CH 513

Everywhere was smeared with the blood of elves. It was a place that had been considered the holiest of all, but all that was left was destruction.

Doom Kaos was the only being capable of causing such damage to the ancient shrine. I could vividly imagine him being obsessed with finding the Old One here. He had passed by, so there was no chance for survivors or their souls to be left.

I could sigh in relief. I was right. If I had followed Gold’s memory and chosen this place as my first destination, I would have directly confronted Doom Kaos. Even if we had an unspoken agreement, we were not supposed to encounter him until the moment of the final battle. That was why my first destination after parting with Yeon-Hee was the continents of the orcs. Only after gathering the remaining powers there did I arrive here.

[You have slain the Adult Graf.]

…

[You have slain the Adult Graf.]

[You have slain one of the primal species of the Graf.]

As I lifted my foot and took a step, energies drawn up from the underground seeped in. That was when the leader of the bastards returned.

[Bastard: Yes. It was a hell of a mess. I saw it with my, Lu-seah’s own eyes.]

Until then, I was looking for traces of the World Tree.

[Bastard: Everything, including the Baclans, Grafs, and Barba, all crawled out of the Land of Death. On top of that, Doom… Undead brought dead from other dimensions, and they are running rampant. Elsland is being slaughtered like this.]

[Bastard: There is only one Sacred Tower left, and now that Mana cannot be supplied, the elves are truly powerless to resist.]

The bastard said while shaking.

[Bastard: Lu-seah’s family is ready for anything for Odin’s victory. Please do not forget that…]

If Yeon-Hee had not held their memory storage, then they would have turned their backs on me long ago. The reason why the bastard was trembling was not because it was facing me, but because their own fate and that of their clan was hanging by a thread.

[System Administrator Odin: What about him?]

[Bastard: He is rummaging through the capital of Elsland. Are…are you…really confident? Lu-seah’s faith is stronger than anyone else’s, but you know how weak the faith of the lower beings is.]

[Bastard: Everyone is shaking in fear. I regret saying this, but you need to show assurance to the lower beings. They are all grumbling and making a fuss…]

[System Administrator Odin: Mary and I will step back from the front line after the victory. Then, who will take Mary’s place? Also, there is no one among us who can receive your reverence other than Mary.]

[Bastard: Huh???? She is going to resign???]

An uncontainable excitement burst out from the bastard in an instant. Its wings had always been silent, buried in fear. However, it started twisting its body abruptly from that point.

[Bastard: Come to think of it… The lower ones are too stupid to be a problem. I, Lu-seah, will manage them well to assist you on your journey. Salute!]

Considering that it did not have any choice, such a reaction could have been the best for the bastard.

[System Administrator Odin: So keep this in mind. If Doom Kaos and his minions find the Old One before us, everything will turn to nothing.

[Bastard: Hehehehe. Of course! Once again, Lu-seah and all the loyal members of my clan are ready to make any sacrifice for you.]

After sending the bastards back, I hurried on. A lot of power was evaporating at this very moment. Mana had disappeared from this ancient shrine, but the power contained within the elves remained.

Even if each and every one of them was just dust to me, their total amount could not be ignored. I needed to secure them to ensure I did not lose hope in the worst-case scenario. I had to retreat to the mainland for unconditional defense. Although I could not guarantee how long I could hold out, I estimated it would last at least a century.

Then, as the Old One did to us, I too would find other-dimensional beings to attack him on our behalf. Even if it was just postponing the predetermined end.

Anyway, there were more reasons to find the World Tree than that. I believed that it had a design that would break down the space between dimensions.

I could only send abilities and items unilaterally to system users, but if I secured the presumed design, then I would be able to allow them to respond to me. The Awakened would continue to send power, even at the Final Stage.

The World Tree was a purification device made with the mutual destruction of me and Doom Kaos in mind. It likely outperformed the purification devices I had created in the ground, and the power of the Old One who called us from other dimensions was likely to be embedded in it.

Soon, traces of the World Tree emerged from a pile of buildings. As it was painstakingly crafted by the Old One’s power, its roots remained intact even after taking a direct hit from Doom Kaos’s force.

The materials constituting the ancient shrine and pitch-black stairs were just like this. However, it was useless in this destroyed state. It needed to be restored. Doom Kaos must have learned its identity while destroying it, so he would not just sit and watch the restoration process.

I had to divert his attention with the small bastards.

[Act Two, Final Battle, will begin in twenty-four hours.]

Twenty-four hours was just one day. If given that much time, then the Awakened would be able to prepare.

***

Jonathan was alone, unlike the other groups. However, he somehow felt as though he was with Sun and Mary. Just by picturing a young Mary standing as a teacher on the podium and Sun sitting as a student, a smile appeared on his face. He was one of the few people who knew where they had first met.

[Hera: It was a great honor for me to make a deal with the King of Hell, whom I admire.]

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[King of Hell: I have high expectations for you.]

[Hera: I will show my worth, so please watch me.]

[King of Hell: Sure.]

[Hera: I will see you at the end.]

Jonathan stroked the desk. It was indeed a stage created based on Sun’s memories. The desk was filled with doodles by Korean students of the time.

「Do not forget today, the day of the national humiliation in 1997. IMF」

The scribbles in Korean were not Sun’s handwriting. However, being able to experience the anecdote that Sun once told while introducing Mary evoked a lot of emotions.

Back when Korea was a vassal state of the IMF, Mary had bitterly illustrated the humiliation that the nation had to go through to students who did not even know what the IMF was. This scribble was created like that, by a Korean student who disobeyed Mary’s instruction to write in their textbooks and instead wrote it on their desk.

Looking back, Sun was able to rescue his home country from the IMF. Nonetheless, he only used it as a means to boost his wealth. Even up until the time when he could only admire the cold-heartedness of the genius Asian boy, Jonathan could not even dream that a day like today would come. The reality that the IMF was operating like a personal private organization, and the reality of the macroscopic world, where the fight for only holiness had reached its final stage…

You are going to win again, Sun. As you always have.

Jonathan intended to laugh as much as he could when he could. In that sense, this place where Sun and Mary first met was a perfect fit. This place dredged up old and forgotten memories. The memories began from the financial wars he fought on Sun’s side… Everything started from there.

[Act Two, Final Battle, will begin in twenty-four hours.]

Finally.

The faint smile on Jonathan’s face disappeared then.

[Remaining Time (Until the Final Battle): 23 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds]

[You have received a message from System Administrator Odin.]

[System Administrator Odin: Sorry that I cannot support you more, Jonathan.]

[Jonathan: Nah, I have coins left. You already gave me too much. I saved the rest for the future.]

[System Administrator Odin: Doom Kaos is using a lot of power to prevent me and the Old One from going anywhere outside of Saint Dragorin. However, his remaining power still surpasses mine.]

[Jonathan: You should save even a tiny bit of energy. You understand that, right? You are giving off too much now. I still have coins.]

Jonathan could not estimate the power that Sun could wield, but one certain fact was that Sun, too, would have consumed a lot of power while preparing for the Final Battle. Jonathan was worried about that.

[System Administrator Odin: I am talking about skills that cannot be dealt with in the store.]

[Jonathan: No, I have enough.]

[System Administrator Odin: Then, I will dive into the point. He stole Doom Caso. Although he did not precisely catch on to what we are planning, he knows that I am planning something with you guys. Doom Caso will be the biggest obstacle in this operation.]

[Jonathan: What does he look like?]

[System Administrator Odin: You have seen it before. Do you remember the illustration? You would remember because it is also in your villa’s frame.]

[Jonathan: Ah, that motherfucker.]

[System Administrator Odin: He had reached the Ender section, so we cannot underestimate him. We don’t know what Doom Kaos will give to him. If it gets dangerous, Yeon-Hee will help you out.]

[System Administrator Odin: I hope you don’t hesitate to ask for help.]

Even after that, Seon-Hu’s warning continued. With Sun speaking unusually long, Jonathan felt that the end was not far off. He had no regrets in his life up until now, but if he tripped at the end, his entire life would be ignored.

Jonathan ended with this message.

[Jonathan: Preparation for attack complete.]

It was the declaration he threw before stepping onto the financial battlefield with Sun.

[System Administrator Odin: Preparation for attack complete.]

Indeed, Jonathan felt as if he was with Sun at that moment.