Return of the Shattered Constellation

[The Trap ‘Phantom Maze Circle’ has been completely eliminated!]

“Talk! Where the hell did Gwak Do-Woon go?!” Seo Jeong-Gwon hissed.

“Hehe! No matter how hard you try, you’ll never make us talk…!” one of the demonic Players retorted in satisfaction.

Snap!

Jeong-Gwon forcefully held the demonic Player up in the air by grabbing his collar, but the Player just continued to sneer at Jeong-Gwon. In the end, Jeong-Gwon simply snapped the Player’s neck. Sticking out his tongue, the Player died with the satisfaction of successfully protecting his teacher.

“Shit!” Jeong-Gwon swore in irritation, throwing the Player’s corpse to the ground.

His eyes were wide, burning with murderous intent. The demonic being he had just killed was the last, and all the others he had killed were no different. No matter how many times Jeong-Gwon had broken their limbs and fingers, they had held out, refusing to give up Do-Woon’s destination until the end. Instead, they had merely smirked or spat in Jeong-Gwon’s face with contempt. As Jeong-Gwon could never let people who humiliated him live, he had become more and more frustrated.

“Arrgggh!” Jeong-Gwon yelled, unable to hold his anger in, and his scream echoed loudly across the mountain.

* * *

“Find him by any means necessary!”

Woof! Woof, woof!

Players and soldiers moved through the area urgently, accompanied by several hounds that ran with them.

“Huff… huff…!” Do-Woon panted heavily as he climbed up the slope which nobody used.

In order to avoid leaving a trail of blood, he had decided to walk along a brook; every step he forced himself to take left a splash. He no longer had a right arm, as he had lost it while trying to escape.

[The Celestial ‘Weeping Mōryō’ looks at you sorrowfully.]

As he was surrounded by enemies, he could no longer do anything. The [Phantom Maze Circle], which the Highoff Clan had put their hearts and souls into, was completely obliterated. His loyal subordinates were all killed. Players were everywhere, making it difficult to successfully escape.

‘What should I do now…?’ Do-Woon wondered.

Would it be best to go back to the Dungeon? He thought of staying by the Phantom Demon Jeong Yoo-Jin’s side to kill as many punitive force members as possible. However, Yoo-Jin had explicitly told him something when Do-Woon left the Dungeon.

“Don’t even think about returning alive if you want to atone to Mom.”

She had ordered him to succeed no matter what, while implying Do-Woon had to die regardless of the plan’s outcome.

‘Ah, you aren’t going to open up to me. You’re cold, so cold,’ Do-Woon thought.

He should have felt bitter upon receiving such a heartless order from Yoo-Jin, but instead, he merely smiled faintly.

‘Well, you were also like her when you were young… She really is your daughter, Su-Ah,’ Do-Woon thought, quietly muttering the name of his old lover. He had loved her dearly, and yet ended up letting go of her. ‘Although I look like a defeated soldier… That doesn’t mean I should die like one.’

With his remaining arm, Do-Won rubbed the pendant around his neck as he drew up every bit of his mana. His eyes began glowing with ghostly wisps.

‘Just like you said, I won’t return alive, but I’ll… help you get what you want by burning up the last bit of my flame,’ Do-Woon thought with determination. It would be his last gift to his daughter, whom he had not known existed for over twenty years.

[The Celestial ‘Weeping Mōryō’ will sorrowfully watch you until the end.]

Although Do-Woon’s mana was depleted, he would be able to fight for about half an hour more if he used his life force, and that would be enough time to neutralize a part of the punitive force. Thus, he inhaled deeply and started up his magic organ with determination.

[You have fallen into an unknown trap!]

‘What?’ Do-Woon thought, coming to a halt upon seeing the message that suddenly appeared before him.

‘A trap? Here?’ A shiver ran down his spine. He quickly looked around and realized everything around him had paused. The area was quiet, and he could no longer feel the mountain breeze. Even the crickets had stopped chirping.

It was similar to what Do-Woon had experienced in the [Phantom Maze Circle]. That was how he finally realized he had fallen into a trap. Just as he had lured many punitive force members into the [Phantom Maze Circle], he had fallen into a trap made by someone else.

The problem was that he could not figure out the trap’s structure, so he did not know how it worked, despite the fact that he had become an expert in traps while going through all kinds of Dungeons.

“…Come out!” Do-Woon eventually yelled, his mana-infused voice echoing loudly.“Come out now!”

Suddenly, the bush beside him shook briefly, and a slender and handsome man slowly walked out.

“Who are you?” Do-Woon asked, glaring and narrowing his eyes.

He did not recognize Chang-Sun at all, because after the Highoff Clan’s secret was revealed to the world and the authorities put an APB out on the Clan members, he had become too busy to learn what was going on in the world. Thus, he did not know who Chang-Sun was, even though the media had constantly been broadcasting stories about Chang-Sun. On top of that, Do-Woon had no interest in the world of professional gamers, so he had even more of a reason not to know who Chang-Sun was.

Chang-Sun pondered how to answer Do-Woon’s question for a while. Suddenly, an idea flashed into his mind; he pulled out an object from his inventory and replied, “Would this suffice as an answer?”

Chang-Sun put the Hahoe mask on his face, causing Do-Woon to recognize him as the ‘Hahoe Mask’. He was the cause of the Highoff Clan’s downfall, and had been on the news after being caught on CCTV.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ is laughing his head off after seeing the mask you pulled out!]

Although Heoju had sustained as much damage as the Highoff Clan, he was still amused when he found out Chang-Sun was the ‘Hahoe Mask’, perhaps because he believed [Peter’s Key] had become his in the end, just as he wanted.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ likes you even more!]

“You…!” Do-Woon exclaimed, his eyes widening in shock. He had never expected to meet the person responsible for his Clan’s downfall. Soon, his expression hardened as he continued, “…Yes, you’re the one behind all this. The punitive force, my Clan…They were all your pawns. That’s why I ended up like this.”

Do-Woon believed Chang-Sun had meticulously planned to conquer ‘Bestla’s Tomb’, then lead the Highoff Clan to escape to ‘Yeti Hill’ to avoid being hunted by the White Tiger Clan. On top of that, he believed Chang-Sun was using the Council as his pawn, while plotting to obliterate the [Phantom Maze Circle] and confine Do-Woon after making him run away pathetically.

Chang-Sun thought Do-Woon had massively misunderstood him, but he did not bother to correct the misconception; after all, he had been waiting for Do-Woon to fall behind, alone and injured.

[The ‘Maze Runes’ that have been carved in various places, are active!]

…

[The level of ‘Intermediate Trap Installation’ has increased!]

[The level of ‘Intermediate Trap Installation’ has increased!]

…

[The installed trap’s difficulty level has been recognized. The Skill ‘Lesser Rune Creation’ and the Skill ‘Lesser Rune Engraving’ have been upgraded to the Skill ‘Intermediate Rune Creation’ and the Skill ‘Intermediate Rune Engraving’!]

The [Maze Runes] Chang-Sun had installed in advance had activated. Unless they were all destroyed, no one would be able to tell what was going on in the area.

‘Well, a high ranker over Level 80 might,’ Chang-Sun thought with a shrug. However, such high rankers would never come to this kind of place, so what happened here would not leak outside in the end.

“You’re the person responsible for spoiling all of our plans,” Do-Woon growled, tightly clenching his fists; his knuckles cracked audibly. His red ghost energy had turned black, which meant he had begun to use his life force and was undergoing mana deviation, just as Jeong-Gwon had. He continued angrily, “I should shred you to pieces first.”

Swish―!

Do-Woon launched himself at Chang-Sun, instinctively wanting to kill the man standing before him. Seo Jeong-Gwon? Woo Yeong-Geun? Forget them. He had never cared about what happened to them in the first place. The White Tiger Clan? The Sword of Ohsung Clan? Those did not matter either. He had lived on the streets, but eventually rose from his humble beginnings and earned people’s respect. After retiring as an old veteran, he had fallen, becoming a demonic being. He had led a turbulent life, so he could instinctively tell…

Chang-Sun was a threat. If Do-Woon failed to kill Chang-Sun here, his only daughter would never survive, let alone the Highoff Clan. The [Everlasting Ice Crystal]? The [Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan]? None of that would help. Thus, Do-Woon concluded he had to die with Chang-Sun. It was the only gift Do-Woon could give to his daughter, who had been born as an illegitimate child, not even knowing her father’s surname. But…

Even as Do-Woon charged toward Chang-Sun, Chang-Sun merely smiled lightly as opposed to appearing threatened in any way. Do-Woon felt a shiver running down his spine once again. ‘He’s smiling…? He wanted me to react this way…!’

Do-Woon was afraid of Chang-Sun, who seemed to have an endless variety of plans, but he swung his fist violently regardless.

Rumble!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh―!

As he used [Jade Smashing Fist] with his full strength, a vicious whirlwind formed at the end of his fist.

Clang!

However, Do-Woon’s fist attack was blocked by Chang-Sun’s [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth]. His fists, which were known to be capable of crushing metal, were stopped cold. In fact, Chang-Sun had even left scratches with his dagger. Do-Woon could actually see his blood dripping and evaporating amid the boiling hot air.

‘Relic!’ Do-Woon thought, his eyes widening.

At the same time, Chang-Sun moved forward and slashed Do-Woon’s arm from his fist to his forearm.

Splash―!

Do-Woon’s blood splattered through the air like a fountain. Gritting his teeth tightly, he closed the gap between him and Chang-Sun. As it was difficult to deal with Chang-Sun’s weapon, he believed it would be better to move closer to Chang-Sun and fight in close quarters.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Rumble―!

However, Do-Woon realized he had misjudged the situation after exchanging several attacks in a flash. ‘He’s a monster.’

He had thought he would be at an advantage if he stopped Chang-Sun from using a weapon, but Chang-Sun had no difficulty fighting in close combat and never left himself open to attack. In fact, Chang-Sun even abruptly pulled out his whip from time to time and skillfully aimed for Do-Woon’s blind spots, filling Do-Woon with terror. Chang-Sun could not be killed; he was a monster that brought despair.

Pah!

[The Title ‘Jigwi’s Phantom Body’ has been applied.]

[A firestorm is raging!]

The moment Chang-Sun spread the Jigwi’s wings and covered [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth] with a large plume of Eon Fire…

Boom!

“Urgh!” Do-Woon was blasted backward, coughing up blood.

Chang-Sun intoned, “Howl.”

At the same time, he slid across the ground to approach Do-Woon, holding the [Yuchang Sword] and [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth], which both revealed their true forms.

Ooong―!

It was difficult for the already fatigued Do-Woon to withstand the swirling mix of divine and demonic energy and the Eon Fire, even if he used up his life force.

[The State ‘Cruel Tiger’ has been applied, activating the Additional Skill ‘Cruel Tiger’s Venomous Fang’!]

Slash―!

Splash!

The [Yuchang Sword], the divine sword that had revealed its sharp edge, moved quickly to cut out Do-Woon’s remaining left arm[1]. Its strike was so sharp that it seemed as if it would be able to cut metal and shatter jade[2]; it did not matter how sturdy Do-Woon’s arm was due to [Jade Smashing Fist].

Once again, Do-Woon’s blood splattered in the air like a fountain, and he was left in so much pain that he could not even scream. This time, [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth] moved toward Do-Woon’s leg. The demonic sword’s wicked and vicious teeth cut—no, tore through Do-Woon’s lower body. Unlike the clean cuts created by [Yuchang Sword], [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth] created jagged wounds.

“Yoo… Jin…!” Do-Woon plaintively called out his daughter’s name in pain, but his voice was so faint that he could not possibly reach her. Still, he wanted to see his daughter, who looked just like his old lover…

However, almost as if Chang-Sun were sneering at Do-Woon’s last wish, he stabbed Do-Woon in the chest with his sword until the blade struck dirt.

Stab!

“…Urgh!” Do-Woon vomited blood as Chang-Sun looked down coldly at him.

When Do-Woon met Chang-Sun’s gaze, he saw a dreadful shine in the other man’s eyes that filled him with horror.

1. The raw said right arm, but he lost his right arm while trying to escape. This seems to be a typo. ☜

2. The raw is ‘단금절옥(斷金切玉)’. This is a saying from Kingdoms in Peril (신열국지/ 新列國志) used to describe a powerful attack. ☜