Above the Underground Space was where Seong Jihan had encountered the great golem’s group.
[Emergency Situation Detected.]
[Seal the rift.]
Shoooosh…!
Despite the great golems gathering to seal the void energy rising like smoke from the ground,
Swoooosh.
A colossal giant of light melted away upon contact with the void, unable to withstand it for long.
By the time about half of the great golems had vanished,
Whoosh!
Seong Jihan, along with the Shadow Queen, suddenly emerged from the underground.
[Have you arrived, Manager?]
Despite the emergency, it seemed that the role of Manager was significant, as the great golems kneeled upon seeing Seong Jihan.
“Manager? What are you…”
The Shadow Queen, by Seong Jihan’s side, asked in shock upon seeing the attitude of the great golems, but he did not respond, simply surveying them.
‘We’ll be annihilated soon at this rate.’
The void spread more fiercely, seemingly because they knelt to Seong Jihan instead of sealing it.
Already, another half of the great golems had vanished in that short moment.
It seemed inevitable that this space would be consumed by the void.
‘Hmm, but the original mission goal of escaping the Constellation Laboratory hasn’t been cleared yet.’
With the Shadow Queen now secured, Seong Jihan wanted to start completing the mission and leave.
But the game hadn’t ended yet because the mission to escape the laboratory had not been achieved.
“Where is the exit?”
Despite possessing the Manager’s power, he was clueless.
If the great golems had their own will, they might have doubted whether he was really the Manager.
[There are no exit passages in the lower levels of the laboratory.]
[Return using the portal you came from to find the exit.]
[I will open it for you.]
They utterly submitted to Seong Jihan, who internalized eternity.
Ziiing…!
A massive emerald-green portal appeared in mid-air.
“Thank you.”
Before Seong Jihan moved to enter it, one of the great golems warned him.
[Due to the emergency, the path to the upper levels of the laboratory is blocked. After moving, please close the door; otherwise, trash might flow back.]
“The void?”
[Yes.]
[If the void energy enters through the portal once, it cannot be stopped afterward. Please ensure to close the door.]
Is that what you’re asking?
“Got it. I’ll make sure it’s closed.”
Seong Jihan nodded, a broad smile on his lips.
-The great golem is too kind, isn’t it?
-I’ve never seen Seong Jihan grin so broadly before, lol.
-So even as they face their demise, they still provide guidance.
-The upper levels should also be engulfed in chaos, haha.
Flash!
Upon entering the portal, Seong Jihan returned to his initial summoning spot.
The wooden door he had opened using Heavenly Tree Descending Spirit.
The door had healed itself, likely due to its own vitality, with its previously pierced holes now gone.
‘Closing this will make the portal disappear, right?’
Whoosh!
Recalling the great golem’s advice, Seong Jihan instantly incinerated the door.
“Planning to reverse the flow of the void here?”
“Yes, why should the upper levels be the only ones to survive? The sacrifices of the great golems in the lower levels are pitiful, isn’t it?”
“……”
As soon as Seong Jihan finished speaking,
Swooooosh…
The void energy slowly crept through from the emerald portal, immediately gnawing at the surrounding landscape upon emergence.
Ziiing!
Then, a screen appeared before Seong Jihan.
[What on earth have you done!]
It was the high elf who had brought him to the 5th match.
Her face turned pale with horror as she screamed, then noticed the Shadow Queen and gasped in shock.
[Releasing the Shadow Queen?! How did you unbind her…!]
“That doesn’t apply here, huh? Oh, this is the upper level, so the trash is irrelevant.”
[This is a disaster. Now, the entire Constellation Laboratory will be engulfed by the void…!]
“That sounds good.”
As Seong Jihan nonchalantly responded, the high elf priest could only grind her teeth, unable to take any action.
This 5th match.
The high elf priest had brought Seong Jihan here intending to execute him, but how had the situation escalated to this point?
Initially… perhaps he was a being they should not have summoned?
Then,
[Please step aside.]
[Yes. Yes…]
The high elf priest stepped back within the screen, replaced by the branch manager showing up.
[You’ve caused quite a disturbance.]
“You helped me a bit with your mask.”
[……I knew you were an unexpected existence, but I didn’t foresee this extent. Clearly, my miscalculation.]
The branch manager frowned, shifting his gaze to the Shadow Queen.
[Shadow Queen. You haven’t forgotten your essence, have you?]
“Essence… what, a trash can?”
[Correct. You are a disposal site that requires continuous handling of the void… This time, however, I’ll give you an opportunity to rest. Temporarily become the portal’s door. Once this matter concludes, I’ll ensure you die conclusively.]
=Is that elf talking nonsense? Telling a prisoner who just escaped to go back to prison so they can be executed?
=Indeed. After being released from bondage, why would she choose death again?
=The World Tree elves sometimes make no sense! Seong Jihan is really becoming the biggest beneficiary of their actions!
=That’s right. Looking back, Seong Jihan’s most significant growth always comes from clashes with the World Tree Alliance!
While the commentators typically discussed how outrageous the branch manager’s suggestion was,
“……”
The subject of that conversation, the Shadow Queen, seemed deep in thought.
“You’re not seriously considering it, are you?”
“……After being captured, I tried to end myself. My suicide nearly succeeded. But due to the power of the World Tree, I was revived in my original state. They have the power to revive even the dead. If they promise true rest, I’m not entirely uninterested, but…”
The Shadow Queen paused, her gaze settling on Seong Jihan.
“Your sword. Seeing it changed my mind.”
“The Eclipse Sword?”
“Yes… the power you unleashed. That is the ultimate power I aspire to.”
Eclipse exploded through the Dark Shadow Technique, the most potent martial skill among the shadow final skills.
The current Shadow Queen still hadn’t achieved such a supreme sword.
Although Seong Jihan used the void to activate the Dark Shadow Eclipse technique and engulf the world in shadows,
“Seeing that makes me unwilling to die before trying it myself.”
Still, she was enough to stimulate the queen’s desire for her life.
[Shadow Queen… … It’s disappointing that you forgot your essence. Are you hoping that the Shadow Elves will be destroyed this time?]
The branch manager tried to threaten her using the survival of the Shadow Elf race, but.
The Shadow Queen merely scoffed.
“Hmph, haven’t they been nearly driven to extinction already? There are hardly any survivors listed in the Constellation System.”
[You accessed the Constellation System? Still, you have such strength left? Haha… Had I known, I might’ve saved a few Shadow Elves. The rest seemed worthless for research and were disposed of.]
“……”
[It’s a pity you’re not fooled.]
Beep!
With that, the screen turned off.
The Shadow Queen’s gaze darkened when she confirmed the demise of the Shadow Elves through the branch manager’s confirmation.
“Human. Let’s blow up the Constellation Laboratory. We should inflict maximum damage on those bastards.”
“Good.”
Seong Jihan was initially prepared to dispose of her immediately if she had agreed to become a portal.
However, since she actively proposed an attack, things turned out even better.
Watching the Shadow Queen emanate murderous intent, Seong Jihan initially thought this, but then,
Swoooosh…
Her body transformed into a grey mist and entered Seong Jihan’s Eclipse.
“…Why are you entering here?”
[I utilized all my power just to access the Constellation System. Ariel. Let me rely on you momentarily.]
[Yes, Queen.]
The Shadow Queen confidently conversed within the sword.
Seong Jihan frowned as he observed.
‘The sword’s power has increased with the Queen joining…’
Even if she had exhausted her power, the mere presence of a constellation being significantly amplified the sword’s power.
The Eclipse sword’s power had indeed become several times stronger since the Queen joined.
While this was fortunate,
-Why does the sword look like that?
-What’s with all these chains hanging all around it?
-Aren’t those chains from when the Queen was bound?
-It was a cool shadow sword before…
The sword’s appearance, now draped with chains like potato roots, wasn’t particularly pleasing.
He wanted to remove those chains, but,
Swoooosh…
The void flowing through the portal had already filled the space.
‘I guess it’s time to raid the laboratory first.’
Before the research laboratory vanished due to the void, it was better to plunder first.
Seong Jihan thought this and rapidly moved towards the melted wall.
* * *
The Constellation Laboratory’s upper levels.
This place demonstrated a more typical laboratory appearance compared to where Seong Jihan had passed through.
Especially, it seemed specialized in biological experiments.
[Void containment is low.]
[Inefficient for void disposal for this species.]
[Commencing experiment by infusing Shadow Elf genes for void containment.]
Smaller scale great golems busily moved around the lab interiors.
[The test subject, vitality is diminishing. Logging out in 10 seconds.]
[Administering regenerative agent.]
[Vitality restored. Continuing experiment.]
Inside the experimental chambers, despite various fatal injuries, the players revived as the mini great golems injected regeneratives.
= Ah… Does this mean logging out is impossible under these circumstances?
= If Seong Jihan had been captured, perhaps he’d be in such a condition.
= Terrifying, truly. If so, being ‘executed’ as they said might’ve been unavoidable.
Commentators remarked upon viewing this experiment scene.
It was because Seong Jihan, who uniquely wielded extraordinary power, could easily navigate the game.
An ordinary top-ranked player of any species would likely end up trapped inside these tubes, unable to withstand the World Tree Elves’ malicious schemes.
[Experiments are proceeding without issues, Manager.]
“Hmm, good job.”
Recognizing Seong Jihan as a Manager, the great golems reported and he casually nodded.
[Human… aren’t you going to release those players?]
The Shadow Queen, recalling her own predicament, inquired whether Seong Jihan had plans to free the players locked in the experimental chambers but,
‘The void will ascend here shortly. They’ll be freed naturally then. More importantly,’
Seong Jihan sought practicality.
“Is there a place where their items are gathered?”
[SS-grade items have been transmitted to the headquarters.]
[The remaining grades are stored in a temporary storage.]
Only S-grade items were available, it seemed.
A bit of a letdown, but it was still worth collecting.
“Where’s the temporary storage?”
[I’ll guide you.]
As the great golem prepared to guide Seong Jihan,
[Emergency Detected!]
[Void Energy backflow!]
[Prioritize data transmission.]
With the void rapidly extending even to this biological research area,
[Manager, it’s an emergency. We’ll prioritize data transmission.]
Ignoring Seong Jihan’s orders, the great golems initiated their protocol.
‘Looks like the only thing I’ve gained from the constellation laboratory is the Shadow Queen.’
[Isn’t that enough?]
‘Not really.’
[I suppose human greed knows no bounds.]
‘Thanks for the compliment.’
Acknowledging the Shadow Queen’s input, Seong Jihan surveyed his surroundings for anything salvageable.
All the while, he harbored no particular intention of extending a hand of salvation towards the players caught in the experimental chambers until,
[Emergency Quest]
– Free at least 10 players trapped in the Constellation Laboratory
Reward: Constellation fame +100
With that, a sudden emergency quest aligned with Seong Jihan’s initiative appeared.
‘The Constellation’s fame?’
Along with a new reward, constellation fame, came a new opportunity.
