From Today, I'm a Player

Chapter 210: Two Serpents Pt. 5

The party could sense the group of Heroes getting closer and closer.

“You’re saying all of them are…”

“All of them are Heroes created by some ceremony?” Odysseus and Heracles asked as they found their place in their formation.

The information that Hel had brought was astounding. In the midst of the cataclysm and the confusion, Yashin had suddenly changed. He killed, subdued, and brainwashed the upper echelons of the Hunters.

–Correct. They say that the first ceremony was a sacrifice of Hunters.

After establishing his power, the first thing he did in the midst of the chaos was to sacrifice the Hunters who had refused to follow him. Yashin had gathered the Japanese citizens and began the ceremony before them.

–He cut off their heads and…

“Wait a minute. We don’t need that much detail. But basically, you’re saying he consumed their souls,” Odysseus said, holding up his hands to stop Hel as if the thought made him queasy.

“Can you really not endure something like that as a Hunter?”

“There’s a difference between having to do something and being used to doing it.”

Odysseus waved off Heracles’ teasing as the signs of the approaching Heroes were getting closer.

Hel continued as if trying to mediate between the two Hunters.

–The ceremony has been held a total of seven times so far. The first ceremony had a thousand sacrifices, the second ceremony had two thousand…

“What a crazy bastard.”

“So then the number of humans that have been sacrificed so far…”

Lee Jun-Kyeong, who had been silent all this time, finally opened his mouth, “Twenty-eight thousand…”

“He’s really gone off the rockers.”

“That’s insane.”

It was a number that made even Heracles balk.

–As the ceremonies progressed, it seemed as though the number of Hunters were insufficient and that more sacrifices were needed since they were using ordinary humans.

“...”

–It’s a soul-devouring ceremony.

“So you’re saying… Yashin is gaining the strength he has and his sanity through it…” Heracles said.

Lee Jun-Kyeong shook his head and responded, “I can’t believe that he’s maintaining his reason if it's gotten to the point of offering humans as a living sacrifice.”

“...I guess that’s true.”

“Whether it's his mind or his body, he’s already become a Ruler,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, his companions nodding in agreement.

“Yashin has obtained strength and has shared that power with the Hunters who followed him.”

“Moreover, with that power, he’s been able to mass-produce Hunters and thus was able to increase the number of Heroes dramatically.”

Heracles and Odysseus organized the information that they had gathered, while Lee Jun-Kyeong brought up another point, “However, both the Hunters and the Heroes didn’t earn their strength normally, and the Heroes that were created through Yashin’s powers…”

“...Don’t have titles.”

They were all Heroes with no titles.

“Then that’s a monster, not a Hero,” Heracles said, smirking as if he had finally obtained a clear answer.

Prod.

Odysseus elbowed Heracles in the side as he glared at the man who was feeling proud of himself.

"What's the matter?"

"That’s…”

Odysseus's eyes turned to Lee Jun-Kyeong.

"Come to think of it…”

Lee Jun-Kyeong was also a Hero without a title.

“You…”

As Heracles was about to speak, Lee Jun-Kyeong suddenly cut him off, “They’ve arrived.”

There was no more time for them to talk.

“Damn it! Everyone dodge!” Heracles shouted, looking up to the sky.

Thousands of arrows were falling from the sky, each arrow containing a threatening mana. Heracles began to move, trying to dodge, and as Odysseus tried to follow him, they both suddenly stopped at the sound that echoed in the air.

Clank!

All of a sudden, a huge veil formed in the sky. It was a barrier used by high-ranking mage-type Hunters.

“You see, I’ve learned some magic,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, smiling as he extended his hand.

The arrows were shattered by the barrier, unable to reach the party. However, that didn’t mean the attack was over. The Hunters had finally appeared, all of them with more than hero-grade strength, running in formation.

“What era is this supposed to be?”

"I don't think those are normal horses?"

One hundred and twenty Hunters were quickly approaching them on the backs of horses. All were armed with heavy armor, katanas, and bows.

“Samurai…?”

They each resembled the famed warriors of Japanese history, the samurai.

“Ha-a-eup!”

Of course, the samurai from history hadn’t been able to infuse mana into their katanas.

“Well, let’s test them out a little!” Heracles shouted.

Although he had claimed he was tired, when enemies had appeared before them, Heracles stepped forward once more, slamming his gauntlets, which seemed as if they were on fire, forward again.

“Let me do it.”

However, this time, Lee Jun-Kyeong was already running past the massive Hunter. His red spear was already held in hand, emitting a strange heat. Lee Jun-Kyeong's speed as he ran forward was much faster than the samurai rampaging toward them on the horses.

“Because it looks like we’ll have to hurry.”

Lee Jun-Kyeong's voice was clearly audible even though it was far away, and Heracles and Odysseus could feel it too.

“The ceremony…”

“It’s started.”

In the center of Tokyo, where the Association Headquarters would have been, a faint light began to stream out.

Shine!

It was beginning to form a pillar of light.

“The First Flame,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, his voice announcing the rise of the curtain on the battlefield.

“Ahhh!!”

“Ugh!!”

Of course, there would be no curtain without a celebration, and Lee Jun-Kyeong was using the screams of his enemies as a welcoming of the play.

***

Lee Jun-Kyeong grabbed his spear and ran forward.

‘There are one hundred and twenty Heroes we have to face.’

It was a force that was enough to take one’s breath away just by hearing their numbers. Facing a hundred and twenty Heroes was more difficult than he could have imagined. Although none of them were Apex like Odin, it was still like colliding with the entirety of a secret organization.

To do this right now would be like fighting alone against an entire secret organization. If it was before, they would probably think he was crazy. No, they would be thinking that right now as well.

Looking at Heracles and Odysseus behind him he could tell that they were both astonished and flabbergasted. One hundred and twenty Heroes was not something that anyone could deal with alone. However, Lee Jun-Kyeong could feel an overwhelming surge of energy.

‘I think it’s possible.’

He hadn’t been able to have a proper fight even to this day, so right now, this was a perfect opportunity.

“I can rampage as much as I want.”

A bizarre heat continued to exude from Muspel’s Spear and enveloped Lee Jun-Kyeong.

“Hiyaa!!”

“Die!!”

It seemed to have sensed his recklessness as well. There was a sneer on the face of the enemy at the front of the charging horses. An impressive mana was imbued into their katanas as they rushed forward while swearing at him in Japanese. Each of the Heroes had activated their skills, their combined mana enough to make Lee Jun-Kyeong’s skin tingle.

Screeeech.

Lee Jun-Kyeong suddenly came to a stop like a car that had suddenly hit the brakes, his foot tearing into the road and becoming deeply embedded.

“Hiyaa!!”

The Japanese Hunters had gotten close to him before they knew it, raising their weapons with triumphant expressions. Their katanas, bows, and even their long spears were all imbued with a bluish mana.

“Kill him!”

Palpable waves of mana were undulating off of the Hunters due to their synchronized activations of skills.

“Hoo…”

In the midst of their attack, Lee Jun-Kyeong let out a small breath. It was the basis of the mana stream. As he inhaled, his heart started to pound.

Thud! Thud!

A massive amount of mana flowed through him like it was being pumped. Passing through his hands, the mana infused into Muspel’s Spear, the blazing flames on the weapon flaring up in intensity.

ROAR!

The spear grew to three times its length as Lee Jun-Kyeong called out softly, “The First Flame.”

The First Flame was originally a skill of the Demon King that specialized in stabbing. Intense, ultra-high heat flames were imbued into a stab turning into a skill that incinerates and kills all enemies in a straight line.

Originally, he had created it by imitating the Demon King’s skill, so he had no choice but to use the First Flame skill exactly as the Demon King had. But now it was different.

He had grown as a Hunter and as a human. Now, he could use a skill that was his own, and this was the first one.

"Blossom!"[1]

Lee Jun-Kyeong swung the spear while casting The First Flame without stabbing forward like he was supposed to do. Like countless flowers in full bloom, sparks of flame suddenly scattered from Muspel’s Spear.

[You have completed an incredible achievement!]

[A small amount of stats has been earned.]

Lee Jun-Kyeong heard a notification in his ear.

[<The Sky of the Apocalypse> admires your achievements.]

[<The Sky of the Apocalypse> has sponsored you additional stats.]

It was truly a pleasant voice to hear after a long time.

‘I’m not done yet.’

The fully blooming flowers of flame hadn’t yet reached the enemies.

“Arthur’s Swordsmanship…”

[Shuffle.]

"Merlin's magic...”

[Shuffle.]

The things he had learned all had their own principles. Although it had just seemed that Lee Jun-Kyeong had only been outputting the same information he had been given, he actually understood it all.

Just as he had learned the mana stream, Lee Jun-Kyeong had understood the basics of all of the techniques he had been taught. The structure and systems of mana, the movements of the body, the trajectory of the weapons, everything had come together.

He knew it was a bit childish, but Lee Jun-Kyeong had wanted to be the one to name this technique.

“Dragon’s Breath.”

The flames of the fully blooming flowers of fire began to gather once more, forming into a circle.

ROAR!

The flames, now rotating in a magic circle, spread all over the area, incinerating all that was around it and turning the area into a land of hell.

[You have completed an Unbelievable Achievement!]

[Additional stats…]

[<The Sky of the Apocalypse>...]

The lines he had already heard once repeated themselves again.

“Whew.”

Lee Jun-Kyeong took a deep breath; he had consumed a lot of mana in a single attack. His heart was pumping like crazy, as if he had just been through an unbearable workout. He slowly looked around and couldn’t even hear a scream.

“...”

There was nothing left before him. The one hundred and twenty Heroes were gone.

“He…in one blow…”

“He killed them all.”

However, Lee Jun-Kyeong couldn’t let it end like this.

“Hel!” he raised his arm and shouted.

According to Hel, the souls of the Hunters who had gained power from Yashin would go back to Yashin once they died. Once Yashin gained more souls, he would become stronger.

‘I can’t let that happen.’

Ssss.

A blurry astral figure circled around and grabbed the souls of the dead Heroes.

–Master. It seems it will be difficult to hold onto them for a long time.

As if Yashin’s power had gotten this strong already, there were limits to even Hel’s ability to hold onto the souls. The souls that were made visible through Hel’s ability were howling like the ordinary people they had hunted.

–Aghh!!

–Save me!

Maybe because they had been consumed by flames, the souls were twisting into grotesque shapes. If this continued, it seemed that Hel would soon lose its grip and the souls would return to Yashin. However, they had also prepared for this.

“Hyeon-Mu.”

With a rattling sound, Hyeon-Mu, who hadn’t been able to aid them so far, appeared next to Lee Jun-Kyeong. Although his appearance was almost already like that of a human now, his true identity was closer to that of an undead.

“These are your new soldiers,” said Lee Jun-Kyeong quietly.

Hyeon-Mu responded in a slightly more rigid tone.

–I’ve received the master’s favor. I will repay this by becoming even more useful to you, Master.

Rattle.

An uncomfortable sound echoed across the battlefield as hundreds of skeletons appeared, all soldiers created by Hyeon-Mu.

–Hel.

Hyeon-Mu called out to Hel, to which the astral figure replied.

–Understood.

The one hundred and twenty souls held by Hel began to seep into Hyeon-Mu’s soldiers.

Sssss.

“There’s no way…”

“It can’t be, right?”

As if in disbelief, the murmurs of Heracles and Odysseus echoed through the empty battlefield.

“Did the Underdog just gain the power of a hundred and twenty Heroes?”

1. Something that I really appreciate about this Author is the use of naming. Not only has the Author been really good about sourcing even the most obscure mythos to name the characters based on their characteristics, but the naming of each of Lee Jun-Kyeong’s skills has also been almost poetic with regard to the Hanmun. The term blossom here means two different things based on the Hanmun used. ?? (開花) means the moment a flower blooms, while ?? (開化) means enlightenment. ????