SSS-Class Revival Hunter - Chapter 392

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

◈ SSS-Class Revival Hunter ◈

Chapter 392: The Time He Waited, The Time He Walked (5)

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[Mwahahaha! So you are the gangsi that the demon heads of Great Yin Cave gathered together to create? You were born sinister! I shall behead you and become the protagonist of the fifth slash!]

He cut them down.

[Amitabha Sword. New life is always forged through the clash of blades by those who love each other. That has been the unwavering rule ever since the fourth great strike embroidered this world. A product of sorcery that shatters the harmony of this world due to its very existence! I shall grant you peace with my blade.]

He cut them down.

[The Divine Sword Martial Emperor, who rules the greatest Sword Continent, has sent this lord! Silently bare your neck, wicked King of Gangsi!]

He cut them down.

There was much to cut down. Simply by walking and breathing, he piled up a mountain of the corpses of those he had cut down. It seemed as though everything in this world existed solely to be cut by him.

That couldn’t be.

[Oh, Primal Blade!]

It shouldn’t be.

[Once again, the Primal Blade has saved us!]

There must be something else.

[Primal Blade! Primal Blade! Primal Blade!]

[Our Beginning! Our End! Our Savior!]

There must be.

[The son of us all!]

He set out in search of that something.

He left the cave. [You,] He wandered the world. [the one said to have been forged by the evil spirits of Great Yin Cave,] He took a ferry to the far edge of the eastern sea and saw the sun rise for the first time. [a sword swung toward the world.] He crossed several western continents and set foot in a tower city no one from his homeland had ever visited. [Everything in this world] He brought down a dragon drinking light in the Divine Sword Mountains, [has been waiting. This way...] and met hermits sitting cross-legged beneath a sky where auroras forever raged.

[Tsk, tsk. Such a foolish fellow.]

The leader of the hermits spoke.

[Why so troubled?]

He looked at the leader of the hermits.

Most were smaller compared to his size, but the leader of the hermits was particularly diminutive. The glowing face had only the outline without eyes, nose, or mouth. The leader belonged to a race called True Humans or Divine Humans; he had already crossed swords with such beings several times.

A terribly strong race.

Yet, they were always a step weaker than him.

He felt sadness at this second truth. The True Humans, in particular, were a race that saddened him greatly.

He said,

[I am lonely.]

[Ho-ho.]

The True Human laughed bitterly and then spoke,

[What is there to be lonely about? All those who gathered in the Great Yin Valley to forge you are your parents. And since everyone gathered in the Great Yin Valley was forged by this world, in the end, you are the son of the entire world! Compared to orphans who are left stealthily at the doors of wealthy homes by their fathers or cling to the cold breast of their dead mothers unknowingly, how blessed are you?]

He was aware of that. Though there were many who faced him with blades, there were also many who opened their arms to him. He knew where to go when he needed a cozy embrace instead of harsh winds.

Yet, he desired.

[I want a sibling of my own.]

Silence followed for a moment.

[That’s a sorrowful thing to say.]

The True Human broke a reed and brought it to their face. A lip-shaped slit formed on the smooth face, holding the reed like a smoking pipe.

[Indeed.]

The True Human chewed on the reed for a while before sighing as if in lament,

[Yes. A sword only gains meaning when each side has one.]

A sword held by one side only is merely a weapon, the True Human muttered.

While the tip of the reed bobbed up and down, he waited in silence.

Eventually, the True Human spoke,

[The art that forged you is both potent and profound. The heavens, earth, life, and principles of this world can all be said to have been concentrated within you. Because it was accomplished artificially, humanity's obsessive delusion was added as well. You will live longer than anyone with whom you might be compared, yet even throughout that long life, you alone will ever be a being like yourself.]

[.......]

[But there’s no need to take such a grim conjecture as a prophecy.]

The True Human spat out the reed and walked towards him.

Thud, thud.

He hesitated. The stature of the True Human, who was surely smaller than him, grew with each step they took. Thud, thud. With each step, the sound of footsteps grew louder and heavier. Boom, boom. He felt it as a vibration before the sound, and the oppressive weight of the shadow, like a wet blanket, enveloped him.

[Lower your head.]

Soon, looking down at him, the True Human raised their fist.

[Let's see how many hits you can take.]

It was the day he entered his master's school.

Blood splattered.

<Kuhuk!>

The man let out a desperate scream.

With eyes shimmering wetly with blood, he glared ahead and shouted as if vomiting blood,

The Black Dragon Master, with her dark hair, laughed heartily as she unfolded her fan.

<Oh~hohohoho! My meticulous plan has come to a perfect fruition! Kim Gong-Ja! I thank you for your efforts to offer yourself to me!>

<Kuuk… Have you betrayed me…?>

As the Black Dragon Master snapped her fan shut with a thwack, a crowd of people surged forward in a rush.

<Kuek! Paladin, you…!?>

<Here’s a sword stab for you!>

<T-The Heretic Inquisitor…!>

<Hey, hey. Don't forget my sword too, will you?>

<Viper, aaaaah…!>

After being hit one by one, Kim Gong-Ja vomited blood, collapsing on the spot.

The Black Dragon Master laughed loudly again, hiding her mouth with the fan.

<Ho! Ho! Ho! When everyone’s will aligns like this, it's not betrayal but a grand consensus!>

Kim Gong-Ja couldn’t respond to that ruthless statement. The laughter of those who were once his companions, who, in truth, had never been allies for even a moment, echoed endlessly as they mocked Kim Gong-Ja’s end.

That’s when it happened.

<Hah… W-Where is this…!?>

With a face filled with bitter resentment, Kim Gong-Ja, who had closed his eyes, suddenly sprang up.

Before him stood a brightly flashing cross-shaped figure, leaning on a staff.

<T-Tower Master…!? Why…!?>

As the Tower Master spoke, light began to radiate from Kim Gong-Ja's body.

Trembling, Kim Gong-Ja looked at his hands.

<Oh… Ooooh… This, this power…!?>

<It’s your potential.>

<And there’s more. Open your status window. 〉

Kim Gong-Ja did as instructed and saw his skill slots filled to the brim with 99 SSS-class skills.

The Tower Master shone brilliantly.

<Understood.>

Kim Gong-Ja answered while staring at the Tower Master with hollow eyes.

As he began to dissolve into a rift in space-time, Kim Gong-Ja muttered coldly,

Kim Gong-Ja declared resolutely,

Kim Gong-Ja.

It was the moment Kim Gong-Ja, the man who would later be recorded as a slayer even of gods, regressed through time...

“Excellent!”

With a slap, the manuscript fell onto the table.

The Earth Spirit cartoonist scratched their balding head.

“Is that so?”

The Elf editor nodded.

“Yes, yes. It is really good. Especially the direction around this part: [This power that seems capable of annihilating even the Tower]. Incredible. Completely incredible. Wow. I already knew you were a good artist, of course... but this truly moves me.”

“Well, I've been around for quite some time…”

“Right. It’s about time you had your own hit series, don’t you think? Can't keep being an assistant forever. Time to settle down! Build a concrete home. Literally, and figuratively.”

The editor’s words made the cartoonist momentarily twitch their thick lips, but they soon laughed emptily and nodded.

“That would be the dream…”

“Oh, it will happen. This is what is popular these days. It is the trend. You know Kim Seul-Lam, right? That, what was it, Sanwa artist who debuted the year before last! Their first work was adapted into a blood-flame drama and became a tremendous hit. I heard they used the money to put up an entire building, not in Babylon, but over there in Paradise. On the 20th floor.”

“Really…?”

“Of course, it's true. Why would I lie?”

The elf editor sounded so confident that the cartoonist's heart began to pound. A whole building! They did not even hope for anything like that. Talk of Floor 20 and Babylon felt too distant to be real. But perhaps they might be able to buy a home.

‘Maybe I could live without worrying about rent anymore...’

The cartoonist looked down at the manuscript they had drawn with a dissatisfied expression. It was far too ridiculous to have come from an artist with fifteen years of experience, but if it could fulfill their long-held dream of financial stability, perhaps this too was something they had to endure... It was just as they thought that when the editor spoke again.

“By the way, artist.”

“Yes?”

“There are a few things that bother me, though.”

The cartoonist hesitantly looked down at the manuscript. A damp sense of foreboding soaked the bottom of their heart. Nothing good ever came of hearing words like these...

“Which part...?”

“Where do you think?”

Damn, why ask me? It's not like this is a classroom quiz. Just tell me what’s bothering you... The cartoonist didn’t voice their thoughts out loud. Instead, as they always did in such situations, they watched the editor giving them a meaningful look and tentatively spoke,

“Hmm... Is making God Gong-Ja the protagonist perhaps a little too... direct?”

“Nah. The godly figures are public domain, public domain. Didn’t you see the stone tablet at Babylon? It’s clearly written that you’re free to use them as you please.”

“Then… um… maybe having 99 SSS-rank skills is too much…”

“Sigh. That’s not it either. You really lack sense, author. Here, this part.”

Confused, the cartoonist looked where the Elf editor was pointing.

It was the scene introducing the Tower Master.

With a sigh full of exasperation, the editor said,

“Why would the Tower Master… What is this? What's this supposed to be?”

“Well, a hypercube… it’s a 4-dimensional shape…”

“4-dimensional? Your brain works in 4 dimensions or what? Why did you do it like this?”

Mumbling, the cartoonist hung their head. The Elf editor, leaning in with their large ears, pressed, “Yes?” “What was that?” until finally getting an answer.

“Well… it seemed fitting for a god to have an unfathomable, incomprehensible aura…”

“Sigh~”

The Elf editor let out a long, world-weary sigh.

“That won’t do. Change it to a beautiful girl. Make her a beautiful girl wearing frilly clothes... oh, but wouldn’t a beautiful girl Tower Master overlap with the [Thousand-Year Viper] by the author next door? Then… how about a beautiful boy?”

“A, a beautiful boy?”

“Yeah, yeah. A beautiful boy, super pretty! Make one that we can even sell as a figure!”

As the Elf editor’s excitement grew, the cartoonist’s expression darkened further. Undeterred, the editor continued, tapping the manuscript with the sugar stick.

“And don’t just send him off like that... add something more. Since it’s going to be a beautiful boy, why not add some romance? Like, the beautiful boy Tower Master giving a kiss on Kim Gong-Ja’s forehead. Then light bursts forth! How’s that? The readers will drool over it, don’t you think?”

"......."

“Ah, even if I am an editor, I should not be giving away ideas like this for free. I ought to charge you for them. I take such losses, honestly. I am a disgrace to elves.”

"But...."

The cartoonist murmured with their head bowed.

“I’ll... think about it.”

The editor frowned.

“Think? What’s there to think about?”

Without further reply, the cartoonist stood up.

True to their Earth Spirit nature, now known as Asura, the cartoonist’s shadow grew large and enveloping, overshadowing the Elf editor. But the editor remained unflustered.

“You're not planning to draw your own comic, are you?”

Again, the cartoonist didn’t respond but simply drooped their shoulders and turned away.

“That won’t work! It won’t sell!”

The editor continued to shout after the cartoonist’s retreating back.

“After 15 years of hard work, you should know better, author!!”

It sounded more like a plea than a rebuke.

“Ah! It won’t make money!!”

Holding the manuscript tightly, the cartoonist stepped out of the cafe. The editor’s voice did not follow them outside.

Taking a deep breath, the cartoonist clenched their teeth, glanced at their own comic manuscript, then tensed as if to throw it away, but ended up hugging it close and began to walk.

[Key manifestation complete.]

The Tower’s declaration echoed.

[The courses traced by the life you have lived have now become commonplace myths in this world.]

[The 95th floor stage has been cleared!]

Of course, the cartoonist didn’t hear the declaration. They simply walked towards their studio in silence.

But someone who heard the Tower’s declaration quietly followed them.

[You are entering the 96th floor.]

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