***
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-What… What kind of attack was that?
-Did Japan have such a player?
-They didn’t seem to know about it either, looking at the reactions of the Japanese players.
– It’s said that the player Mizuhara Aoi is a supporter…
-A supporter performed that kind of attack?
For viewers accustomed to foreseeing Korea’s victory, the sudden appearance and skill employed by a Japanese player proved shocking.
When the fiery chariot struck the ground, the earth instantly turned into a blazing inferno, engulfing the players. The Korean warriors tried to resist, but one by one they succumbed to the flames and turned to ash.
-Without Seong Jihan and the Sword King, Korea is basically at the bottom of warrior rankings lol
-But, we have Seong Jihan, don’t we?
Even as warriors perished, viewers found solace in Seong Jihan’s firm stance at the front. However, the situation changed as his figure suddenly vanished with a flash.
-Ohhh… Seong Jihan disappeared…!
-He was sucked into that fiery sanctuary and vanished!
-And… Aoi, the Japanese player who was on the ramparts, disappeared too!
-Mizuhara Aoi was registered as a supporter in the lineup… how could she use such a skill?
As the stalwart Seong Jihan disappeared along with Aoi, and the fiery sanctuary cast one last burst of flames before disappearing itself, the battleground was left with the Korean team, having lost more than half its strength including the front-line warriors, and faced by the Japanese team with only Aoi missing.
“What in the world just happened? What transpired on the ramparts?”
“ Mizuhara did it! She’s behind this.”
“Mizuhara? Wasn’t she a supporter?”
Even though the Japanese team players were stunned, seasoned as they were, they quickly understood the tempo of the battle.
“We must advance now while Seong Jihan is gone!”
“Their forces are halved!”
“if Seong Jihan returns, it will be over. We have to finish the game before that!”
With the frontline gone due to the Flame Sanctuary, the Japanese players decided to press an offensive despite being the defenders.
“Change formation!”
The Japanese warriors switched from Turtle to Wedge formation and advanced first. The archers and mages from Japan’s side began to descend from the ramparts one by one. Meanwhile,
”Ugh, the frontline is completely wiped out…”
“For now… we should retreat until Seong Jihan comes back!”
With more than half its power lost, the Korean team began to fall back. The tides of offense and defense had completely turned. But…
= Oh no… Seong Jihan isn’t back yet.
= The Korean team has reached the edge of the Southgate map!
=There’s nowhere else to run!
=Can the game really end like this in game one…?
Southgate, being a small map dominated by combat at the gates, had a finite boundary the defensive side could retreat to.
Surrounded by black walls, the map’s end left no further room for maneuver.
“Ah…”
“We’re doomed…”
“I thought Seong Jihan would be back by now…”
The Korean team reached the end of the line, despair written all over their faces. An easily anticipated game had gone awry, leaving them cornered.
“That’s it. They are cornered!”
“Wipe them out before Seong Jihan comes back!”
The Japanese team surrounded the Korean formation confidently, now enjoying a two-fold advantage — and Korea critically lacking warriors.
-Wait what?! Hold on! Damn, I bet everything on a 3:0 victory!
-Why would you do something crazy like that for 1% gain..
-I thought it was a safe bet… aaahhh!
Desperate cries echoed across the chat as footsteps approached. Yoon Seah, clad in light armor, stepped forward.
“Void Arrow.”
A violet sheen emanated from the seemingly empty bowstring, and with a twang,
“Cough…!”
“What the… Out of nowhere…!”
Several Japanese warriors fell in an instant.
“Uncle… looks like you’re taking a little break from our debut match together.”
Yoon Seah, whose Void Arrows proved effective even against national-level players, smiled as she looked to the side.
“Give me cover, Akari Unnie”
“Yes, Seah nim”
And like that, the momentary hope for the Japanese team, induced by Seong Jihan’s disappearance, gave way to new despair.
* * *
Meanwhile,
[The owner of the sanctuary has turned off BattleTube.]
[Would you like to turn the BattleTube back on? Doing so will prevent you from entering the sanctuary.]
“No.”
As Seong Jihan responded, the darkened world transformed.
‘This place… it’s like a pit of hell.’
Fallen Apollo’s Sanctuary was engulfed in flames in every direction.
Boom! Boom!
Meteors burned in the sky, hitting the ground and causing tremors, while lava spewed again and again, painting an apocalyptic visage.
‘Yet, none of this affects me.’
The intense flames didn’t bother Seong Jihan at all as if he were separated from this world. As he looked around, a woman with red hair emerged from the flames.
“You’ve arrived.”
“Are you the real Pythia?”
“Yes. You can see Divination, can’t you?”
The blue-eyed woman closed her eyes, and a shining light appeared on her forehead where beautiful facial features rose.
The light gathered into a circular shape that moved like an eye, making Seong Jihan furrow his eyebrows.
“That’s something I’ve seen from my sister. That thing.”
“The witch of the void, you mean? Of course, with the Eye of Divination, she’d have been chosen as a witch.”
“What is that role for?”
“This? It has many functions. I can see the future, watch over the world broadly, and even preside over doomsday.”
As she said this, Pythia glanced around them.
“How does this world appear to you?”
“Like a pit of hell.”
“Yes. Invoking hell, the vision of doomsday. I have always thought this was my divine power. But… it wasn’t.”
With a flash from the Eye of Divination, the surrounding flames extinguished, replaced by ice.
Sssshhh…
And in the place where Seong Jihan and Pythia stood, an ice table and chairs formed. She pointed to a chair for Seong Jihan.
“This might take some time, let’s sit and talk.”
“Alright.”
Thud!
As Seong Jihan sat, Pythia got to the point.
“Did the hint I gave you last time help you understand more about your power?”
“No. I couldn’t find out more about the Sword Rain from Ice Heaven Sword Rain. The swords just wouldn’t come out.”
“Sword Rain… Would you like to try using it now? Right up into that sky.”
Seong Jihan nodded, drawing out Eclipse.
Thudding quickly, the shadowy sword froze, and he threw it familiarly into the sky.
Fundamental Divine Arts: Annihilation God’s Secret – Ice Heaven Sword Rain
Meteors in the sky seemed to freeze instantaneously. Before Ice Heaven even expanded, a giant sword descended from the sky toward Pythia. A Sword Rain that had never emerged in the Void Training Room erupted at once here.
“Stop.”
As Pythia’s Eye of Divination flickered, the Sword Rain halted mid-air. She nodded, seeing the sword tip pointing at her.
“As expected, the sword takes on a searching role.”
“Why did it target you, though?”
“Because I went against the laws of nature.”
“Laws of nature?”
“Yes. I received immortality from the Wandering Martial God.”
Pythia then looked away from the sword and at Seong Jihan again.
“Do you know why different races were invited to BattleNet?”
“I heard from Artemus. It happens when a certain being overwhelmingly surpasses the limits of its race?”
According to Artemus, an invitation to BattleNet acts as an error detection mechanism. When a being becomes overwhelmingly powerful beyond the limits of its race, BattleNet sends an invitation for a deathmatch.
“That’s correct. But what’s most important for the invitation’s criteria is lifespan.”
“Lifespan…”
“Yes. How much it exceeds the race’ lifespan limit is the first criterion for whether an invitation is issued. And… the swords from Ice Heaven Sword Rain serve that purpose, too.”
“So that’s why it has a searching role?”
As Seong Jihan peered at the Sword Rain still targeting Pythia, he expressed his doubts.
“But why did it target the Orc horde? They’re not all immortal.”
“He performed a ritual to take away the force of his warriors. From them, he took not only strength but also life force. The swords targeted the source of life.”
The Great Chieftain of the Orcs was exceptional because he robbed strength from his kin, not just power but also lifespan. If that’s the case, it would be considered an error.
“And like this…”
Softly.
A water-made sword ejected from Pythia’s body, like a miniaturized version of the Sword Rain. Twisting like taffy, it pointed at Pythia, its creator.
“Swords with searching abilities not only aimed at me but also at the Martial God.”
“At the Martial God? I heard he belonged to the god race…”
Seong Jihan recalled his conversation with Artemus, discussing why the invitation came to Earth. When suggesting it might be due to the Martial God, Artemus scoffed and argued otherwise.
[He has been the wandering Martial God for thousands of years. By that point, he’s not considered part of your human race, but a divine one. If there had ever been a problem with him, you’d have received an invitation to BattleNet long ago.]
Certainly, Artemus had a point; if the Martial God was the issue, the invitation would have come long ago. Why would it come in the 21st century? So Seong Jihan had thought maybe he was the cause for the BattleNet invitation…
“I also believed that he was of divine race. He granted us the power to live eternally, reigning over the universe as the Martial God for ages. But… for the Sword Rain to aim at him.”
“Does that mean the Martial God is human?”
“He’s definitely not a deity. And since the invitation came to humanity… it’s likely he’s human.”
The wandering Martial God, a fearsome existence in the universe for over a thousand years. Him, a human?
But such acceptance was not easy without addressing Artemus’ counterargument.
“Then… Why wasn’t there a BattleNet on Earth before now?”
“I don’t know the cause either… but it’s certain the swords targeted him.”
“Hmm…”
Swords like BattleNet invitations that detect errors, also targeted the Martial God. If he were acknowledged by BattleNet as a divine being, the sword wouldn’t have pointed at him. So the hypothesis of him being human might seem right. But…
The question of why the invitation came in the 21st century remained unsolved.
‘It’s still speculative.’
Deciding not to rush judgments.
Suddenly, Pythia’s Eye of Divination glowed, creating a blue barrier around them, blocking the outside view.
“By chance… can you awaken the third and fifth technique too?”
“I guess. If I train more in martial arts, perhaps someday.”
“Then could you complete the fifth before the third?”
“You mean the fifth Annihilation God’s Secret?”
Seong Jihan frowned. The fifth technique, associated with the wood element, was something even an immensely strengthened him daunted to attempt. Among the other four, it was distinctly on a different level.
“I can’t assure quick mastery. It’s the final divine power.”
“How did you manage to complete the fourth, Ice Heaven Sword Rain, so quickly?”
“That, I got the hang of it after seeing you project cold energy last time. Before then, I didn’t even dare to think about it.”
“Then… to help you catch the feeling, I’ll let you know the name of the fifth disciple.”
Pythia lowered her voice and shared,
“He is… the King of Uruk, Gilgamesh.”
***
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