D-Rank Constellation Hunter… Stuck Without Internet! - Chapter 125

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 125
“I buried her and sat on her grave waiting, and then this Gate opened.”
I thought it was the end of the world and entered, only to find it was just farmland.
He quietly tended the fields there, unaware of time’s passage.
He ventured out so rarely that he didn’t even notice the System window appearing in the sky.
Except for occasionally emerging to maintain Hong So-gyeong’s grave mound, he had confined himself entirely.
“Annihilation must come so I can die. Only then would I have the right to go to her side…. I thought that, but I never expected the Constellation to enter this land first.”
For Hong So-gyeong, who had spent her entire life worrying about whether he would die, this seemed to be what she believed was atonement.
In any case, even transcendents who have accumulated much karma tend to have such rigid aspects.
Perhaps I’m an irregular type.
“Is the love story over?”
“There’s no counterpart, so there’s no story to update.”
The reason he told such a long story was clear.
He had to prevent annihilation, and until then, he couldn’t die no matter how much I commanded it.
Even if I used force to kill him, he would resist desperately.
He wasn’t a transcendent like Ha Gyuhyuk, who barely exceeded the client’s domain.
He came from a special Server and accumulated karma alone by closing countless Dungeons on Earth.
Though he did nothing for three years, that wouldn’t be enough to make it disappear.
He might even reach the threshold of the High Priest.
If I tried to force his death, I would have to bear considerable losses.
“Did you sense any signs of annihilation even once during those three years?”
“Yes. While living with her, such signs weren’t clearly visible, but during those three years with nothing to do… recently, I’ve begun to sense such things.”
“You felt it too, then.”
It seemed the transcendent could sense something approaching.
He nodded silently.
But there was no way a single transcendent could stop a Landquake that even a single Constellation couldn’t prevent.
He would know that too.
Kim Young-won simply needed an excuse to die; he wasn’t considering the possibility of actually preventing annihilation.
I approached him sitting there and bowed my head.
“You know what kind of place this space is, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of place is it?”
“It’s a mental world—a Dimensional Space that can be entered when a client accumulates karma beyond a certain level, where the first to enter becomes the owner.”
That’s right.
This Black Darkness Hell is now a place where Kim Young-won’s mental image is manifested, creating fields and farmland.
“And?”
“It’s a place where I must uphold the mission of building up the rank of a transcendent.”
A Dungeon where the transcendent becomes the owner of the space itself, a Dimensional Space belonging to the client.
Due to the space’s nature, merely spending time here significantly elevates the owner’s abilities.
However, karma, after all, accumulates only to eventually diminish at some point.
If you choose to stay here rather than move forward through this place….
Then you’re ultimately ignoring your mission, and the space will administer appropriate ‘disposal’ accordingly.
“If you remain in this position, you’ll be disposed of before destruction even arrives.”
“….”
“You should know this. That was probably your true objective all along. One must deceive those who seek to be deceived.”
“As expected, there’s no getting around it.”
For each Server, special spaces like this are created in numbers equal to the Constellations born there.
They emerge when one thinks, “This place has the potential for a Constellation to be born!”
In other words, on Earth where one Constellation exists, there’s only this single space.
“If it’s going to be erased anyway, I’ll yield. My child needs to use this.”
If you don’t fulfill your mission and build your rank, you’re erased.
That’s what it means to dominate this space.
Therefore, if a Constellation pushes a transcendent into this place, there’s only one reason.
“I will elevate my child to a position among the stars.”
“You’re quite heartless to an old man.”
“What nonsense from someone whose blood hasn’t even dried on the branch.”
An old man, they say.
This space cannot be transferred unless the original owner dies.
I didn’t want to go through such troublesome measures either.
There’s no karma space like this on Earth except here, so one must cross Servers—but what can be done about it.
He wants to die and I need him dead.
Our interests align perfectly.
“True, transferring this space to someone who needs it more is also an option.”
“Are you afraid of suffering?”
“I am not afraid. I only ask that you not torture me unnecessarily.”
“Ah, so you’re not asking to die by your own hand, but to be killed by me? Very well then.”
“It would be an honor.”
It should be an honor.
Killing a transcendent carries karma burden even for me.
“First, let’s write a contract stating mutual agreement. Otherwise, I’ll face discipline from Sungdo.”
“Yes.”
It was then that Ha Gyuhyuk, grasping the situation, interjected.
“You’re going to kill this person to raise me? That can’t happen.”
“Why not? He said he wants to die anyway. This is mutually agreed upon.”
“…Is that truly the case, Kim Young-won?”
He looked toward Kim Young-won as if demanding an explanation.
But Kim Young-won, instead of answering, stared intently at Ha Gyuhyuk’s face.
“It seems humans with faces like yours have a characteristic of being loved by non-human beings.”
“…Pardon?”
“Hong So-gyeong comes to mind.”
The roots that had been deeply embedded in the ground withdrew, and for the first time since we arrived, he rose to his feet.
Just by looking at Kim Young-won’s face, I could read exactly what he was thinking.
I exhaled a sigh heavy enough to crack the earth itself.
The old man’s face began to transform before our eyes.
“Huh?”
The wrinkles vanished, and brown tones returned to his hair.
His violet eyes grew vivid.
“I apologize for this sudden whim, but I have a request for the Constellation.”
“Do as you wish. As you wish. But if any problems arise, I’ll intervene immediately, so keep that in mind.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Kim Young-won—or rather, the one who had returned to Emel’s form—turned to look at Ha Gyuhyuk.
Suddenly, vitality overflowed from someone who had been indifferent to everything.
Ha Gyuhyuk, who had been tearing into us, seemed to sense the shift in his presence and flinched.
He reflexively moved to position himself in front of me.
“It’s fine. I’m not attacking you—I’m attacking him.”
“Oh, thank goodness. Wait?”
“Right, let me get to the point: the karma you’ve accumulated has already transcended human levels.”
Ha Gyuhyuk’s eyes darted rapidly as an overwhelming flood of information crashed down on him.
I could see him struggling to comprehend it on his own, even though understanding eluded him.
“In short, you’ve taken one step closer to becoming a Constellation. But this one here is far closer to that threshold than you are.”
“Have you accumulated much karma?”
“Yes, and I harbor many regrets.”
If Emel were to become a Constellation, he could dissipate when he prevented Earth’s destruction.
But that’s impossible.
He’s not even from Earth, and if asked whether he’d become a Constellation, he’d bite his tongue and die first.
“Your name?”
“Ha Gyuhyuk. And you’re Kim Young-won, I presume.”
“Is So-gyeong’s grave still in good condition?”
Ha Gyuhyuk blinked slowly.
“Yes, it’s still being maintained well.”
“That’s a relief. Time doesn’t flow here, so I was worried I hadn’t left to pull the weeds—it should be time for that by now.”
He spoke calmly and began walking past us.
Ha Gyuhyuk glanced at me once.
I nodded, and he hurried after Emel.
I followed them very slowly.
Though we were quite far apart, I could naturally hear their conversation clearly.
“Do you intend to become a Constellation?”
“I can’t say it’s something I desire.”
“Did the Constellation coming from behind command it?”
“It’s because I wish to be by that person’s side.”
Why does Emel keep having conversations like that when he knows I can hear everything he says?
Somehow, I ended up feeling like I was eavesdropping on gossip.
“Considering the average human lifespan, shouldn’t you be preventing catastrophe?”
“You commanded me to live long, so I will live long.”
At his words, which sounded almost innocent, Ha Gyuhyuk stared at him intently, as if he’d grasped something profound.
Ha Gyuhyuk hesitated for a moment, as if wondering whether he’d misspoken.
This was the first time I’d seen him look so flustered in front of someone else.
Perhaps it was because Emel was a fellow transcendent.
Or maybe he’d been moved by some love story.
Emel looked toward me.
“Would you mind stepping aside for a moment?”
“So the moment I leave, you’re planning to kill my kid? Huh? You think my kid is easy prey? No matter how weak he looks, he’s the strongest among the weak?”
Kim Young-won stared at me intently.
I know, you bastard.
I know that’s not what you mean—I’m just saying it anyway.
“Fine, fine. I’ll go rescue the Grand Duke trapped in the Tower and be back. Handle things until then.”
“Yes.”
I gently patted Ha Gyuhyuk’s head.
“I’ll be back soon. You’re doing well.”
“Yes? Doing what? Ah, anyway, please go.”
I smiled at him and shifted through space.
To rescue the poor Hunter who’d been trapped alone all this time.
Congratulations, Dan Yibum.
This is a conditional special pardon.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————