Episode 252
Swoosh—
Hanbit, running through the gloomy forest, headed toward the center.
Although he encountered quite a few players here and there, they were merely a minority.
'They're swarming in.'
Players who had figured out the direction of travel via the broadcast began to flock to the center one after another. There were
those purely trying to hinder Hanbit, and those trying to attack the restricted area first by any means necessary.
There were even quite a few who, like the Black Feast, were looking to reap the rewards through PK.
Ta-ta!
After moving for about five minutes while surveying the situation with his X-ray vision,
Hanbit stopped before a translucent red wall.
It was a barrier created by the Witch of Sorrow.
Swoosh—
Passing through without resistance, he advanced while being met with an even more ominous aura.
The monster possessing the final fragment of emotion was a humanoid undead.
To be precise, it was the Knight Commander of the ancient kingdom that had been destroyed.
As the being was identical in both appearance and ability, it was extremely difficult for an ordinary player to defeat.
Ssss— As
Hanbit advanced a little further inside, a black heat haze came into view.
Standing on the flat ground directly in front was a man clad in full armor.
[Elite: Knight Commander Consumed by Rage (Lv.???)]
-Shudder;
-Look at the vibe.
-Totally skilled;
-That sword is damn huge.
-If you get hit, your head would split open.
The Knight Commander, wielding a massive greatsword, showed no reaction.
However, if an enemy were to appear, that monster would transform into a beast wreaking havoc on the battlefield, wiping out everything in its path.
Honestly, it was too difficult for Hanbit to handle in his current state.
'This is a tricky situation.'
Recalling the Hyungung of the End, Hanbit gave up on the idea early on. It was
a weapon different from an ordinary bow in both principle and usage.
It felt like a waste to use up his attempts, but the situation itself wasn't suitable to begin with. Not only did
it take time to prepare, but there were also many distractions.
*Whoosh*—The
bushes moving here and there were clearly visible.
It was a situation where other players, who had been watching with X-ray vision, had gathered.
Their numbers were in the hundreds.
It was tricky in many ways to handle them all alone.
'About five minutes, perhaps.'
Limited time to obtain the final fragment of emotion.
If time ran out, the assault on this restricted area would simply end in failure.
Swoosh—
Hanbit straightened his sword and walked straight ahead.
A few plans he had sketched out before arriving here.
It was a method to make effective use of the numerous players lurking for an opportunity.
Grrr—
As he stepped out of the bushes, the Knight Commander turned around, letting out a bizarre sound.
And the moment the hand gripping the greatsword twitched.
Bang—!
With an explosion, the creature kicked its leg.
Whoosh—!
Having closed the distance in an instant, the Knight Commander swung his greatsword with incredible agility.
Crash—!
Deflecting the attack, Hanbit quickly lowered his stance.
At the same time, something brushed against his hair.
Whoosh—!
A red rift traced along the trajectory of the greatsword the creature had swung. It
was just like witnessing Charlotte's power.
And rightly so, for she was one of the founders of spatial swordsmanship.
Ta-da—!
Hanbit stepped back to create distance.
However, the Knight Commander followed closely, reacting immediately.
Whoosh—!
Slash—!
The greatsword swung like a madman and the space splitting apart in succession were overwhelming.
A moment of carelessness was enough to lose one's life.
'Shall I go?'
Ta-ta—!
Hanbit spun around and kicked off.
The target was the group of players hiding in the forest.
It was where hundreds of bait were located.
Whoosh—!
Hanbit surged forward, swirling the wind.
And the Knight Commander followed behind with tremendous momentum.
Crash—!
Slash—!
A monster swinging its greatsword like a madman, shattering and splitting the terrain.
To the players tailing it, it was a bolt from the blue.
“W-what is this!”
“This fucking bastard!”
Startled, the people tried to flee from the disaster in a panic.
But it was too late.
Thump—!
Slash—!
Players were indiscriminately sliced apart by the swinging greatsword and the splitting space.
That sudden slaughter continued, sweeping through the forest.
Whoosh—!
Hanbit, who was scanning the enemies' positions with clairvoyance, eliminated the troublemakers simply by running.
It took about a minute for the hundreds of players to dwindle to single digits. It
was thanks to a true full-speed sprint.
"-No… …"
"-What is that?
" "-An extreme charge becomes a strategy.
" "-All the guys who came to steal are dead. Hahaha.
" "-But it must have been damn scary."
Slice—!
The strength and speed of the Knight Commander, who had been following behind while slaughtering them, had noticeably weakened.
The power of rage diminishing as it takes lives.
That was one of the strategies to defeat the Knight Commander.
Ta-da—!
Hanbit, who had been gradually creating distance, turned in the opposite direction.
Meeting the gaze of the charging monster, he immediately used the power of the World Tree.
Quadru-!
Hundreds of World Tree vines sprouted from the ground and the tree without any warning.
It was an enormous quantity, enough to fill the surrounding space.
Crunch—!
Slice—!
Trapped by the obstacles, the Knight Commander diligently cut down the vines.
However, the power of the World Tree, rising up as if multiplying, showed no signs of stopping.
Ta-da—!
Hanbit, scanning the location with his clairvoyance, stepped inside.
The moment he manipulated the vines to create a gap in the path, *
whoosh*!
He thrust his sword and charged at the Knight Commander.
*Thud*!
The blade embedded deep into the gap in the armor of the guy who failed to react properly.
It was an attack he could have blocked had he not quickly expended his power of rage.
*Swoosh*—the
Knight Commander, his neck pierced, slowly shifted his gaze.
Red eyes visible through the hidden helmet.
The light vanished from there in an instant.
[You have obtained a Fragment of Emotion (Rage).]
Fortunately, it was the last Fragment of Emotion obtained within the time limit.
Turning his gaze away, Hanbit leisurely strolled through the spot where the players had died, roughly collecting gold and items.
There was no need to take action for the next step.
A message followed soon after.
[All Fragments of Emotion have been collected.]
[Moving to the location of the Witch of Sorrow.]
*Swoosh*
—His vision blurred along with the message surfacing.
As if sucked into something, he arrived in front of a small house.
“What an uncomfortable guest.”
The middle-aged woman sitting at the table near the entrance looked at Hanbit with a dry expression.
The name tag floating above her head was vivid.
[Boss: Witch of Sorrow (Lv.???)]
An intellect so solid that one would never think of her as a monster.
Rare on the surface, but a common characteristic among the demons of the underground.
-?
-Why is she fine?
-I thought she was crying earlier.
-??
The viewers questioned the witch's unharmed appearance.
However, all the phenomena that had occurred in the outer space were caused by separated emotions.
The witch seen now contained no emotion whatsoever.
“I will approach.”
“Stop.”
As Hanbit attempted to take a step, the witch quietly warned him.
Shifting only her gaze, she continued speaking in a low voice.
“Do you understand the meaning of those emotions returning to me?”
“I do. With this, you will suffer the torment of the curse again.”
“…It seems you have acquired unnecessary knowledge.”
Emotions separated from the witch while she was going mad, reliving the death of her child.
It was akin to the phenomena caused by the domain created when she transformed into a monster.
“If I go insane, you too cannot escape death. This entire space might vanish.”
The witch, devoid of any hostility, presented a pure outcome.
The Witch of Sorrow, now far stronger than when she had destroyed the kingdom.
If they were to drive her insane to fight, the odds of victory would converge infinitely toward zero.
Of course, that was not the objective.
“I have no intention of dying. My goal is to lift the curse.”
“That is utter nonsense. There is only one way to break the curse caused by the artifact. It is meaningless unless it is the power of the exact same artifact.”
“Yes. That is why I brought it.”
Hanbit took the Seal of Apostasy from his inventory.
“……?”
The witch’s gaze fell upon a small red plate.
Very few knew of this object’s existence, but it was certainly within the knowledge of the Witch of Sorrow.
“If the curse is lifted, you will vanish.”
“…I suppose so.”
Lowering her gaze, the witch looked at her hands.
The monster’s body, rendered unable to die even if it wanted to.
The death of my son, which was depicted every day, gnawed at even the heart that had lost all emotion.
However, the thought that she could face the end felt unreal.
“Can I really escape?”
the witch murmured quietly, lost in thought.
After a little more time had passed, she raised her head and spoke.
“What do you want from me? I don’t possess anything extraordinary.”
“Anything is fine. My original purpose was to resolve this space.”
“I suppose that makes sense for an adventurer.”
Nodding, the witch concluded her own conjecture.
Since she had come to clear the restricted area, it was the correct answer. *
Swoosh*— As
she reached out her hand, the Seal of Heresy held by Hanbit rose to the surface.
It flew at high speed and reached the witch.
“You may feel free to use what is in the house. Of course, if necessary.”
She spat out the words and grasped the seal with both hands without hesitation.
*Pow!*
A red light burst forth immediately, as if exploding.
The power of the artifact bloomed like a mirage, enveloping the witch’s body. *
Whoosh!*
At the same time, three fragments emerged from Hanbit’s bosom and headed toward her.
They were fragments of emotions scattered throughout the space.
Whoosh—
an ominous black energy separated from the witch's body.
Along with the dispel from the artifact, her physical form was also disintegrating.
Although she must have felt pain, the witch's reaction was completely different.
"I can finally meet you."
Her low voice was filled with vivid emotion.
And just as a faint smile formed on her face, the Witch of Sorrow vanished completely.
Ding—
[The private zone is unlocked due to fulfillment of conditions.]
Pop!
Along with the message, a blue light descended from the sky.
Turning her gaze, Hanbit looked at the completely transformed scene.
'Is this how it is?'
What she saw was the city in its complete form. It looked as if it
had regressed slightly further into the past than what she had seen in the first private zone.
It seemed to be structured so that time gradually rewinds as one passes through the zones. Since
it was said to be a space containing the Goddess's regret and remorse, perhaps she wishes to reclaim her former appearance.
Ding-
[Special rewards granted for the first liberation of the private zone.]
[Players who liberated the second private zone are granted access.]
[You have obtained the Witch's Research Journal (Rank 9 – Unique).]
[You have obtained the Echoes of Memory (Rank 9 – Epic).] These
were items that had vanished along with the disappearance of the Witch's House.
The appearance of a Rank 9 item for the first time was not surprising.
Even Hanbit found it difficult to properly assess the value of these items.
-Huh?
-??
-Rank 9 items are appearing?
-And two of them, wow;
-How much is that in cash?
-Unassessable.
The viewers seemed equally shocked, and the chat window began to burn.
Hanbit averted his gaze and slowly looked around.
'Looks like everyone was kicked out.'
The players were nowhere to be seen.
Unlike the first private zone, this was an open-field structure, and several changes had occurred due to the update.
It seemed necessary to check the entry permissions.
'Shall I take a look around?'
Hanbit was about to walk into the city.
That was when it happened.
Zzzt—
a noise felt along with a strange sensation.
At the same time, a voice completely different from the alarm echoed in my head.
[Part of the shackles fastened to the Goddess of Silence is being removed.]
