Chapter 106: Akaron (1)
‘...The future changed.’
Hansoo made a grim expression.
A few huge incidents existed in the Otherworld and there were cases where hundreds of millions of people had died.
One of them.
The Gragos Lava Bathing incident which will happen one year from now.
Though the Gragos had simply spun around a single time, the result that had brought was horrific.
The incident which had one of the most casualties with over 300 million deceased while not counting the wounded.
The dark mad lord was cute compared to this.
The him of the past came up to the Orange Zone one year after that had happened.
And could only get shocked.
Since the remains of those who had died from the lava were still around.
The people in the Ant Tunnels burned up from the lava that flowed in there and then petrified like fossils.
The Gragos, which had traces of hundreds of millions of people living in it, was just slowly being filled up from the people who were just coming up from the Red Zone.
But Hansoo wasn’t focused on this.
If he were to cure the Gragos and complete the next stage as well then there was no chance for the incident that would happen in a year.
But this changed everything.
‘I knew a change would happen but this is too fast.’
Akardian, the person who was dealing with skills relating to time, had spoken to him before he came here.
Hansoo’s greatest point was not his strength but the knowledge he brought from the future.
Of course that strong point will crumble as the future changed more and more.
But Hansoo and the others believed something while planning this out.
The Seven Zones that were separated by a dimensional wall.
They believed that these walls will reduce the butterfly effect as much as possible.
Since the amount of the lower zones being affected was low since they couldn’t see it from above.
But for them to have this big of a miscalculation.
It wasn’t that he had made a mistake and it was too short of a time for somebody to have a huge effect after climbing up.
Hansoo frowned.
Since he had almost no information regarding this incident.
There was barely nothing that was alive above the Gragos after this incident.
Only the extremely strong and a lucky few.
And a few Margoths who had extremely strong stamina that could withstand the lava and had dug into the skin.
Because of this there wasn’t much information regarding this.
‘It shouldn’t be the fairy... There should be more. Where did the change happen?’
................................
“Hmm. So that Kang Hansoo did something that amazing? Mister?”
Kim Gwanje, the patriarch of the Rerorerore clan, mumbled after hearing the story of the person in front of them.
And Jongsang, one of the Seven Departed Souls, smiled as he looked at that Gwanje.
“Yeah. Amazing right?”
Jongsang had immediately gotten caught by some mysterious people and was dragged here.
He tried to resist but he couldn’t even handle the people who were called Baladi level here.
And here the person who he had seen before in the past was sitting as the Boss.
Kim Gwanje.
A person whom he had saved the life of in the past just for fun.
‘Well I knew he wasn’t a simple guy but... He has really become a monster.’
Gwanje was treating him extremely well.
Others might look at Gwanje treating the savior of his life and say he’s a very good person but Jongsang, who knew a bit about this guy, knew why.
The reason why this guy was being nice to him was not because he had saved his life or because they were both Koreans.
That guy just wanted to show off to him.
Towards Jongsang who had a tremendous amount of influence which he couldn’t even chase after.
The result of his work which he had accomplished in the Orange Zone.
‘He is a guy who was this way since back in the past.’
A person who was always shouting that there would only be one pillar instead of six if he had come first.
He had looked over every corner of the World Tree and just left along with his followers.
After throwing away the patriarch position of the Hecarim Clan that had been set already.
It had already been 4 years ago.
‘He should be quite pissed.’
Jongsang laughed as he looked at Gwanje laughing as well.
A person who lived on the taste of his own greatness.
That guy couldn’t even muster up the courage to even touch the Calamities and just moved himself away.
And had actually grown after showing his true strength after getting to the Orange Zone.
But somebody had dealt with those Calamities from below and then came up.
Though it was laughing on the surface, he would probably be extremely pissed inside.
“Yeah. What are you going to do?”
Gwanje shrugged his shoulders after listening to Jongsang’s story.
“Well. Thank you for the story. But I had a plan for something like this already.”
“What?”
Jongsang frowned as he heard Gwanje’s words.
“Mister. You saw what this thing looked like right? Who do you think will be stronger if you compare with the Calamity?”
Then Jongsang spoke as he saw Gwanje asking him while pointing towards the existence called the Gragos that they were standing on and then replied without even a need for thinking about it.
“Of course this thing is much stronger.”
The Calamities lived up to their name as calamities but these Gragos were on a different level.
Gwanje giggled as he spoke.
“You think so right? Wouldn’t it be so much more amazing if I kill this?”
“...What?”
Jongsang thought that he had heard wrong as he got suspicious of his own ears.
If somebody had said this he would’ve thought that they were crazy but this guy was not somebody who just said random words.
Since he had created a giant clan which had carved up their spot in the Orange Zone in a mere 4 years.
‘No, where is he planning to live after killing this thing...’
At that time he kind of understood what this guy was thinking of.
‘Keldian. Eres. Kim Kangtae. Pao Ren...’
The owners of the six pillars.
And the amazing feats that these people had left behind.
This guy was trying to accomplish something that couldn’t even be compared to those things.
Something that everyone will look at and respect, a feat that would become a legend in the Otherworld.
Only for his own pride.
‘...This guy is also a lunatic.’
Gwanje spoke towards that Jongsang.
“I was going to do this in a year actually. But wouldn’t that amazing guy just go up in just a bit?”
He needed a year for perfection but he could do it at any time.
No, he had already sent carrier pigeons in all directions and the plan was already on the way.
‘You can’t just go like that. See it first and then go up.’
A show would only have meaning if there were audiences and a proposal will only have its worth if there was somebody to make it to.
That guy had gone up to the next stage within just a month of coming up.
Which meant that this guy wouldn’t even take 1 year to go up to the next stage.
No, he might even go up in just a bit.
So he had to show his hand before this guy went up.
That he had done something even greater than him.
‘This is a show just for you.’
Gwanje thought of Hansoo whose face he didn’t even know of as he laughed.
.........................................
Hansoo mumbled as he looked at Ailen who was unconscious and hanging in his hands.
‘...I need to find out the reason for this first.’
If it was this much then somebody had intervened.
It hadn’t been long since the liquid’s level had descended to the black zone.
This amount is still fixable.
He might be able to fix the problem if he removed the originator of this.
But going to the temple was also important.
He was stuck in a situation where he had to find the reason for the change as well as finding the temple.
So Hansoo made a red carrier pigeon. (*PR: Remember, he was given an earring with that skill from the clans back in the Red Zone.)
‘He should’ve come up by now.’
Hansoo pulled out the carrier pigeon and threw it towards a direction.
.........................................
Gwanje thought of Hansoo, who was going to be his audience, and then asked because the other Departed Souls came into his mind.
“But where did the others go? Mister? Wasn’t it seven including you mister?”
It was better the more audience there was.
Departed Souls who were high and mighty in the Red Zone would be great audience.
He was already feeling good from the thought of people who acted high and mighty in the Red Zone looking at him with surprised expressions.
Jongsang frowned at Gwanje’s words.
“I don’t know what happened to one... One followed that Hansoo guy. I don’t know where the other five are. They aren’t replying to my carrier pigeons.”
‘Anyway... Did Miyamoto really die? Then it’s a bit of a pity... His skills and artifacts are quite precious.’
The skills they had were amazing but the core part was Miyamoto.
Because of this he had searched around all of the World Tree area, looking for traces of Miyamoto while Hansoo was hunting for runes.
The result was a failure.
‘It didn’t seem like Hansoo moved during that time... Where did he go?’
While Jongsang squinted his eyes while thinking of Miyamoto and the other five Departed Souls, they were surprisingly all in the same place.
.................................
Boooom!
Arc Mariangt, one of the Seven Departed Souls, grinded her teeth as she looked at the purple mana reinforcement exploding towards her.
Though she had just been slightly grazed, her own mana reinforcement created by the Golden Reinforcement was getting shredded apart rapidly.
Arc Mariangt shouted out after getting pushed to the corner.
“This crazy bastard! Why are you doing this?”
10 years since she had been tied down by the Akuma below.
And because of this, she hadn’t stayed with the other Departed Souls and had separated.
She needed to enjoy her life a bit now.
Though it was a new zone, Arc Mariangt had complete faith in herself.
That she would be able to find her place quickly with her skills and experience.
‘But to meet a crazy bastard like this the moment I get up.’
Why was there no rumors when a guy like this existed?
And Arc Mariangt knew instantly of what happened to Miyamoto whom Jongsang was searching for.
Miyamoto’s skill, Miyamoto’s artifacts.
Since the guy in front of him was using all of these to smash her around.
Theirs were high level but Miyamoto’s was a level higher.
‘And what the hell is that purple reinforcement! Where did he get it!’
She had never even heard of something like that existing.
Sangjin smiled while attacking Arc Mariangt.
“Just, I kind of need an underling but having a good one is better.”
The moment these words ended, Sangjin’s purple reinforcement burnt up all the remaining reinforcements surrounding Arc Mariangt’s body.
And the golden spear that had shot up from the ground like lightning smashed onto the stomach area of Arc Mariangt.
Smack!
“Kuhuk...”
Arc Mariangt grinded her teeth whilst breathing out heavily from pain and grabbing onto her stomach.
“You bastard... You think I’ll listen to you because of this? Me?”
She realized from the attacks.
His goal was capturing her alive and not killing.
Which meant that he had something to ask of her.
Sangjin laughed as he shook his head.
“The three before you said the same thing. I don’t know where one went though.”
“What?”
As soon as his words ended, some people walked out from the trees.
Arc Mariangt swallowed her words as she saw this.
“...You guys.”
The 3 other Departed Souls whom she had separated from.
This meant that all the Departed Souls with the exception of Miyamoto, Jongsang and Sofía had been gathered here.
But they had the symbol of a Lord shining upon their hands.
‘Who was able to...?’
These guys couldn’t be handled with normal Lords.
Who had and polished such a powerful trait?
While Arc Mariangt was lost in confusion, somebody walked towards Sangjin.
The person who had the title of Dark Mad Lord in the past but had died and revived.
Wongyung looked at Sangjin and spoke while preparing to implant the symbol of a Lord.
“...If I listen to you then my daughter will be safe right?”
His daughter whom they had revived from the cross where he had revived at.
Of course it was something Yerin did in order to keep a hostage to control him but he was still extremely thankful.
But she couldn’t escape her fate of being a hostage.
Now she had become that man’s hostage.
‘Damnit...’
Sangjin laughed at Wongyung’s words and spoke.
“Of course. And I told you that this isn’t bad for you either. I told you that I’ll help you find your son right? You just need to listen to me well.”
“...”
Wongyung clenched his teeth.
This was why it was hard for him to kill that guy off.
‘...How did he find out that I had a son?’
A strange aura was constantly being released by Sangjin who seemed to always be a step ahead.
At that moment a red carrier pigeon flew to Sangjin.
“Hmm...”
Arc Mariangt sighed at the symbol on her hands as she looked at Sangjin who was looking at the carrier pigeon with a serious expression.
Though she had thoughts of rebelling during the branding process, what meaning did this have?
Arc Mariangt didn’t want to die yet.
‘Damn. To get binded down the moment I become free.’
Curiosity and loyalty were flowing into her mind as the extremely strong symbol that was beyond her imagination was burning into her.
Though a suicidal order would be a bit too hard since she was quite strong on her own but she would need to keep the lord to servant relationship no matter what.
Arc Mariangt sighed and realized that she didn’t even know the name of the person who had made this scene and then threw a question towards Sangjin.
“What do I need to call you?”
Sangjin smiled as he answered.
“No need for my name since it’s rather ordinary. Just call me Dark Mad Lord.”
“...Dark Mad Lord.”
‘Damn. I’ve really been caught by a weird one. Why such a childish name...’
Arc Mariangt threw a final question.
“Why are you doing this?”
Sangjin shrugged his shoulders.
“Just because.”
“What?”
“There’s a lot I want to do and it won’t be boring if we do it together with a lot of people. Let’s go.”
“...”
Wongyung and the others grinded their teeth at Sangjin but then started to follow after him.