The Regressed SSS-Rank Supporter Who Turned Dark - Chapter 97

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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 97
“That… that’s impossible!”
The High Priestess vehemently denied Eun-sung’s words.
An infidel from who knows where, daring to claim possession of the Ark of Genesis—it was beyond comprehension.
By her understanding, such a thing was utterly inconceivable.
Yet that didn’t mean Eun-sung’s words were false.
Before traveling back through time.
I had cleared this forest alongside my Raid Party members.
It must have been roughly nine years ago, back when the Raid Party had only recently formed.
– For such a grand name, it’s pretty underwhelming, isn’t it?
– Right? It’s just a small chamber inside.
My comrades at the time had failed to recognize the true value of the [Ark of Genesis].
As a result, the Ark fell into my possession.
– You should keep this, Cha Eun-sung. You’re a supporter, so you need the extra space.
I could still vividly recall Lee Hyun’s face as he casually handed over the Ark as if it were some random find.
‘Back then, I only used it as storage.’
A self-deprecating smile crossed my lips.
Like my comrades, I too had initially failed to recognize the Ark’s true worth.
But as time passed, the Ark’s value revealed itself in brilliant light.
Eventually, while investigating the Ark, I discovered something astonishing.
– Perhaps… the Ark itself is humanity’s only hope.
In my estimation, this discovery rivaled the greatest breakthroughs in human history.
Like when humanity learned to harness fire.
Like when Archimedes grasped the principle of buoyancy and ran naked from his bath crying Eureka.
Like when Newton observed a falling apple and understood the law of universal gravitation.
No—it surpassed even those.
Those magnificent discoveries that transformed human history were, in my view, merely “steps” compared to the Ark.
Yet I could not delve deeper into the Ark’s mysteries.
My mother passed away while I was researching it, and I was consumed by vengeance, leaving no room for such pursuits.
The day I succeeded in my revenge suddenly came to mind.
Since it wasn’t long ago, the scene remained vivid in my memory.
– Cha Eun-sung, you bastard. Will your dead mother come back to life because you act like this? Hehehehe, hehehehe! Fine, let’s say you succeeded in your revenge. How could your precious little sister possibly survive if…
Just before the Dragon Lord tore my head clean off.
Lee Hyun hurled vicious insults at me while threatening my sister Cha Eun-ha’s safety.
But I didn’t even blink.
I had already hidden Eun-ha within the Ark.
That was my [arrangement] to protect her.
A perfect sanctuary to shield her from the retaliation that would follow my vengeance.
Now, having traveled back through time, nothing had changed.
For me, the Ark was the only means to protect my family in this approaching age of apocalypse.
By any means necessary.
It was the final Ark that had to be obtained at the cost of one’s life.
“Believe it or not, that’s your choice. But tell me—what exactly does the Primordial Ark do?”
“Hmph! You claim to have possessed the Ark before, yet you don’t know that? Of course a heretic like you wouldn’t understand the Ark. The Ark is….”
Unfortunately, the High Priestess’s words never reached Eun-sung.
The immutable law that normal communication with entities from within a Gate is impossible applied without exception.
“…I suppose asking was my mistake.”
Eun-sung blamed himself.
But since he hadn’t harbored great expectations from the start, there was no real disappointment.
He’d merely asked on the off chance.
“Well then, it seems we’ve said all there is to say….”
Eun-sung approached the High Priestess.
“Die. Now.”
Slaughter’s Reverie traced a crimson arc.
A sickening crunch.
A spray of blood erupted.
Thud.
Scarlet blood poured forth as the High Priestess’s head rolled across the dirt ground.
Eun-sung passed over her severed head without the slightest flicker of emotion.
The final fate of the priestess who had committed genocide against the Twilight Fairies to obtain the Ark was thus utterly wretched.
Though as an entity from within a Gate, she could hardly be considered a being with genuine life….
A soft shimmer.
The Ark revealed itself.
One cube nested within another.
The inner cube was flush against the outer one, with edges and faces interlocking as if overlapped.
It appeared as though two cubes positioned at different locations had been folded into one.
A bizarre form whose structure subtly shifted with each movement of the eye.
Eun-sung picked up the tesseract-shaped Primordial Ark from the ground.
[You have obtained the Primordial Ark.]
A crackling sound.
At that same moment, spacetime warped and a portal leading outside the Gate materialized.
“I’m going ahead!”
Eun-sung shouted toward Lee Hyun.
“What?!”
Lee Hyun, who had been gleefully mopping up the remaining Knights to celebrate his ascension to 5-Star rank, shouted back in bewilderment.
“I said I’m going ahead!”
“You crazy bastard! You’re seriously leaving me behind?!”
“Just hold out for about ten minutes and the train will come! You can ride it out!”
“What the hell are you saying, you insane son of a—ugh!”
Lee Hyun neither stopped Eun-sung nor finished the barrage of curses he’d begun.
“Grrrrr!”
“Kyaaaah!”
Powerful monsters emerged from all directions, charging toward Lee Hyun.
There was nothing strange about it.
After all, he too had killed Twilight Fairies and bore the forest’s curse.
“You can’t ride this anyway! Anyone who kills a Twilight Fairy can’t use this portal!”
It was a lie, of course, but Lee Hyun had no way of knowing that.
“Then, then at least fight with me until the train arrives!”
“Nah.”
Eun-sung stepped toward the portal with an expression of utter indifference.
“A 5-star Hunter wouldn’t need help from a 4-star like you. You’re someone who shouldn’t even dare look directly at their face.”
“You bastard, because of that scratch… ugh!”
Thirty minutes earlier.
– How dare a 4-star look directly at a 5-star’s face?
Lee Hyun bitterly regretted his own words, but there was no way to take back what had already been said.
“Then, this lowly 4-star will go first. Thank you for your trouble.”
With those words, Eun-sung truly disappeared through the portal.
“You spineless, gutless bastaaaaard!”
Lee Hyun screamed in fury.
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
“Grrrrr!”
Monsters swarmed around Lee Hyun.
* * *
Bucheon Station North Exit.
“Huff.”
The moment Eun-sung stepped out of the portal, he had to hide his body.
“Let’s go that way.”
“Yes, sister.”
“Of course, ma’am.”
“Let’s go.”
In the distance, rookies were approaching under Lumos’s guidance.
– You’ve worked hard, Master.
‘Good work.’
Eun-sung offered his thanks to Helkiyan, then turned toward his companions.
“Huh? Brother?”
Ra Si-hyun spotted Eun-sung and blinked.
“When did you get there?”
“Just now. I went ahead a bit.”
“What? You were right next to me just a moment ago.”
“That’s why you should always stay aware of your surroundings. It’s basic for any Hunter, isn’t it?”
“W-well, that’s…”
Ra Si-hyun lowered her head in shame.
Having already heard a scolding from Eun-sung, her posture looked quite pitiful.
“I’m not scolding you, so lighten up. Why are you so tense? It doesn’t suit you.”
“B-but…”
“That’s enough. Straighten your shoulders. Relax your expression.”
“Y-yes.”
“Everyone worked hard today. Let’s call it here for now. Pushing too hard isn’t good either.”
At my words, Ra Si-hyun, Kim Doo-hyun, Oh Tae-kwon, and Kim Seung-hye nodded in agreement.
They too were exhausted from hunting around Bucheon Station Outskirts for nearly ten hours.
“Are you all done hunting with our junior here?”
The moment we exited the Gate, Wi Tae-woong greeted me.
“Yes, well. Thanks to your consideration, everything went smoothly.”
“I always look after our junior. I’m so worried I might even dream about you.”
“I’m sure you have nothing to worry about.”
“Hm?”
“I’ll be heading out now. I’m quite tired.”
“Don’t tell me you’re still hung up on that incident? If that’s the case…”
“I’m not sure what you’re referring to.”
“Oh my. Our junior seems upset, but I swear it was a misunderstanding. I just wanted to see your skills and was having a bit of fun—I wasn’t trying to kill you.”
Wi Tae-woong, unusually verbose, tried to appease my mood with a lengthy explanation, but it was futile.
“I understand. May I leave now?”
“Sure, go ahead.”
“Then…”
I brushed past Wi Tae-woong.
‘Damn. He’s really upset.’
Wi Tae-woong didn’t bother stopping me.
If he provoked me now and our relationship deteriorated further, recruitment would be completely off the table.
“Right! Our junior must be exhausted, so go rest! Oh! But!”
Wi Tae-woong called out behind me.
“Did you happen to see any of our people inside!”
“I don’t know.”
I turned my head sharply as I answered.
“I ran into them at Bucheon Station Outskirts a few hours ago and haven’t seen them since.”
“Got it! Take care! Junior!”
I didn’t respond.
* * *
At the same moment.
Inside the Forest of Living Hermits.
Inside the Forest of Living Hermits.
“Huff, huff!”
Lee Hyun, drenched in blood, gasped for breath in ragged bursts.
He didn’t have the strength to move a single finger.
He barely managed to stay upright by using his sword as a crutch, though he wanted nothing more than to collapse flat on his back right then and there.
All around him lay the corpses of monsters, piled high.
“Cha Eun-sung… you goddamn bastard….”
He shuddered violently.
Lee Hyun trembled with rage.
“Just you wait… the moment we get out of here, I’m going to kill you… huff, huff!”
Then.
Whoooosh―!
Out of nowhere, a subway train came to a stop right in front of Lee Hyun.
The train had arrived, just as Eun-sung had said it would.
It was train number [311100].
Screeeech!
Click!
The doors opened.
Shuffle, shuffle….
Lee Hyun trudged aboard the train without thinking, moving on pure instinct.
His mind held only one thought: he had to escape this cursed forest.
Moreover, when he had boarded train [311100] in pursuit of Eun-sung earlier, nothing dangerous had occurred, which gave him some reassurance.
Even if something dangerous were to happen, it wouldn’t matter whether he stayed in the forest or rode the train—the outcome would be the same either way.
But there was something Lee Hyun didn’t know.
Eun-sung’s car was the first one at the very front of the train, while Lee Hyun and the other Abyss Clan members were in the tenth car at the very back.
Click!
The doors closed.
Too exhausted even to sit, Lee Hyun collapsed flat on the floor of the car.
It wasn’t as if anyone was watching anyway.
Eeeeeeeeeee―!
The train began to move.
Thump-thump….
Thump-thump….
“Phew―!”
A sigh of relief escaped Lee Hyun’s lips.
Click!
A door far down the car opened, and grotesque figures of all kinds emerged into view.
The monsters of Line 1.
Subway dwellers transformed into monsters, swept up in the dimensional collapse.
“This is bullshit….”
Curses poured from Lee Hyun’s mouth.

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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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