## Chapter 228 – 228. 제안
#228. Proposal
After agonizing for a while, Lucifer opened her mouth with difficulty.
“…I accept the proposal.”
“A wise decision…”
The Raggedy Man reached out his hand towards her. A black aura flowed from his fingertips.
Clang-
The moment she came into contact with the intangible aura, a sound like something shattering rang out.
Immediately after, the flame she felt within her chest seemed to shrink.
「Constellation, ‘Fallen Star’, is stripped of their status.」
「The rank of the contracted Constellation has fallen, weakening the connection with the Star Soul.」
「Authority ‘Twilight Annihilation (S)’ → ‘Black Flame (C)’ has decreased.」
「Black Flame (黑炎)
Classification: Authority
Rank: C
A flame that carries a faint divine power.」
Was it because she was no longer a Constellation? The Authority she gained from the contract also weakened.
It was somewhat expected, but she couldn’t help but feel regretful now that it had actually happened.
However, she quickly shook off the lingering feelings. It was a power that would disappear anyway once she returned to Earth. There was no reason to cling to it.
“I hereby announce that all rights and privileges granted to the Star’s position have been forfeited… If the qualifications of a Player are not acquired within the set period, penalties will be imposed…”
Lucifer was dumbfounded by the Raggedy Man’s attitude of speaking informally to her as if he had been waiting for this moment, but there was something more important right now.
“Stop with the useless talk and just release the chains.”
“Understood…”
Once again, a black aura flowed from the tip of his hand.
At first glance, it looked similar to death energy, but she instinctively realized that it was a higher-level power.
Just like how Lucifer’s Authority, Twilight Annihilation, was a higher-level power than the fire element I had been handling.
The chains trembled as if trying to resist the black aura. But even that struggle didn’t last long.
“Release…”
Clang!
With the Raggedy Man’s short word, the chains disappeared without a trace.
Of course, they weren’t physically destroyed.
They probably returned to their original owner.
Naturally, I caught Lucifer in my arms as she nearly fell forward, freed from her restraints. I felt a warm sensation.
“Are you okay?”
“…I told you I don’t need your sympathy.”
“Does it look like I’m pitying you right now?”
“…”
She didn’t seem to have any strength in her body, as she remained in my arms with her head lowered.
A murmuring voice was heard in the silence.
“…I don’t know.”
With those words, she lost consciousness.
I urgently checked her pulse. This was the moment when my recent cramming of medical knowledge would shine.
According to my assessment, after studying medicine for three days, there didn’t seem to be any major problems. She had just fallen asleep for a moment.
“What happened?”
I called out to the Raggedy Man. The man, who had been staring at the snake’s corpse, turned his head towards me.
He seemed strangely interested in the corpse since earlier. Could he be a corpse enthusiast?
“Aetheresbane is a relic of the Creator God… The Fallen Angel merely fainted as a reaction to enduring decades of time…”
“She won’t have any problems, will she?”
“Well… Medicine is not my area of expertise, so I don’t know…”
“Tch.”
I laid a mattress on the floor for now.
I wondered if I should give her some holy water, but I decided to give her a potion first, as I didn’t know how divine power would affect a Fallen Angel.
As I poured the potion between her lips, Lucifer frowned, probably because of its unique bitter taste.
“For a mere human to handle an unpermitted subspace… Just what is your identity…?”
Just in time, the Raggedy Man approached, seemingly finished with his corpse viewing.
I ignored him, letting his words flow in one ear and out the other. I had nothing to say to a corpse enthusiast.
“By the way, how do you acquire the qualifications of a Player?”
“You must clear the Tutorial Floor… I will send the Fallen Angel there as soon as she recovers…”
He would wait until she recovered? I was dumbfounded by his overly kind attitude.
“Weren’t you trying to kill me just a moment ago? Why are you telling me to become a Player now?”
“A reasonable question…”
As if he had expected it, the Raggedy Man slowly nodded.
“However, the System is a regulator that exists for the balance of the Tower… It never reverses a decision once it has been made… The fact that the System has proposed that you become a Player means that it has acknowledged your existence in the Tower, so there is no need to harbor unnecessary suspicions…”
So, he was saying that he was trying to kill me, but now he has no intention of doing so, so I should just forget about it?
I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh at his brazen attitude.
“Human… I have a personal proposal for you…”
“A proposal?”
“Hand over the corpse of the First Tempter to me… I will give you a generous price…”
He pointed towards the corpse lying on the floor.
I wasn’t particularly surprised. I had expected it to some extent.
“What will you give me?”
“How about 70,000 WP…?”
“Hmm…”
I didn’t know what WP was, but it was probably the currency of this world.
It goes without saying, but I had no idea about the value of the currency in this world. I didn’t even know if WP had the value of a dollar or the value of Korean won.
That guy probably knew that, so he was trying to make a deal while Lucifer was unconscious.
Even if it was dollars, 70,000 was an absurdly small amount.
‘I guess you could say he’s cunning, just like he looks.’
His intention to rip me off was obvious.
Of course, it wasn’t as if I had no basis for speculating about the value of WP at all.
Earlier, the Raggedy Man said that if Lucifer was stripped of her status as a Constellation, she would no longer be able to receive WP sponsorships.
That meant that the basic currency unit that transcendent beings like Constellations sponsored to humans was WP.
Would such beings sponsor a small amount of money? No, absolutely not.
It would have at least the value of a dollar or more.
‘I could try to be bold and ask for around a million, but there’s no need to do that.’
In the first place, that guy never asked me to sell him the corpse. He didn’t even ask to make a deal.
He just told me to hand it over.
He had no intention of making a proper deal.
There were two ways to avoid being taken advantage of in this situation. Either not responding to the deal itself, or…
“I don’t need WP. I’ll take items instead.”
Or changing the stakes.
“Items…?”
Since I was thinking of taking Lucifer out of here, there was one thing I was worried about. Would the Constellations who had imprisoned her here remain still even after learning about her escape?
There was no way they would. They would try to find her whereabouts no matter what.
Even if I cast an awareness-hindering spell on Lucifer, there was no way my magic would work on transcendent beings like Constellations.
There was only one way left.
“Give me an item that can evade the eyes of the Constellations.”
To receive the help of another transcendent being.
The Raggedy Man seemed flustered by my request and was silent for a moment.
“…In order to evade the eyes of the Constellations, you would need an item of at least SS-rank… Although the Avatar containing the Star Soul of a Constellation is a precious item, I cannot accept such an excessive request-“
“Wait a moment, I haven’t finished speaking yet.”
I shouted while staring at the empty air.
“System! I know you’re listening! Let’s have a conversation!”
With a moment of silence, a new screen appeared before my eyes.
Ding-
「The System responds.」
「”Conversation request confirmed.”」
A beautiful, melodious voice echoed in my head.
As expected, I knew you were watching.
The Raggedy Man said that he was the System’s representative, but whenever he had to judge whether or not to grant my requests, he seemed to be seeking permission from someone else.
I didn’t know why the System sent him as a representative, but this was a golden opportunity.
“You must have judged that I might be harmful to the balance of the Tower and tried to eliminate me in advance. Don’t even think about playing dumb. I know that the reason that snake head was able to run wild was because you condoned it.”
Lucifer and the Raggedy Man both said so. The System exists for the balance of the Tower.
From the System’s point of view, I was nothing more than a foreign substance that suddenly appeared one day.
You must have wanted to get rid of me as soon as possible.
“But that attempt failed, and now you would have had two options left. Either endure the loss and eliminate me, or appease me.”
The reason why you released Lucifer and proposed that I become a Player must have been because the System chose the latter.
“You had no choice but to choose the latter. The System exists for the balance of the Tower, but it must also be fair and impartial.”
Lucifer also said that the System exists for the balance of the Tower, but at the same time, it is a fair and impartial being that does not take sides with anyone.
But if it kills someone based on its own judgment, would it really be fair and impartial?
「The System denies your words.」
「”It is true that I judged you to be an Irregular, but I had no intention of eliminating you. The actions of the ‘First Tempter’ were outside of my calculations, and he met the extinction of his existence as a price for it.”」
“How can I believe that?”
「”Affirmative, a reasonable doubt.”」
I did my best to prevent the corners of my mouth from rising as I continued the conversation.
“Let’s negotiate. If you grant what I proposed to that Raggedy Man instead, I promise to refrain from any actions that may be harmful to the Tower in the future. I can’t write a contract, but if you’re still suspicious, think of it as building up my favorability once more.”
The System was silent for a moment as if contemplating.
Regardless, I waited leisurely. Even if I was rejected, I still had bait left to pique the System’s interest.
「The System nods.」
「”I accept the proposal.”」
Thud.
At that moment, something fell from the air. It was a mask with a ridiculous design.
「Mask of Illusion
Classification: Item
Rank: SS
A mask that conceals one’s true nature.
※Other abilities are sealed.」
“…It says other abilities are sealed?”
When I expressed my doubts while examining the mask, the System replied in a cold voice.
「”Your proposal was only to prevent others from noticing the identity of the ‘Fallen Star’.”」
I was speechless.
I thought things were going too smoothly.
It was a bit disappointing, but if I got greedy for no reason, I might not even break even. I had no choice but to be satisfied with this for now.
Just as I was about to check Lucifer’s condition while putting the mask in my inventory, I heard a wailing sound from the side.
「The System is issuing a disciplinary action to the Administrator.」
「”Administrator More of the 6th Underground Floor, 37 years of salary reduction.”」
“What…? Why…?”
「The System glares at the Administrator.」
「”The Avatar of the Constellation is your personal item. I cannot expend causality for personal items.”」
Thud.
The man collapsed on the spot as if he couldn’t believe it. For a puppet-like man to show such a reaction.
‘Well, a 37-year salary reduction is a bit much.’
Of course, it was none of my business.
Rather, I felt even more relieved since he was the one who tried to take advantage of me.
***
On a field bathed in golden sunlight, a man was looking up at the sky.
White hair fluttering in the warm spring breeze, a halo emitting an even more brilliant light, and dozens of white wings behind his back.
It was Metatron, the Scribe of Heaven and the leader of the Archangels.
“…This is.”
He stared at the pure white chains placed at his feet. It was Aetheresbane, a relic of the Creator God.
The fact that it had returned to his side meant that the prisoner had either escaped or committed suicide.
Snap-
“You called, Lord Metatron.”
At his call, a beautiful angel appeared from the air.
“Go and check the 6th Underground Floor right away.”
“Understood.”
As the angel disappeared, he gripped the chains with a cold expression. When he imprisoned her, who was once an Archangel, he had set up a trick.
He had created a gap in the restraints so that she could commit suicide at any time if she despaired of her situation.
“Don’t even think about displaying vain courage. A sinner should remain imprisoned in their cell.”
The mumbling, directed at no one in particular, scattered on the wind.
