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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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The Martial God, Baek Yoo-hwa, appeared just as I was about to lose my eyes.
Of course, thanks to Aegis, I wouldn’t have lost them, but…
…her timely arrival prevented that dangerous, unidentifiable finger, or tentacle, from touching my face.
“Filthy hand, get away from him.”
Baek Yoo-hwa frowned in disgust and waved her hand dismissively.
The tentacle-like finger, which had been reaching for my eyes, began to rapidly disintegrate.
The disintegration spread towards the being like falling dominoes.
However, before it could reach him, he ripped off the disintegrating arm with his other hand.
Splatter.
The arm fell to the ground. And as soon as it landed, it turned to dust and vanished.
The being looked up at Baek Yoo-hwa.
…Martial God.
Despite his featureless, blank face, I could sense his anger and hatred, as if he was looking at something utterly repulsive.
Baek Yoo-hwa scoffed, her expression filled with disdain.
“Disgusting creature, you still look as repulsive as ever.”
She swung her hand in a smooth arc.
Slice.
A cutting sound echoed.
And then…
Slide.
…the being’s upper body slid diagonally.
But only for a moment.
Gurgle!
A sickening, grotesque sound emanated from the being as thin, thread-like tentacles erupted from its body. The tentacles from its upper and lower body connected.
And its bisected body was instantly restored. The disintegrated arm regenerated.
Baek Yoo-hwa frowned slightly and clicked her tongue.
“Even without its true essence manifested, an Apostle is still an Apostle.”
Hearing her words, I realized that the being was an Apostle.
Or rather, what had been unclear became clear.
I had suspected it was an Apostle.
Its overwhelming power, far surpassing that of a Named Fallen.
The word “Apos…” that Terra had uttered before her voice disappeared.
But its appearance was different from what I remembered, so I hadn’t been certain.
The Apostles I remembered, while humanoid, were far more grotesque than the being before me, whose form was constantly shifting and distorting, making it difficult to perceive.
As Baek Yoo-hwa had said, they were all repulsive creatures.
And judging by the tentacles that had just erupted from its body, this was the Fourth Apostle.
The Fourth Apostle was the most grotesque of the Seven Apostles.
Its appearance could be described as a mass of tentacles, with eyeballs densely packed between them.
It was a monster whose mere sight could induce nausea and mental distress.
However, unlike Baek Yoo-hwa, who seemed to be able to perceive its true form, I could only see a distorted, shifting humanoid figure.
Perhaps it was due to the difference in our power…
“The reason you cannot perceive its true form is not due to the difference in your power, but rather two other factors.”
…I thought, and as if reading my mind, Baek Yoo-hwa explained.
“The first factor is that Gaia’s protective power still lingers in this world.”
She said, extending her hand towards the air.
The Fourth Apostle, who had retreated, reacted as if he wouldn’t stand idly by.
Whoosh!
He spread his arms wide and launched countless tentacles towards Baek Yoo-hwa.
But before they could reach her…
Grip.
…Baek Yoo-hwa’s eyes turned from black to red.
Her outstretched hand clenched, as if grasping something.
Hum!
A black sword, as if it had always been there, materialized in her hand, emitting a low hum.
Poof.
All the tentacles launched towards Baek Yoo-hwa turned to dust and vanished.
“And the second factor is that you possess Gaia’s origin.”
Gaia’s origin?
Was she referring to the System?
As soon as I thought that, Baek Yoo-hwa nodded.
“Yes, the very thing you’re thinking of.”
‘So that’s why I was the only one who could move.’
I looked around.
The Vice-principal and my classmates, all frozen were staring up at the sky.
They weren’t breathing, their eyelids still, as if time had stopped.
And I felt a sense of dissonance.
‘…Wait, something’s not right.’
I replayed what had just crossed my mind.
‘Their eyelids aren’t moving, and they’re not breathing.’
…As if time had stopped.
Realizing that, I looked up at the spectator stands. And I understood.
This place was fake.
‘Seriously, does it make sense for the Saintess and Sword Saint to be frozen like everyone else?’
While not as powerful as the Martial God, who was almost a demigod, they were still Transcendents.
So, this had to be an illusion.
“Have you figured it out?”
Baek Yoo-hwa smirked and slammed her sword into the ground.
Crash!
A sound like shattering glass echoed as the space around us crumbled.
Darkness, like the vast expanse of space, enveloped everything.
But even in the darkness, Baek Yoo-hwa and the Fourth Apostle remained clearly visible.
Seeing that, I knew they were real, unlike this fabricated world.
Just in case, I deactivated the voice modulation filter on Atlas Armor and asked Baek Yoo-hwa,
“…Is the Chairman before me real?”
She raised her black sword and replied,
“Well, what do you think?”
She answered my question with a question and swung her sword.
Slice!
A cutting sound echoed, and the space beside me ripped open.
Not just from its arms, but from its entire body, a torrent of tentacles erupted from the Fourth Apostle.
Whoosh!
Like crashing waves, tentacles surged towards us from all directions.
But they never reached Baek Yoo-hwa, or me.
Poof, poof, poof…!
They turned to dust the moment they entered a certain radius around her.
“My intuition tells me you’re real.”
Baek Yoo-hwa smiled faintly at my answer and waved her hand.
My body floated upwards, towards the gaping hole in space, a void where nothing could be seen.
And just before I entered the void, Baek Yoo-hwa said,
“Lee Yu-jin, wake up.”
Wake up? What do you… I tried to ask, but…
…my body had already entered the void. I felt like I was sinking into water, and then…
…my vision brightened.
A faint voice reached my ears.
“…Jin!”
What were they saying?
I focused on the voice, my mind hazy.
“…Yu-jin! …Wake…!”
“…Mr.! …Please! …Up!”
“…Quickly… Snap… Out…!”
The faint voices grew clearer.
My blurry vision began to focus.
And soon…
“Lee Yu-jin! Wake up!”
“Yu-jin-ssi! Please! Please wake up!”
“Yu-jin! Come on, snap out of it!”
…I saw Arthur, Asuka, and Lee Seo-yeon, shouting at me to wake up.
They were fending off the monsters and Fallen swarming around us.
Boom, crash! Bang!
“Shit! There are too many of them!”
Clang, clang, ching!
“Top Student! When is he going to wake up?!”
“…I don’t know! He’s still standing there, so I guess he’s still out of it!”
“Damn it! Top Student! Wake up! We’re all going to die!”
And I saw my Class A classmates.
Seeing them, I knew the situation was dire.
But to understand the situation fully, and to check on Terra, I called out to her.
‘Terra.’
And as if waiting for my call, her voice reached my ears.
– Master! You’re awake!
I sighed inwardly in relief.
I had been worried that something had happened to her when her voice disappeared after the Apostle’s gesture.
Fortunately, she seemed to be fine. Still, I asked about her condition.
‘Terra, are you okay? I think the Apostle did something to you. Is there anything wrong?’
She replied in a cheerful voice, as if reassuring me.
– Master, I’m fine. I was simply ejected from the illusion, and the System went down briefly. Nothing to worry about.
‘…Isn’t the System going down a big deal?’
– Not at all. Unlike last time, when it took twelve hours to recover, it was only down for ten seconds.
Now that she mentioned it, it didn’t seem like a big deal.
– Are you alright, Master? Is there anything wrong with your mind?
‘Yeah, thanks to the Chairman, I’m fine.’
– Oh, that’s a relief.
Having confirmed that Terra and the System were fine, I asked her to explain the current situation.
She said she would begin the briefing and started summarizing the events that had transpired.
– The situation changed drastically the moment your mind was pulled into the Apostle’s illusion.
– Demonic energy and countless Rifts poured out of the Dimensional Rift.
– However, thanks to Saintess Gloria’s swift action, all but a few Rifts and the demonic energy have been contained.
Even without Terra’s explanation, I could see it.
Beyond the shattered sky, demonic energy and black vortexes were pouring out of the Dimensional Rift.
And below, Gloria was desperately holding them back with her immense holy power.
Sword Saint Lee Jung-baek and Grand Wizard Yoo Baek are eliminating the Rifts to lessen the Saintess’s burden.
As Terra said, the vortexes, the Rifts pouring out of the Dimensional Rift, were disappearing rapidly. But the rate at which they were appearing was almost the same as the rate at which they were being destroyed.
Unless the cause of the Dimensional Rift, the Apostle, was eliminated or driven away, this situation wouldn’t end.
‘What about the civilians in the spectator stands?’
– As you prepared, Master, the portals installed in the spectator stands activated, and all the civilians were transported to the bunker beneath the Academy.
‘That’s a relief.’
I had been worried that the portals might not function properly due to the Rift, especially a Dimensional Rift.
Fortunately, that hadn’t happened.
I sighed inwardly in relief and asked if the other preparations had been successful.
– Yes, the barrier is functioning normally.
The barrier Terra mentioned was imbued with the damage absorption ability of my Aegis shields.
It was a collaborative creation of the Principal, Vice-principal, and the Crafting Instructor. And it boasted incredible defensive capabilities, able to withstand even the attacks of High-Rank Fallen.
In short, the monsters and Fallen couldn’t escape unless they breached the barrier.
Of course, we were trapped inside as well.
But none of us, including myself, intended to leave.
Not until this situation was resolved.
– Shall I continue the briefing?
‘No, that’s enough… Oh, one more thing.’
– What is it?
‘The Chairman, where is she?’
I asked, and…
– The Martial God is currently inside the Dimensional Rift.
…Terra replied.
I looked up at the Dimensional Rift.
Flash, flash!
Flashes of light erupted from within the pitch-black Rift.
Judging by the light, the Martial God and the Apostle were fighting.
‘So, I just need to hold out until the Chairman defeats the Apostle.’
As soon as I thought that…
【Hold Out.】
Using any means necessary, hold out until the Martial God, Baek Yoo-hwa, defeats the Fourth Apostle.
※ Greed is targeting you! Be careful!
Reward: 300,000 Points (Additional rewards based on performance), ???
Failure: Don’t even think about failing.
…a Great Achievement Quest appeared.
‘I was planning on holding out anyway, but this quest makes me even more motivated.’
I smirked and activated Astra’s Transformation.
Clank, clank!
Form「Transformation」
[Current Form: Atlas Armor (+Angel of Death)]
[Number of Registered Items: 4]
The Atlas Armor covering my body transformed.
Minigun barrels emerged from both shoulders.
I retrieved two more miniguns from my inventory.
Armed with four miniguns, I activated Clairvoyance.
And I opened fire.
──────────────────!!
White flashes of light rained down upon all the monsters and Fallen within Clairvoyance’s range.
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[Your Text Here]
Hmm i think i should buy some coins soon
I will as soon as the 5th cheat chapters are done I guess