Ch.154154. True Ending

# Amon and Lilith at the Summit of Mount Sinai

Thunder rumbled.

Lightning circled restlessly between the dark clouds, as if watching the two figures below.

Lilith analyzed Amon, who held a greatsword.

[Is it wise to face me in such a fragile human body without armor?]

“The armor of faith shall protect me, and I shall fear no tribulation.”

Amon replied while subtly extending his foot forward.

Lilith matched his movement, taking a step toward him.

[You approach me?]

“I need to get closer to take your head.”

The two slowly advanced toward each other.

When they were about 10 paces apart,

Clang!

Amon’s greatsword collided with Lilith’s scythe.

[You dare challenge me with the strength of a prodigal son? Don’t you know that child only matched me because he borrowed the power of that Goddess?]

“My very existence is Her assistance.”

[Without the tablets of the Ten Commandments, you cannot defeat me—]

Clang!

With a sharp metallic sound, Amon’s greatsword was pushed back.

[You cannot wound me with that faded blade.]

“We’ll see about that.”

Amon charged at Lilith again.

He wielded the massive greatsword as if it were an ordinary blade.

His strength was formidable, but the woman who had withstood a cannon blast possessed even greater power.

The greatsword was repeatedly deflected, the difference in technique rendered meaningless.

As their futile exchange continued, glowing numbers appeared on Amon’s greatsword.

י

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor desire your neighbor’s goods.”

The light-infused greatsword clashed with the scythe.

Once again, the greatsword was deflected, but Lilith could feel something different.

[The Ten Commandments?]

Amon paid no mind and continued swinging his greatsword.

ט

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor—”

Clang!

ח

“You shall not steal—!”

ז

“You shall not commit adultery… Ah, this one won’t be effective.”

Whoosh.

The greatsword that had been swinging with such force suddenly lost its power.

Amon tapped the greatsword repeatedly to bring up the next number and continued his attack.

Each time he recited a commandment, the destructive power of the greatsword increased.

As if condemning Lilith for violating them.

And finally, the tenth.

א

“You shall worship no being other than the Mother!”

And as the ninth number appeared, the greatsword cut through both Lilith’s scythe and her body.

The saint, separated from her lower half, floated her upper body in the air and looked down at her cross-section.

[Not bad at all.]

When she raised her head again, her lower half had regenerated as if nothing had happened.

[But the body is merely a shell, and you have yet to wound me.]

Looking at her speaking so calmly, Amon had to admit it.

She was on a completely different level from the fake he had encountered at the Higgjen Group.

“You’re not angry.”

[Why would I be angered by something that cannot harm me?]

“True. I never thought I could judge you with just the greatsword anyway.”

The greatsword’s ability was powerful.

Not only did all attacks become critical hits proportional to faith, but damage increased depending on the opponent.

Even without breaking rules, attacks landed as critical hits, and a certain percentage of critical damage bypassed defense as fixed damage based on the enemy’s accumulated evil deeds.

In reality, it meant every attack directly damaged the soul.

But this ability was meaningless against the Saint of Sin.

After all, it meant nothing if the attacks didn’t connect.

And since her essence wasn’t bound to her physical form, no matter how many times Amon cut her, it was as if she hadn’t been cut at all.

His eyes fully revealed this truth.

“To kill you, I’ll need this.”

Amon’s pupils transformed into the shape of a cross.

Along with this, a black halo of light appeared above his head.

Lilith looked at the halo with pity.

[The virtue of sacrifice… Do you also intend to walk the same fate as ‘them’?]

Amon didn’t respond and resumed his attack.

Lilith, who had been relaxed until now, dodged the attacks from Amon with his black halo.

But when her arm was accidentally grazed, her wound no longer regenerated.

The problem was Amon.

[Is this world worth sacrificing yourself for?]

She pointed to Amon’s arm.

Where she pointed, a cut identical to her own wound had appeared on his arm.

[Azrael… You walk the same path as that child.]

Lilith genuinely pitied him.

But Amon continued swinging his sword.

Dodging the greatsword, Lilith closed her eyes as if meditating, then clapped her hands together as if in prayer.

Clap.

With just that, black clay gathered on Amon’s greatsword.

The clay squelched as it dulled the blade.

Amon immediately threw the greatsword aside and rushed toward her.

As he ran, he created a pistol in his hand, recalling the temple that had stood on this mountain.

****

Inside the temple at the summit of Mount Sinai.

Within that temple, Amon had met the first protagonist, Sadin.

And was cut down by Sadin.

Without resistance, in an instant.

When Amon regained consciousness, he was collapsed at the temple entrance.

It was a familiar experience.

In gaming terms, it was like respawning.

This was also the secret behind how the first protagonist in Punk City 1 could defeat Lilith and the demons, unlike other mercenaries hired by the Vatican.

However, this was no blessing.

‘One who cannot close his eyes.’

This wasn’t resurrection but merely being deprived of death.

As a result, repeated resurrections eroded one’s humanity, eventually transforming them into a monster.

The first protagonist simply completed his mission with near-insane conviction.

Perhaps by the ending, he had already become a monster wearing a human shell—that was the consensus among fans.

And now Amon had joined their ranks.

Immediately after being cut by Sadin, by a dagger embedded in his chest.

<Paenitentia>

From the moment this translucent dagger was embedded, Amon had only one path left.

Either overcome Sadin’s trial, or exhaust his humanity and become a monster.

Though he had prepared himself for this, fear gripped him when it actually happened.

But remembering that time was running out, Amon immediately challenged Sadin again.

Creak.

Each time he opened the temple door, countless deaths awaited.

It was only after being instantly killed about 10 times that he could finally see Sadin’s sword.

“Ugh!”

Whenever Amon opened the door, Sadin would be praying with his back turned, and when Amon stepped into the corridor, Sadin would draw his greatsword and rise.

Clang!

At first, Sadin faced Amon with his greatsword, but as soon as Amon adapted to the sword, Sadin manifested a black halo above his head.

With the halo, Sadin began using all the virtues and combat techniques from the original work that Amon knew.

‘The Mercenary King…’

Black threads and a gun.

The techniques of the Mercenary King.

He used threads to limit escape routes and gradually closed in with gunfire.

And when enough threads had been spread throughout the space,

Boom!

The threads all exploded at once, creating an inescapable attack.

After falling victim to this technique once, Amon learned to dodge bullets while cutting the threads.

After adapting to the threads and gun, spears and swords appeared.

‘Ghost of London…’

The strategy against the Ghost of London was simple.

Block, dodge, and strike.

The problem was that it was incredibly difficult.

To make matters worse, these weren’t ordinary swords and spears—they transformed into swords, spears, guns, bows, axes, and more.

The close combat skills of the legendary ghost and fisherman who had hunted countless giant monsters and entities were beyond what could be countered just by knowing the patterns.

But after about 30 deaths, Amon overcame the Ghost of London.

Finally, Sadin discarded his modular weapons and picked up the greatsword again.

However, this was on a completely different level from the greatsword Amon had faced when he first entered.

Sadin wielded the greatsword with only his right hand, while using holy magic with his left.

And he cast faith confession magic without incantations.

He swung the greatsword horizontally and pressed down the surroundings with gravity.

He brought it down vertically and stripped away Amon’s senses.

He swept the area with the greatsword and struck the ground with a stake, causing a massive explosion.

Whenever his health was slightly reduced, he deployed a sanctuary and covered himself with all kinds of buffs.

‘Damn…’

The combination was curse-worthy, but also understandable.

‘This is what it takes to single-handedly defeat 72 demons and the mother of demons.’

Amon couldn’t count how many times he died to each pattern.

But eventually, Amon defeated Sadin.

Thanks to awakening his own virtue.

“You’ve done well until now. Rest, Sadin.”

Defeated by Amon at last, Sadin crumbled into sand with a hoarse voice.

[It’s all… my fault…]

There was one reason he blamed himself.

[I placed too heavy a burden on them…]

The reason why the true endings of past protagonists ended bitterly.

It was all because of Sadin.

The reason he could use the techniques of past protagonists was because he had met them in some way.

The nameless masters who appeared in each series.

The protagonists who suddenly appeared from somewhere like masters in seclusion.

They were all individuals who had been spiritually influenced through conversations and training with Sadin.

[Ah…]

Sadin sighed and extended a seal to Amon.

Creating saviors with his own hands was something to be proud of, but it was even more painful.

That’s why he always atoned.

[Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. (My fault. My fault. My most grievous fault.)]

Sighing, he handed over the assassin’s seal.

Looking down at the seal, Amon shook his head.

“It’s not your fault.”

[I will remember your sacrifice—]

“I won’t be sacrificing myself.”

Immediately, Amon’s black halo turned white.

Seeing this, Sadin realized something from the halo and sobbed in a hoarse voice.

[Oh—]

“You can hear it, can’t you?”

[I finally…]

With those words, Sadin disappeared into sand.

His greatsword, cold weapons, gun, and threads—all vanished, leaving only a single essence.

Amon picked up the pure white essence.

With that, the translucent temple transformed into sand and collapsed.

Amon held the essence to his chest amidst the falling sand—

“Now I’ll end my story too.”

With a white halo above his head, he left the temple behind.

****

With the rapid flashback of the past, Amon refocused on the enemy before him.

He fired holy magic along with his pistol, pressuring Lilith.

But when she fluttered her six pairs of wings, the shockwave blocked both magic and bullets.

[Why do you deny me? I stand before you. Must I truly turn stones into bread for you to serve me?]

Amon didn’t respond.

Having already seen the Goddess, he felt Lilith’s words weren’t even worth acknowledging.

He eventually took out a folding spear and wove black threads from his fingertips.

He tried to entangle Lilith’s wings with the threads and fix the axis of the future to launch his spear.

But Lilith disappeared and reappeared before his eyes as if she had moved through time.

[Foolish child. Why are you bound by time? To me, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like a day, but you humans cannot know what lies ahead.]

“You don’t know what’s right in front of you either.”

After his strike aimed at her heart failed, Amon drew his tachi.

“Hoo—”

Slash.

The air distorted as if space itself had been cut.

The strike carved a large wound in Lilith’s abdomen, but it didn’t lead to death.

[I am everywhere and nowhere. Why do you flee from me? I have always prepared a dwelling place in your heart.]

Amon twisted his lips.

“True. As long as humanity doesn’t perish, you’ll never disappear.”

Looking at the blood flowing from his own abdomen, Amon twisted his lips.

Amon knew well.

Lilith wasn’t an opponent who could be killed this way.

Her essence was created from others who opposed her.

Therefore, as long as one was human, or had once been human, she couldn’t be defeated.

This was also why the virtue of sacrifice was the only counter.

This technique, where both the opponent and oneself take damage, could truly kill her essence because the moment she died, so would he.

That’s why she was trying to persuade Amon.

[Truly—is this world worth loving that much?]

“Yes.”

Amon answered without hesitation.

He picked up the greatsword he had thrown aside and swung it again.

In the midst of the chaotic battle, he analyzed the mud and sharpened the blade of the greatsword once more, aiming for her neck.

Amon’s body was in tatters, but so was hers, and this time she couldn’t dodge the greatsword.

The blade of the greatsword cleanly severed her neck, and,

“Cough…”

Amon coughed up blood.

“Hoo…”

With eyes weary from fatigue, Amon looked at her rolling head.

Soon, Lilith’s head turned to ashes and disappeared.

“…”

Amon wiped the blood from his mouth and stared at the headless body as if waiting for something.

And then—

[Kyaaah—!]

Seven white snake heads emerged from the cross-section.

Lilith transformed into a monster with seven snake heads sprouting from a woman’s torso.

[Why! Both Azrael! And Amon! Why do you reject my love!]

Amon found her words absurd.

‘The audacity has its limits.’

Lilith’s love was self-righteous.

It was closer to possessiveness toward a doll than love for a child.

So Amon decided to give some harsh words to the seven-headed snake.

“Well, even loved ones have their own perspectives.”

[Do not deceive! What difference is there between that Goddess’s love and mine!]

“She respects independence as much as she loves.”

There was one reason Amon followed the Goddess.

Because she respected as much as she loved.

“If all fate flowed according to the Goddess’s will, how would that be different from a puppet show?”

She doesn’t interfere through revelation.

That single sentence carries powerful meaning.

Fully respecting freedom means the consequences of those choices are entirely humanity’s responsibility.

Of course, this resulted in a messed-up world like the Punk setting, but she respected even that as her children’s choice.

Lilith’s thoughts seemed different, however.

[How can you stand by and watch a child fall into water!]

“And you think it’s right to cage the child so they can’t go near water?”

This wasn’t a matter of right and wrong.

It was simply a matter of preference.

The reason Amon liked the Punk City world was because it gave freedom with responsibility for one’s choices.

“That’s what freedom is.”

[I cannot accept it. You—you who receive the Goddess’s favoritism—do you not think of the other children!]

“There’s always a sore finger.”

Honestly, the Goddess is a personality(?) too—wouldn’t she want to give an extra treat to a well-behaved child?

Lilith roared at Amon’s logic of preference.

[If that fragment of love had been directed toward us too—!]

“My goodness, proper teenage rebellion.”

Tired of listening to her lamentations, Amon readjusted his grip on the greatsword.

“Let’s end this tedious conversation.”

[I cannot! Solomon! Your name is also in his book! Amon! You too will eventually regret this choice—!]

“Sigh. Demons. Why don’t they ever listen?”

Amon massaged the back of his neck as if tired.

“My name means love (Amor), it’s Amorn. Not Aamon.”

[Huh?]

“Tsk.”

It didn’t make sense from the beginning.

Demons suffer in endless reincarnation, so how could he, an outsider, be one of them?

‘No, I’m not an outsider anymore.’

Correcting his thoughts, Amon pointed his greatsword.

The seven snake heads each manifested their powers to counter Amon.

But Amon’s next action was enough to bewilder Lilith.

Crash!

The Ten Commandments execution sword in Amon’s hand shattered into pieces as it flew high into the sky.

And from within the greatsword emerged the cross-shaped longsword that Amon favored.

Amon murmured softly.

“Peccavi (I have sinned.)”

Lilith was wary of the sword that emanated a power incomparable to the greatsword.

[That sword…!]

“The Mother who dwells in Her holy place is the mother of orphans, the judge of widows…”

[You cannot become that Goddess’s child, outsider!]

“The family of the lonely, the leader who guides the imprisoned.”

Once, Amon had wondered why he couldn’t awaken his virtue.

He should have understood enough virtues, so why was there not even a response for him?

After countless deaths with Sadin, he realized his misconception.

“I did not receive the spirit of slavery but the spirit of adoption—!”

He had considered himself an outsider.

Like an adopted child who felt they wouldn’t be treated like a biological child.

That’s why he always proclaimed love from a place of duty and debt toward the Goddess.

But that was a misconception.

Thanks to Sadin, who called him not an ‘outsider’ but a ‘heaven-defier,’ he realized.

‘Heaven’s decree calls you a true child, so why do you insist on being an adopted outsider?’

That single sentence awakened Amon’s heart.

His black halo began to turn white.

Seeing this, Lilith realized she had been deceived.

[Not sacrifice—]

Amon raised the corner of his mouth at her satisfying reaction.

‘I told you I wouldn’t see a bad ending.’

Sacrifice was not his way.

“Fides, spes, caritas, tria haec! (Faith, hope, love, these three!)”

[It was the virtue of love all along!]

“Maior autem horum est caritas! (But the greatest of these is love!)”

Amon, floating in the air, threw his sword.

The swords pierced through the crowns of the seven heads like stakes.

As white chains erupting from the ground secured the seven heads, Amon stood above where the seven heads sprouted, raising his sword.

Like an executioner about to behead, Amon looked down at Lilith.

White radiance infused his cross-sword.

[I just—!]

“Quis amor ut Matris! (What love could compare to that of the Mother!)”

Slash!

The sound of tearing flesh was buried beneath a pure white explosion.

A column of white light rose, piercing through the dark clouds that covered the mountain.

And far from the mountain, a city that had transformed into a dungeon began to return to its original form.

Citizens who had turned into lesser monsters reverted to their original forms, unable to take their eyes off the white column reminiscent of the Tower of Babel.

“Oh… Lord…”

While those who had forgotten their faith knelt and couldn’t tear their eyes away from the column,

“Mmm…”

Kathy and Sunhwa woke from their sleep.

Grr—

Sunwoo continued his deep sleep, scratching his belly, indifferent to the bright light.

The women looked at Sonia’s back as she stood, unable to take her eyes off the column.

“Where’s Amon?”

With her back still turned, Sonia made a hand signal telling them to wait.

When the column of light finally subsided, Sonia turned around.

Smiling brightly, Sonia looked toward Kathy and Sunhwa.

Kathy and Sunhwa realized that smile wasn’t directed at them.

They too looked behind them, and,

“I’m back.”

Only then did Amon greet them.

As Amon opened his arms to them,

The three embraced him and said:

“Good job.”

“We’ve been waiting.”

“You’re back?”

Feeling the warmth of the three, Amon was certain.

This was the true ending.