episode_0091

Shwip.

From the torn clothes, blood flowed out and filled the holes in the clothes as if patching them up. The blood swirled slightly before quickly turning black and changing into the shape of fabric.

Even the visible traces of the attack disappeared. If it weren’t for the blood on the lips, it would have seemed like the attack had been avoided.

“Haha, my attack was completely useless?”

Potensien, with a completely lost expression, burst into a forced laugh, then covered his face with hands that had turned black at the fingertips.

“This, this can’t be happening. Something must have gone wrong!”

Potensien seemed to be sobbing, almost screaming in despair.

Thinking, ‘Should I try attacking first?’ Magam urgently spoke.

“He stole our lines, so we can’t let ourselves fall too! ”

Magam, who threw out a line that seemed familiar about not letting ourselves fall just because the opponent did something evil, seemed quite pleased with the words he shouted, muttering the same words a couple more times.

While listening to pointless talk, Potensien, who had been floating in the air, called out someone in a soft voice.

“Hamulina.”

The moment he mentioned Hamulina’s name, Hamul, hidden inside Potensien’s pocket, slipped out.

“Will you not regret it?”

Although Hamul had only a handful of remaining body, she was definitely a part of ‘that person.’ She already had an idea of what Potensien wanted.

“Rather than dying as a powerless being, I’d rather become a part of ‘that person’ and serve him.”

“Hehehe, that’s a good idea!”

As the eerie voice echoed, Hamul, who seemed like she could disperse at any moment, began to swell up like dry cotton absorbing water, something Potensien could easily swallow.

Hamul’s form was like a sinister black mist, or a strange flow of air. Facing the enlarged Hamul, Potensien shed tears and blood from his nose, saying,

“Oh… God!”

Thud!

That was Potensien’s last words.

Thump, crack!

“Um, can we leave it like that?”

“Ha ha, only those who don’t know ‘romance’ attack when the opponent awakens.”

Lian didn’t point out that Magam’s words seemed like a deception only strong people could do.

Potensien’s blood poured onto the ground like rain, and a sound as if swallowing something whole spread harshly. Before a minute had passed, Potensien disappeared without a trace.

The black mist floating in the sky suddenly began to swirl violently.

“Ahhh.”

As the black mist moved ominously, a strange voice, sounding both like a woman’s and a man’s, was heard. It was a bizarre voice that couldn’t be precisely described.

“I offer your kind as a sacrifice!”

In the ecstatic voice, Potensien’s voice rang clearly. At the same time, the black mist gathered and took a perfect form.

‘Seems like a villain who has fallen and awakened.’

Although the appearance was identical to Potensien, the clothes and overall atmosphere had changed to a corrupted feeling.

“Ugh… Partner, how about trying something like that?”

“What?”

“No, no. To follow that, we need to prepare a stage for corruption first…”

The sound of mumbling, lost in thought, flowed through one ear as he looked at Potensien, who had his hands spread towards the sky.

“Are you out of your mind from getting hit too much?”

Kigigik, as if hearing such a sound, Potensien’s face slowly turned towards Rian.

His face… was more monstrous than before. Eyes were on his chin, lips on his cheeks, and a tongue protruded where his eyes used to be. The only thing in its right place was a single nose.

“I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer. I offer.”

A chilling sound, like scraping a blackboard, spread like lightning, and Potensien suddenly disappeared from sight.

“…!”

Just like when a spear pierced his abdomen, Rian realized Potensien was right in front of him.

Jjeo-eok -…

Vertical lines appeared on his face, then split apart horizontally. Through them, dozens of gazes focused on Rian.

Something inexplicable as ‘that’ rushed towards Rian in an instant.

“Huh?!”

As if there were a black hole in Rian’s head, Hamul was sucked into Rian’s body. Startled, Rian staggered back, feeling his head.

“What, what is it?”

Thinking there might be a hole in his head, he felt around vigorously, but all he touched was soft hair.

“Gargando, did anything change with me?”

[Hmm, doesn’t seem like anything changed? What was that attack just now? A cool exit strategy, maybe?]

“Yeah…”

That was the only way to describe the situation.

“Oh! That’s not important right now! Noah and the others… huh?”

While speaking, Rian noticed his vision was becoming blurry.

“Why is everything in front of me…”

Thud.

Thanks to plunging the Maegum into the ground, he didn’t collapse, but it felt like his body might fall backward at any moment.

[Suddenly, why is this happening? Partner!]

Like in the arena, fearing Rian might die, Hamul urgently shouted, but Rian’s mind was too chaotic to respond.

Thunk.

At that moment, hurried footsteps approached Rian.

“Rian!”

Having barely overcome the monster unleashed by Potensien, Noah ran to save Rian. As soon as Rian came into view, Noah called out to him as if screaming.

Plop.

Before Noah’s voice reached his ears, Rian collapsed.

***

During that time, Hamulina entered Rian’s mind.

“What’s this?”

Hamul was bewildered by the unexpected scene.

“Why is it completely empty?”

Contrary to what the Maegum had said about making a ‘cool exit,’ Hamul didn’t attack Rian for that purpose. It was quite the opposite.

By offering the high-quality sacrifice of Potensien to ‘that person,’ Hamul gained immense power.

No matter how strong Rian’s mental strength was, it would pale in comparison to ‘that person’s’ power.

Wanting to return the humiliation Rian caused him in the same way, Hamul planned to infiltrate Rian’s mind, destroy his psyche, and offer his soul to ‘that person.’

But… there was something fundamentally missing here that humans should possess.

“Could it be that it wasn’t human? A sophisticated golem?”

If he was indeed human, the mental world he should possess was completely empty, with only darkness taking its place. As he peered into that darkness, his body trembled slightly.

Eerie.

Suddenly, a thought crossed Hamul’s mind. With a wry smile, he tilted his head. It was inconceivable that he, who borrowed the power of “that being,” could feel unease at the emptiness of a mere human mind.

“Is Potensien’s spirit still lingering?”

Perhaps during the process of finely grinding Potensien and offering it to “that being,” a part of him unknowingly remained in his body.

“Well, there’s no other choice. It has to burst from within.”

By using “that being’s” power, not only could Hamul interfere with Lian’s mind but also with his body. Hamul began to draw forth great power. Dark and viscous strange energy gathered in his hands.

Just facing it made people go insane; a dreadful energy faintly glowed at the tip of Hamul’s hand.

Although the principle was unknown, the surroundings were tinged with a gray hue.

Krrrk, kwaaang!

As the energy left Hamul’s fingertips, as if throwing a torch into an unfathomable hole, a part of the seemingly empty space brightened.

Since there was nothing in Lian’s mental world, he intended to break through the barrier of the mind and strike the flesh. Hamul chuckled confidently.

“Hehe, once I burst out and escape, how will this fellow’s companions react?”

Hamul shuddered at the thought of chewing up and swallowing Lian’s despairing comrades.

“As soon as we leave, we must capture this fellow’s soul and show them all what happens…”

In that moment when Hamul muttered about capturing Lian’s deceased soul and showing his comrades a cruel scene of slaughter…

Hwoong…

A terrifying sound emanated as the attack that had been shooting forward extinguished before “something” like a storm extinguishing a candle flame.

“…?”

Hamul raised his head to look at ▉.

▉ looked back at Hamul.

“Ah.”

As Hamul recognized ▉, everything was engulfed. From the physical form bestowed by “that being” to the transcendent spirit—everything.

Only ▉ remained in the new mental realm.

***

Poof! Pweong!

“You damn birdbrain, try doing better!”

The god of comedy, wearing stockings and holding a gamepad, ruthlessly stomped on a magpie. The magpie cried out loudly.

“Zoology, animal abuse!”

Whether he completely forgot his role as a god or truly became a birdbrain, the god of dark fantasy dropped the gamepad, shed bead-like tears, and screamed in agony.

“Oh no! It’s dead…sniff!”

Expressing annoyance at the game over screen, the god of comedy couldn’t stop a trim that suddenly popped out.

“Huh? What’s this? I didn’t eat anything weird, meow?”

After tasting unfamiliar flavors and tilting his head, he quickly grabbed the magpie crawling on the floor.

“What’s wrong? Let’s start the next round, meow!”

“Please spare me…”