Chapter 361

&R;ҽ​ａｄ ｏn KãｔReａd̂ｉng̃​C&a;​fe‌

There was no sign.

That day came without any warning.

Normally, Oracle would have foreseen the future and prepared for the impending crisis, but for some reason, they couldn’t read any future on that day. It was as if someone had obscured the future to make it unreadable.

Therefore, no one anticipated it, no one prepared for it, and no one even suspected it.

The tragedy began with the sky breaking.

A sea of corpses and blood.

The day that phrase ceased to be just a metaphor.

Corpses formed mountains, and blood became the sea.

The Great Catastrophe.

For Karma, that day was…

A moment of horror that he could never erase.

He wanted to forget it, yet he urged himself never to forget.

Like other captains, Karma was a born strongman. A genius. His innate talent led him to the pinnacle of humanity. 

He never considered himself weak. Not as a student, nor after joining the Celestial Corps after graduation. He always vaguely thought that no matter what situation or ordeal he faced, he would somehow manage.

It wasn’t arrogance. He actually had the ability to think that way. He had never really experienced a crisis, and even serious situations were easily resolved when he stepped in. 

Even high rank monsters that were nightmares to the Celestial Corps members were nothing more than a minor nuisance, and even named monsters considered impregnable were only slightly troublesome.

Therefore…

Even when the Great Catastrophe first broke out…

Karma was vaguely thinking.

I can do it, I can if it’s me.

The scope of the disaster had simply increased, but the task remained the same. Slay monsters, protect people, and do your best as a member of the Celestial Corps. 

There was nothing difficult about it. No monster posed a danger to him. Kill monsters, move with the wind, and kill monsters again. He saved people and evacuated them to shelters. 

The missions that were difficult, challenging, and life-threatening for other supernaturals were merely annoying and bothersome to Karma.

That day was the same.

Kill monsters, protect people.

Ride the wind to move to another battlefield.

Kill again, subjugate, annihilate, tear to shreds.

Save people, protect, guard, transport.

Hear the support request and move, and again.

Kill, protect, kill, protect, kill, protect.

Hunt, defeat, fight, repel.

The support requests didn’t end, the screams didn’t stop.

Again. Again. Constantly.

Something was wrong.

When did he start to think that?

No matter how much he fought, it was endless. The sky was still broken, pouring out only despair. Karma began to question himself for the first time. 

‘Can I do it?’ Even the smile he always maintained at Azazel’s advice gradually faded.

His breathing became increasingly hurried. This was a first. 

Why wasn’t the rift disappearing? The sky was still like broken glass. What was pouring out wasn’t rain, but monsters from another dimension. 

Strange. The rescue requests didn’t end. Normally, the situation would have ended long ago. Because the rifts don’t last long. But instead of disappearing, they were increasing. 

Before he knew it, it became difficult to find a place in the sky that wasn’t broken.

The number of corpses increased. The number of people Karma couldn’t protect increased. The speed of subjugating monsters slowed down little by little. 

His breath caught in his throat. The sound of his heart beating was so loud that he could barely hear the outside sounds. A storm raged. He couldn’t afford to worry about minor property damage anymore. It became too much to fight while protecting houses or buildings.

“Haa… Heok…”

It was hard to breathe. Karma belatedly realized that he was exhausted. Exhausted. He was tired of fighting. 

Tired? Me?

His movements became sluggish. But he couldn’t stop. Because the screams for help didn’t stop. So he didn’t stop.

Corpses. Corpses in black uniforms filled his vision.

Corpses. Corpses of all ages filled his vision.

Corpses. Some of them were wearing academy uniforms.

Why?

I could have protected them.

I could have done it.

If it was me.

Surely, if it was me.

“…”

It was a feeling he was experiencing for the first time in his life.

A sensation he had never experienced because he had always been strong.

The feeling of his chest aching as if it was being crushed.

Powerlessness.

The frustration of not being able to do anything.

“…Have you all always carried this feeling into battle?”

What he had vaguely guessed was completely different from what he was actually experiencing.

His fingertips trembled, and his throat tightened.

Fear.

The fear of dying.

Captains aren’t invincible either. Even the strong have limits because they are human. If he continued to fight endlessly like this, he would eventually be overwhelmed…

Karma struggled to pull himself together. This wasn’t the time to worry. He still had energy left. He couldn’t afford to waste time like this. Karma threw himself back into the pouring despair.

Someone with a familiar face died.

Someone he saw for the first time died.

The seeds that would be responsible for the future were cut off.

Die, die, and die again.

By the time corpses became mountains and blood became the sea.

“…Haha, I guess you can’t trust God after all.”

His lament was drowned out by the gust of wind, disappearing without a trace. Karma slowly closed his eyes. His vision was painted black, but he could sense the outside world with the flow of air.

What unfolded before him was the end of humans who couldn’t even become corpses.

Fallen. Covering their faces. In a fleeing posture. Holding weapons to fight back.

So many people had died.

Karma walked through them.

Enduring the rising nausea and fear.

He took a step toward death.

Hisssk… The sound of a snake’s cry was heard.

Dozens, hundreds of snakes flicked their tongues.

Goosebumps rose. Karma narrowed his eyes slightly.

It was the first strong enemy Karma had ever faced.

The first time he faced an enemy ‘stronger than himself’.

His whole body was heavy.

It wasn’t just because of fatigue.

Although he couldn’t see, all his senses were screaming.

That snakes were approaching among the statues that used to be humans.

“…If I had known this would happen, I should have written a will.”

The Celestial Corps members always leave a will.

Because they don’t know when or how they will die.

Karma didn’t.

Because he was tacitly thinking.

‘There’s no way I’ll die.’

The sixth demonic beast to descend.

The Gorgon.

Medusa.

The wind trapped in the stone flows quietly.

Soon, an unstoppable storm raged.

◈

He stopped with his hand outstretched.

It was a phenomenon divorced from Surtr’s will.

He was trying to grab Karma and crush him.

He was trying to retrieve the prey in his hand.

Contrary to Surtr’s thoughts, his hand stopped as if betraying his will. Surtr’s pupils were filled with shock. His hand wouldn’t move. It was inevitable. Now his hand was his, but it had escaped his control.

[That eye…!]

“Terrifying, isn’t it? I won’t lend it to you.”

His body began to harden from the extremities. It was only hardened at the moment, but if it continued like this, it wouldn’t end with just hardening. 

Petrification. Losing life and falling into a cold stone.

[You… how did you get that power…!]

“It’s a trophy. Ah, how is it? How does it feel to be defeated by the power of your own kind? Does it hurt? Is it painful? I want to hear your impressions.”

The Gorgon, Medusa.

The archenemy who left an indelible scar on Karma’s life.

How many sacrifices followed to defeat that monster?

Those who saw Medusa’s face were cursed to turn to stone.

Even the captains couldn’t escape the curse.

Knight Leader Johan, who faced Medusa before Karma, was forced to retreat with his whole body hardened, and even Karma had to give up his eyesight by stabbing his own eyes to overcome the curse. 

After defeating Medusa, Karma transplanted Medusa’s eyes. Despite Azazel’s strong opposition, Karma stubbornly pushed forward.

He craved power.

He didn’t want to feel powerless anymore.

It was crazy, but so what?

That’s the world. How can you survive without going crazy?

[Kuh…!]

Surtr hurriedly closed his eyes. He mustn’t look. The curse of petrification couldn’t be avoided even by monsters. That’s why she was a frightening being. 

The demonic beast, Medusa. Although her pure stats and combat power were below average for a demonic beast, the curse of petrification instantly reversed that gap.

“Are you closing your eyes? Oh? Is that okay? In front of me?”

Naturally, giving up eyesight in front of an enemy is not a good choice. Karma drew his finger from left to right. 

Whoosh. 

The phenomenon occurred first, and the sound followed. Surtr’s flames wavered. A slash that he failed to completely burn tore through his chest. 

Lava gushed out. It was blood sizzling and burning.

“Eeya~ I haven’t felt this feeling in a long time. It’s electrifying. It was terrible when I was on the receiving end, but I can’t imagine anything better than being in this position?”

The numbed legs were slowly regaining sensation. Karma raised himself from Surtr’s shoulder. He thought his butt was going to burn black. Karma smiled mischievously and said.

“Now, let’s end this commotion. I’m a busy man.”

[…You’re arrogant because you have Medusa’s eyes. It’s just an eyeball. It’s just a part of Medusa’s curse.]

The curse of petrification is triggered when you see her face.

Karma only possessed Medusa’s eyes, which were part of her face.

The intensity of the curse was bound to be inferior to the real Medusa.

[Did you think you won just by blocking my sight? Know that your own arrogance invites disaster. I’ll kill you. I’ll burn you with this earth. I won’t even leave ashes. Carve into your bones that such tricks don’t work on me—]

“Should I give you one piece of advice?”

Karma interrupts Surtr’s words and half-opens his topaz-like eyes.

Karma raised his index finger and said as if scolding.

“Don’t use such strong words.”

It makes you look weak.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Today’s author’s note is…

Yes, there is none today too!

What? It’s no good this time?

Ah… everyone hates me now…

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Smh, be a responsible author!