Chapter 107: Annoying Existence

Episode 107

There were a few things that Kim Jinsung absolutely hated being called.

– Trash

– Idiot

– Good-for-nothing

– Piece of shit

And so on.

What those insults had in common was that they were all things he’d been called while being bullied throughout his school years.

And there was one phrase he hated above all else.

‘Pathetic.’

Whenever he heard those words, rage would well up inside him.

Why was he pathetic? They were the ones tormenting him unjustly.

It had unknowingly become a deeply-rooted trauma.

Back then, he could only suppress his anger. He was weak and small, lacking both the strength and the courage to fight back.

But those days were long gone.

He wasn’t a helpless child anymore,

He had become someone no one could ignore, and he was well aware of it.

‘Who the hell are you to judge me?’

Enraged by the condescending notification, he decided to play his strongest card.

—

▶ Activating skill ‘Shadow Clone.’

▶ Activating skill ‘Shadow Clone.’

▶ Activating skill ‘Shadow Clone’…

—

He stopped summoning clones only when his MP was completely depleted

He had created eight clones in total.

The initially unfavorable 1-on-3 battle had now turned into a 9-on-3 advantage, including himself.

“Come at me, you bastards!”

He roared, and all the clones simultaneously lunged at the Mantodea, swords drawn.

The tables turned in an instant.

The Mantodea were now forced onto the defensive.

The clones’ relentless attacks gave them no chance to counter.

They had failed to even scratch Kim Jinsung, despite ganging up on him, so it was only natural that things would change with nine copies of him.

**Thud!**

The real Kim Jinsung pierced the abdomen of one of the Mantodeas with his sword.

From that moment on, the Mantodea began to crumble rapidly.

They had already seemed overwhelmed even when they were unscathed. Now, with one of them heavily injured and their combat effectiveness severely reduced, they were no match for the coordinated assault of nine attackers.

**Thud! Thud!**

**Swoosh!**

One by one, the Mantodeas were cut down.

**Swoosh!**

The real Kim Jinsung decapitated the last remaining Mantodea, let out a heavy sigh, and looked around.

“Whew….”

He had won decisively, but he’d been pushed harder than expected.

‘I thought they’d be slightly stronger than Aards, but the power difference was massive, like an adult fighting a child.’

That battle had exhausted most of his strength.

He had to use almost everything he had to take down three Mantodeas.

‘If there are even stronger Tainted Ones out there, I might be in real danger…’

This experience served as a harsh reminder that he was in the New Continent now.

He had been praised as a rising star, compared to the legendary Yoo Junho, since the third preliminary, but he’d just had to use everything he had to defeat three ordinary-looking monsters in a desperate fight.

‘The New Continent is different. Can’t afford to get complacent.’

As he wiped the blood from his blade, a few notifications popped up.

—

[The Demon God Dantalian is intrigued by your fighting style but also disappointed.]

[The Demon God Dantalian is keeping an eye on you.]

—

‘This guy again?’

He frowned.

‘What does he even mean by disappointed? Why doesn’t he just appear and tell me himself.’

Irritated, he impatiently dismissed the notification.

But another notification popped up immediately.

Thinking it might be from Dantalian, he was about to dismiss it when he paused.

It was a different message.

—

▶ You have defeated a monster.

▶ Acquired 250 Beast Karma points.

▶ Obtained composite trait ‘Cutting Specialist’ from the defeated monster.

▷ Cutting Specialist: Grants the following traits:

– Versatile Cutter Hands: User’s hands can transform into large scythes. Increases Strength and Agility by 10%, and skin defense of the transformed hands increases by 100%.

– Armored Skin: Skin defense increased by 50%.

– Permanent Strength, Agility +85.

—

‘…I can change my hands into something like a Mantodea’s?’

He immediately activated the new trait.

His hands transformed into large black scythes.

‘Oh…!’

He moved his transformed hands around to get a feel for them.

They looked quite grotesque.

He swung them in a wide arc to gauge their weight and tested their durability, clashing them against his clones’ swords.

He then lightly swung at the wall beside him.

**Thud!**

The wall was deeply gouged.

‘Not bad. I can even fight in this form if I don’t have a sword.’

As he tested out the new trait, he heard a familiar voice behind him,

“Are you done…? Yikes?!”

Turning around, he saw Lee Jiseong staring at him wide-eyed,

He even collapsed to the ground and trembled.

But after recognizing Kim Jinsung, he sighed in relief.

‘Whew…It’s just you. I thought you were another Mantodea!’

He patted his chest, calming his racing heart, and suddenly looked around.

‘But, you actually beat them again?’

He had only encountered the Mantodea tribe once before.

As a member of the body disposal unit, he only dealt with lower-level dungeons where the risk of death was minimal. They mostly handled the aftermath, not the battles themselves.

Because the unit was comprised of hunters who couldn’t even defeat a single Minion alone, let alone a Tainted One, they rarely entered dungeons Level 10 or higher, where Mantodeas appeared.

‘Back then, our entire party was nearly wiped out by a single Mantodea that suddenly appeared in a Level 6 dungeon…’

The party consisted of 15 members. Only four, including himself, had returned alive after that encounter.

He could still vividly remember the Mantodea effortlessly slaughtering them, like crushing ants.

And now Kim Jinsung had defeated them alone, three of them at the same time.

‘What is this man’s limit? At this rate, I think he could even defeat stronger Tainted Ones…’

He suddenly remembered Kim Jinsung’s fight against Shin Woong, when he transformed into Forghinae.

He wondered if Kim Jinsung could defeat even stronger Tainted Ones using the same strategy.

“I have a question.”

He was surprised by the sudden voice.

‘…Who is that?’

He looked around, thinking it might have come from someone else, but he and Kim Jinsung were alone in this passage.

He stared at Kim Jinsung, who was staring at him intently.

‘Wait, did Kim Jinsung just speak?’

He was incredulous.

It was the first time Kim Jinsung had spoken since they had met in the labyrinth.

“Have Demon Gods ever appeared in the Demon World Dungeon?”

While Lee Jiseong was still trying to process everything, Kim Jinsung continued to speak.

Lee Jiseong immediately nodded.

“Yes, they have.”

This time, it was Kim Jinsung’s turn to be surprised.

‘Demon Gods truly exist?’

So the Demon God Dantalian from the notifications was real?

“But I’ve never actually seen one in the Demon World Dungeon.”

Lee Jiseong added.

“While my knowledge of the Demon World Dungeon isn’t exhaustive…but based on what I know, Demon Gods have only made their presence known through voices in the highest-level dungeons. No one has ever seen their true form.”

“Never?”

“Never. I’ve heard of Demon Kings appearing, but not even rumors about Demon Gods. Why are you asking about them…?”

Lee Jiseong curiously stared at Kim Jinsung.

Kim Jinsung paused, seemingly lost in thought, then turned and began to walk away without answering.

He saw no point in answering.

He didn’t need to be honest with someone like Lee Jiseong.

Lee Jiseong tilted his head, watching him walk away.

‘What’s with him…?’

Kim Jinsung was an enigma. His first words were oddly out of place.

‘Many people ask about the dungeons and monsters in the New Continent, but this is the first time I’ve met anyone asking about Demon Gods.’

He quickly ran after Kim Jinsung; they were already quite a distance apart.

* * *

At the same time,

“……”

Standing near the entrance to the dungeon portal, Yong Hangil’s gaze was fixed on his smartphone screen.

The Colosseum live broadcast was showing Kim Jinsung and Lee Jiseong walking side by side.

[And so, with this victory, Kim Jinsung advances! He defeated the Tainted Ones called Mantodea, known to be far stronger than Aards!]

[It seems Kim Jinsung had to go all out this time too, right? We saw him summon multiple clones for the first time since his fight against Shin Woong.]

[But in the end, the last one standing is Kim Jinsung!]

– Kim Jinsung! Is he a god? Kim Jinsung! Is he a god? Kim Jinsung! Is he a god?

– I knew he would be successful even in the New Continent!

– Lee Jiseong: Easiest ride ever ㅎㅎ

– But is it true that demon kings appear in those dungeons…?

Yong Hangil switched off his phone after reading the commentators’ remark and the chat’s reaction and silently gazed at the sky.

“……”

The Daehan Clan hunters standing behind him watched, every single one of them tense.

‘He seems very angry…’

Hong Yeonseok, the team leader, standing closest to him, was thinking this when Yong Hangil suddenly turned his head.

Startled, he stood up straight and braced himself as Yong Hangil addressed him.

“The next rift?”

“The closest one will open approximately 30 minutes away from Kim Jinsung’s current location.”

He answered smoothly, without hesitation, to which Yong Hangil ordered,

“Prepare ‘Void’.”

“…Yes?”

He couldn’t help but question him, his surprise evident.

The word was unexpected, far exceeding his expectations.

Yong Hangil simply stared at him.

“U-understood!”

He hastily bowed and shouted his affirmation, quickly relaying the order to his team through his earpiece.

Yong Hangil closed his eyes, turning his head towards the sky.

‘I suspected as much, these low-level Tainted Ones are no match for Kim Jinsung.’

He had anticipated this, having seen footage of his fight against Shin Woong.

But Kim Jinsung was exceeding his highest expectations.

‘It’s a good thing I prepared for this.’

– Master.

His earpiece crackled, interrupting his thoughts. He heard Baek Jun’s low voice.

Activating the microphone, he answered,

“What is it?”

– May I ask you a question?

“Go ahead.”

– Are there any Daehan hunters who’ve secretly entered the dungeon?”

Yong Hangil’s eyes flickered as he thought to himself,

‘…Did he figure it out?’

—