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SSS-CLASS HUNTER WHO DIES TO LIVE

Chapter 38: The Alias of the Hero (2)

On a rainy day, it awoke.

It had no name. No form. It was more like a shadow. On a rainy day, a shadow opened its eyes and immediately saw the first living creature before it.

-Croak.

It didn't know what this creature was. There was much it didn't know. Only the sound... the sound of rain. The croaking from all around was thick in the air.

The rainwater carried a sweet scent.

Like a snake, though this was before it even knew what a snake was, it instinctively crawled toward the creature before it. Squirm. Squirm. The creature did not realize something was approaching. Unaware, it continued calling up at the rain.

The creature, too, emitted a sweet scent.

It opened its mouth. In an instant, the beautifully chirping creature was swallowed up by its maw. Croak! It had no teeth, so the creature's body was not torn apart. It just dissolved. Falling into its stomach, pooling in its belly, slowly melting away.

The rain fell.

By the time the creature pooled in its stomach had completely dissolved into mush, it realized that it had grown hindlegs. Forelegs too. What its legs could tread upon was the earth, and what they could not tread upon was the sky. Rain connected the sky and earth. The world became a little clearer.

Ah.

The feeling of raindrops falling on its green, slippery skin and shattering into pieces. The sensation. The anticipation of life.

-Croak.

It opened its mouth and let out a moan of joy.

-Croak.

The rain continued.

It wanted to live a little longer.

The first was a strike.

Whoosh!

My eyes couldn't even follow the attack properly, despite having consumed a time-stretching elixir. I had stretched one second into an eternity, but the Demon King's strike was faster than my elongated second.

[You have died.]

[You will return 24 hours back to the past.]

A day.

I marked the number one (一) on my palm with a black marker. To never forget how many days had passed, even far in the future, like a prisoner marking the days of lost freedom.

-Zombie.

Yes.

-Its swordsmanship itself isn't extraordinary.

This was a prison. A prison of time.

-It's more about brutally overpowering with sheer strength. Of course, that's terrifying in its own right. If you're strong enough, you can destroy anything. But...

"If I can tell which direction he's attacking from, I can avoid it."

-Exactly.

What if we normally progressed through the quest?

In the last round, at that fiercely tumultuous battlefield, how many soldiers had died?

For every soldier that died, at least 20 years of life was lost. A human who could have lived 20 more years died in vain.

Ten dead equals 200 years.

A hundred dead equals 2000 years.

I chose not to take any role to save that time.

I just stood in front of the Demon King with a sword in hand.

Then, this body.

[You have died.]

[You will return 24 hours back to the past.]

Had to steel itself for exile in eternity.

-But the problem is whether you're capable of dodging even if you know the direction. You scrawny bastard! You zombie-corpse bastard!

"Ah, shut up. It's noisy."

-Hahaha.

[You have died.]

[You will return 24 hours back to the past.]

Each day returned to the start, and I repeated that day.

I did more than repeat it. I replayed the battle in my head. Reviewed it.

-You're still clumsy with handling aura. That's your problem. If you concentrate your aura on your feet to evade, that's all you need.

"If I focus on my feet, my posture collapses."

-That's why you need to flow aura to your thighs, waist, and shoulders too. Balance it out.

"No, easier said than done..."

[You have died.]

[You will return 24 hours back to the past.]

-If you can't do it, then just die.

"Fuck."

A day.

Another day passed.

-How dare…

I faced the Demon King's enraged voice countless times.

-Follow the proper order, Hero of the Goddess. It's presumptuous to come here without making any choices. Only those who have inherited the empire's mantle...

"Go ahead. One-shot me again today."

-What?

Tired of the back and forth, I didn't bother to answer and drank the elixir first. In the slowly stretching time, I rushed towards the Demon King and swung my sword. Clang! Alas, my strike was easily blocked by the Demon King's sword.

-You...

"A Hero slays the Demon King."

[You have died.]

"The Demon King slays the hero."

[You have died.]

"What more is there to say?"

-…….

"Come, Demon King."

[You have died.]

"I am the sword of the empire."

-So be it!

[You have died.]

-Prove it before me!

[You have died.]

-Show me your proof!

"Alright."

[You have died.]

"I'll show you."

[You will return 24 hours back to the past.]

The world stood still.

And in this frozen world, my sword alone proved the passing of time.

My sword was the only clock hand.

For one second of time to pass in this world, my sword first had to carry on for one more move.

I was just a sword living for a second.

But the world took another breath on my second.

Just as even a flood seeking to rise to the foot of the sky must begin with a single drop of flowing water.

Even if I wanted to live forever, I had to live in seconds.

I kept living my life that way.

"Good job, Kim Gong-Ja!"

One day.

"Unbelievable! We might clear the stage in less than an hour!"

Another day.

"Maybe less than 40 hunters died!"

And then, gradually.

"Maybe even fewer than that died... Ah! It couldn't possibly get any better than this!"

The Black Dragon Witch's words began to change little by little.

11th floor stage.

The quest to teleport with the Black Dragon Witch and smash the boss monster. It became like a rite of passage that I had to go through every day to repeat a day. After facing the Demon King day after day, dying and living, the situation on the 11th floor also gradually changed.

Little by little. "Good job, Kim Gong-Ja! My goodness! We might clear the stage in less than fifty minutes! And your suggestion to reinforce the right side by cooperating with that senior shield-bearer named Tomund was brilliant! Maybe fewer than thirty hunters died!" But surely.

"In less than forty minutes! Maybe fewer than twenty hunters died!" A little faster. A little more efficiently. A little more lethally.

With every repeated day, the Witch's face grew a little more excited and her voice a little brighter. Compared with the Witch from a year ago, who had said only about fifty people must have died, yesterday's Witch, smiling as she said only about twenty had died, looked a little happier.

"Ah..."

A day died.

"Impossible... Great job, Kim Gong-Ja! Just by healing that knight Jeshua and dealing with the golems as you said... Ah, maybe less than 10 hunters died… It's possible. It was possible. In such a battlefield... Yes, it was possible..."

A day lived.

-You.

One day, the Demon King asked.

-Why?

"What?"

-Why are you smiling?

I smiled.

"Because I'm happy."

My heart pounded. "I smile because I'm happy."

The Demon King raised his sword.

-Even those about to die can feel happiness?

"You wouldn't understand. No one will."

-Presumptuous, Hero of the Goddess.

"My wish is merely modest."

I swung my sword.

-Pathetic.

The sword struck me.

[You have died.]

[You will return 24 hours back to the past.]

But I didn't give up.

There was no reason to.

My sword is faster today than it was yesterday.

And it will be faster tomorrow.

I'm alive.

I'm living.

"..."

That day came silently.

The Black Dragon Witch grasped my hand tightly. She probably didn't realize, but my palm was etched with numerous black 'one hundred' markings. To me, those numbers were like invisible wrinkles, marking the days spent imprisoned in this temporal cell.

"Just now..."

The Black Dragon Witch's voice trembled.

"Just now, I checked. Kim Gong-Ja. Not one person..."

Her hand in mine was shaking too.

"Not a single person died."

Her shaking turned into a sob.

"I checked with the Temple of the Omnipotent God. There were fools who stupidly got shot in the arm with arrows, but... but still. There were no deaths."

The Black Dragon Guild.

A guild that had been at the top since the Tower opened.

The Black Dragon Witch, the second-ranked hunter, had attempted the 10th floor dozens of times. Despite failing each time, she managed to bring all the participating hunters back alive.

That's who she was.

"Thank you..."

She leaned her head against mine.

"Really, thank you..."

The Black Dragon Witch was crying and also smiling.

I wanted to live a little longer.

Yes.

Time flowed.

It flowed in my heart.

-How dare!

As long as my heart beats, I will swing my sword.

-How dare you face me alone! Without the empire's help!

"Sure."

The vast plain.

In the middle of a stopped world, a halted time.

With an unstoppable heart and an unyielding sword, I targeted my enemy.

"Heroes are supposed to fight alone."

-Foolish!

The Demon King roared in fury.

It had no name. It had no form. It would be better called a shadow. The shadow raised a greatsword as red as blood high overhead. Disturbing the air as it came, the sword strike flew toward me. I dodged. -You... I dodged the next strike too. And the one after that. -My shadow is your malice! That was when the change occurred. The Demon King swung the red greatsword. The fourth strike, which had blocked my new second for nearly a year, was stopped with a crash like a shattering mirror. The onrushing blade recoiled after being pierced by shards of light. "Sorry, Kim Gong-Ja." Someone landed lightly beside me. Long black hair fluttered softly in the air. "I tried to stay put in the audience hall like you asked, but I got restless almost immediately." The master of the Black Dragon smiled. "A little longer and I thought I'd die of boredom. So I followed to see what you were doing after making that request of us... Hmm. You're playing a fun game all by yourself?" "I'm playing hero." "Is it fun?" I laughed too. "It feels fucking amazing." "I can see why. That beast does look worth hunting." Five mirrors rose into the air. "I can't let you have all the fun. I'm joining in." "Wow. I practically had it caught already. Is it fair to steal it now?" "Didn't you know? Stealing someone else's prey is the most delicious thing in the world." "Can't argue with that." Laughter drifted across the desolate field. The Demon King growled. A being that cannot laugh when others laugh must be what becomes a Demon King.

"Sorry, pal."

I swung my sword.

"I meant to face you alone, but you know, I think it's tradition for a hero to gang up on the Demon King. It's an accepted practice, right?"

-You dare try to cloud the sky with your petty tricks!

The sludge covering the Demon King's body boiled.

-No more swordplay!

The murky liquid spilled onto the ground.

The endless flow from the Demon King's body turned the plains dark, like a vast shadow cast upon the earth.

-Ghouls, answer my call.

Bubbles. Bubbling.

The shadow bubbled up and burst.

-Keek!

-Kehk, kiiii!

Each bubble was a monster. The black liquid took form.

Some bubbles became goblins. Others, orcs.

An orc shook off the liquid, and then, the plain was surrounded by thousands of monsters.

-Roar!

The beasts howled savagely.

"This is..."

The Black Dragon Witch surveyed the surroundings, her brows furrowed.

"We can't handle this alone. Sword Saint! What are you doing standing there? Help us, don't just stand there."

"I was watching for a bit. The young lad and the sludge just started fighting not even 30 seconds ago. Who would've guessed the sludge would summon monsters?"

The Sword Saint, who must have been watching me for thirty seconds, drew his sword and spoke.

"Indeed. I was planning to endure for a minute before asking for help."

Having endured his gaze for more than thirty weeks, I answered with a smile.

"Men..."

"That's enough. Kim Gong-Ja, take my hand. We'll get out of here. Sword Saint! Come here too. Don't you see the numbers we're up against?"

The Black Dragon Witch, irritated, reached out her hand.

"No, it's fine."

But I didn't take her hand.

The Black Dragon Witch frowned in confusion.

Instead of answering her question.

I softly chanted.

"Ghoul Summoning."

The Demon King momentarily panicked.

-You… what did you just...?

Before the Demon King could react, another voice reached me first.

[Activating skill.]

A voice proving my qualifications.

Soon, the plains turned upside down.

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