WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B

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Chapter 42: I Finally Found It

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“Pant, pant.”

Only old streetlamps stood at scattered intervals.

A narrow, unbranching path swallowed by darkness.

They ran through it, gasping for breath.

“Gasp, gasp!”

Their throat stung like needles whenever they gulped in air after that reckless sprint, and their heart pounded as if it might burst at any moment.

Even so, they did not stop running.

No, they could not stop.

They did not know where this was, why they were running, or even who they were.

But there was one thing they knew.

They had to run.

Crash!

“Urk!”

Was it because they had been in such a hurry?

While forcing themself onward, they caught a foot on a small piece of metal and tumbled to the ground.

They had fallen so hard that their forehead was covered in blood, while one ankle dangled limply as though the bone had been knocked out of place.

But they did not writhe in pain.

They only crawled desperately along the ground, trying to get even a little farther away.

Creak.

“...!”

But then, they had no choice but to stop crawling.

The sound of metal scraping behind them made their entire body go rigid.

I must not turn around.

They were sure they had thought that.

Yet their head turned against their will.

Turning with the creak of a rusty tin doll, they saw a piece of metal.

A shabby lump that belonged in a junkyard, the very thing that had tripped them while they were running at full speed.

Yet there was one reason their eyes widened.

The piece of metal was changing.

As though time itself were being reversed.

The rust covering its surface peeled away, and the metal slowly rose from the ground where it had been buried.

Beautiful and antique as a work of art, it gave off a chilling gleam even in this darkness.

Without realizing it, they muttered,

“A sword...?”

What was this sword?

Why had it been discarded in a place like this?

Why had they tripped over it?

The questions that flashed through their mind vanished even more quickly.

Shiiing.

Like some living creature.

The sword drew itself from its scabbard and floated into the air.

Their eyes nearly popped out as it slowly approached, its blood-red point aimed at them.

My body...!

Instinctive terror made them try to crawl away.

But it was only a futile hope.

Their limbs would not move at all, as though they were suffering from sleep paralysis, deepening their despair.

This is impossible.

They could not move.

They could not run.

They could not turn their head.

They could not even close their eyes.

There was only one thing they could do.

Watch the blade slowly approaching them.

This cannot be real.

They had worked harder than anyone.

They had lived by cutting down even the time needed to eat and sleep.

They had shaken off the hands trying to hold them back and leapt over every obstacle in their way.

They might not have reached the very front, but they had made it as far as its halo extended.

This could not be how they ended.

At the very least, if there really was a god in this world, it must not be.

This is a dream.

The sword drew closer.

The blade slowly filled their vision.

The point headed for an eye without the slightest tremble.

Staring wide-eyed at that cold blue blade, they repeated to themself.

This is a dream!

It is not real. It cannot hurt. I cannot die. I cannot be cut. This will only last a moment. Once I wake up, once I wake up...!

This is a dre...!

Squelch.

At that moment.

A sound like a spoon piercing pudding echoed out.

* * *

“AAAAAGH!”

Park Hyeon-gun shot upright with a scream.

For some time, Park Hyeon-gun gasped as cold sweat soaked their whole body, then instinctively felt around their eyes.

Only after confirming that both eyes were intact did they finally regain a little composure and look around.

The chair that had fallen over as they stood.

A desk with several documents on it.

The picture on the wall and familiar decorations.

Once everything confirmed that this was the Infinity Guild’s secretary’s office, Park Hyeon-gun wiped away the cold sweat.

“Did I doze off...?”

No matter how tired they were.

For a high-level player to fall asleep in a chair.

If anyone had seen it, they would have been too embarrassed to hold their head up.

But Park Hyeon-gun felt no embarrassment.

Overwhelming relief, unlike anything they had ever felt before, had pushed every other emotion from their mind.

What a terrible nightmare.

Whether it was because the position had been uncomfortable.

Or because fatigue had piled up from overwork.

It was a dream they never wanted to have again.

If fatigue had caused it, Park Hyeon-gun seriously wanted to consider getting more sleep from now on.

No, more importantly, what happened?

Their relief at returning to reality was brief.

Park Hyeon-gun’s thoughts soon left the trivial matter of the dream and returned to reality.

Has there still been no news from the Blue House? And what about the Monarch?

What Park Hyeon-gun had been worrying over before falling asleep.

Remembering why they had been forced to remain at the guild and work this late into the night, Park Hyeon-gun bit their lip.

It had already been a day since Lee Cheon-gi set out to deal with Rimon, who had taken hostages at the Blue House.

Until then, Park Hyeon-gun had believed it would all end quickly.

There was no way anything could remain unresolved when the Infinite Monarch had personally stepped in.

Even when they received reports that tremendous roars and flashes, strong enough to tear the sky and shake the earth, had been observed at the Blue House.

Even when they heard that the disturbance had abruptly stopped at a certain point.

Park Hyeon-gun’s faith had not wavered.

But now, a full day later.

They could no longer suppress the anxiety rising inside them.

What on earth is the Monarch doing, and where is he?

Judging by when the commotion stopped, Rimon should have been dealt with by Lee Cheon-gi yesterday.

The problem was why Lee Cheon-gi had not returned.

Knowing that Lee Cheon-gi usually placed importance on reporting procedures, Park Hyeon-gun found this sudden loss of contact even harder to understand.

They had even dispatched Tracers to learn what was happening at the Blue House.

But the results had been unhelpful.

No matter what Skills they used, from 『Clairvoyance』 to 『Star’s Answers』, it was impossible to spy on the inside of the Blue House.

As though even the great Constellations were afraid to look inside.

“...I really must be exhausted.”

Constellations being afraid of something?

Park Hyeon-gun briefly muttered to themself, scoffing at such an absurd thought.

Then they calmly formed a plan.

I need to investigate after all.

The conclusion was simple.

If there was still no contact by morning, they would personally investigate the Blue House, even if it meant sending in the Infinity Guild’s raid team.

Of course, Park Hyeon-gun did not have the authority to move the guild directly. They were not even the vice guildmaster.

But there was a way to move the vice guildmaster.

The vice guildmaster is an item fanatic... If I offer a Grand Duke-rank item from the guild warehouse, they’ll gladly grant this much of a request.

It was clearly an abuse of authority.

It went beyond a secretary’s authority.

But as always, Park Hyeon-gun did not care about such small matters.

They merely pulled out their smartphone while considering which item to offer.

“Let me ask just to make sure.”

“...!”

But before Park Hyeon-gun could even make the call.

They froze.

It was not only because an unfamiliar voice had suddenly echoed through the secretary’s office, where they had been alone until moments ago.

“Your name is Park Hyeon-gun, right?”

The sight of a white-haired man sitting on the sill of a window that had opened unnoticed and watching them with golden eyes left Park Hyeon-gun stunned.

“R-Rimon Aspelder?”

“What, are we friends, you little shit? We haven’t even introduced ourselves, and you’re calling me by name?”

“How did you get in here...?!”

How could Rimon, who should have died at Lee Cheon-gi’s hands long ago, be standing alive before them?

Even amid their shock and confusion, Park Hyeon-gun instinctively reached beneath the desk.

Rimon did not bother to stop them.

He merely spoke in a lazy voice.

“You should give up on anyone coming to help you.”

Park Hyeon-gun flinched.

It was not merely because Rimon had seen through their intention to press the emergency button.

Only after hearing those words did Park Hyeon-gun realize how strangely silent the surroundings were, even in the middle of the night.

As though everyone except them had vanished.

“What did you do?”

“That’s none of your business.”

How had he gotten in here?

What had he done with the guild members who should have been here?

Rimon neatly brushed aside Park Hyeon-gun’s question, which contained countless doubts.

Then, resting his chin on one hand, he spoke.

“You only need to answer one question.”

“What do you mean...?”

As though Park Hyeon-gun had no right to question him.

Or as though they naturally had to answer anything he asked.

Park Hyeon-gun was about to flare up at Rimon’s one-sided demand for an answer.

“Did you devise the scheme to take the children of Hanbit Orphanage hostage and make Na-gyeong carry out a suicide bombing?”

But the moment Park Hyeon-gun heard that question.

Their blood seemed to freeze.

It was not merely because the question was completely unexpected.

Rimon was watching them closely, as though eager to hear what answer they would give.

The moment Park Hyeon-gun saw those unnaturally calm golden eyes, they understood.

Their fate would be decided by how they answered now.

It was only instinct.

The sort of instinctive feeling Park Hyeon-gun would normally have laughed off.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

But when Park Hyeon-gun finally spoke.

They gave a firm denial.

Even judging rationally rather than by instinct, there was nothing to gain by admitting a fact that put them at a disadvantage.

“You don’t know?”

Rimon tilted his head slightly, as though surprised.

Park Hyeon-gun answered confidently.

“Because the Monarch personally handled matters related to you, there were orders issued without passing through me.”

“So the Infinite Monarch ordered my death, and you know absolutely nothing about Hanbit Orphanage or Na-gyeong?”

“That’s right.”

“Hmm, is that so? You don’t know.”

As though he had heard something important.

Even while Rimon nodded to himself, Park Hyeon-gun did not so much as twitch an eyebrow.

Others did not know, but their 『False God’s Prestige』 was a Unique Skill powerful enough to rival an Absolute Skill.

There was no way Rimon, who did not even possess a Skill, could see through a lie that not even a Tracer had noticed.

As Rimon watched Park Hyeon-gun closely.

He smiled.

“Heh, hehehe...”

The laughter that slipped out with his shaking shoulders was faint at first, as though escaping his lungs.

But it grew louder with time before finally becoming uproarious laughter.

“Bwahahahahahaha!”

As though it was too funny for him to bear.

After laughing loudly for some time, Rimon suddenly stopped.

He slowly raised his head.

Then, looking at Park Hyeon-gun with the eyes of a predator that had found its prey, he growled.

“It was you.”

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