Chapter 52 - Episode 8. The Last Romance (8)
Chapter 52: Episode 8. The Last Romance (8)
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The outcome of what had seemed like it would be a long match was decided in an instant. The spectators could not hide their shock at the result no one had expected.
[You have been defeated!]
Scholar Forest Hall Master Jegal Myeong stared blankly at the message before his eyes.
“How, how could this possibly have happened...?”
Jegal Myeong could not understand what had happened to him. Just ten minutes earlier, he had been certain of victory.
Tactical Formation. A strategy game where the three races, humans, Deadmans, and Horned Beasts, built structures, trained troops, and invaded one another to determine the winner.
As soon as the game began, Jegal Myeong chose the Deadmans, a race with contaminated souls. They were powerful in the late game and could still make decisive plays in the early and mid-game. Jaehwan, on the other hand, had chosen humans.
Jegal Myeong had secretly laughed at Jaehwan’s choice. Humans were considered the weakest of the three races in Tactical Formation.
He must not know any better, being a beginner.
Yet Jegal Myeong could not have imagined that Jaehwan had a decisive reason for choosing humans.
If Jaehwan had not read the game manual, and if he had not deciphered the game’s system through Doubt, this match would never have happened in the first place. It was troublesome, and he could have ended things with a single Stab instead of wasting time on a battle of wits.
Still, once he realized which game Tactical Formation was based on, Jaehwan wanted to see it through.
So this game was based on...
It reminded him of his hometown.
For just a moment, Jaehwan was swept up in nostalgia for a distant past. There had once been a time when he lived an ordinary life.
Only the races and story had changed. The way individual units were controlled and the matchups between them were far too similar to a particular game from Earth.
For dream demons who called themselves Masters of the 《Great Realm》 to plagiarize a game from the lowly 《Peripheral Worlds》. Perhaps dream demons were completely different beings from what Jaehwan had always believed.
It had been thirty years. No wonder this was not easy.
Jaehwan controlled the farmers to gather resources and built barracks to train soldiers.
Since he was not using a mouse and keyboard, the controls were quite difficult. Tactical Formation had no control devices. Instead, players controlled each unit through Threads linked by spiritual power, which was unfamiliar to Jaehwan.
That was enough. He had no intention of dragging this out.
About five minutes into the match, when he judged the timing right, Jaehwan launched an aggressive attack. Surprisingly, his force consisted of only around fifteen farmers who had been gathering resources and two or three first-stage Adapters freshly trained from the barracks.
The spectators who knew anything about Tactical Formation were stunned by his unexpected move.
“What kind of attack is that?”
A soundproof barrier had been set up to prevent spectators from giving advice, so Jegal Myeong had no idea how the crowd was reacting. He was too busy controlling his workers and constructing various buildings.
Jegal Myeong’s strategy was simple.
Establish a solid foundation first, then crush the enemy with overwhelming numbers.
Thirty seconds later, his face went pale when he saw human farmers and first-stage Adapters charging into his home base.
The farmers, armed with sickles and pickaxes, were hacking his Deadman workers to death.
“W-What are you doing?!”
He had not even trained a proper army yet. Military strategy and tactics only meant something once a certain foundation had been established. Yet Jaehwan had chosen to destroy every bit of common sense Jegal Myeong knew.
Using farmers to attack?
That was not all.
Jaehwan began openly constructing buildings as if Jegal Myeong’s base were his own. They were defensive structures known as Watchtowers in Tactical Formation.
Using defensive structures offensively?
Jegal Myeong hurriedly trained small Deadmans and tried to stop the construction, but it was already too late.
The first-stage Adapters rushed over as soon as they were trained, climbed the Watchtowers, and began firing arrows. Unable to climb the towers, the small Deadmans gnawed at their bases with their teeth before suffering miserable soul extinction.
As time passed, the number of Watchtowers only grew.
When three Watchtowers had finally been erected inside Jegal Myeong’s home base, and the first-stage Adapters hiding within began shooting arrows into the Deadmans’ palace, Jegal Myeong realized he had lost.
“What kind of absurd strategy is this...?!”
Jaehwan gave a bitter smile as he watched Jegal Myeong’s stunned face.
Of course, the humans here would not know this strategy.
If someone used this strategy in the game Tactical Formation was based on, especially in a setting like this, they would be cursed to death. Koreans did not like games ending this quickly.
But things were different here.
“Uwoooooo!”
The result of the match appeared in the air, followed by the spectators’ cheers. Jegal Myeong’s face twisted with fury.
“How can this be allowed? Is it not proper etiquette to avoid trespassing on each other for the first ten minutes after a game begins?”
“Etiquette?”
“U-Usually, the proper approach is for each side to spend ten minutes building production structures and gathering resources...!”
“Is that in the rules?”
Jegal Myeong fell silent like someone with a mouthful of honey. Of course, there was no such rule.
“Then it does not matter.”
He had nothing to say.
What in the world was this man?
There was no denying his defeat. A man who strayed from every standard Jegal Myeong knew. A man beyond common sense and logic. A man whose limits could not be measured by any means.
I cannot beat him.
For the first time in his life, Jegal Myeong accepted defeat. Jegal Myeong, Chaos’s greatest strategist, had admitted for the first time that his wisdom was insufficient.
Oddly, once he accepted it, his heart felt lighter. As if he had spent the last four hundred years waiting for this moment.
“I lost.”
* * *
After the first match of the quarterfinals ended, there was a brief break.
Cheongheo and Shin Mugeuk, who had been in the audience, approached Jaehwan.
“You are a frightening one. As expected, you did not even break a sweat.”
“It was only one game. Why would I sweat?”
“When did you even learn Tactical Formation? I thought you only knew Stab, awake or asleep.”
“It is a game connected to the world where I lived.”
His tone made it clear he did not want to explain further.
Jaehwan’s gaze shifted to the Limitless Hall Master beside Cheongheo.
“You look pretty strong.”
Who in Chaos would dare refer to the Limitless Hall Master like that? Cheongheo found himself in a better mood and chuckled.
“Who do you think has the edge, me or him?”
“Who knows?”
Aside from Catastrophe, the Sole King, Cheongheo was the strongest being Jaehwan had met so far. Yet this old man was nearly Cheongheo’s equal.
“Want to fight?”
“You are quite violent for a first greeting.”
Cheongheo laughed at Shin Mugeuk, whose expression had stiffened.
“I told you. That brat does not respect old people, he attacks them.”
Jaehwan objected.
“The old people here are not weak and frail. They are all Elderly Warriors, so there is no need to go easy on them.”
“See? He never lets a single comment slide.”
Cheongheo grumbled on the surface, but there was warmth in his voice. Shin Mugeuk’s eyes changed subtly as he noticed it.
Since the Abyss Expedition had collapsed nine hundred years ago, Shin Mugeuk had never seen Cheongheo speak so happily.
The Abyss Expedition...
The Abyss Expedition was a term that carried painful memories for Shin Mugeuk, the Limitless Hall Master, as well. He, too, had been a member of the Abyss Expedition nine hundred years ago.
“Cheongheo.”
“What?”
“...It is nothing.”
Mulack, the dream demon who had led the expedition nine hundred years ago.
A being who had brought dreams and hope to 《Chaos》, only to remain as a symbol of despair.
Shin Mugeuk looked at Jaehwan and thought.
Could this man replace Mulack?
Nine hundred years ago, the expedition had obtained the Fruit entirely because of Mulack. Without his justice that never retreated, his dazzling wisdom, and his overwhelming Combat Power, they would not have even caught a glimpse of the Fruit.
Watching the previous match, Shin Mugeuk had been able to estimate Jaehwan’s level to some extent.
As the Scholar Forest Hall Master said, he was not a General or Warlord-class fighter, but he might be a Lieutenant General-class fighter.
Generals, Warlords, and Lieutenant Generals.
They were the ranks of Lords directly beneath the Twelve Great Lords who ruled the twelve zones. They might have been lower ranks in name, but even a Warlord-class fighter possessed power beyond the heavens.
They were monsters capable of crushing mountains with a single strike and raising tidal waves.
They only kept their fangs hidden because they served the Twelve Great Lords. In truth, they were Adapters who had already attained the status of a Lord.
They were beings who could leave the Legions of the Twelve Great Lords and establish Legions of their own.
They rarely died, so it was nearly impossible to find anyone above Warlord-class among the highest-ranked people waiting at the 《Palace of Rebirth》.
No, forget Warlords. Even a Lieutenant General-class fighter could destroy an entire Fortress with ease. The Ten Hall Masters of Chaos could join forces and still fail to defeat one of the 《Great Realm》’ Lieutenant Generals.
Yet the man before him could be compared to such a fighter.
In terms of potential alone, he may surpass Mulack.
As more years accumulated, a soul’s growth slowed and its way of thinking became rigid. Yet the man before him was still young.
On top of that, he had defeated the Scholar Forest Hall Master, considered the greatest strategist in 《Chaos》, in his own specialty. No one else could have done that.
But what about his character?
To be honest, Shin Mugeuk could not sense any upright sense of justice from the man before him. It showed in how he treated others and how he spoke. He was the complete opposite of Mulack, who had possessed a mature and benevolent nature.
And then there was this tremendous hatred.
The hatred Shin Mugeuk felt from the man was enough to send chills down his spine just from looking at him. An emotion that had gone beyond a mental image and become a physical form. What was more, that hatred was unwaveringly directed at this world.
Hatred that pointed at no one, and therefore pointed at everyone.
As Shin Mugeuk stared at the shape of that hatred, he felt a faint dizziness and saw the scenery around him distort. As Cheongheo’s friend, he knew exactly what that meant. Startled, Shin Mugeuk sent Cheongheo a Push.
[Is that friend of yours also an Awakened One?]
[You noticed rather late.]
Shin Mugeuk let out a low groan at Cheongheo’s reply.
[...Amazing. I never thought there would be another Awakened One in 《Chaos》 besides you.]
[Honestly, he cannot even be compared to an incomplete one like me.]
For the proud Cheongheo to say such a thing, Shin Mugeuk carefully examined Jaehwan again. Cheongheo continued.
[That brat is a complete Awakened One.]
[A complete Awakened One? Are you saying he crossed the wall of third-stage Awakening?]
[Yes.]
Shin Mugeuk’s expression changed when he heard that. It was not simply because Jaehwan’s level had shocked him.
Awakened Ones, especially those who had gone beyond the third stage, shared a common problem.
Cheongheo, who remained at second-stage Awakening, had not failed to break through to third-stage Awakening because he lacked training. It would be more accurate to say he had chosen not to break through.
[If he has gone beyond the third stage, there is a chance that man has already lost his humanity...]
At that moment, the host’s voice announced the opening of the quarterfinal match. After loosening up during the break, Jaehwan began walking toward the stage again. Cheongheo asked in confusion.
“Where are you going? It is not your turn.”
“I have to fight.”
“Fight?”
“I gave it some thought, and waiting through every quarterfinal match is a waste of time. If the remaining people fight each other, I think every match will take half a day.”
The people who had reached the quarterfinals were all similarly skilled. Aside from the eliminated Scholar Forest Hall Master, six participants remained, including Cayman, the South Sea Hall Master, and Yoon Yong, the Thunder God Hall Master.
Jaehwan examined the remaining participants through Doubt.
The fairly strong ones are those three women.
Aside from Cayman and Yoon Yong, the only people worth watching were a veiled woman presumed to be the Goddess Hall Master, the woman in black stealth attire who had defeated Kang Hwang of Fire King Hall, and a woman with a long ponytail and a black chain-scythe wrapped around her waist.
There was also a woman who was the Goddess Hall’s Deputy Hall Master, but she was clearly a level below the other three.
Of them all, the one Jaehwan watched most closely was the woman with the chain-scythe.
She had advanced through a wild card. He did not know her identity, but she was hiding something that even Jaehwan could not read through Doubt.
Come to think of it, they are all women.
Perhaps that was what 《Chaos》 meant. A world where the strong ruled beyond the physical limits imposed by gender and aging. In some ways, this world was fairer than the Earth where he had lived.
Jaehwan glanced at Shin Mugeuk beside Cheongheo.
Though that old man is the one I want most right now.
Jaehwan lacked experience sparring with high-ranking Adapters, so he wanted to postpone every other match and fight Shin Mugeuk first. The aura he sensed from the Limitless Hall Master was that powerful.
Still, he could not browbeat someone who had not entered the tournament.
Then shall I wrap this up?
Without hesitation, Jaehwan climbed onto the stage. He approached the security Horn Lord who was rambling on about the second quarterfinal match, then snatched away the microphone.
“―Listen up, everyone.”
A stir ran through the audience at the Fortress Lord’s sudden intrusion.
“―I have seen enough of the participants’ abilities, and I know their levels well enough.”
The Fortress Lord of Gorgon always caused trouble whenever he was given a chance to speak. The reporters in the audience noticed something was coming and raised their voices.
“Hey, rookie, turn on your recording skill!”
The sound of shutters clicking rang out in succession. Judging by their outfits, they were likely reporters from 《Chaos This Month》. They were planning to turn Jaehwan’s statement into a major exclusive.
That was when the woman on the stage spoke.
“Wait a moment. What do you think you are doing?”
She was the Goddess Hall Master, who had been waiting at one side of the stage for her match.
The second quarterfinal match was originally meant to be between the Goddess Hall Master and the woman with the chain-scythe. Yet it seemed the sudden appearance of the Fortress Lord was about to cause trouble.
Jaehwan glanced at the Goddess Hall Master, then spoke again.
“―I am getting tired of watching fights, so I thought I would change the format of the tournament a little.”
“Wait a moment! Who gave you the right to do that?”
“―I did.”
“I have never heard anything so unfair.”
“―It is unfair. I admit that.”
“How do you intend to change the format when we have already reached the quarterfinals?”
“―I am eliminating the one-on-one rule.”
People doubted their ears.
No one could tell what he was thinking. Did he perhaps no longer want to give up the Fortress Lord’s seat?
After thinking for a moment, the Goddess Hall Master spoke.
“Are you suggesting a faction battle?”
If they intended to compete without one-on-one matches, a faction battle was the only option. Yet there were seven people left. The teams would not be balanced for a faction battle.
Jaehwan answered.
“―You could say it is something like that.”
“That will be difficult. There are problems with that format.”
“―What problems?”
“The problem of how to divide the teams. And...”
The Goddess Hall Master’s voice grew chilling as she trailed off.
“The problem of how to determine the winner.”
In other words, the question of who would become the Fortress Lord.
Even if one side won a faction battle, only one person could become Fortress Lord in the end. The only way to determine that one person would be through one-on-one matches.
“―You seem to have misunderstood me. I did not mean that we would divide into crude teams and continue the tournament.”
“Then what do you mean...?”
“―There will only be one team. The six of you, excluding me, will be one team.”
The Goddess Hall Master could not understand Jaehwan’s words. A faction battle with only one team? Then what would the Fortress Lord of Gorgon, who had no team, do?
“―I will be alone.”
At the cold voice that echoed through the air, goosebumps rose on the Goddess Hall Master’s arms. She had just understood what Jaehwan was trying to say.
“―I will fight all of you by myself.”
Footnotes:
Chapter discussion