Level -99 Archmage - Chapter 16

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 16. Radiant Anubis
‘I must have seen it wrong.’
At first, he denied what he was seeing.
But no matter how many times he looked, the face hovering above the sun was unmistakably Kim Byeong-han’s own.
‘It has to be someone who just looks similar.’
No name had been mentioned.
Then couldn’t there be a chance it was simply someone who resembled him?
After all, there was no reason he should be the one to die.
Kim Byeong-han examined the words that had appeared once more.
《Find the ‘person rising above the sun’ and kill them.》
《Upon clearance, the Abyss will end.》
《Time limit: 72 hours.》
《Failure will result in the appearance of a Death Knight.》
Find and kill them, it said.
Why, though?
Everything was different from the Abyss he’d experienced yesterday.
There, he’d only needed to face monsters.
But to kill another human being—was such a thing even reasonable?
“I’m pretty sure that’s you, sir.”
“…Don’t cross the line, Lee Min-su. How does that look like me?”
“It is, sir. Look at the background reflected around it—that’s our office. See? When I wave my hand, you can see it right there beside the figure.”
“What the hell are you spouting?”
Smack!
Kim Byeong-han struck Lee Min-su’s hand away forcefully.
This was because Lee Min-su’s waving hand was now visible above the sun.
To anyone watching, it was obvious Kim Byeong-han was the target, but he denied it vehemently.
“Does that make any sense? I’m not a monster.”
“…Well, we can’t know that for sure.”
But Lee Min-su’s expression had turned cold.
“Hey. You know who I am? I’m Kim Byeong-han, team lead. Your team lead!”
“Sir. Actually, I went through the Abyss yesterday during lunch as well.”
“…?”
“In the Abyss I was in, creatures that looked like people chased us down. So we just ran like madmen for six straight hours. Do you know what happened to those who fell or collapsed from exhaustion halfway through?”
“How would I know that…”
“They were torn apart alive. Eyes gouged out, brains spilling, bellies ripped open and their faces buried inside, their entrails devoured—that’s what they said was happening.”
A short dagger was now gripped in Lee Min-su’s hand.
His gaze was ice cold.
Kim Byeong-han’s expression froze as he read that look.
“Don’t…do something you’ll regret.”
“But couldn’t there be monsters that act just like real people?”
“Lee Min-su! You really don’t know me? Do I look like I’m acting?”
“I realized something from what happened yesterday. The only answer with the Abyss is to escape as fast as possible. Man, I still hear those kids begging for their lives. Damn it, I thought I’d forget about it once I came back to work.”
Thump! Thump!
Lee Min-su struck his own head hard with his left hand.
The cheerful Lee Min-su who’d been joking around with Kim Byeong-han moments before was gone.
It had been an act all along.
To forget yesterday, to live as if nothing had changed, he’d even forced himself to come to work.
But it wouldn’t fade.
It wasn’t a dream.
Reality. Goddamn brutal reality.
“Why did the Abyss pull in even children? That doesn’t make sense, does it? The monsters moved at an adult’s pace, but how were children supposed to keep up? It wasn’t even a fair competition.”
When Lee Min-su had first been trapped in the Abyss, he’d held the children’s hands as they ran.
Then he let go.
Because if he hadn’t, he would have been devoured.
“Get your head straight, man!”
“I don’t want to be here another second!”
Ignoring Kim Byeong-han’s cry, Lee Min-su swung the dagger with every intention of running him through.
But Kim Byeong-han didn’t simply take it.
He leaned his body back quickly, evading the blade, then drove his foot forward and kicked Lee Min-su square in the chest.
Crash!
Kim Byeong-han cursed as he watched Lee Min-su skid across the floor and go flying.
“You ungrateful bastard! After all I’ve done for you! You’re lower than an animal!”
Just five minutes ago, he’d been flattering his team lead, calling him the greatest.
Kim Byeong-han, now in a frenzy, swept his hand through the air.
Equipment tumbled out of his Inventory and clattered to the ground.
As the gear touched his body, it automatically resized and fitted itself to him.
Once fully armed, a murderous gleam flashed in Kim Byeong-han’s eyes.
“I’m going to beat him half to death….”
“There he is!”
“Grab him!”
“Kill him! Do it now!”
Kim Byeong-han could only gape as a torrent of people came pouring toward him.
The entire building had erupted—people rushing from every corner to seize him.
Just from what he could see, there had to be fifty of them.
No matter how much stronger Kim Byeong-han had become through two Abyss encounters, facing over fifty people at once was beyond him.
He swung his sword at the approaching crowd.
Slash! Swish!
“Stay back! I’ll put down anyone who comes near!”
But it was hopeless.
Kim Byeong-han found himself driven into a corner of the office in moments.
“I’m Kim Byeong-han! I’ve eaten from the same table as you lot for over ten years!”
His voice cracked as he screamed, but no one was listening.
To them, Kim Byeong-han was nothing but a target to be eliminated.
As time wore on, their numbers only swelled.
And in the midst of the chaos, Park Chan-woo remained lost in thought.
‘What kind of grudge could he have incurred with the Creator to be targeted after just two days?’
It was rare.
In fact, he’d never even heard of someone being targeted this quickly.
Opening an Abyss itself carried risk for the Creator, and if the contents were merely meant to kill a single person, there was almost nothing to gain from it.
‘Is there even anything for the Creator to gain by killing Kim Byeong-han?’
Kim Byeong-han was too much of a motley crew for that.
So curiosity took hold of him.
What exactly had the man done?
What heinous act could warrant being targeted after merely two days?
“Push forward!”
“Kill him! Kill him now!”
Bloodlust filled every face.
Their numbers had long since passed fifty, now climbing toward a hundred.
Reflection Magic was Park Chan-woo’s only available spell.
In this situation, he had no room to extract Kim Byeong-han.
Screech! Screech! Screech-screech-screech!
He glanced down at the floor.
A white furry mass circling around him.
He read the name hovering above it once more.
Then a window appeared.
Name: Radiant Anubis
Level: 1
Grade: Legendary
Description: A juvenile Anubis. A being akin to the god of death, one that summons death, feeds on death, and guides death—but transformed brilliantly by the Riddle effect.
Strength (10)
Stamina (20)
Agility (10)
Intelligence (10)
Mana (10)
Unique Abilities:
Gigantification (Epic)
Flower of Life (Legendary)
Despite being only Level 1, its stats were exceptional.
A total of 60 ability points.
‘At Level 1, it’s a match for a typical Level 10 creature.’
Moreover, his level wasn’t in the negative.
Radiant Anubis was recognized as a ‘pet’ rather than equipped gear.
Still, Park Chan-woo had rarely encountered a Legendary-grade pet.
Pets obtainable in the Abyss were simply that scarce.
A world created by demons, after all.
In a place teeming only with monsters bent on slaughtering humans, the very existence of a ‘pet’ that followed a human was a contradiction.
“Gigantification.”
Poof!
As the skill activated, Radiant Anubis’s form swelled with smoke and shadow.
It transformed into a mass of fur nearly a meter and a half tall.
“W-what is that?”
“A-a monster!”
“Run!”
The people who’d mistaken Anubis for a monster drained of color and scattered in every direction.
Through the chaos, the massive fur bundle began bounding forward.
Kim Byeong-han, already worn to the bone, watched the approaching mass of fur and cast his last hope to the wind.
“P-please, anything but that—!”
Whoosh!
Kim Byeong-han’s body was crushed beneath the fur bundle.
In the same instant, Anubis, anchoring his form with powerful fur, hurled itself toward the window.
Crash!
The sound of shattering glass followed.
‘I’m d-dying. I’m actually dying!’
Kim Byeong-han began falling from the eleventh floor.
* * *
“Where the hell is this bastard hiding?”
“Did you find him?”
“Not here!”
“Damn it!”
The people inside the building emerged and searched for Kim Byeong-han.
“Hah—!”
Shiver-shiver-shiver-shiver!
Barely concealed beneath the rubble of the building, Kim Byeong-han clamped his mouth shut and held his breath.
His body trembled like that of a terrified beast.
The white fur bundle that had dragged him free vanished the moment it touched the ground.
After that, Kim Byeong-han had no choice but to hide here and there, evading every eye.
‘Why are you doing this to me? What did I do wrong that you want to kill me?’
A wordless scream.
It felt like he was losing his mind.
Why had he become someone who had to die.
He’d wondered if it might be a hidden camera, but the killing intent in their eyes was real.
These people genuinely wanted to kill Kim Byeong-han.
《’Night’ has fallen.》
《’Evil Spirit Bats’ roam the Streets.》
《’Evil Spirit Bats’ seek only their target.》
《When an ‘Evil Spirit Bat’ locates its target, it emits a cry and shines a brilliant light from its eyes.》
As night fell and the moon rose, Kim Byeong-han’s face no longer appeared as it had in daylight.
Instead, bats called ‘Evil Spirit Bats’ flew in all directions.
The Evil Spirit Bats searched even the smallest crevices beyond human reach.
Wheee! Wheee! Wheee!
“Damn—!”
At last, Kim Byeong-han’s position was exposed.
Kim Byeong-han ran with every ounce of strength he possessed.
But as time passed, more Evil Spirit Bats converged upon him.
The bats blazed with light from their eyes, illuminating Kim Byeong-han’s location.
The area around Kim Byeong-han was now as bright as midday.
“There he is!”
“I knew he was hiding nearby!”
“Get him!”
Whoooooosh!
Thwack!
“Aagh!”
An arrow struck Kim Byeong-han in the ribs.
He screamed and rolled across the concrete floor.
He tried to push himself up again.
Whistle!
Thwack!
“Ugh!”
This time the arrow pierced his left thigh.
The pain was so intense he couldn’t even scream anymore.
He felt like he was dying.
Dozens of people surrounded Kim Byeong-han as he crawled across the ground.
“Why won’t you just die quietly like you’re supposed to?”
“All this trouble over one pig!”
“Let’s stomp him!”
“Never liked him anyway!”
“Always going on and on about nothing!”
They hurled insults at him while stamping down with all their weight.
Curled up on the ground, Kim Byeong-han wept uncontrollably.
He prayed desperately that this was all just a dream.
Because every person stamping on him had once been a colleague—people he’d shared meals with and laughed alongside.
Faces he’d encountered at least once, scattered across different departments.
But the moment circumstances changed, they’d turned on him with a mob’s brutality.
‘Please… let me live….’
He couldn’t even make a sound anymore.
In this world, Kim Byeong-han had no one on his side.
Weren’t these people the real monsters?
They all looked like demons to him.
Pop!
That’s when it happened.
A familiar sound from somewhere.
“Huh?”
“Oh, it’s that creature from before!”
“But… what’s that next to it…?”
The crowd recoiled in terror, ceasing their assault on Kim Byeong-han.
In that gap, Kim Byeong-han managed to lift his head and see who had appeared.
‘That… that person…?’
He definitely recognized them.
It was the one who’d killed the Game Master Andariel yesterday and formed a party with Lee Hyeok-su.
“H-he doesn’t look human…”
“A demon!”
As the one called a demon, Park Chan-woo, approached with the Gigantified Radiant Anubis at his side, the crowd began backing away.
By the time Park Chan-woo drew near, everyone had scattered in every direction.
Kim Byeong-han, his face mangled and broken, looked up at Park Chan-woo.
“Sa… save me…”
His teeth were shattered, his words slurred.
Park Chan-woo smiled and asked.
“Want to live?”
“…!”
Kim Byeong-han nodded frantically.
“Then you’d better answer only truthfully to my questions.”
“Y-yes… ask me anything, please…!”
“Did you make an Avatar Contract with the Creator?”
“N-no, I didn’t….”
“Guess I’ll be going then.”
If he left now, the crowd would swarm back in.
Then he’d truly be dead.
As Park Chan-woo turned away, Kim Byeong-han cried out desperately.
“W-wait, yes!”
“With whom?”
“That… ‘the Invisible Hand’s Creator,’ apparently…….”
Kim Byeong-han stammered out the answer.
When he’d entered into the Avatar Contract, there had been a clause forbidding him from ever revealing it to anyone.
But on the verge of death, such rules hardly mattered.
‘So that’s how it happened.’
Park Chan-woo’s smile deepened as he heard Kim Byeong-han’s confession.
Now he understood why Kim Byeong-han had been targeted.
The Invisible Hand’s Creator was the one Creator that all other Creators despised most.
Because.
“What did you steal?”
The Invisible Hand’s Creator coveted the treasures of other Creators.
“Pardon?”
“No, let me ask again. What did the Invisible Hand’s Creator order you to steal?”
“That is…….”
Kim Byeong-han hesitated.
The Invisible Hand’s Creator had proposed the Avatar Contract to Kim Byeong-han and granted him power.
But the terms for granting that power were rather unusual.
Whenever Kim Byeong-han stole something the Creator wanted, he received compensation in kind.
And yesterday, Kim Byeong-han had stolen something from the Night Abyss.
The very moment Game Master Andariel died!
“I… I only snatched a small ring, that’s all…….”
“That ring—where is it?”
“The Invisible Hand’s Creator already took it…….”
“No, you still have it. Look carefully.”
Kim Byeong-han groaned and patted his pockets.
Then, from the back pocket of his trousers, a ring tumbled out.
“How… how is this here?”
“He got caught and dumped it on you.”
Park Chan-woo answered with candid frankness.
Now the outline of every event became clear.
The Invisible Hand’s Creator had proposed the Avatar Contract to Kim Byeong-han, and accepting it, Kim Byeong-han had stolen the ring at the Creator’s behest.
Afterward, he handed the ring to the Creator, but the ring’s true owner discovered the theft.
To cover up the incident, the Creator secretly returned the ring to Kim Byeong-han, making him bear all responsibility.
‘The Invisible Hand’s Creator—that thief had repeated the same trick with multiple Avatars.’
The deed was distinctive enough that it stuck in memory.
A Creator despised not by humanity, but by other Creators.
But what kind of ring warranted being targeted like this?
Park Chan-woo examined the ring intently.
And.
‘……It’s worth being targeted for, certainly.’
He could understand why a Creator would want Kim Byeong-han dead.
Of all things to steal, this of all things.
‘The Dead’s Oath Ring!’
A faint whistle escaped him.
Park Chan-woo felt a surge of genuine admiration.
Though not solely for the ring’s performance alone.
‘The ring itself isn’t particularly impressive…….’
It carried no special unique option attached to it.
As for abilities, it possessed only one.
‘A ring that can seal the user’s power.’
The wearer could seal their own magical force within it.
And Park Chan-woo had definitely seen that ring before—in the First Night Abyss.
‘Game Master Andariel. She was wearing it.’
Why had Andariel worn the Dead’s Oath Ring?
The answer was simple.
To proceed with the game.
Had she released her aura as an Upper-Level Demon openly, the humans wouldn’t have endured it.
For originally, Andariel was a monster stronger than all twelve Divine Generals combined!
‘The ring must now contain the full grade of an Upper-Level Demon.’
……A chill ran through him.
An upper-level demon was evaluated to be a monster of at least Level 80 or higher.
For one to appear at this juncture was something that shouldn’t have been possible in the first place.
Therefore, the ring must surely have had an unimaginable amount of magical power sealed within it. He was desperately curious about how that vast power had been inscribed into the ring.
But what was truly astonishing was Kim Byeong-han.
‘I’ve known for a while that he has sticky fingers.’
I’d seen him steal from other members of the office more than once.
In the same manner, in that fleeting instant before Andariel’s death, Kim Byeong-han had used the Divine Power granted to him by the Invisible Hand’s Creator to successfully steal the ring.
The Creator who sought to kill Kim Byeong-han was probably someone with deep ties to the now-dead Andariel.
Quite the audacious one, indeed.
‘What am I to do about this?’
And so the dilemma weighed heavily.
The Invisible Hand’s Creator.
In this Abyss, his Divine Power borders on the miraculous.
The treasure he so desperately desired and stole did not vanish upon transfer.
This is why the Dead’s Oath Ring remains even though Andariel is dead.
It was precisely this anomalous nature that made other Creators despise the Invisible Hand’s Creator to an extreme degree.
In other words.
‘……I could swallow this ring for myself.’

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