SSS-Class Suicide Hunter

4.

The Goddess of Protection is made up of five fragments.

Those pieces are now emitting light around me.

[He is the one who is worshipped,]

Idol Sword.

The goddess is always respected by people. Borne. He is an entity of expectations. An entity that must meet expectations. A being that must proudly raise its head until the end of the world.

Because he is a monarch.

[He is the compassionate one,]

Compassion Sword.

The goddess always understands the wounds of people. Transplanted. Even if one does not suffer physical wounds, the heart is sown with scars transferred from others, harboring nameless screams in the heart.

Because he is a monarch.

[He is the one who tests,]

Prayer Sword.

The goddess always makes judgments. Selected. Whether those who beseech her are sincere. Or if they whisper lies to deceive. She tests whether a genuine plea will never be buried under false accusations.

Because he is a monarch.

[He the one who sacrifices,]

Sacrifice Sword.

The goddess always suffers. Offers herself. As his time is eroded, the time of others blossoms, and as his pain deepens, the lives of others become radiant. Meaningless suffering is not allowed for him.

Because he is a monarch.

[He is the one who saves,]

Salvation Sword.

The goddess always saves others. Abandons herself. She places her own parts that she wanted to protect, preferences, pleasures, tastes, aesthetics, on the cold scales. On the other side of that scale are others. Other people. To elevate others, to that extent, he constantly lowers himself. Must lower himself.

Therefore.

[Worship.]

He is the monarch.

[‘The Goddess of Protection’ manifests.]

My sword shone brightly.

Someone screamed.

It was the crocodile gentleman.

“Five? The promised aphorisms are more than four?”

The gentleman opened his eyes wide, looking at me in disbelief.

“It can’t be! That’s nonsense! The Goddess of Protection… surely, it must have been the Constellation that Constellation Killer first tore apart! It must have been divided into five pieces!”

A cry of astonishment came through the large teeth of the crocodile.

“Even if you somehow collected and assembled the pieces, the last fragment! The final piece is still in possession of Constellation Killer! How exactly, Constellation Killer’s sword…?!”

Indeed.

Kim Yul had already kneeled before me long ago, yet the crocodile gentleman was completely unaware of this fact. Perhaps it was to be expected. The only Constellations that could know this would be [The Ox that Harvests Ruins], who had pierced through my past, and [The Eye Living in the Labyrinth], who had read my information.

“Deception… Yes! It’s a trick! Death King! You are not only the king of death but also the king of sorcery! But with such tricks, you cannot—-.”

“I have never played with nor allowed such play with my existence.”

A voice cut off the crocodile gentleman’s words.

It wasn’t my voice.

“It’s been a long time.”

The light leaking from the holy sword twisted into form. Brilliantly. Somehow, the light was not dazzling, as if one could keep looking at it forever.

Crackle! Crunch. The cluster of light intensified. Not only the holy sword I held but also the Compassion, Prayer, Sacrifice, and Salvation, the four shadow swords, broke apart and were sucked into the light.

“To manifest completely in one body, truly, it has been a long time.”

And then, huge wings spread.

“Death King.”

There were five pairs of wings.

“My warrior.”

A thunderous sound echoed.

As one pair of wings spread, it blew away the table. Boom! When the second wing spread, the walls of the hall were destroyed. The third wing spread, splitting the ceiling. The fourth wing caused a gale, and the fifth, the last wing, covered the sky of this world.

[‘The Goddess of Protection’ exerts her authority.]

The angel covered the sun, and five shadows were cast upon the earth.

“I will fight alongside you.”

Those shadows were the authority of the goddess.

The territory cast by the ‘Goddess of Protection’.

The world of shadows where only the white wings reign as the sole light, having pushed aside the sun and struck the sky, has descended here.

“—-I refuse!”

The crocodile gentleman screamed as if vomiting blood.

“Hwiya! The one who became light as a shadow! The owner of the 67th floor is not you! It’s me! It’s us! [The Eternal Dance of the Twins] and [The Noble with Dry Handprints], and we, [The Most Crimson Sommelier], are the true masters of this place! Your sanctuary will lose its light here!”

The crocodile’s outcry was not just a struggle in vain.

[The administrator refuses co-ownership.]

[‘The Goddess of Protection’ does not own this place.]

The sky turned blood red.

The sun that illuminated this 67th world twisted from the form I knew well. The sphere that emitted white light suddenly turned black. As if a child had colored it with crayons, line by line, black was drawn.

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’ manifests his authority.]

A black hole.

Suddenly, where the sun was, only an abyss had been pierced.

“Overflow!”

From the hole as vast as a massive well, gush! A liquid thicker than water and stickier than alcohol leaked out. Gush, gush. It was blood. Red blood endlessly flowed from the well in the sky.

“Look! Every single drop forming this torrent of blood is entirely collected souls of mine! My lovely followers!”

The crocodile gentleman raised his arms. Drip! Blood poured from the sky.

Blood pooled in the crocodile’s small palm, overflowing through the thick webbed fingers.

“This place is my temple! My sanctuary! No one can deny me,”

“That so.”

The Goddess of Protection folded her wings, then spread them horizontally.

Light burst forth.

White wings cast shadows like a sword’s crossguard, and her straightened body like a blade.

The flickering sword—the Goddess of Protection, Hwiya, said.

“If so, I will cut you down.”

[‘The Goddess of Protection’ manifests her authority.]

[‘The Goddess of Protection’ is the administrator of the 65th and 66th floors.]

Hwiya extended her hand.

Her fingers, curled like hooks, pointed towards the crocodile gentleman.

[‘The Goddess of Protection’ invades the 67th floor!]

And then, five rays of light burst from each of her fingernails, striking the crocodile gentleman.

5.

[This world is not subject to beginner protection.]

[Battle for Floor Conquest begins.]

[Currently, a battle for floor conquest is happening between the Lion World-Silver White World-Moon Night World and Banquet World-Taeguk World-Demon Realm World.]

“Aaaaargh!”

The crocodile screamed.

The five rays of light engraved on his body, like cracks in the earth spewing lava, were [squeezing out] blood red wine from the crocodile’s body without cease.

“The souls are dense.”

The Goddess of Protection said.

“Only a being that can suck the essence of the heart without hesitation can squeeze out such blood. Even a beast that eats flesh would feel compassion towards hairless cubs if it has fur, and even a scaly beast would stop hunting when full.”

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’s existence fades.]

“You were less than a beast, an insect.”

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’s existence fades.]

“Damn you! You got betrayed and utterly defeated by the very human you chose! A trash that couldn’t even handle a lower-class Constellation!”

“Yes. I was such an existence.”

Hwiya calmly accepted and let the crocodile’s screams pass.

Just as a master swordsman deflects the opponent’s sword strike.

“But before that, I was the founding monarch who established an empire.”

The blade that deflected the strike whirled around like a butterfly, spinning to strike the crocodile’s shoulder three times.

“Aaaaargh!!”

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’s existence fades.]

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’s existence fades.]

“Stop!!”

In the face of the audacious situation, the allies of the Most Crimson Sommelier stepped forward after being momentarily stunned.

The Noble with Dry Handprints shouted at the twins.

“It’s your fault! Why are you frozen? If you had properly played your role, the Most Crimson Sommelier wouldn’t have been injured like—.”

“Is that really the case?”

Of course not.

The Goddess of Protection also has allies.

Swoosh!

“There’s a well-known weakness to [Skills that require a target to activate].”

The Constellations blinked in surprise.

In the blink of an eye, my fist was already surging through the air.

“Well then, try to collect out the rainwater with both hands.” (ED: Meaning something along the lines that you will be able to collect some water however little it might be its still water)

My fist plunged directly into the crocodile’s abdomen. Boom!

The vibration pierced through the crocodile’s body and spread like waves through the surrounding air.

Drops of blood were mixed in with the intangible waves.

“Keuh, huk…!”

“Your abdomen is sturdy. No hole has been made.”

I swung my fist again.

“This won’t do. It’s embarrassing.”

Thud!

The same blood that was scattered around stuck to my knuckles.

“It’s only proper that I, as Hwiya’s master, should at least be able to do as much as Hwiya.”

Once again, I drove my fist in.

“Krheuk, euh…!”

A hole was made in the crocodile’s abdomen.

Thus, even if [The Noble with Dry Handprints] transferred the damage dealt by Hwiya’s sword strike to the twins, the amount of wine bursting from the crocodile did not decrease.

[The existence of ‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’ fades.]

[The existence of ‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’ fades.]

[The existence of ‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’ fades…]

“Ah,”

The sky opened.

As more wine burst from the crocodile’s abdomen, blood gushed from the hole in the sky. Like a broken sewer during the monsoon season, blood gushed endlessly.

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’ can no longer maintain authority.]

A baby crocodile, caught in the crimson flood and swept away, was probably the dismal end of the Sommelier.

[Initiating rank adjustment.]

[‘The Most Crimson Sommelier’s title is revoked.]

[The quest of the 67th floor has been cleared!]

[Updating the results of the Floor Conquest.]

[The 67th floor is now under the management of ‘The Goddess of Protection’!]

Good.

I turned my head. There the goddess floated. We exchanged glances over the fallen crocodile’s remains.

“Hwiya.”

“Yes, warrior.”

That was the end of our conversation.

I ran towards the left. Hwiya flew to the right.

Only the crocodile’s remains were left in the middle, swallowed by the blood-red flood, swept somewhere.

“…Ah!”

At the end of Hwiya’s flight, there stood a figure in white.

At the end of my path, there stood a figure in black.

“If attacking one side makes no difference,”

I threw my fist towards the figure in black.

“Then attack both sides simultaneously.”

Hwiya swung her wings at the figure in white.

[‘The Noble with Dry Handprint’ manifests his authority!]

But just as the crocodile attempted—and failed—to block the simultaneous strike with damage transfer,

[The administrator refuses co-ownership.]

[‘The Noble with Dry Handprint’ does not own this place.]

The Goddess of Protection, now the administrator of this floor, deflected the authority just as the crocodile had.

“Damn it,”

[‘The Noble with Dry Handprint’ invades the 67th floor.]

“Too late.”

The conflict erupted on both sides of the battlefield first.

It was a fight that was disadvantageous to the twins from the start. The twins were only ever meant to play the role of tanks. Their martial prowess was not remarkable.

On my opposite side, Hwiya swung her several pairs of wings simultaneously.

Struck down.

The figure in white was shattered to pieces.

“It’s okay.”

The figure in black, now facing me, said to the figure in white.

“You’re okay.”

Even as I approached right up to him, the figure in black did not resist. Perhaps he lacked the ability to resist. The figure in black’s concern was solely directed towards his other half.

“It’s okay. As long as I am here. You are….”

“Yes.”

I swung my fist.

“As long as you are here, that is.”

A storm of punches ensued.

The figure in black was fully exposed to my attack. So much so that he couldn’t continue saying he was okay. His shoulder was hit, and his jaw was attacked.

With the figure in black’s words gone, there was no one left to negate the damage to the figure in white.

“Aaaaah!”

The first to fall was the figure in white. Unable to deny the accumulating damage any longer, the figure in white eventually broke. Splash! Into the blood-filled surface of the horizon, the figure in white collapsed powerlessly.

The fate of the figure in black was no different.

“Ah….”

The figure in black fell to the ground, onto a rock, his body shattered by my punch.

“It’s a remarkable thing to grit your teeth and stand up again.”

I looked down at the figure in black.

In contrast, the figure in black’s gaze was not on me. Below the fluttering wings of Hwiya, he only stared intently at the figure in white, who was dimly submerged in the water’s surface.

“If each time you became a little stronger, today I wouldn’t have claimed victory. But instead of chewing, you spat it out. That’s all.”

“…….”

The figure in black smiled with his eyes. Finally, he turned his head, looking up with unfocused, pupil-less eyes, filled with nothing but darkness.

“There are people in the world who cannot become stronger.”

I nodded.

Silently.

A moment later, the figure in black spoke.

“You guys, can become stronger.”

His lips held a smile.

“Die, all of you.”

That was the curse left by the constellation of the twins to the world.

[The existence of ‘The Eternal Dance of the Twins’ fades.]

[Initiating rank adjustment.]

[The title of ‘The Eternal Dance of the Twins’ is revoked.]

The bodies of the figure in black and the figure in white disintegrated simultaneously into ash. Where the figure in black had lain, a parrot with only one wing raised its head.

[The quest of the 68th floor has been cleared!]

[Updating the results of the Floor Conquest….]

Yes.

I turned to look at the last remaining constellation.

“You bastards!”

The Noble with Dry Handprint was furious.

But it was a futile rage.

As proven in old games, a lone supporter left alone can only quietly take the portal.

A supporter who refuses to take the portal will only have their name displayed on the scoreboard.

The noble must have understood such a fate.

Yet, the noble still glared at me with eyes burning with hatred. Splish, splash. The sound of blood splattering as I approached, and Hwiya flying after me, everything reflected in his eyes seemed hateful.

“Now, there is no constellation left for you to transfer the damage to.”

The noble looked at Hwiya.

[The Noble with Dry Handprint manifests his authority.]

[The Goddess of Protection refuses.]

[The authority is nullified.]

Probably, the noble tried to transfer the damage he was about to receive to Hwiya. But such a procedure would have required the consent of the other party.

Naturally, Hwiya refused.

The noble glared at me.

[The Noble with Dry Handprint manifests his authority.]

[The Noble with Dry Handprint has chosen you to bear the damage he is about to receive in his stead.]

[Do you accept the choice?]

I shook my head.

[The authority is nullified.]

The noble gritted his teeth.

“You must understand me.”

“…….”

“It’s not my fault. Not a wrongdoing. It’s your fault, all of yours, the tower’s mistake. Everything is rightfully so. Therefore, you must understand my situation.”

I extended my hand.

Gradually, Hwiya disintegrated.

The five pairs of wings fell apart, turning into five swords. The five swords then merged together, forming into a single holy sword.

“No.”

I grasped the hilt of the holy sword.

“Your presence in the tower is already proof that you have been understood by the Tower Master.”

“You mean me—-.”

“Fully. More than enough.”

The sword traced an arc.

With a splash, something heavy fell into the crimson surface.

[The existence of ‘The Noble with Dry Handprint’ fades.]

[Initiating rank adjustment.]

[The title of ‘The Noble with Dry Handprint’ is revoked.]

A chicken fluttered up from the surface. It was a chicken with a red comb. The chicken, its white feathers dyed red, swam past my feet.

Thus.

[The quest of the 69th floor has been cleared!]

[Updating the results of the Floor Conquest….]

The alliance of the three constellations fell under my blade.

[You have earned the right to challenge the 70th floor.]

The path to the seventieth stage was opened.

*****