Chapter 369

Chapter 369

Holding hostages inside the spaceship, Helam conveyed his intentions through a loudspeaker.

-“I want to have a one-on-one conversation with Kim Chul-Soo, who stole the freedom of Hell. After our conversation, I will surrender peacefully.”

Special Task Force commander Vilsmark was displeased at this proposal. The Special Task Force and the Sword Emperor Unit had finally located Helam, and Chul-Soo was just a bit slower than them.

‘The public will likely think that Chul-Soo and Lessefim are more capable than us,’ Vilsmark thought.

Being the Special Task Force Commander, he had to portray himself as the best in the world. Therefore, this realization weighed heavily on him. With Helam wanting a private conversation with Chul-Soo, the focus had shifted to the Streamer, which irritated Vilsmark.

Helam’s voice echoed again.

-“If you guarantee me a conversation with Chul-Soo, the hostages will remain safe. I promise you.”

Vilsmark turned to Cha Jin-Hyeok. “Sir Chul-Soo, do you intend to accept this absurd proposal?”

Hoping Jin-Hyeok would refuse, he added, “You must know, Helam is cunning and treacherous. He could’ve placed traps.”

“Do you have any guesses about what those traps might be?” Jin-Hyeok inquired.

Vilsmark rejoiced internally. ‘Yes! Chul-Soo does care about his safety! I was right. Everyone cares about their safety.’

“We have not identified any specific traps yet,” Vilsmark said.

“I see...”

“Don’t be too disappointed. It may take some time, but the Special Task Force will uncover his schemes.”

-I think Vilsmark is misunderstanding Chul-Soo.

-Chul-Soo just wants to know what traps they are to create a dramatic scene for his livestream.

-LOL, Chul-Soo doesn’t even care.

-Yeah. Though even if he doesn’t know what kind of traps they are, he can easily create a dramatic scene.

Jin-Hyeok shook his head. “We don’t have the luxury of waiting.”

“What?” Vilsmark said.

Jin-Hyeok nearly blurted out that if he knew what the traps were, he could create great content for his Eltube channel. However, he managed to calm down. If he made light of the situation when many hostages were at risk, people could deem it inhumane.

“The people in there are someone’s parents, children, siblings, and friends... They are in grave danger,” Jin-Hyeok solemnly said. Even he was unsure if his words were part of an act or genuine. “And this man is requesting to speak with me. How can I not comply with his request!”

“...”

“Even if it’s a trap, I can’t just stand here.”

“If you go in there, you might put the hostages in even more danger.”

Observing the situation from Jin-Hyeok’s livestream, Helam shouted again.

-“I will give you one minute. If you don’t get me Chul-Soo, all hostages will die.”

He also used a Skill to display a red countdown in the air.

[1:00]

[0:59]

[0:58]

‘He’s happy thinking that he has completely deceived me.’ From Jin-Hyeok’s perspective, it was absurd. It was far too easy for him to deceive a mere mid-Level 300 Ruler even in a place that the Guardian Tree’s power couldn’t reach.

‘Ah!’ Jin-Hyeok suddenly realized something. ‘Helam has probably never encountered a Level 400 Eltuber before.’

People viewed the world based on their understanding. Helam wholeheartedly believed that if he did his best, he could deceive everyone. It was like how children thought they could hide themselves by covering their faces.

‘It looks like he’ll probably go for a final handshake.’ Jin-Hyeok somewhat knew what Helam was about to do. ‘Have I been influenced by Han Sae-Rin?’

Jin-Hyeok could clearly see the opponent’s moves—what he would talk about and what his next steps would be.

‘He plans to trigger the bombs he has planted everywhere and commit suicide with me.’ This puzzled Jin-Hyeok. ‘He’s so confident the explosion will kill me. How powerful does he think the explosion will be?’

Traps set by a Level 300 Ruler were more flawed than expected. It was uncertain how powerful the bombs were, but they were unlikely to kill Jin-Hyeok.

‘I would like to see it for myself.’

If Jin-Hyeok were alone, he would have just let Helam detonate the bombs, but too many vulnerable passengers were around them at the moment.

“I would like to shake your hand as a sign of my apology,” Helam said.

‘Why’s he being so obvious? Is he for real? Or does he have another trick up his sleeve, and I’m the one being deceived right now?’ Jin-Hyeok clicked his tongue but showed no outward reaction. He extended his hand as well.

‘Now!’ Helam thought. The moment they shook hands, he pressed the detonator in his left hand. “For the freedom of Hell!”

Helam shouted solemnly, but nothing happened.

***

Special Task Force members who had been covertly working outside the spaceship created an entry point and went inside the spaceship. They used grappling hooks to capture Helam. A circular restraining magical device was placed around Helam’s neck, and handcuffs made of the special alloy were secured on his wrists.

“We have apprehended Helam.”

Helam could not believe this turn of events. ‘Why? Why didn’t the bombs work? I definitely pressed the detonator...’

Then, Helam looked at the fallen detonator.

‘Huh?’

He spotted a mocking symbol underneath the detonator. It was the mark of Angel Girl Song Ha-Young.

Jin-Hyeok, who had knocked Helam down, continued his livestream. “Helam was preparing an explosion. Fortunately, I was able to detect it in advance. While pretending to focus on the conversation with Helam, I deployed Angel Girl.”

Helam thought he had been leading the conversation and had completely distracted Jin-Hyeok, but it was the other way around. It was Helam who was completely out of his depth. While pretending to focus on the conversation with Helam, Jin-Hyeok had distracted Helam and had Ha-Young steal the detonator.

“Helam isn’t good at multitasking,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Vilsmark frowned as he evacuated the passengers and managed the situation. ‘No, Chul-Soo, you’re mistaken. Helam is quite capable of multitasking.’

Vilsmark, also a Ruler like Helam, knew very well that what Helam had accomplished was a highly complex task. Helam had hidden his true thoughts behind artifacts and his mental barriers while engaging in a deep conversation with Jin-Hyeok and even checking his livestream through a hologram.

‘Even though Rulers can check livestreams through holograms, they mostly use smartphones,’ Vilsmark thought.

Using holograms was a mentally exhausting activity. Only someone truly focused and confident in their abilities would attempt multitasking of this level.

‘It’s not that Helam can’t do it; it’s just that your abilities are exceptionally overpowered, Chul-Soo.’

Vilsmark was very confident in his analysis. However, Chul-Soo had a different opinion.

“Yes, well, I think Helam was too nervous. He couldn’t multitask, and his focus was weak. He seemed pretty easy to defeat.” Chul-Soo didn’t realize even one bit how exceptional his Play had been. “Thank you for your donation! Thank you for watching my livestream!”

Vilsmark wanted to research the Streamer.