Chapter 441 - One Solution (4)
Dumbfounded at first, Wind jeered.
[What? core?]
A monarch’s core existed deep in its body.
For some odd reason, Time hated turning into his monster form, but most Cluders turned into their monster form in battles.
‘The human form is used to lure in prey.’
Anyway, Eternal Change wanted to pierce through the vital point of his monster form? The vital point was much sturdier than other parts of a monarch’s body, yet he wanted to pierce through it to reach the core? It was a tough task.
‘The bodies of the first-generation monarchs are much tougher.’
The flesh of the third-generation or even the second-generation monarchs was soft because they were young. The first-generation ones were literally fossils.
Even Gun’s Divine weapon would have a hard time piercing through it.
Hugo knew this better. This was why when he had fought Wind, he hadn’t used physical attacks to attack Wind’s core. He had injected his power into the core to bring it to a stop.
Although Wind had been alive, Hugo made sure the monarch was unable to move, then diced him around the core.
The problem was that Ennead’s Great Spirit had saved Wind.
Wind let out a sharp laugh as if he found Hugo contemptible.
[You want to take out my core? Wasn’t it enough that you took my power? Now you plan on using the core to kill the other monarchs?]
Wind immediately discerned Hugo’s plan. The monarchs that he had made were connected to his core. These monarchs could be made to self-destruct if one used the core. One could even place a curse on the core and defeat them all at once through that.
There was a reason the second-generation monarchs referred to Wind as an elder. While his power may be overpowering, his core also had an influence on them.
[What nonsense!]
Wind smirked.
[Did you forget how we were born? We passed through the winds of the null world. We were born with a body harder than anything in the world.]
Underground had died a long time ago, and Hugo had heard Flame had died after performing her duty. The only ones left were Wind and him.
[There are no more remaining first-generations, so who would be able to destroy me at this point?]
However, Hugo laughed. There was someone.
“I’m the same as you, and I’m here.”
[!]
Hugo immediately used his power and started to transform.
Flash!
Wind flinched. His eyebrows rose as if he hadn’t expected this.
Hugo was abandoning his human form and trying to return to the Cluder form. Until now, he had changed only a portion of his body for a brief amount of time. This was different.
Wind laughed in derision.
[Have you truly lost your mind?!]
“No, I haven’t.”
[Didn’t you run to the snake god because you wanted to receive exoneration? If you change back into Eternal Change, you will no longer be able to receive it.]
The deferred Karmic debt would return, and Hugo would cease to exist before he could receive the exoneration.
[That was why you purposefully didn’t transform into Eternal Change. You got rid of me in your human form!]
“Yes. However, I realized I had it wrong from the start.”
[…!!]
“It was wrong of me to think that I should let someone else exonerate me for the sins I committed.”
[!]
Hugo had been blinded by the sweet happiness of having a family and an overwhelmingly dependable Lee Gun.
Lee Gun was unexpectedly cavalier about his own life. That was his personality. Lee Gun originally had a limited lifespan, and his occupation meant he could die anytime. So he wasn’t afraid of death.
However, this was different.
‘For me to discharge my sins, I would have to make my friend, who has nothing wrong with him, to die.’
Hugo preferred a great hero like Lee Gun survive instead of him.
Moreover, Lee Gun had flinched when Hugo had exited the safe and failed to sense Hugo’s presence.
‘It means his body has yet to fully recover.’
If Lee Gun were to die first, enough exoneration would naturally be left for Hailey and Hugo.
Yes, only two of those exoneration tickets were available. The problem would be solved if one of the three people who needed it disappeared.
Despite his family being on his mind, Hugo was ok with this. There would be no problems stemming from going through with this. If he failed, Lee Gun had said he would make a substitute with better stats than him.
Moreover, his replacement would also have a Faith of 1000%, and he would support Lee Gun.
Flash!!
[Bastard!]
Hugo had completely changed into the form of Eternal Change. His human skin split apart as a monster revealed itself.
Wind was taken aback since Hugo pursued mutual destruction. He quickly changed into his monster form as well.
Eternal Change’s eyes flashed.
[This will be my last present to Gun. I’ll leave him two SSS-rank ingredients with the highest durability. He’ll love it since it’ll be the only two ingredients in the world that won’t break.]
[Stop!!]
Eternal Change pierced Wind’s chest.
[Kuh-huhk!]
Crunch!!
No Divine weapon could pierce through his incredibly hard heart, yet Eternal Change’s hand had parted Wind’s heart to reach the core.
[Ahhhk!]
At the same time, Hugo felt a change occurring in his body.
[The chain placed on Eternal Change as a human has been released.]
[All the stacked Karmic debt will return to Eternal Change.]
Only a part of his Karmic debt had returned, yet his extended hand crumbled as it ceased to exist.
Hugo let out a bitter laugh. It didn’t matter whether his aim was happiness, life, or an item. There was nothing the treacherous Eternal Change couldn’t steal.
This was why he had liked the Creators, who did not steal from others but instead created something for them.
This was why he felt thankful to Lee Gun. Originally, he had struggled to kill even a single monster, yet Lee Gun had turned him into a hero.
‘Thank you!’
He was thankful that Lee Gun had allowed him to meet Jiwoo and his children. He was thankful for being made into a hero.
He used to be a being that knew only how to steal from others, yet he had become a man who could protect others.
‘Please be happy with Hailey.’
Eternal Change did not hesitate.
‘I should have done this from the start.’
Hugo held Wind’s core and blew it apart.
Kwang!!
[Ahhhk!!]
Wind screamed. As a secondary effect, the inner facility that was stealing power from Lee Gun blew up too.
Flash!
At the same time, having received his Karmic debt, Hugo ceased to exist. Light surrounded him, and nothing remained where he used to be.
* * *
Something surprising happened when the first-generation monarchs ceased to exist.
[Ahhhk!!!]
All the monarchs connected to Wind screamed as they self-destructed. When the monarchs turned into dust, the other Cluders looked taken aback.
[What the hell— Kuh-huhk!!]
The Cluders that had received influence from the monarchs clutched at their throats as they crashed toward the ground. All the Cluders around the world were behaving abnormally. That wasn’t all.
[That Eternal Change bastard— Kuhk!]
The Cluders started to die.
[Kuh-huhk!]
[Ahhhk!]
Lee Jaewon smiled when the Cluders disappeared as they swore. All the Cluders that had been flying around with impunity fell over as they had problems breathing. The monarchs also turned into dust!
“Young master! Miss! Hugo-nim must have done something!”
In contrast to the bright face of Lee Jaewon, the Chun siblings furrowed their brows.
“Hugo? Who is that?”
“Is that an Archer disciple?”
“What? Who is it— Uh? Whom was I talking about?”
The memories of Hugo were starting to disappear from the world.
Ennead’s Great Spirit snorted when he saw the phenomena. He immediately realized what had happened.
Grabbing his stomach, he laughed out loud and mocked Lee Gun.
[Your friend chose the worst option.]
“!”
He had brought the Cluders here, but he never expected them to die this way.
Ennead’s Great Spirit had known that Lee Gun possessed the exoneration tickets, and he had been dissatisfied that his item would be used on a Cluder to get rid of his Karmic debt.
Now, he was relieved that the precious exoneration ticket was still unused. He let out a scornful laugh.
[I wondered what plan you had concocted, but I guess this was it. Is this how you fight? You let others sacrifice themselves for you?]
Ennead’s Great Spirit smirked. It didn’t matter in the end.
‘Since the memories of Eternal Change are gone, his Karmic debt went away with him.’
Depending on how much Karmic debt a sinner possessed, even the sinner’s existence was erased upon their death.
In other words, the universe wanted to erase even the fact that they existed in this world. This was especially true for an SSS-rank sinner like Eternal Change.
Only a tiny number of gods would remember him. Unless one was a Great Spirit or a sinner, one wouldn’t remember the existence called Eternal Change. The universe had made it so that he had never existed.
The only ones who remembered Hugo or Eternal Change were Lee Gun, Ennead’s Great Spirit, and the Primordial god.
Ennead’s Great spirit snickered.
‘This is great.’
Eternal Change had been a thorn in their sides. For killing the Creators, Eternal Change had foolishly raised his sword against the Great Spirits.
[I don’t know which crafty words you used to make that dirty monarch kill himself, but I’ll commend you for it.]
At the end of the day, Eternal Change had been obsessed with the Creators. He had obviously fallen for Lee Gun’s words and killed himself.
[Your acumen for using a monarch will be a great example for others. I was worried you didn’t know your duty and place as a Zodiac. It makes me feel relieved.]
Unexpectedly, Lee Gun let out a light laugh. To be honest, Lee Gun had never expected that idiot to die first, so he couldn’t use the Exoneration on him.
“It doesn’t matter. That idiot’s action was within the scope of my plan.”
[What?]
When he had realized that Hugo had been inside the safe, Lee Gun had known there was a possibility that Hugo would do this. Moreover, he told Lee Gun what he should do if exoneration failed.
Still, Lee Gun never wanted this to happen.
“It means there is no change in my plan to kill you.”
Lee Gun’s menacing red snake eyes looked toward Ennead’s Great Spirit.
Ennead’s Great Spirit snorted.
[You were able to get rid of the Cluders thanks to Eternal Change. But don’t be too happy about it. This doesn’t make your weakness disappear.]
Lee Gun’s power had a weakness. It was that he couldn’t go through the process of inheritance.
[The only ones who remember you from the past twenty years are humans. If I kill those humans, no one would be there to remember and worship you. Your record as a god will disappear.]
The universe started writing a god’s record when the god became a hundred years old. That was the minimum age.
If the god disappeared from the memories of humans, the time started when the records were left through oral tradition or documents. This was why gods fought tooth and nail to survive for at least a hundred years. The reason was that a fight between gods wasn't short.
[It can take one or two hundred years at the very least. Or maybe several thousand years at most. The gods keep fighting on the same land as they go through the process of inheritance.]
This was why the gods who couldn’t go through the process of inheritance were lost. They were mere blips that the other gods passed by.
[It doesn’t matter if a god was born a genius. They keep their heads down for at least a hundred years! They don’t go on a rampage using their power like you!]
[Are these your last words?]
[Don’t pretend to be strong. I know your body isn’t in great shape. If we fight, you will surely die.]
Ennead’s Great Spirit gathered the power of destruction.
[Even if we kill each other, I can go through the process of inheritance. If that happens, I can take my time taking everything that is yours, including your Achievements, your Divine statuses, and the Primordial god.]
Moreover, this land was not too bad. He could use it as a base to make a new Divine world for the gods.
The snake god possessed enough qualified disciples who could become Constructs, and their faith was high.
[This is the last chance that I’ll give you.]
The eyes of Ennead’s Great Spirit flashed. It seemed he didn’t even want the possibility of Lee Gun doing something funny that could eat away at the durability of the exoneration ticket.
[If you don’t give up, the gods will find humans for hundreds and even thousands of years. That is nothing to the gods. The only ones who’ll suffer are the humans who reside here. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?]
Lee Gun had a weakness for humans. Since he had lived as a human, he identified himself as a human. So he treasured the humans so much that he instinctively let out the scent of a human.
This was why he didn’t see humans as residents of his colony. He felt a sense of kinship with them, and it was his biggest weakness!
Therefore, the Great Spirit was telling Lee Gun to give up and hand over the exoneration ticket. It would allow him to avoid seeing the humans being tormented.
[So? What is your answer?]
Lee Gun cackled. “Fuck you! If you want to do it, do it. Damn bitch!”
[What?]
“I’m going to make sure the gods will never be able to touch the humans.”
[What nonsense are you talking about…]
At that moment, Lee Gun used his Creation ability and summoned something. Accompanying a powerful light, the Rule Book appeared in his hand.
