The Returned Hunter Has Awakened to a Hidden Class - Chapter 136

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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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136

Chapter 136

Rage (4)

It was neither light nor darkness.

The moment the two met.

The world reacted a beat late.

Hwaaaak-

First, sound disappeared.

Then, sensation followed slowly.

And the air was pushed away.

An invisible wall spread in all directions, pressing down even deeper on the already collapsed remains of [Perdition].

Rather than an explosion, it was closer to ‘compression’.

The forces that tried to destroy each other.

Clashed head-on.

Came to a complete stop at one point-

Kwaaaaang—!!

And exploded.

But this was not destruction that would collapse the above and below again.

As if another blade had been drawn across the already exposed boundaries of the world.

The rift deepened.

The surface of space distorted.

The cross-sections of the overlapping staircases were revealed more clearly.

A long black rift was drawn across that fault plane where above and below were mixed.

Like a massive wound.

Bsssss—

Powder scattered in the air.

It wasn’t stone or dirt.

The remnants of the system being ground away.

The afterglow of shattered light.

The traces of swept-away darkness.

Vision was completely obscured.

Nothing could be seen ahead.

When breathing in, the metallic scent and burning smell swirled together in the mouth.

Silence.

Just for a moment.

And then.

Thud.

Something fell.

The dust settled.

The powder dispersed.

Vision gradually cleared.

In that place.

On the collapsed layers of Hell, only two forms existed.

Satan.

And.

Kim Jun.

Crack-!

Kim Jun slowly rolled his shoulders.

His ribs were deeply torn.

Blood flowed.

His left arm trembled slightly.

He takes one long breath.

“Haah…”

Even so.

He was smiling.

While holding blood in his mouth.

“Almost died there.”

Satan’s fist was gripping Kim Jun’s “Brand”.

Of course.

“It must hurt. Right?”

Having completely pierced through Satan’s abdomen.

Whoooosh—!

The “Brand” did not stop.

It wasn’t simply embedded there, but was burning from within.

Starting from the pierced abdomen, the dark red muscles and abyssal tissue spread rapidly like fire catching on dry paper.

Squelch-

Regeneration is attempted.

However, even the regenerated parts are immediately consumed by flames.

Fixed damage.

An indelible wound.

“Grrrrrr… how can this be…”

Satan’s voice cracks low.

The hole in his abdomen grows wider.

The flames don’t spread outward.

Rather, inward.

Deeper.

Boring further inside.

The abyss burns.

Dark red mana scatters like evaporation.

“Just what kind of bastard are you?”

Kim Jun’s low murmur.

—-

[Boss Information: Satan]

– Grade: SS

– Level: 150

– Trait: Cannot be defined

– Unique Skills: “Fall”, “Great Fall”, “Annihilation”, “Genocide”, “Gate of Hell”…

.

.

.

– Health: Cannot be defined

—-

He was an existence that couldn’t be explained by the information shown in the status window alone.

Level and grade converted to numbers.

Those were merely standards.

However, the Satan before his eyes easily surpassed those standards.

Of course, the numbers in the status window don’t prove everything about combat power.

Traits, compatibility, circumstances.

All those variables exist.

Nevertheless, Satan’s combat power.

Far exceeded the displayed values.

Power that couldn’t even be imagined with just the name SS-grade.

Mana powerful enough to twist the Tower’s system and collapse the boundaries of the Staircase.

Such massive, immeasurable waves.

But.

“Grrrr… unbelievable. What kind of bastard are you? That should be power no human can handle.”

That overwhelming resonance.

Now.

Was visibly diminishing.

At first it was subtle.

So slight that it couldn’t be noticed without extreme concentration.

But it was certain.

Little by little.

Very little by little.

The massive waves that had vibrated around Satan were growing faint.

Diminishing.

Like the sound of bells that had rung tens of thousands of times, disappearing while leaving only their final echoes.

“So this is the end.”

Satan slowly closes his eyes.

No strength left to resist.

No.

He had already poured it all out.

The power built up under the name of rage.

Even after being bound to the Tower, reduced to an existence redefined by numbers.

The power he had never given up on and carefully preserved.

His charred ashen wings had once held radiance.

Brilliantly.

Arrogantly.

In the days when he looked down upon the world.

He had drawn out even the power from those times without reserve.

Since being trapped in the Tower.

He was no longer a source.

An existence incorporated into the system.

A single entity defined by grade and level.

From an absolute being.

To a mere ‘boss’ who only reigned over a single floor.

Swallowing that humiliation, he had waited.

Someday.

For the day he would face again that gaze that had looked down from above.

Grinding away a thousand years.

Compressing ten thousand years.

Enduring eons of time in silence.

Unlike his name as the incarnation of rage, he was a being who knew how to wait.

However.

“In this manner.”

His lips twist.

To a human.

Who hadn’t even been in the Tower for long.

To a human who had climbed this far in such a short time.

To be defeated.

Was close to ironic.

However.

Strangely.

Hiss—

It wasn’t bad.

From the moment he was bound to the Tower, his existence had already been incomplete.

Redefined power.

Limited authority.

A role with a predetermined end.

Rather than struggling within that.

Instead.

“Two months, three months was it.”

He laughs lowly.

“You’ve truly grown rapidly.”

If you’ve reached this far in such a short time.

As one who climbs the Tower.

Eventually.

You’ll look higher.

You’ll advance toward even greater heights.

There.

There are positions not yet reached.

There are authorities not yet grasped.

There is something not yet broken.

“Eventually…you’ll face them.”

What was contained in those words was not a curse.

It was conviction.

If it’s this human.

Perhaps.

He might be able to reach that threshold.

Having such thoughts.

Having such expectations.

Ssssk-

The corners of his mouth rise once more.

Rather than his hopeless self.

That human who possesses possibility.

“This will be interesting.”

Uncharacteristically, he looks at Kim Jun with clear eyes.

For the first time, the rage clears from those red pupils.

“Kehehehe…”

A low laugh flows out.

And.

Slowly.

He extends his neck forward.

“Though I lost my rank long ago. But one who once reached the peak.”

As if telling him to cut cleanly.

“One who is to die, yet can never truly die.”

Finally, he adds calmly.

“I will watch even in death.”

The moment he heard those words.

Kim Jun felt a strange irony.

After the regression, countless things had changed.

The progression.

The results.

The reactions of the beings he encountered.

The Satan from before the regression had struggled to the end.

He had screamed, poured out curses, and fought aiming for vital points until the very last.

There were no such sentimental words.

The Satan now kneeling before his eyes, offering his own neck.

Something is different.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and cut.”

As if urging Kim Jun who was lost in thought, Satan glares.

Pride still remains in those eyes.

He accepts death, but there is no servility.

Kim Jun slowly tilts his head.

“There’s something you’re mistaken about.”

At Kim Jun’s somehow gentler tone, Satan’s eyes narrow.

“I’m not going to kill you though?”

Sssssss…

The 「Brand」 embedded in Satan’s abdomen slowly withdraws.

The flames subside, and the 「Black Flame」 disappears as well.

“…What are you saying?”

Satan’s voice drops low.

To go down to the next level.

To advance to the deeper floors of this Tower.

He would need his ‘head’.

Seeing him use Lucifer’s authority, 「Dark Emperor」.

It means he has already made a contract with Lucifer.

As for the contents of that contract.

It must be what Lucifer kept babbling about.

If so, all the more reason to cut off his head.

He should go further down, shouldn’t he?

“I’m going to keep you as a summon though?”

“…!!”

A moment.

Silence.

That silence rings even louder.

Satan’s eyes widen.

His resolve to face death with dignity.

Crumbles in an instant.

“How dare.”

Low, but clear.

“How dare, this Satan.”

Rage tries to flare up again.

“A summon.”

That is more insulting than death.

A being who was once absolute.

Not only bound by the system and reduced to a boss.

Now to become a human’s ‘summon’?

“I’ve already experienced two falls.”

A third fall?

And by a human at that?

Absolutely not.

“You’re going to die anyway.”

Kim Jun shrugs his shoulders.

“It’s good if you’re put to good use.”

“What…!”

“You’re still looking up, aren’t you.”

Satan’s eyes stop.

Kim Jun’s gaze briefly moves upward.

It passes over the collapsed, layered strata.

Of course, the end of that vision was not Hell, but the Surface.

“If we have the same goal, wouldn’t it be better to see it directly rather than die?”

A brief silence.

Those words.

Were not an insult, but a proposal.

However.

Satan’s pride would not allow it.

“I am… no one’s subordinate.”

Red mana ripples one last time.

He tries to squeeze out his remaining strength to rise.

“I am…”

At that moment.

Kim Jun’s hand cuts through the air.

A contract sigil unfolds.

“Ah.”

Calmly.

“I don’t have the luxury of giving you time to sort out your feelings.”

「Diablo」.

Kim Jun’s unique authority activates.

Black waves envelop Satan.

“Let’s do this nicely. I’ll treat you well.”

“Don’t mess with me…!!”

Kwaaaaah-

The mana that tried to resist boils up one last time.

But the abyss is already weakened.

It gets absorbed as if sucked into Kim Jun’s authority.

He recalls Satan from before his regression.

A personality bordering on madness.

A tenacity that would bite and hold on to the end once twisted.

‘If he keeps that personality…’

He would definitely be a headache.

That’s why after learning the 「Diablo」 skill.

Satan wasn’t on the candidate list.

However.

Satan’s combat power is overwhelming.

Moreover, once incorporated as a summon.

Leveling up becomes possible.

In other words.

It means there’s room to become even stronger than now.

A combat force that cannot be discarded.

“You, human…!”

Satan grits his teeth.

But his strength is already depleted.

The contract sigil spreads across his body.

His red eyes shake violently.

And.

Snap.

—-

[Contract with Grand Demon of Wrath ‘Satan’ successful!]

[Available contract slots: 3]

– Slot 1: [Andras] – Demon of Fire and Destruction

– Slot 2: [Belphegor] – Grand Demon of Sloth

– Slot 3: [Satan] – Grand Demon of Wrath

—-

A short message appears.

The massive form collapses and disappears.

Kim Jun’s shadow deepens for a moment.

From within it.

‘…I will not forget this humiliation.’

Blatant hostility.

A tone mixed with not even a hint of submission.

Kim Jun clicks his tongue inwardly.

‘…This is going to be troublesome.’

It was the same when he first contracted Andras.

It was the same when he subdued Belphegor.

The beings who had fought bleeding until just before.

Strangely changed their attitude after the contract.

Whether it was the influence of authority.

Or the compulsive force of the contract.

But.

“Maybe because he’s such a damn stubborn bastard.”

This time is a bit different.

From deep within the shadow, he can still feel that burning red gaze.

Glaring eyes.

Teeth clenched tight.

A being who won’t let go of his pride until the end.

Kim Jun lets out a long sigh.

“Well, whatever.”

The corner of his mouth slightly rises.

From now on.

It’ll be quite tiresome, but.

“Let’s get along well. I’ll raise you properly.”

He casually tosses the words toward the shadow, as if soothing a disobedient beast.

A moment of silence.

And then.

‘Don’t babble, human.’

A low, grinding voice.

However, the killing intent contained within it is clear.

‘After chewing and swallowing your heart, I’ll break your ribs and blow them like flutes, make shackles from your entrails to strangle your neck.’

Kim Jun’s eyes waver slightly.

‘I’ll pluck out your eyeballs and switch them around, dyeing every landscape you see with blood.’

“Whoa whoa, wait a minute-“

‘I’ll dismantle your bones joint by joint, pile them on the altar of rage, and twist you to death for a thousand years on top of it. I will never kill you! I’ll turn you into a bloody pulp before you die, then regenerate you again…’

“…Wow.”

He’s serious.

This isn’t a joke.

Mana still writhes from within the shadow.

Kim Jun scratches his temple.

“What a nasty personality, really.”

‘I am rage. No denial, no compromise. Break the contract right now and end me!’

A red aura flickers once from deep within the shadow.

“Yeah, yeah. Got it. Cool down a bit.”

A moment of silence.

And then, he mutters quietly.

“This is going to be a bit rough.”

That wasn’t just a simple joke.

A premonition close to certainty.

Yes.

Now he’s finally come out.

The one I faced before my regression, fighting for four days and nights.

That real Satan.

Until now, he had been surprisingly refined.

Sneering, cynical, even calmly accepting death.

Compared to the name Wrath of the Seven Sins, he was somehow restrained.

But just now.

That murderous venom that poured out from the shadows.

That twisted imagination.

That persistent and warped hatred.

That.

That’s the true form of Satan that Kim Jun remembers.

“Hah.”

A sigh escapes.

“This is fucked.”

Meanwhile.

From within the shadows.

‘Hmm hmm.’

Andras, completely oblivious to the atmosphere, spoke up.

‘Hehehehehehe! Satan. Now you’re my subordinate. Try calling me senior…’

‘This lowly mongrel insect vermin, after burning and chewing up your organs…’

…This is going to be quite a headache.

—————
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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