Translator: miraclerifle
Ju-Heon walked over toward the Monarch of Fate.
His vicious smile gave the Monarch of Fate an ominous feeling.
But he just scoffed.
‘What will happen in ten seconds? Is he really asking that as if it was a question?!’
“What is going to happen is that you are going to die!”
The Monarch of Fate activated his artifact.
But at that moment...
Bam!
The Monarch of Fate was seeing stars.
“Uuuuugh!”
Something metallic(?) had struck him right on the nose.
Ju-Heon had hit him in the face.
The Monarch of Fate was sent flying.
Boom!
It had happened in an instant.
Ju-Heon blew on his fist and started to speak after sending him flying.
“Beep. Wrong. You’re just a fraud.”
The Monarch of Fate couldn't help but scoff as he was lying on the floor.
‘This crazy bastard.’
He now understood what it meant to see stars. His nose felt warm after feeling the impact that made it feel as if his face was broken.
“Ugh... A n, nose bleed?!”
Nobody would remain rational after being punched like that.
He started to shout.
“Hey! Are you a thug?! I'm going to get you arrested!”
“Ah. I can’t hear you, I can’t hear you.”
Ju-Heon smiled annoyingly.
"What’s wrong? Did you think I would use an artifact? It’s a waste to use an artifact on you.”
“What?!”
“Ah, and you seem to have your pride as a man. But too bad that isn't the end.”
“?”
Ju-Heon started to smile brightly.
“Ten seconds haven’t passed yet.”
“......?!”
The Monarch of Fate’s face turned pale.
‘What is this fucker planning?!’
And then... Something shocking happened.
“That punch felt nice. You don't need to be my subordinate. Why don't you become my slave?”
Ju-Heon started to punch again, as if the first hit was just a greeting, and started to turn Joshua into mince meat.
Pow! Pow! Pow, pow!
The tomb was soon filled with a person's scream.
“Aaaaaaaaah!”
Yoo Jaeha had to click his tongue as he could not watch any longer.
He also made sure to cover Louie’s eyes.
“Wow, that should hurt a lot.”
He knew because he had received this beating after running his mouth at the gym once. But Ju-Heon seemed to have gone easy on him at that time because he was Ju-Heon's subordinate. The impact behind each punch was completely different from that time.
That was why he could only say one thing right now.
“Wow, what kind of reckless courage is that when he can't even fight?”
Actually, Joshua knew how to fight. He might be a hikikomori gaming otaku, but he was skilled enough to take guards down. It was just that his opponent was in a different class.
Joshua started to stumble while clutching his stomach.
‘This bastard!’
Ju-Heon had only chosen places that are not visible on the outside to attack. He would claim, ‘I didn’t hit him.’
It was his way to keep an out for himself.
Ju-Heon started to smile again.
“Okay, ten seconds is over. Oh look, I don't seem to be dead.”
“......Ugh!”
“You can’t even talk because it hurts?”
‘This bastard.’
“But you were totally a quack. Should I put a claim out for fraud? Should I let the world know that you couldn’t even predict your own future?”
The Monarch of Fate felt frustrated.
‘It’s not me, you’re the one who is weird! My artifact doesn't seem to work on him.’
This was the truth.
His artifact did not work on this bastard.
< Seo Ju-Heon, you will die. >
Normally, Ju-Heon should have died from shock after hearing that.
But forget shock...
“These fake mediums all over the world are such a problem.”
Ju-Heon just spewed such nonsense.
Of course, Ju-Heon had not planned to do all of this in the beginning. It would be bad if his ability level (?) as the Monarch of Plunder continued to go up any farther.
However...
“Be honest. You can't see the future right now, can you?”
“......!”
That was right.
Ju-Heon had been testing the Monarch of Fate’s abilities.
“If you could really see the future, you would have answered my question correctly and said that you'll be beaten to a pulp.”
The Monarch of Fate snorted in response.
Ju-Heon was right. He could not see the future in the middle of a fight.
Why?
‘I can only use the artifact to see the future when I am asleep.’
The Monarch of Fate had two different prophecy artifacts.
One was Nostradamus’s artifact while the other was the Temple of Apollo (Delphi Temple) artifact. The Delphi Temple artifact was a dimensional artifact and Joshua used it to see the future but only for precious clients.
It wasn’t as if he could put down some blankets and go to sleep in the middle of a battle!
That was why this future creator mainly used his other artifact.
[Nostradamus's < Les Prophéties > (S-Grade:Legendary Hero Grade - Possession Artifact)]
Nostradamus was most famous for his claim that the world would end in 1999. He was a physician but made his prophecies while treating patients.
The book of Nostradamus's prophecies that was banned by the Catholic Church was released with the title of < Les Prophéties > and written in cryptic poetic verses that the meaning would change based on the reader.
Anyway, Joshua could create short term futures with that artifact, and this second artifact was what made Joshua extremely powerful. He had been using it throughout his battle with Ju-Heon as well.
But it wasn't working?
‘No way, right?’
Ju-Heon smiled brightly as if he read the Monarch of Fate's expression. And...
Blood splattered in front of him.
“Uuuuugh!”
Joshua clenched his neck. His neck was spurting out blood.
Ju-Heon had sliced Joshua’s neck with a sword. To be more specific, he had destroyed Joshua's vocal cords.
Joshua glared at Ju-Heon as he stood there in pain.
“U, uggh. You......!”
“I’ve been wondering why you've been talking so much since earlier, but it’s a type of incantation isn't it? Your ability is one where your words become reality. The words that you blurt out become activated in the future.”
‘Damn it.’
Ju-Heon checked his watch before starting to smirk.
“I tested it out for one minute. I'm certain of it now. You are unable to change the future without talking.”
Something would have happened if Joshua could create the future with just his thoughts.
There was no way he would just stand there and not do anything, especially after being attacked by Ju-Heon so much, unless he was an idiot.
“And the future you create is only effective if the person you target hears what you say.”
“.........!”
Ju-Heon triumphantly smiled.
“That was why you crawled out toward me without any fear even after hearing all the rumors about me.”
“.........!”
“Am I wrong? Feel free to tell me if I'm wrong. Ah, you probably can't talk anymore.”
Ju-Heon then took some ear plugs out of his ears. It was an ear plug artifact that just keeps on talking.
[##$&!]
Oppa, please listen to me! Why do you keep ignoring me! I'm lonely every night!
Ju-Heon seemed to have been wearing these from the moment he appeared in front of the Monarch of Fate. It was only possible because he had seen the Monarch of Fate's abilities in the past.
There was no way that he could hear the Monarch of Fate, or anybody at that, when his ears were being filled with smut.
The Monarch of Fate was in disbelief after seeing what Ju-Heon did.
‘This bastard really did know about me.’
That was why he had covered his ears. Of course, just blocking his ears would not have been enough.
‘It's as the request form stated.’
Ju-Heon took a step forward at that moment.
“Alright, time to put an end to this I guess.”
He wouldn’t let a prey that walked in on its own escape.
The Monarch of Fate, who was lying on the ground, quickly started to shout as Ju-Heon walked over with a sword.
“Wuuuuuuua! (Wait!)”
But it was hard to tell what he was saying because his vocal cords were destroyed. That was why Ju-Heon just decided to cut his neck off.
“I'm sorry, but I'm already annoyed enough with alien languages because of the artifacts.”
The sword flashed in the sky and the Monarch of Fate quickly wrote something in his notebook.
[Wait!]
Ju-Heon stopped attacking and the Monarch of Fate quickly started to write, as if this was his chance.
The message was simple.
[Let’s make a deal. I'll look into your future. For free!]
His handwriting looked more like a worm crawling on the paper.
But Ju-Heon just smiled and raised the sword again. The Monarch of Fate's subordinates were shocked after seeing his ruthless action.
“H, hold on! You can’t read English?”
“You can speak it but you can't read it?!”
Of course not.
Yoo Jaeha chuckled. He didn’t know about any other languages, but Ju-Heon's English was at a native speaker’s level. It was at an uselessly amazing level.
‘I even thought that he was some English Professor.’
That was why Yoo Jaeha had almost gasped after hearing that Ju-Heon had gotten his passport for the first time this year.
Anyway, that was why there was no way that he did not understand what Joshua had written.
It was just that...
‘He thinks it's all bullshit.’
Ju-Heon did not seem to have any plans on negotiating with the Monarch of Fate.
That was why he asked a question.
“He seems like he would be a good slave, are you not going to take out a slave contract?”
“I don't contract just anybody.”
‘You must be so wise. You’re probably the pickiest person in the universe.’
Ju-Heon’s intentions were a bit different.
“Plus, he wants a deal? He should be respectful and show up face to face if he wants to make a deal with someone.”
“Huh? Face to face?”
Ju-Heon’s sword sent Joshua’s head flying as soon as he said that.
Pow!
Joshua’s head was separated from his body and started to roll around like a ball. Joshua’s subordinates gasped after seeing that while Yoo Jaeha and Louie screamed.
“His neck! His neck!”
Ju-Heon didn’t even blink as he started to speak in a loathing tone.
“How disrespectful.”
Joshua's headless body started to change.
“T, that is?!”
Joshua's body had turned into someone else’s body. This person was big and bulky unlike Joshua’s skinny body. Even the head that was sent flying did not look like Joshua's face anymore. His clothes were a prison jumpsuit as well.
Yoo Jaeha could not help but rub his eyes.
“A p, prisoner?”
“Someone on death row. In fact, someone who has already been executed.”
Yoo Jaeha gasped. He understood the meaning behind those words.
“Then it’s a corpse?!”
Ju-Heon seemed to have realized it a long time ago.
“Yes. The feeling I got when I punched him didn't feel like a living person.”
"The fact that you can figure that out......”
“Well, he was just possessing a fake body.”
“Then the real person...!”
“Is probably at home.”
“That means that he’s fine?”
“No, I'm sure that he’s not fine.”
Ju-Heon started to smile.
The moment that he had sliced Joshua’s neck...
“Ugh!”
Joshua was screaming in his bedroom that was full of games.
“Ahhh! So fucking crazy!”
He was gasping for breath after being jolted awake from his slumber and sat up while still wearing his sleeping socks and nightcap.
“.........Seo Ju-Heon, that son of a bitch.”
“Joshua-nim, what’s wrong?! Joshua-nim!”
It was an extremely terrible sensation. He didn't expect that the feeling of his neck being chopped off would feel so terrible. That wasn’t all.
“Ow, my body. My bodyyyyy!”
Joshua started to squirm in pain like a caterpillar now that the link had been disconnected.
Even though it had not been his body, he still received all of the pain.
“Damn it, all of the pain from the punches earlier are coming to me. Ow, my precious, my extremely precious body......!”
That was why he had urgently tried to negotiate with Ju-Heon. He didn't want to feel the sensation of death.
Why?
It would come up in his dreams! He would have nightmares!
He started to punch his pillow in despair.
He would rather sell off a future or two rather than suffer from a nightmare.
That was how much a person's future was worth to Joshua.
Human lives existed for his convenience and enjoyment. People's futures were as numerous as the fish in the sea.
The more important people’s futures were like expensive tuna while the useless civilians’ futures were like small fish. That was the value Joshua put in people’s futures.
Some were caviar, some were foie gras, while others were food crumbs.
And Joshua had to do the work of going fishing for those futures.
He had to have a dream.
“But Seo Ju-Heon, ow, that son of a bitch!”
He had personally offered to fish up the future of a bastard who was only a small fish!
He just ignored that and cut off his neck?
“Is my head a ball? You threw it?! You kicked it with your foot?!”
This was the first time he had seen Ju-Heon, but he could now sort of understand why Chairman Kwon was so pissed.
But it didn’t matter.
“I’ve already cast the bait and things are still going according to plan.”
That was the reason he had prepared that Monarch of Fraud kid. There was a piece of paper in front of him.
[Request to get rid of Seo Ju-Heon]
[Requester: John Smith]
There was numerous information on this request form.
[Information on Seo Ju-Heon’s artifacts, abilities and specs]
[Seo Ju-Heon’s recent movements]
[Seo Ju-Heon's 5 weaknesses]
They were all information about Ju-Heon.
And...
Seo Ju-Heon’s greatest weakness: You just need to destroy the artifact that Seo Ju-Heon has temporarily contracted
P.S. It is in the shape of a crow
P.P.S. You must get rid of Seo Ju-Heon
P.P.P.S. You will be handsomely rewarded.
There was a familiar dog’s paw print on the paper.
