The Return of the Genius Ranker of All Times - Chapter 105

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 105

Chapter 105.

Seeing the approaching Destroyer, Dohyun’s heart sank.

He had really made only a small sound, but because the cave was so quiet, it had been heard.

Even when he hurriedly looked around, there was nowhere to hide.

Moreover, there were many small stones in this place.

The shoes would only eliminate footsteps, not the sound of bumping into obstacles.

If he moved, he would be caught.

‘This is why Weak Stealth is no good.’

Since it wasn’t complete stealth, there was nothing he could do about it.

At this rate, he would inevitably have to fight.

‘Should I just ambush first? Or should I try hiding for now?’

Dohyun’s mind, which had been racing in the emergency situation, suddenly stopped.

Swish.

‘Ugh, mmph!’

When he unconsciously turned his head, bloodshot red eyes were staring at Dohyun from within the endless darkness.

Was it even 10cm away?

Close enough to hear the creature’s breathing.

Dohyun’s pupils shook as he barely managed to suppress the groan that almost burst out audibly.

‘Damn… when did it get here?’

It had definitely been over there just moments ago – had it become a ghost or something?

[Hmm…?]

Fortunately, the creature showed no signs of attacking.

Seeing how it couldn’t recognize him even at point-blank range, it seemed it didn’t have the ability to see through stealth.

Well, if it had that ability on top of that combat power, it would be too overpowered.

‘…Is this an opportunity?’

Dohyun’s eyes turned toward the creature’s heart.

The heart that emitted a red glow, possibly a fragment of fate. It seemed like he could reach it if he just stretched out his hand.

While the creature hadn’t noticed, couldn’t he stab it once and extract it?

His judgment was quick.

‘Alright, even if I can’t eat it, I’ll…’

However, the Destroyer’s hand moved even faster than that.

‘…!?’

At the creature’s suddenly extended hand, Dohyun instinctively leaned back to dodge.

Though the hand barely didn’t reach him, he could see it in his vision.

[The Abyss contractor who broke taboos, ‘Gaemin the Destroyer’ bestows a ‘Terrible Nightmare.’]

[Those with lower stats than the caster will suffer ‘instant death’ when touched by the nightmare.]

‘…What?’

…Instant death?

An instant death pattern? In just the second city?

There’s a clear difference between a boss’s ultimate skill being so powerful that it’s practically instant death, and it being outright registered as an instant death skill.

Instant death skills are only used by bosses of at least Hero+ grade or higher.

‘This crazy…!’

In other words, that creature possessed strength of at least Hero+ grade.

Naturally, there was no way Dohyun’s stats were higher than the creature’s.

He absolutely had to dodge.

The moment that thought flashed through his mind,

—-!!

Dark energy exploded from the creature’s hand.

It was energy that could only be described as truly horrific.

Chilling mana that looked like a swarm of black insects instantly covered the entire area, then melted everything as if acid had been poured on it.

Drip. Drop.

The wall in front of Gaemin the Destroyer melted beyond recognition and fell like rain.

[This should be enough.]

If any rat had been hiding, it would have definitely died from that power.

Satisfied, he exited the cave through the hole created by the melted wall.

Thud, thud.

Listening to the footsteps growing distant, one man held his breath behind Jerdic’s decapitated corpse.

Dohyun finally exhaled the breath he had been holding.

[A mark is being created.]

“Wow… I barely survived.”

Just before the terrible nightmare covered everything, he had barely managed to successfully use Backstep.

It could only be explained as really good luck.

Since Weak Stealth was canceled when he used Backstep, he had no way to hide for 300 seconds.

He had been crudely hiding behind the corpse, so if the creature had looked back even once, he would have definitely been caught.

-If you encounter that creature… you must avoid it at all costs.

Suddenly, he remembered what Gamillion had said when handing over the map.

Between the NPCs and even Gamillion saying that, he had thought it would be strong, but this was beyond imagination.

‘If an Abyss contractor is this strong, just how powerful are the creatures living in the Abyss?’

Did one need to be this strong to end the Great War?

Well, considering that the nerfed, degraded version of Abyss creatures in the tutorial was that level, it made sense.

It was while Dohyun, who had survived through wit, was aging ten years that it happened.

-Ma, Master! Are you okay, Master!?

-Risa, risa!

From far away, Jihad and Eliza, who had been startled by the sudden cave collapse, came running frantically.

No injuries could be seen on those two.

‘At least they hid well.’

Fortunately, they seemed to have hidden well without being spotted by the Destroyer.

Jihad, who had approached right in front of him, discovered the fallen Jerdic and was horrified.

-Eek!? What? Is, is he dead?

-Ri, risa!?

“Well… that’s what happened.”

-No, what happened, Master? And what’s with the melted wall? Did that guy who left earlier do all this?

At the two making a fuss, Dohyun looked down again.

The corpse lying face down with its head blown off.

It was even more eerie because no other wounds could be seen, showing how cleanly it had died.

“This feels unpleasant somehow.”

Looking at Jerdic, Dohyun frowned.

Even though he was an NPC, perhaps because he knew the circumstances, he felt strangely uncomfortable.

A bit of guilt played a part too.

From the conversation with the Destroyer, it seemed the creature had also been caught while hurriedly hiding.

If Dohyun hadn’t encountered the creature while progressing the main quest, there would have been no reason for it to flee to this place.

‘Is this what they call the butterfly effect?’

Though it was coincidental, it was true that the story had changed due to Dohyun’s interference.

Feeling strangely uncomfortable, Dohyun approached where Jerdic’s head was.

He thought he should at least pray for his soul.

-Hm? What are you doing, Master?

-Risa?

Ignoring the creatures tilting their heads in confusion, Dohyun closed the wide-open eyes and pondered for a moment.

Then, he soon lifted the corpse and made it lean against the wall.

‘Hmm. This would be better.’

When the priests came to collect the body, wouldn’t it be better to have it positioned elegantly like this rather than sprawled out unsightly?

Dohyun, who had been looking on with satisfaction, suddenly turned his gaze toward the hand.

“Wow, how frustrated must he have been to still be clenching his fist so tightly.”

He was gripping it so hard that the blood that had seeped out had hardened.

Since he was already tidying up, Dohyun thought he might as well take care of this too, and was about to gently open the clenched fist when it happened.

[You have discovered a Trace of the Destroyer.]

[Trace of the Destroyer (2 / 2)]

[You have collected all Traces of the Destroyer. Return to Gamillion to complete the Quest.]

“Huh?”

A message that suddenly appeared.

His brain froze for a moment. Dohyun checked inside the hand, thinking it couldn’t be, and saw something small.

An object that clearly emanated an ominous aura.

-Ugh. What is that, Owner?

Jihad frowned and stepped back, but Dohyun’s expression as he looked at it was blank.

“…Ha, so that’s what it was?”

-Huh? That’s what it was? What is it, what is that thing?

It was because that object was such a clear clue.

The moment he saw ‘that thing,’ he could immediately recall who the culprit was.

‘He wasn’t just killed without a fight.’

Jerdic hadn’t done nothing before he died.

In his final moment, he had succeeded in stealing important evidence from the man and clutching it in his hand.

He had used what might have been his only chance to counterattack and survive to obtain evidence instead.

It was truly an obsession bordering on madness, beyond mere determination.

‘He must have hoped that a priest who would come someday would discover it.’

But that shouldn’t have happened.

If he hadn’t checked first, this evidence would have disappeared meaninglessly.

But now that it had come into his possession, the situation was different.

“Now this changes everything.”

The corner of Dohyun’s mouth curved up wickedly.

Gaemin the Destroyer, perhaps he could catch that monster-like man.

* * *

[You have cleared the Main Quest ‘Second Fragment (1)’.]

[You gain a large amount of experience.]

Returning to Brion, Dohyun immediately went to find Gamillion and completed the Quest.

Then he handed over the trace and roughly explained what had happened in the Hidden Field, causing Gamillion’s face to harden.

“…Ha, to think he was the Destroyer. The Elders will be turned upside down when they find out.”

“It is shocking.”

It wasn’t any different for Dohyun either.

Even thinking about it again, it was absurd.

“Anyway, now that we’ve secured evidence, that’s a relief. However… the problem is time.”

Soon the emergency meeting would end, and Gildeti would summon everyone who had attended the initial meeting.

That’s when Gaemin the Destroyer, that monster, would come too.

The moment when he was off guard, not knowing he’d been discovered, was the only chance they could make their move, but…

“Lord Rebbed has also heard the news and is coming just in case. Even if he hurries, it will take at least 1 hour to reach Brion… if he’s late, it could take 2 hours.”

The problem was that it would take a long time for Rebbed and the Order of Knights, who were the core fighting force, to arrive.

They had to keep the man from escaping before then, but right now there was no way to detain him.

More precisely, it wasn’t that there was no way, but it would be reasonable to consider it impossible.

“He’s someone who made a contract with a named entity from the Abyss. Unless it’s the Order of Knights, there’s no one who could match him in combat.”

“Well… I barely survived myself. He was ridiculously strong.”

That man’s strength was beyond common sense.

Rather, if he hadn’t been a cautious type, the Quest would have failed when they first encountered him at Rillar Temple.

“It’s not that other temples don’t have knight orders… but if we suddenly ask them to accompany us, it would inevitably arouse suspicion.”

That meticulous man would surely notice.

Hadn’t he blown away an entire cave wall just from making the slightest sound, to prevent any possible future trouble?

If such a monster went on a rampage in earnest, there would be countless casualties.

They couldn’t let that happen.

‘Among all possibilities, the worst would be if he massacres people and escapes before Rebbed arrives.’

He was someone who had hidden himself once before, so couldn’t he hide himself a second time?

He was suspected of having a Fragment of Destiny, so they couldn’t lose him so meaninglessly.

“So I was thinking… how about this?”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

That’s why Dohyun had been thinking constantly since the moment he obtained the evidence in the cave.

How could they overcome this crisis?

No matter how long he pondered, there was only one answer.

Without a doubt, if things proceeded according to this plan, not only could they hold out until Lord Rebbed arrived, but they might even be able to catch the man.

“…It’s too dangerous, Successor. I know you are remarkable, but… you’re still growing, aren’t you?”

Gamillion was horrified after hearing the plan and waved his hands frantically.

It was because it involved too great a risk.

But Dohyun’s eyes were resolute.

“High risk, high return. The risk is great, but if we succeed, we can really screw him over, can’t we?”

“…I can’t deny that.”

“There’s no other way besides this method. I’m taking the biggest risk, but it’s not like I’m doing it alone.”

After some hesitation, Gamillion finally nodded.

“Certainly, that’s the only way.”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t come up with a better method.

Finally, Gamillion sighed and bowed his head.

“Then… I’m being shameless, but please take care of it, Successor.”

“Yes. Just do well with the things I asked for.”

“Of course. Don’t worry.”

As they faced each other and slightly raised the corners of their mouths, it happened.

“Ah, so you two were here. Didn’t you hear Caretaker Gildeti’s emergency summons? He’s asking for everyone who attended the meeting to come now.”

A priest who had come running frantically discovered Dohyun and Gamillion and explained the situation.

At the same time, a message appeared.

Ding-.

[The waiting time for the emergency meeting has ended.]

[You have completed the Quest ‘Emergency Meeting’.]

[The linked Quest ‘Emergency Summons’ has occurred.]

[Emergency Summons]

-Grade: Rare+

-Description: Gildeti, who has finished the emergency meeting, seems to want to deliver some important news.

All those who attended the meeting must participate, and refusing may result in being suspected as the ‘Destroyer’.

-Quest Success: Linked Quest ‘???’ generated.

-Quest Failure: You may be falsely accused.

[A forced linked Quest is currently in progress. All Quests will be forcibly linked until completion.]

‘Shall we go?’

The time for the final battle had come.

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