Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 268: Star, the U.S. (3)

Honk, hooooonk!

Beeeeep―!

The situation on the roads was messy due to the jammed traffic.

“What is this?!”

“Why isn’t everyone going—!”

The drivers got off their cars and yelled at eacg other at the top of their lungs. However, some screamed upon noticing something odd. They were pointing in a certain direction at the sky.

“Th-th-that’s—!”

“Hey, what’s wrong with you? What are you look—! Huuuup!”

“A Giant…?”

“Run! Now!” someone shouted. At the same time, a fireball struck the center of the road.

Booom!

The car owner managed to survive because he ran away despite how pale he was turning, but his car was ruined beyond recognition like a crushed can. Unfortunately, that only marked the beginning of an even bigger catastrophe.

Dozens of fireballs fell from the sky like fiery hail.

“It’s a Player! A Player!”

“Is this a Player’s terror attack?! I didn’t read any news about a Dungeon Break!”

“Shit! What are the FBI and the Council doing!”

“Arggghhh!”

Screaming, the people on the road began to run away from the incident site. Those inside the nearby buildings also started running to an evacuation shelter, which had been prepared as a contingency for situations like this.

Blare!

Mayhem erupted in the center of Chicago.

* * *

‘… He’s strong!’ Moon Yi-Byeol gritted her teeth.

Seo Jeong-Gwon used to create all sorts of troubles and problems, but Yi-Byeol never lost her composure or her expressionlessness because of him. However, Chang-Sun was so strong that she was having a hard time keeping herself together. Although she was aware that he was now considered the strongest Player in the world, she thought that his reputation had to have some holes in it. Unfortunately, she was proven wrong.

‘No, my actual mistake was thinking that the Raid Team Two members and I were strong enough to take him on.’

Gildals were surely strong. Once they released their hidden ghost energies, they became unthinkably powerful humans. Their senses, stamina, instincts… Their every part became perfect, turning them into supernatural monsters. That was why Yi-Byeol was confident that she and the other raid team members could subdue an Overlord.

However, becoming a supernatural monster wasn’t enough to defeat Chang-Sun, who was already a deity.

Rumbleee―!

[The fifth chapter ‘Abruptæ Procellæ’ has been applied, creating an Atra Fulmen storm!]

Black lightning bolts struck the ground, creating thick dust clouds that made it impossible for Yi-Byeol and the raid team to see up ahead. Winds clashed against one another and produced ghastly wails, dulling the Gildals’ sharp senses. This prevented them from attacking Chang-Sun together, which was their specialty.

Wooosh, wooosh, woosh…!

Kiyaaaah―!

[The fiend is going on a rampage!]

Helpless against the black Giant, who was running around unhindered by the lightning storm, they were killed one after another.

Creeeak.

Having drank a lot of blood, the black Giant went through another change. The bust of a being that seemed to be the combination of a fiend and an evil monster appeared atop the sandstorm. Meanwhile, the being itself could now be seen much more vividly than before and had a much clearer presence. With each swing of its arms, the Giant unleashed flaming lightning bolts that eliminated the Raid Team Two members.

‘I have to find him somehow!’ Yi-Byeol bit her lower lip, barely managing to deflect the flaming lightning bolt coming toward her head.

Her arm hurt so much that she felt as if it would be torn away soon, and her sword was overheating, emitting white smoke. Nevertheless, she continued to look around her. She had to stop Chang-Sun from getting out of this place no matter what.

Yi-Byeol and all the other Raid Team Two members unanimously believed that they had to extricate Jeong-Gwon from this place. Although Jeong-Gwon looked like a simple-minded wild man, he was the only one who could fulfill their long desire that had nothing to do with the White Tiger Clan. They had been dreaming of it ever since they had become a team…

Whirl―!

Yi-Byeol’s train of thought was stopped by a large axe flying across the air from the sandstorm. By the time she noticed it, it had embedded deep into her head.

Smmmack!

[The ‘Jin Can Axe’ has successfully eliminated the Player ‘Moon Yi-Byeol’!]

Fragments of her skull dropped to the ground.

* * *

[The sixth chapter of ‘Prelati’s Spellbook’ has opened!]

[A part of the sixth chapter, ‘Fulgurator,’ has been applied!]

Just as Jeong-Gwon started thinking that he had escaped the lightning storm, Chang-Sun appeared in front of him.

“Too late,” Chang-Sun said.

“Hup…!” Jeong-Gwon’s eyes widened. He didn’t expect Chang-Sun could track him down and block his path so quickly. Nevertheless, Jeong-Gwon crossed his arms in preparation for the imminent attack. His mana was quickly replenished, energizing him.

Kyaaah―!

[The ‘Hohwan Mama’ is screaming!]

Boooom!

Chang-Sun thrust the Nameless Spear and unleashed a destructive explosion through the combination of his Atra Fulmen energy and the ice energy of the spear’s [Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Crystal]. To top it all off, he even used a part of Fulgurator.

“… Woah,” Chang-Sun quietly exclaimed, looking at Jeong-Gwon, who was getting catapulted to the ground due to the shock. His attack would have already killed most apostles, but Jeong-Gwon was still alive.

Chang-Sun did weaken the attack a little right before he launched it because he had no intention to kill Jeong-Gwon right now, but he still left enough power in it to permanently incapacitate him. Nevertheless, Jeong-Gwon remained relatively unscathed, breaking Chang-Sun’s expectations.

On the other hand, Jeong-Gwon was going through so much hell right now that if he knew what Chang-Sun was thinking, he would have been furious. They exchanged attacks only once, yet that nearly crushed half of Jeong-Gwon’s upper body. Moreover, Chang-Sun’s lightning energy was creeping inside him, ripping his magic organ to shreds. Jeong-Gwon and Yeong-Gwon were the proud rankers of Korea, yet Jeong-Gwon had been incapacitated in a flash.

Smilodon? His title meant nothing now that he was about to be inflicted with the Demonization Syndrome, which he had only ever heard about.

Booooom!

Jeong-Gwon powerlessly fell to the center of the asphalt road, creating a crater and a cloud of dust upon impact. His spine was completely shattered, preventing him from moving. All he could do was cough up blood as if he was firing arrows.

‘When in the world did I get into this state…?!’ Jeong-Gwon thought.

Judging from how he had trouble breathing, his other intestines had likely been ruined as well. He instinctively tried to survive, but when he took a deep breath, he felt the sharp spearhead of Chang-Sun’s Nameless Spear in his right chest.

“Urgggh!” Jeong-Gwon groaned.

“Pretty rude of you to run away. I’m not done talking,” Chang-Sun said.

Jeong-Gwon’s lips trembled as he saw Chang-Sun’s eyes emitting navy-blue light. Chang-Sun’s gray hair looked so ominous that it appeared to have abundant ghost energy.

“I’ll say it again. Become my subordinate, Seo Jeong-Gwon,” Chang-Sun offered.

He didn’t bother to hide how much he wanted Jeong-Gwon on his side. His plan was to take over the White Tiger Clan, and he had a strong feeling that Jeong-Gwon would make a fine Clan leader for the new White Tiger Clan. Although Chang-Sun had extended the same proposal earlier, he actually could not care less whether or not Jeong-Gwon agreed, so he had been willing to eliminate Jeong-Gwon if he resisted.

However, Chang-Sun thought differently now. Jeong-Gwon managed to withstand his attack, which had a part of Fulgurator applied to it. With that as evidence of Jeong-Gwon’s great skills and abilities, Chang-Sun naturally wanted him to be a part of the new <Order> of ‘Divine Twilight.’

Jeong-Gwon responded by spitting on Chang-Sun’s face, but Chang-Sun didn’t dodge. He simply wiped it off his face, which remained expressionless.

“Haven’t I told you that tigers never move in a group—Arrrgghhh!” Jeong-Gwon tried to sneer but ended up screaming again when Chang-Sun pushed the spearhead deeper into him.

“I admire your guts, but I’m not sure what’s making you so confident,” Chang-Sun said.

The more Chang-Sun rotated his Nameless Spear, the more Jeong-Gwon writhed due to the unbearable pain. While trembling as if he was having a seizure, Jeong-Gwon’s limbs drooped like a machine that had been powered off. However, though very faint, he was still breathing despite losing consciousness.

『Hyung-nim, we should get out of here!』

Not long after, he received an urgent message from Shin Geum-Gyu.

‘Oh, yeah. It’s considered a terror attack for Players to have a match downtown,’ Chang-Sun thought.

The U.S. was very strict about terrorism, and it seemed that the police officers and FBI agents were already swarming toward them. He had to leave this place before things became more complicated. Chang-Sun raised his head as he picked up and put Jeong-Gwon over his left shoulder.

“He’s heavy,” Chang-Sun quietly assessed.

Paaah!

At the same time, he left the area.

* * *

“… Hup!”

Jeong-Gwon gasped when he opened his eyes again, but the tremendous pain rushing in like a tsunami abruptly made him groan and grit his teeth.

After a while, he heard a familiar voice from above him.

“Finally.”

“You—!” Jeong-Gwon swiftly raised his head and saw Chang-Sun looking down at him.

The navy-blue fires in Chang-Sun’s eyes were gone, but they were still emotionless. Wanting to somehow fight back, Jeong-Gwon tried to stand up, but he couldn’t even lift a finger. He could always fight like a beast due to how much mana he had, but he couldn’t circulate his mana right now either.

No, to be precise, he could feel nothing below his neck.

“You won’t be able to move because I cut everything off,” Chang-Sun said.

“…”

They were currently in pitch-black darkness, but judging from the musty smell, they seemed to be in an abandoned factory on the outskirts of the city.

“This is your last chance. Become my subordinate,” Chang-Sun continued.

“Hahahaha! You gotta be bullshitting me! Do you seriously think I’ll join the bastard who killed all my children? Does Seo Jeong-Gwon the Smilodon mean nothing to you?” Jeong-Gwon burst into laughter. He had trouble breathing, so his laughter was quiet, but his eyes still blazed up with anger.

Moon Yi-Byeol and the other Raid Team Two members weren’t just Jeong-Gwon’s subordinates. They were his teeth, claws, and heart. Instinctively knowing that they had all been killed, the grudge he had right now could not be appeased so easily.

Chang-Sun smirked as he looked at Jeong-Gwon. “I hope you can keep that spirit up.”

* * *

“… Are there any civilian casualties?” Yeong-Geun asked.

“Doesn’t look like it,” Shin Eun-Seo responded.

“Thank god…” Yeong-Geun let out a deep sigh.

It had only been half a day, but Yeong-Geun seemed to have aged ten years. That was only natural, though, since Chicago was one of the most famous metropolises in the U.S., so he never expected a battle to break out in it. Moreover, Chang-Sun just extended a recruitment offer to a demonic being… Yeong-Geun had been living as an ordinary Player, so this series of incidents didn’t sit well with him.

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ advises her apostle candidate not to rashly force your sense of justice on other people! ]

Upon reading Ueopwang’s message, Yeong-Geun sighed quietly. Although he knew what Ueopwang meant, he wasn’t really sure if he should just let this matter go.

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ sighs and says that you are as inflexible as a log of wood.]

As Yeong-Geun read Ueopwang’s last message…

Creak!

… the door to the abandoned factory where Chang-Sun and Jeong-Gwon were opened up wide. Yeong-Geun smelled the unoiled door’s metallic scent. However, it was tinged with the smell of blood.

Yeong-Geun raised his guard once more and unknowingly held his breath. The media had always considered Jeong-Gwon as Yeong-Geun’s rival, yet Chang-Sun had just subdued Jeong-Gwon with ease. Hence, he could not help but find Chang-Sun’s eyes terrifying. The fact that Chang-Sun could look at others and point his sword at them the same way made him nervous

However, what made Yeong-Geun truly frightened was…

“Have you found them?” Eun-Seo asked.

… the fact that Eun-Seo, Geum-Gyu, and Hye-Bin looked at Chang-Sun with absolute trust, which could never be found in ordinary organizations or groups. Although Yeong-Geun was afraid of how this was possible, he could not help but envy their trust at the same time.

Meanwhile, Chang-Sun quietly nodded as he looked at his team members. “Downtown Chicago.”