Chapter 97 - Rebellion – 6>

Rebellion – 6>

[You gained 298 experience.]

[You received 127 gold.]

[You have obtained the Spirit of Red Blood.]

As the last of the Red Blood clan was slain, the temple began to collapse around them. As soon as I ate the body, I had to leave, disappointed I didn’t have time to appreciate the meal. Making my way out of the temple, I noticed that the terrain that was a tall mountain when I entered, began to melt. If I didn’t leave soon, I would be swallowed up.

I raised the mana of Jinma, desperately examining my changing environment. I could feel the world’s mana moving with one purpose- to erase this space and reduce everything within it to mana. I was vaguely moving about this place, eventually finding myself in a plain where there was nothing to be seen. There were many monsters, but they were unable to sense me as I hid my existence with Reaper. When I finally reached a point where I could catch my breath, I was nervous about everything that happened so far.

“A great one…” Was that statue in Daishinjeon in honor of me? No, I couldn’t rule out that possibility. However, if that great one they were talking about was really me, it would be the me who A and L knew. I felt like my present self was quite shabby compared to my past self.

‘Let’s take a break from being held by the past and take care of this.’ I think I knew now why Rain didn’t talk about those things in detail. He must’ve been worried I would be consumed by the shadow of my previously great self. But the past had no meaning; the important thing was to become stronger now.

I thought of my battle with that spider, against the power of a true higher-level entity. No matter how strong I became, that would serve as a reminder to remain vigilant. And I was becoming stronger. I was finally moving forward again, and I had to hurry. The people who hated me and were hostile kept piling up like a mountain. I had no time to stand still.

I raised my head, remembering the first thing I should do now—the Fortune Egg; I hadn’t checked on it yet. I took it out of my inventory, noticing it was shining even brighter than before. Looking through my inventory, I noticed it apparently absorbed the Red Blood items I acquired from the temple.

“Huh..” The light it emitted had really intensified. ‘Was I right? Will you react to this?’ I pulled out the crystal the statue turned into, letting it go as it floated in the air towards the Fortune Egg. It was quickly absorbed into the egg, which turned red and began to emit even more light.

[Kiii!]

There it was. If you ignored this light, you wouldn’t be a monster. I sighed and raised my hand, drawing a straight line in the air. Following the trajectory I drew, a black rose shaped like a whip stretched out and took care of the monsters flocking to the light, like moths to a flame. I used black mine as well, imbuing it with the power of Predation. It ripped through the enemy’s flesh, absorbing their mana to become even stronger.

‘Now, I feel like I’m using Predation properly.’ These skills were a part of my abilities, and it was much more efficient to use them together. That went for Reaper as well. It would be possible to make an even stealthier and more lethal attack if I applied Reaper into my skills.

[You received 18 gold.]

[You received 24 gold.]

[You obtained the Dark Shard.]

As I pursued the enemies around me, I could feel the light behind me begin to gradually fade. I stretched out my mana in all directions, setting up a shield, and then turned around. There was a big crack on the fortune egg, and no more light came out of it. The egg split open with a thunderous sound in mid-air, a small red spider crawling out. It looked a little different than the giant spiders inside of Daishinjeon.

“Myu.” It was a bit disconcerting that it was not a voice a spider could make, but it was a cute little guy regardless. It had only two eyes, with black drops in several places on its red body like a flame pattern. Its front legs were sharp like spear blades, much like the Red Blood clan. It had absorbed the Red Blood clan’s essence, but I felt more of my influence was showing.

“Myu.”

“Did it inherit every path I’ve walked so far?” I couldn’t help but wonder if traces of the path I walked since obtaining it were present in him. It may look like a ridiculous little spider, but I was proud that I finally hatched it. For sure, I could also feel it: this little spider resonated with me before it was even born. It had a deeper connection to me than just as a subordinate.

“May.” The spider’s fragmentary feelings were flowing into my head. Feelings of joy and innocence. It was so unsuited to me that a bitter smile came to my lips, but I didn’t think it was terrible. For me, who had only been killing since my reincarnation as a monster, helping this new life into the world was comforting to my heart.

“How about I name you… Solas?”

“Myu!” It was a cry with a positive meaning. It crawled up into the air and settled on my shoulder, but I could only blink at it. What the spider had just done… the energy was emanating from Solas. It was Jinma’s mana. This spider’s tiny little body was overflowing with that energy. He was born as a superior individual, right from the get-go. I felt momentarily jealous of this guy who was born so lucky, but I reminded myself it was the result of my efforts. Thinking so, I returned to the castle with Solas on my shoulder.

“You’re back, Fate.”

“You were expecting me?”

“I am no prophet. The inhabitants of the underworld are no fools, of course, and have the capacity to prepare for the future. Anyway, I’m glad you received some good results.”

“Myu.” Solas sat there, observing Rain. It was spinning out a small web with its forelimbs.

“I think I’ll head back outside. I’ve been wandering for longer than I thought.”

“I have one matter to discuss before you do.”

“What is it?” Rain’s face became serious.

“The boundary between the underground and Earth is becoming blurred. No doubt, you already sense it, but please be careful.” I thought an elf or the Elakatra might be behind it. I nodded at him and left.

“Captain, good timing. Would you like to see it?” Lee Chan-yu stood atop the fortress wall, much too large for just two people. An army of monsters was lined up before him. I expanded my senses and explored the surroundings, but nothing was in the vicinity.

“Monsters? When did they attack?”

“What?’ Le Chan-yu titled his head in confusion.

“They didn’t attack; I found them. They don’t just pop up as they do in a dungeon; the world would be in ruins! I’m just doing some group training.”

“Ah, group training.” Indeed, the monsters moving in unison under Lee Chan-yu’s command were definitely training. Given my new experience with the Dominance skill, I knew the importance of practicing leading the monsters. I wondered how exhausting it must be. His abilities weren’t just innate but instead created as the result of hard work. Just watching him filled my heart with pride, so I stood for a while, observing. In the meantime, I sensed a familiar spirit in my senses. Lee Chan-yu didn’t notice it, but one of his hellhounds became alert.

“Is there something here?”

“Don’t worry; it’s just baldie.”

“Alright.” They possessed the ability to exceed level 100 and reached us shortly after I sensed it. I didn’t like how they said they were glad to see me.

“Are you already done attacking the dungeon?”

“Dungeon? Oh, yeah.” I recalled that Lee Chan-yu had been hanging around here, so I agreed.

“It’s good that you’re back. We need your help.”

“With what?”

“A large ogre has appeared and is rampaging in the middle of the city. It’s an emergency issued to all guilds near Jongno-gu and Seongbuk-gu.” My eyes opened wide, and I stared at Lee Chan-yu.

“What was it you said earlier?’

“Damn it, Captain…” Lee Chan-yu urgently summoned his monsters. I stepped back and looked at the bald man again, snorting. I thought of the boundary that Rain spoke of.

“Will you help?”

“Yeah.” I jumped off from the wall and landed beside him. Solas was cutely holding on to my shoulder.

“Because it’s interesting.”