Chapter 561 – Rebellion (9)
There was no doubt whatsoever.
Whooooo-!
Even now, my hair is fluttering in a weak breeze.
Patter!
Even as the parts of the body that were cut off without hesitation were dripping with red blood.
“… !”
It was natural.
All four people in front of me were S-class hunters.
As long as you do well in the promotion battle, which is no different from a ceremonial event, you can live a life without envy.
The family is pouring a huge amount of money into keeping them in the shadows.
Therefore, they had to obediently follow the will of their family.
Also, it had to be strong.
‘… Is it a dream?’
The situation unfolding before my eyes hardly felt realistic.
Isn’t that ridiculous?
Is it possible for one S-class hunter to win against four in just one move?
But soon I had no choice but to admit it.
“Ugh… !”
“Kwaaak!”
“Ah, ahhh!”
“Cough… !”
Arms and legs.
Because the painful screams of those who lost body parts held on tightly to his reason and did not let go.
“This, this…”
Cheonggrang!
The wine glass slipped out of my weakened grasp and fell into pieces, scattering.
My mind was painted red.
Dantalion’s harsh voice, saying that one must not let one’s guard down, is played continuously.
Whisk!
A hollow laugh escaped his lips as he knelt on the broken glass.
Haha…”
I finally understand.
“Okay…, I am a bug.”
Why did he call himself a fool?
Whether it is knowledge or the future.
Its value varies depending on how the person holding it uses it.
He knew it early on.
Even if you give me a thousand pieces of knowledge, I won’t be able to extract it all.
That’s why I saved it.
Only then can he, his foolish father, and his grandfather.
I know that I will remain loyal to the depleted knowledge and to pursue the future.
On the contrary, the people who sacrificed themselves for him must have all been outstanding people.
The type of person who will understand ten things if you teach them one thing.
Drawing a complete picture in my head and implementing it with just one piece of knowledge I gained.
So the ungrateful genius will no longer look for himself.
“Tsk…, Tsk tsk tsk… !”
Only then do I realize.
The true value of those who sacrificed for their family.
These are the same people who would have been able to lead the family to the path of abundance without relying on Dantalion’s knowledge.
Myself, my father, my grandfather.
He was acting as a puppet lord of the castle built by sacrificing such great people.
Haha!”
It’s funny.
It’s funny, and it’s funny.
So much so that it’s helpful not to go crazy right away.
This whole situation is ridiculous, and I feel so ridiculous for playing a trick on him that I can’t stand it!
“Ah…, Yes, that’s right.”
Why did I forget?
Lim Na-eun.
A child who was exceptionally bright from a young age.
Even though she had to grow up hiding her family name, she never once complained.
A loving child who always showed a warm smile to herself and her family.
“My little brother…”
Since when did it start?
She began to think of the child she considered her younger brother as nothing more than a sacrifice or sacrifice.
“…”
A head that falls helplessly.
Kim Do-jin, who was quietly watching this, was just dumbfounded.
“… “What are you doing, that?”
I guess he was very disappointed because the S-class people he cared about lost.
I pass by those who have lost their will to fight and approach Lim Ji-hoon, who is sitting helplessly with his head down.
Hair drooping and drenched in sweat and alcohol.
The blood leaking from my knees on the floor is turning the surrounding area red.
“Hey.”
Shoulders twitching at the low voice.
Realizing that reason has not completely disappeared yet, I ask him.
“Blow gently. “Where Naeun is.”
From the moment I got close to this mansion, I felt a strange wave.
Apparently high concentration of magic attribute on site.
Extremely regular, unpleasant waves mixed in an irregular flow.
It wasn’t an unfamiliar feeling.
These waves usually appear just before or where a crack is created.
I finally realized it, feeling an infinitely more familiar sensation.
The reason they can’t escape from here.
Think at the same time.
If Lim Na-eun is somewhere here.
“In that underground crack… “Is there Naeun?”
I guess that’s where she should be.
“…”
There is no answer.
But it was a sufficient answer.
Because my constantly twitching shoulders became a more accurate standard for judgment than words.
“Under…”
I just sigh.
Kim Do-jin doesn’t know.
What lurks in the cracks down there.
But I am certain that it is not a very safe place.
I thought I knew why Lim Na-eun left so sadly, as if she was someone I could no longer see.
“These guys are complete trash.”
A fire rises in my eyes.
I feel once again disillusioned with the group called family.
Why?
Why?
Isn’t family something that deserves to be embraced and cherished even when everyone in the world criticizes them?
But why do they all regard their family as nothing more than expendable items?
“… “I don’t know anymore.”
At first, I thought they were strange, but now I can’t be sure.
Maybe you are strange.
But that doesn’t really matter.
Either strange or not strange.
Because the fact that I hate people who treat their family as mere expendable items doesn’t change.
The sharp sword was aimed at the sagging crown of his head and struck down.
“Stop!”
An urgent voice stopped his movements.
The one who appeared with a shout was a middle-aged man with a stocky physique.
Lim Cheol-ho, the second CEO who currently leads Mirae Group.
He appears from the darkness and bows his head respectfully.
“… I will personally guide you to where Naeun is. So please stop.”
* * *
Walk down the endless spiral stairs.
Important information pours out from Chairman Lim Cheol-ho, who is walking down ahead to provide guidance.
“Just as you said.”
“… ?”
“There is a crack-down here.”
It looks like he was listening to what I said a little while ago.
“I don’t know how long it has been here. However, my father was the first to discover it, and I have lived here to protect it ever since.”
I lived to protect the crack… ?
It seems like there’s more lurking inside than I thought.
His words continue.
“I heard that there were no monsters from the time it was discovered. But…”
His steps stop for a moment.
After confirming that his steps have stopped, he starts walking again and mutters softly.
“Something that cannot be compared to monsters is just taking up its place.”
“… ?”
The end of his calm voice trembles slightly.
The fear and fear felt within it.
And reverence.
A being that cannot be compared to monsters.
What is that?
“Strictly speaking, he is the owner of the future group. We are nothing more than a fox guard and his faithful servants.”
The more I listen to the story, the more I feel like I’m falling into a labyrinth.
Are you the true owner of the future group?
What lives in the cracks?
That means…, Unlike monsters, it should be seen as a being with a distinct ego and intelligence.
The stairs that seemed endless finally come to an end, and a familiar figure comes into view.
A black sphere that distorts its surroundings and shows off its overwhelming texture and presence.
Chairman Lim Cheol-ho, standing in front of them, opens his mouth.
“My daughter is here.”
“…”
The words he said a moment ago come to mind.
A being so great that it cannot even be compared to monsters.
The fear and awe shown when recalling him.
“Would you like to go in first? Or not…”
“I’ll go in first.”
Prepare for emergencies.
He shows a somewhat resigned attitude, but we cannot take this for granted.
I put my hand to the crack with the thought that anything can happen.
Eyes that naturally close and a feeling of floating as if flying up into the sky.
Eventually, the feeling of the new terrain touching your feet announces that you have arrived in an unfamiliar land.
Open your eyes slowly and read the message in front of you naturally.
[You have entered the dungeon ‘Swamp of Knowledge.’]
“Swamp of knowledge…”
The higher the level of the dungeon, the more information the name given there provides.
But I don’t know yet.
What does the swamp of knowledge remind us of?
Soon after, Chairman Lim Cheol-ho arrives.
He naturally moves in front of me.
Walk down a long passageway with torches scattered here and there.
Around the time when both the front and back were stained with darkness and became invisible.
He opens his mouth.
“As you saw, the name of this dungeon is Swamp of Knowledge. I think it suits you very well.”
His face, reflected at first glance by the torchlight, shows deep regret.
“Our Lim family is deeply involved in this place. So much so that I couldn’t escape on my own.”
It is too late at least.
Either struggle or break your ankle.
The time to get out of the swamp on our own has long passed.
All they can do is bow down endlessly or hope for someone to take them out.
Is that why?
“I think it might have been fate that brought you to this place.”
A worthy sacrifice for the prosperity of the family.
The ripples caused by the shackles that took place over several decades and have now become so natural.
He suddenly stops walking, looks up at me, and opens his mouth.
“So, I would like to ask you for one favor.”
“… “A favor?”
Chairman Lim Cheol-ho takes a deep breath and shakes his head.
“If you want to save Na-eun, you will inevitably have to fight him.”
“So?”
“Please save my daughter.”
“…”
I am dumbfounded.
It’s funny at the same time.
In order to make Lim Na-eun her scapegoat, it would be possible only with the consent of her parents.
In other words, doesn’t Chairman Lim Cheol-ho also agree to this?
But suddenly he asked me to save his daughter.
He shakes his head, as if looking into my heart.
“It’s not that I was hoping for forgiveness or that I came to my senses too late.”
“What is it, then?”
“Just…, I just want to follow fate.”
A determination appears on his dark face, as if he has made a big decision in his heart.
“Like I said, we’re in a swamp. It was already too late to escape on my own. So I want to leave it to you.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you save my daughter from that being, we will pay for our sins.”
Paying for your sins.
In what way?
His words continue.
“I will dispose of all the wealth and glory that I have achieved through him.”
“…”
Disposal…
How?
“I will give everything to Naeun, who has suffered for the rest of his life because he was labeled as a victim. If the child does not want it, he will make the child decide.”
“That word… “Are you serious?”
“Exactly. Personally, I wish the rest of the family would be allowed to have enough assets to live comfortably for the rest of their lives…, That will be my daughter’s choice.”
It doesn’t sound false.
So I became more puzzled and curious.
What on earth is in front of me that makes me act like this?
It was right then.
-“Do you want to know?”
The voice of a kind grandfather resonates.
-“If you want to know, come in. “I am in this.”
This time it’s my grandmother’s voice.
-“I’ll be waiting.”
Next is the voice of a woman who is beyond alluring.
“…”
I feel a sense of brilliance so distant that it is difficult to describe in each word.
I feel like my insides have been ripped out.
At that time, another voice resonates in my heart.
[“Ho…, I feel a very familiar presence.”]
This time it was a familiar voice.
Gula.
She spoke to me.
[“You must have tasted defeat for an extremely long time…, Looks like he still hasn’t given up on his dream.”]
Dream?
What dream?
[“A dream to bring down the existing Seven Deadly Sins and become the new owner of that position.”]
The new seven deadly sins.
Weren’t the Seven Deadly Sins a fixed position from the beginning?
[“There has been no change from time immemorial to the present, but it does not mean that the position has never been in danger.”]
It was dangerous…, If you had been pushed back then, does this mean that your position might have changed?
[“There is a high probability that it would have happened.”]
I’m even more curious.
What is the being inside that has risen to the level of the Seven Deadly Sins?
It was right then.
-“Hol hole…, The curiosity about me is growing within you.”
A voice resonates once again.
[“I guess you’re curious about him.”]
And one more thing.
The voices of two distant beings echo alternately.
-“I am knowledge itself.”
[“He is a person who seeks knowledge in a base way.”]
-“I also try to benefit humanity widely through that knowledge.”
[“He is also a devil who leads humans to destruction with the knowledge he gained in that way.”]
A similar yet different introduction.
The introduction of two people to one being finally reaches the end.
-“My name is Dantalion.”
[“His name is Dantalion.”]
-“He is a savior who has saved humanity several times in the past.”
[“He is the great evil who has led mankind to destruction time and time again.”]
