------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
------------------
Chapter 20
The path between the cliffs, filled with spikes.
Baekya, with his Hardened body, advanced, shattering all the spikes in his way.
Clang!
Another spike shattered and fell.
'Talking about judgment, huh?'
The gap narrowed further.
The walls were jagged and sharp, like being inside a car wash with metal brushes instead of the usual soft ones.
'A demon who came to collect human suffering and despair.'
Baekya fearlessly threw himself into it.
'I refuse to play along with this gore story. I won't even give it a second of my time.'
Scrape!
The walls, studded with sharp spikes, couldn't pierce Baekya's white skin and were smoothly shaved away like mashed potatoes.
This was Baekya, who had climbed the Tower alone up to the 20th floor, incinerating the Tower's laws with Law of Light.
If it were before, he wouldn't have even bothered reading the finale story of this measly low-rank Gate, let alone playing along.
The notification window frantically displayed a message, as if in confusion.
【Hell of Ruin Announcement】
【Cheating through skills or other means will not be considered as clearing the Path of Judgment!】
【Deactivate Hardening!】
Baekya swatted the message away from his vision as if shooing a fly.
Eventually, thick spikes emerged from the narrow gap.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Several spikes blocked the path between the cliffs like iron bars.
'Should I break them?'
This wasn't meant to inflict pain; it was meant to completely block the path.
Another sadistic notification appeared.
【If you stay in one place for more than 60 seconds, the Path of Judgment process will end, and the Second Blood Judge will be summoned.】
【59】
【58】
'Damn it. Time...'
'Should I use Law of Light? No. My mana is already low from fighting the Rock Golem. I need to conserve it until I at least reach the heart of the Gate.'
Baekya glanced back briefly.
At this distance, Wolha probably couldn't see him clearly.
He looked up at the blood-red sky visible through the gaps.
The intention was obvious.
'You want us to play along with your story, don't you? You want us to fight amongst ourselves, to struggle and fail on this path, and to despair.'
But Baekya had never once played along with such obvious intentions.
He was the Sun of Humanity.
The pinnacle of the era.
The Chosen One.
The one who had reached the highest floor in the world.
'I decide how I will climb. I decide what story I will write. Anytime, anywhere!'
Ignoring the notification, he used his skill.
【Form of Fire】
Baekya's body transformed into flames and flickered.
He meticulously controlled his mana, maintaining a human form.
So that even from behind, no one would know he was using Form of Fire.
'If Wolha sees me using Form of Fire, he'll never believe me.'
Sizzle.
Baekya moved forward without his feet even touching the ground.
'Let's go.'
Swish.
The spikes blocking the path and the countless spikes beyond it tore at his fiery form, but they only left white scars on the burning flames.
The more notifications popped up, the more confident he became that this method was working.
【Deactivate your skill!】
The distant other side was now visible before him.
The gap between the cliffs was so narrow that even without the spikes, it would be impossible to pass through.
'I knew it. Well, at least there is another side.'
Within the space beyond the spear-like spikes...
["You."]
["What have you done?"]
["You ruined everything!"]
An androgynous demon with four arms adorned with blades and red skin pointed a finger at Baekya.
[TL/N: Androgynous — having both male and female characteristics.]
【The Lesser Demon of Pain (B-) shows strong hostility towards you.】
Baekya sneered at the demon and passed through the final spike-filled gap.
"I ruined everything? That can't be."
His flame-made body was covered in white scars.
["I'll kill you a hundred times over. I'll make you wander this hell forever."]
"I fight for this country and my dreams. That makes my actions just, and yours inherently wrong."
The androgynous demon swung all four of its blades at once.
Swish!
Instead of dodging, Baekya used a skill.
【Explosive Recovery】
Whoosh!
The power of Explosive Recovery was proportional to the number and severity of the wounds.
And Baekya's entire body was brutally lacerated.
【Titles: Demon Slayer, Flame of Exorcism, Bringer of Dawn... are activated】
The already powerful skill was further magnified several times over by the activated titles and traits.
Fwaaaaaah—!
Fierce flames erupted from the countless wounds all over his body.
The Demon of Pain widened its eyes in shock.
["Wait...!"]
Boom!
The explosion filled the space between the cliffs.
【"That was a decent finish. Explosion endings are always satisfying. The more gruesome the background, the more refreshing it feels."】
【Your Constellation 'Sunny' gives you a high-five.】
【You have defeated the Lesser Demon of Pain (B-).】
【You have acquired the Demon's (B-) Spirit Core.】
【Traits 'Pain Immunity' and 'Indomitable Will' acquired. You will no longer flinch from pain.】
【Finale Story: ‘Hell of Ruin - Path of Judgment’ has ended.】
【Reward: Certificate of Pardon (Master). The Certificate of Pardon nullifies Proposition-type status effects.】
【You have used 'Form of Fire' with exceptional control. 'Form of Fire' evolves into 'Play of Fire.' You can now maintain a clear human form even while transformed into flames.】
【Explosive Recovery used 10,000 times! 1,000,000 Achievement Points granted. The power of Explosive Recovery is increased by 250%.】
Reward messages filled one side of his vision.
Baekya immediately secured the Certificate of Pardon, which nullified Proposition-type status effects.
It was a document written on high-quality paper with gold-infused ink and stamped with a red seal.
【I, Luciella, hereby guarantee the freedom to escape from any proposition to all who possess this Certificate of Pardon (Master).】
‘This will be useful until I regain my strength.'
He placed the demon's spirit core, along with the Certificate of Pardon, into his Subspace Ring.
He could incinerate it with Law of Light and absorb its mana, or he could use it for various other purposes.
He didn't pay much attention to the traits 'Pain Immunity' and 'Indomitable Will,' or the new skill 'Play of Fire.'
After all, he was Baekya, who had stood at the pinnacle of Pyromancers.
He had experienced everything imaginable and ultimately obtained Law of Light.
'If I act on my own will, that itself becomes a skill.'
That's how Baekya organized his rewards.
Finally, he looked at the crimson orb embedded in the flesh-like rock wall, the Gate’s Core hanging halfway up the cliff.
From the beginning, he had gone through all this trouble to incinerate that core with Law of Light and absorb its mana.
Now, for the sake of the injured, he had to incinerate it with Law of Light.
He had to make their injuries disappear as if they had never happened.
* * *
It was an hour later when the Hunter from the Sun-Moon Divine Sect and the official from the Gate Management Department of Korea (GMDK) arrived at the scene.
The Gate had unfortunately opened right in the middle of the highway, paralyzing traffic in the area.
They had to arrange for a helicopter, which inevitably caused a delay.
'This is bad.'
'It's a judgment-type scenario, who knows how many casualties there might be.'
The Sun-Moon Divine Sect Hunter, dressed in a pristine white dobok adorned with a white sun and a black moon, and the GMDK Hunter in their combat uniform, leaped from the helicopter, foregoing any ropes.
[TL/N: Dobok — a traditional uniform worn in Korean martial arts.]
There were reports of a few Awakened being caught in the Gate, but statistically speaking, they were most likely all just low-ranked porters.
It would be lucky if they weren't a hindrance, let alone any help.
Such problems with low-rank Awakened were common at Gate outbreaks.
Although they were looked down upon in the Awakened society, they were still superhumans in the eyes of ordinary people, leading to frequent conflicts.
The Sun-Moon Divine Sect Hunter and the GMDK Hunter prepared themselves, expecting to mourn the blood-soaked victims.
"We're here!"
"You’ve arrived."
However, the situation on the overpass was completely different from what they had anticipated.
On the side of the road, women and children were huddled together, wrapped in blankets.
"Thank goodness."
"Did that person leave? I wanted to express my gratitude."
"I think he looked like someone famous."
Some men had parked their cars close to the roadside and were even taking charge of traffic control, setting up tripods and safety cones.
Although there were no smiles, given the ordeal they had just experienced, everyone's faces were filled with deep relief.
The GMDK official asked the taxi driver, who had just moved his cab with the missing door to the side.
"Wasn't there a Gate outbreak?"
"Yes, there was."
"But how..."
"The Awakened person I was driving was around C-Rank. At first, I thought I was going to die, but then he just stood up and..."
The two Hunters listened intently to the taxi driver's words.
'That was no joke.'
'It was a dangerous situation.'
It was a very dangerous Gate from the start, considering that a normal raid was impossible.
It was a situation where hundreds of people could have been trapped and suffered in that hell forever.
It was nothing short of a miracle.
"Is there any way we can get in touch with that person?"
The GMDK official's question made the taxi driver turn his head.
"Excuse me? Contact information… Why...?"
"The government would like to give him a reward."
"Ah."
A moment later, the Sun-Moon Divine Sect Hunter also spoke up.
"The Sun-Moon Divine Sect would also like to offer a reward."
The two Hunters looked at each other.
'It's a government reward. There's no ulterior motive!'
'I know you're just saying that to try and scout him. Don't even think about exploiting his patriotism with a lowball offer.'
The taxi driver just smiled.
"He already gave me a large sum of money as compensation for breaking my taxi door while escaping, but hearing that makes me feel relieved."
That day's story also made it into a news article.
[Seoul Overpass Gate Resolved by an Unidentified 'Good Samaritan']
Naturally, it became a hot topic on the Awakened community site, 'Star Chatter.'
[So, do we know who it was?]
[If they solo cleared that, they must be at least C+ to B- rank.]
[There's also talk that it was a porter.]
[ㄴ Why are these people so obsessed with putting down Awakened who used to be porters?]
[ㄴ Who cares about their background? They walked a path filled with spikes, enduring pain.]
[In the end, they even destroyed the Gate's core, so everyone's injuries were completely healed. They could have made a fortune selling that core, but they're a truly good person.]
The sentiment leaned towards praising the hero.
But the direction of the conversation shifted slightly with the appearance of a notable user with a High Ranker verification mark next to their ID.
Anonymous (A) [The injuries disappeared?]
[Whoa! An A-Rank hyung?]
[It's a Ranker!]
[Welcome!]
[Yes! They say the injuries disappeared. I was there for support and even got an interview.]
Anonymous (A) [That doesn't usually happen, though?]
[Huh?]
Anonymous (A) [Only Baekya-nim's Law of Light can completely erase people's injuries when a Gate is closed. He was so active that it became common knowledge in Korea, but people are misunderstanding it.]
[I'm sorry! I don't understand.]
Anonymous (A) [Really powerful curses sometimes dissipate on their own when the medium or the caster disappears. But most of them remain. Just because you break the sword that cut you doesn't mean your wound disappears, right?]
[???]
[Am I the only one having a mental breakdown?]
Anonymous (A) [Well, maybe that Gate was special.]
Anonymous (A) [Or maybe that Hunter awakened a similar ability to him.]
* * *
Ilha and Wolha's house.
In the room.
I sat at the desk, lost in thought.
I messed up.
I was reading through the fiery threads on 'Star Chatter.'
I just did what I always did, out of habit.
For me, who could absorb mana with Law of Light, it was more beneficial to absorb the Gate's core than to sell it.
"Could he actually be alive?"
"I wish the whole death announcement was just a hilarious prank."
"If the GMDK hasn't made an announcement yet because of that, it would be awesome."
I read a few comments in a low voice and then turned off my smartphone screen.
"..."
Anyway, I have no regrets.
If I hadn't used Law of Light, countless people would have been seriously injured or killed.
I would use it again if the same situation arose.
But I also thought that I should live more cautiously from now on.
Those self-proclaimed... Yes, those self-proclaimed Regressors didn't care that I had saved the Earth and the country countless times.
Because I had killed them once.
Knock. Knock.
There was a knock on the door.
"Hyung, here. I wore it well."
Wolha handed me the Crystal Coat.
I expected him to ask where I got it.
But Wolha just said—
"Thank you."
He looked at me with those sincere eyes, filled with the belief that I would tell him everything someday.
"I just did my brotherly duty for once. Get some rest, you must be tired. It's damn hard to even come home once these days."
Wolha left, leaving the Crystal Coat behind.
Ding.
I checked the text message that had just arrived on my smartphone.
It was from the Sun-Moon Divine Sect.
Reward or compensation, whatever.
Tomorrow, I can finally launder the cash in my inventory.
From now on, I'll eat steak every day.
------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Hestia
[Proofreader - Kaya]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
------------------
