the champion to arrive. While fixing his gaze on the tank in case the monster within it started giving birth to more monsters, he couldn't help but replay the memory of the champion killing the young demon over and over again in his head. For one, Ho Sung was fascinated that even the demon had had a mother, whom the demon had tried to protect desperately from pain. Yet, the champion had tortured the demon without a trace of hesitation, eventually killing it. It had been a chilling sight, and just thinking about the champion gave Ho Sung goosebumps. Shaking with fear, Ho Sung swallowed nervously. At that moment, he heard what sounded like something cutting through the air. It had to be Min Sung. When Ho Sung looked toward the sound, the champion was already stopping, leaving a trail behind him like a racecar coming to a sudden halt. Sparks jumped out of the river of molten lava underneath the trail. At which point, Ho Sung backed away in order to stay away from the lava.
'What? Is he immune to lava too?' Ho Sung asked himself, sighing deeply while shaking his head.
"Ho Sung Lee. See if this fits anywhere, " Min Sung said, showing Ho Sung a set of four stones.
"Is that what that demon was talking about?" Ho Sung asked.
"Get moving. I'm starving, " Min Sung said irritably.
"Yes, sir!"
Ho Sung started looking around the tank in a hurry. However, there was no place to put the stones, not anywhere. At that moment, a set of hieroglyphs came into his view.
"Sir! Do any of those stones have anything written on them?"
"Yes, they do, " Min Sung replied, tossing one of the stones to Ho Sung. Catching it with both of his hands, Ho Sung compared the hieroglyph on the stone to the ones of the lower part of the tank. At that moment, the matching letters started to glow gold.
"I think I figured it out!" Ho Sung said. Although he had put the stone down, the matching letters were still glowing gold. Getting the rest of the stones from the champion, Ho Sung walked around the tank, searching for the letters matching the ones of the stones. Then, when he found all four, the ground started to quake, and the tank started to crack.
"Step back, " Min Sung said as he pulled out his dagger. At which point, Ho Sung backed away in a hurry. Soon, the tank shattered, and the fluid that had once filled the tank flooded out of it. At that same moment, the demoness that had been submerged within the tank opened her glowing red eyes. Coming out of the tank, the demoness looked at Ho Sung first and then at the champion. At which point, her jaw dropped open, and a look of shock washed over her face.
"The Black Slaughterer... You're not dead, ' the demoness said to Min Sung, who was staring at the creature with uninterested eyes.
"Your time's up, " he said. Looking around, the demoness cried out desperately as if looking for someone.
"Agnes?! Agnes!"
"I promised your child that I'd make your death a painless one, " the champion said. Infuriated, the demoness glared at the champion piercingly and let out a thunderous roar, her mouth gaping open like a crocodile. Then, with energy surging from her hands, the demoness charged at Min Sung, who remained unfazed as he swung his dagger diagonally. A white projectile shot out of the dagger and flew toward the demoness. However, having reached her full physical maturity, the demoness possessed combat ability that was incomparable to that of her child.
Hitting the projectile away with her devilish claws, the demoness charged at the champion yet again. Jerking his shoulder away from the curved claws of the demoness, who was looking to feast on the champion's heart, Min Sung drove his Orichalcon Dagger into the creature's side. However, despite having a dagger stuck to her side, the demoness remained undeterred, fighting through the pain and attacking the champion fiercely. Her powerful claws, which were surging with a black aura, fell on the back of the champion's neck. Raising his arm, Min Sung blocked her claws, pulled the dagger out of the demoness' side and drove it into her heart, and then into her stomach.
The critical wounds slowed the creature's movements down noticeably. Then, just as Min Sung pulled his dagger back in order to deliver the final blow, the demoness' red eyes turned black, and flames shot out of her mouth, coiling around the champion's torso. However, when the flames died down, the demoness was shaken to find the champion unscathed, his lips curled into a sneer. At that point, he swung his dagger horizontally, cutting the demoness in half at the waist. As the torso fell to the ground, Min Sung drove his hand through the demoness' chest and grasped her heart.
"Ughh..." the demoness groaned in pain.
"You'll join your friends soon enough, " Min Sung said, sneering condescendingly at her. Then, pulling his hand out of her chest cavity, the champion incinerated the heart in his palm, killing the demoness instantly and, similarly to what had happened to her child, turning her into a puddle of blood that trickled into the molten lava. Then, following the array of items that had dropped on the ground, a loud chime sounded off out of nowhere.
[Labyrinth cleared!]
[Special reward given to: Min Sung Kang. ]
After that brief message, a portal out of the labyrinth appeared in front of Min Sung and Ho Sung. Pointing at the items, Min Sung ordered Ho Sung to pick them up and made his way toward the portal, rubbing his growling stomach while furrowing his brow. No matter how hard he thought about it, he simply couldn't think of what to eat.
'I'll just have Ho Sung decide for me. '
—
When the champion and Ho Sung came out of the labyrinth, the officers and soldiers of the Institute erupted into explosive applause, as if greeting a victorious war hero. Nevertheless, Min Sung remained undeterred, and Ho Sung followed him, still looking traumatized from his experience in the labyrinth.
"We were wondering why there weren't any more monsters coming out of the dungeon gate. I didn't know you'd clear the dungeon this quickly! Thank you so much, Mr. Kang. Marvelous work, " Ji Yoo said, greeting the champion with a bright smile.
"Save it. Just tell everyone that they're safe now, will you? All the restaurants are closed, and I haven't eaten anything since I started hunting."
"Of course! The reporters won't bother you, so you can rest assured, Mr. Kang. Get some rest, and we'll have a debriefing tomorrow."
"Whatever it is, count me out. You're more than welcome to ask him though, " Min Sung said, pointing toward Ho Sung, who was still staring into the air in a daze, with his chin. After looking at Min Sung getting in the car in disbelief, Ji Yoo turned toward Ho Sung.
"Hm?" Ji Yoo let out. Ho Sung didn't look well for some reason.
"Are you OK, Mr. Lee?" Ji Yoo asked, and Ho Sung, who had been in a daze up to that moment, snapped out of it and replied, "Huh!? Yeah, yeah. Wait, what did you say?"
"I asked if you were OK, " Ji Yoo said with a beautiful smile.
"Oh, right. Haha, I'm fine. Wait, where'd he go?"
At that, Ji Yoo, smiling bitterly, pointed toward Ho Sung's car and said, "He's in the car."
"Ah, right. Well, I'm gonna get going now."
With that, Ho Sung made his way to his car in a hurry, his legs still shaking. It seemed like he still hadn't fully recovered from the traumatic experience inside the labyrinth. Looking at Ho Sung with concern, Ji Yoo breathed a small sigh as the car started and drove off into the distance. While she was relieved that the crisis was over, she couldn't help but feel burdened by her responsibility as the Great Lord.
"... Well, look at you, Ho Sung Lee. Your level's going through the roof, " Ji Yoo said with a subtle smile while looking in the direction in which Ho Sung had driven off.
| ← Ch. 084 | Ch. 086 → |