Chapter 184 Man-Made Disaster (2)

Ashton Jackson, Lee Su-yeon, and Yoon-seok. The three crossed checked future and present information and discussed together.

“The primary goal is for Yoon-seok to become stronger. Because I don’t have the capabilities, you mentioned.”

To kill the queen, Upper Daejeon was needed. Upon learning this, Lee Su-yeon set Yoon-seok’s growth as her primary goal, and Ashton agreed. Of course, there were other goals. Ashton’s group was to increase their power as much as possible in the federation and boost the overall power of Earth. Why was that?

The answer was rather simple.

“War is coming soon.”

A month later, a half year later, and a year later. No matter what plans they made, the key was how they could overcome these three upheavals. To start, this was the beginning of the first.

“The timing may have changed a little because of me, but after this duel, the mission tower will also be closed.”

The second-ranking system would be activated about a month later, filling the maximum quota of ten thousand mission challengers reaching the 25th floor and above.

“Well, rankers often refer only to those from duels, but their abilities shouldn’t be ignored.”

The mission ranking system was s*** duels, as not everyone competed on the same floor. Additionally, it wasn’t mandatory. Challengers could take on trials whenever they wanted, and their rankings rose depending on the number of floors.

“Anyway, that’s not important, but that’s when the changes come.”

And from that moment on, the limit disappeared. Seheranbad, Earth, Kilian, Moorim. In addition to the existing four dimensions, items from other dimensions such as Taklan, Fedomia, and others could be purchased and moved through stores. But that was only the beginning of the dark clouds approaching.

“From then on, the frequency and scale of rifts in all dimensions rise exponentially.”

Starting from here, the leaders of the several dimensions begin hunting rankers from small dimensions like Earth. The reason was simple. If rankers in the other dimensions reached zero, the suppression system of the remaining dimensions would be strengthened.

Most of the challengers left the Earth and migrated to another dimension. The remaining normal people couldn’t withstand the waves of invaders and hid underground in wait for the world to end. Of course, it wouldn’t go that far this time. Yoon-seok and Lee Su-yeon. If only one of the two were alive, the suppression system would stand.

‘The problem is that Earth seems like an easy target from the other dimensions’ perspective.’

All the hyenas would flock to Earth, and no matter how much they tried to resist, the damage would inevitably grow. However, Lee Su-yeon wasn’t very concerned.

“There’s a way to stop it.”

“There’s a way?”

“Yes. With the Unique Skill Planet Guardian, it is possible to block the invasion of challengers from other dimensions.”

“Seeing how you say that I don’t think you have the skill..”

“But don’t worry. There’s Yoon-seok, right?”

Lee Su-yeon smiled brightly at Yoon-seok. Originally, she was thinking about appeasing him after finding out its whereabouts, but now he could go and kill that person. Yoon-seok sighed.

“Where should I go?”

“Seheranbad!”

Thirteen days left until the duel. In the meantime, he had something to do.

Yoon-seok wasn’t the type to plan. He thought about things and made the best choice, and accordingly, he was able to reach where he was now. So, it was a little awkward. Planning according to goals, and classifying goals in order, and making additional plans..

Before leaving, Lee Su-yeon briefed him for the last time.

“As you know, there are two main goals for this trip to Seheranbad.”

First, finding the challenger with Unique Skill Guardian and taking away that skill. Second, killing people on the hit-list or recruiting talented people in advance whenever there was a chance. Lee Su-yeon and Ashton planned an efficient route and informed Yoon-seok.

“See you there.”

Lee Su-yeon returned to the Tower with a smile as if she had scored a date, and Yoon-seok soon followed. Perhaps busy with Moorim work, Namgoong So-so, his neighbor next door, was nowhere to be seen

「A new dimension has been registered.」

「You can use the return ticket to move to the registered level.」

Yoon-seok used 500 LP and registered Seheranbad as a dimension, then bought a total of 12 days’ worth of tickets and tore them.

「Returning to Seheranbad.」

Stepping into another dimension after Moorim. He’d experienced it several times as the missions were set here, but this was his first time going there in reality. Seheranbad, the hometown for Elle and his previous life, Rick Gerssey. Yoon-seok felt a strange excitement thinking about it.

He didn’t feel like he was wasting his thirteen days. Seheranbad was a must-see place someday, even if it wasn’t for Earth’s sake. Perhaps he could remember or discover things related to Rick on this journey.

‘Is the starting point in the forest again..?’

The starting point upon one’s first arrival was random. Coincidentally, however, he opened his eyes in the middle of the forest, just like in Moorim. Well, although it was better than causing a stir by appearing in a city center..

‘This isn’t a place where outsiders shouldn’t enter, right?’

Yoon-seok, remembering the incident at the Namgoong Residence, walked forward with a strange sense of anxiety. The point where he promised to meet with Lee Soo-yeon was the Levant, a neutral country. To visit there on his own, he would have to find out where it was first. And to do that, he would have to find someone willing to talk.

Fortunately, there was someone caught by the haunch right around here, too.

Whikk-!

About 500m away in the trees above. An arrow shot through the bushes, but he didn’t feel any threat.

‘A sudden attack..’

Yoon-seok smiled. The arrow was aiming for his forehead, but there was no threat? Didn’t that mean that the shooter was a skilled hunter hiding their presence? Of course, whether it was threatening or not, he would see it flying in and block it.

Clang-!

The arrowhead hit his sword, changing directions before it stuck into a tree. With the surprise attack failing, he could sense someone attempting to escape.

‘They attacked first, so there’s no need to be polite.’

As Yoon-seok kicked off the ground, the distance of 500m quickly narrowed.

“Meow!”

The attacker, caught by the nape and flailing in the air, let out a strange shout.

‘Is it a beast-person?’

Triangular ears and a furry tail. It was one of the beast-people races he’d met a few times in the Tower.

“Let go! Human! I’m going to kill you!”

The beast-person struggled desperately, spitting out threats. Why did he try to attack him, and who was he? Yoon-seok didn’t ask these questions nor try to persuade him that he wasn’t an enemy.

“Where am I? Where should I go to get to the Levant?”

Current location and direction. If he knew these two things, then he was done. He would immediately release the beast-man and leave. But..

“Let go of Parnyang, human!”

The situation became a little troublesome. Do they have a support team? In an instant, a rugged beast-man with a double-edged black ax approached Yoon-seok.

“You’ve already been surrounded. So, let go of Parnyang and throw away your weapon, human!”historical

As he expanded his senses, he felt hundreds of threats within a 1km radius. Yoon-seok let go of his prey. In this situation, he didn’t intend to engage in a hostage negotiation. But, he also had no intention of throwing his weapon away.

Flop.

The beast-man dropped to the ground and, regaining his freedom, hid behind the warrior. Moments later, the surrounding threat subsided.

“How could you ignore the agreement and break into our realm? Do you not want to live anymore?”

They threatened Yoon-seok. It sounded like it was natural to be attacked if he broke into this place, but.. it wasn’t even new anymore. Whatever he did, he wondered honestly if there was once in his life where he had an easy time. Yoon-seok sighed.

“I don’t even know where I am, let alone any agreement. That’s why I’m asking. Where am I? I’m heading to the Levant.”

The warrior frowned. He looked like he couldn’t understand what Yoon-seok just said, but the released beast-man whispered to him. Well, even so, it was inevitable that Yoon-seok, who had already surpassed human abilities, could hear it.

“I don’t think it’s a lie. He asked me that earlier, too.”

Did he notice something from those words? The warrior nodded.

“Not just the agreement, but a human who doesn’t know where this place is.. are you a challenger from another dimension?”

It was different from before. It had already become common for challengers to travel to other dimensions.

“Yes. So where am I?”

Thinking that things might work out smoother than expected, Yoon-seok smiled and asked again. But, the warrior’s expression grew fiercer, as if this was a more serious event than one human violating the agreement.

“Why are you going to Levant Neutral at this time?”

“Why are you curious about that? If you tell me where I’ll leave right away.”

“Answer me. I’m sure you know that you’re not in a position to cover up this situation.”

Yoon-seok hardened at his overbearing voice. He knew that it wasn’t their fault. It wasn’t intended, but it was a fact that he invaded their territory. So he revealed the situation in an attempt to solve it as smoothly as possible. But.

“I’m not in a position to cover up the situation...”

Yoon-seok’s eyes, covered by a mask, turned cold. They were mistaken about something. Yoon-seok wanted to solve it through conversation not because he was afraid of their power but out of consideration.

Yoon-seok asked one last time.

“What are you going to do if I don’t answer?”

“I’m going to execute you here. Because a man of integrity has nothing to hide.”

“What if I answer honestly?”

“You might be lying, so I’ll take you to investigate thoroughly and follow the opinions of the elders on what to do with you..”

That was it. He didn’t feel the need to listen anymore. Yoon-seok no longer blocked the magic he was suppressing.

“Ugh!”

The moment when the magic in his body spread like wildfire, the warrior knelt. Did they sense the danger in the situation? The snipers watching from about a kilometer away fired, but their arrows couldn’t penetrate the energy around Yoon-seok.

The warrior watched in shock.

“What kind of nonsense..”

He wasn’t even using a skill to block the arrows, only the magic flowing from his body. That meant his level was at least a few dozen times higher than theirs.

Thud. Thud.

As Yoon-seok strolled forward, the warrior wore a solemn expression and clenched his teeth. He was ready to die.

“So, where are we now?”

Instead of standing face-to-face, Yoon-seok looked down at the warrior. It was the same repeated question. However, unlike before, he replied:

“..It’s Ewin. I won’t ask you anything, so just end me and leave.”

He was a little curious. Why did he have to go this far to get what he wanted?