The Second Coming of Gluttony - Chapter 124

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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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Chapter 124. Seol Jihoo

By the time Seol Jihoo realized a catastrophe had unfolded, the Plaza of Sacrifice had already yielded six corpses.
The ringleader was unmistakably the slicked-back man—the proof being that he and five others had vanished.
As it turned out later, they’d targeted the lower-leveled participants, approached them saying “Won’t you join hands with us?”, and once the moment came, subdued them in a heartbeat. They’d shoved them straight into the Pit, then fled to the Misaligned Plaza of Desires.
One hundred twenty-eight had dwindled to one hundred sixteen.
The casualty count wasn’t the real problem. The sight of a relatively stronger party making scapegoats of the relatively weak had sent shockwaves through the whole operation—progression had ground to a temporary halt.
It couldn’t have gone any other way. After all, it had just been proven there was yet another method to escape Stage 2.
The Minority Faction didn’t sit idle either. They clustered tightly together, displaying obsessive caution against becoming sacrificial victims themselves.
Seol Jihoo watched the man who’d stepped forward as a representative at the first assembly move through the crowd, rallying people—and felt an inward sigh of relief. Unity meant survival; dispersal meant death. If they consolidated their strength and swelled their numbers, no one would dare lay a hand on them carelessly.
But it was naive thinking.
As long as perpetrators and victims were human, no amount of caution could prevent opportunity from arising if one made it.
And the strong weren’t necessarily evil, nor were the weak inherently righteous.
Seol Jihoo came to understand this truth late that night.

The crowd had pitched their Campsite as far from the Pit as possible. The distance between the two plazas was barely ten meters, after all.
It was common knowledge that once someone landed in the Plaza of Sacrifice, escape was impossible, and the closer you camped to the hole, the higher your odds of becoming prey.
Witnessing the second attempt was pure chance.
Remembering the White Headband Girl who’d provided crucial hints during Stage 1, Seol Jihoo sought her out, hoping she might offer advice this time as well.
When he didn’t find her among the Majority Faction, he turned his steps toward the Minority Faction encampment.
Suddenly, he caught an odd current in the air—or more precisely, a thick, sticky discomfort that seemed to drain the strength from his limbs.
The moment he heard moans emanating from various points within the Minority Faction camp, his instincts screamed that another catastrophe had struck before anyone could notice.
Seol Jihoo, noting the unnatural silence, made a shrewd decision: instead of searching the encampment, he sprinted toward the Pit, praying he wasn’t too late.
He’d feared as much—and his fears were confirmed.
Six shadows came into view as Seol Jihoo ran at full speed. One or two of them, rushing ahead, were in the act of shoving or hurling something into the Pit.
The moment a pale headband flickered through the darkness, Seol Jihoo moved on instinct—firing a Mana Spear Throw while simultaneously activating his Festina Earring.
“Ugh!”
“Hurry up…! Damn it! You did spray her with the incense, right?”
“Nnngh!”
“Y-yes, we did. There was an injured one nearby, so we hit her at the same time….”
The man clamping down on the girl’s mouth, terrified the noise might carry, twisted his face in frustration.
“There!”
Thwack!
The man with the cauldron-lid fist raked across the girl’s stomach—and suddenly felt killing intent. His eyes snapped around. The moment he glimpsed the crystallized spear, he jerked his head aside reflexively.
A sharp sensation grazed his nose. The terrible gust that followed contorted his expression.
“Damn it! Come on, shove her in!”
The instant he saw the figure charging forward like a hawk, he handed the girl off to his companion and braced himself. Facing the azure spear stabbing straight at him, the man swung his Blunt Weapon with all his might.
Clang!
Steel rang out—and the man’s eyes went wide. He’d wielded his weapon with confidence in his own strength, fully intending to bat it away. Instead, he nearly lost his grip.
Meeting those keen, penetrating eyes, his body seized up involuntarily.
With a small cry, he gritted his teeth and forced away the creeping dread. But no matter how hard he flexed—muscles corded with tension—the weapon wouldn’t budge an inch.
‘This scrawny bastard…!’
“Nnngh!”
‘He’s not low-leveled.’
Seol Jihoo assessed the situation in an instant. The pressure transmitted through his palm and the gear the man wore suggested he was at least Level 4.
Which meant he belonged to the Majority Faction—a genuinely strong one.
‘But wouldn’t the Minority Faction have been watching for this too?’
For a moment, curiosity flickered—how had he breached their defenses?—but there was no time for speculation.
“Help me!”
“This stubborn bitch! Why won’t she go in?”
“No! No! No!”
The man’s plea for help and the girl’s anguished screams tangled together in his ears.
Without hesitation, Seol Jihoo unleashed his full strength.
“What—!?”
He surged his power, drove the Blunt Weapon upward, then swung his spear-shaft like a whip, cracking it across the man’s skull. As the man crumpled uselessly, what came into view was the girl—sunk chest-deep in the Pit, clinging with both hands, desperately resisting to the end.
And the man alongside her, kicking savagely downward.
Boom!
Seol Jihoo’s furious charge, activated all the way to Double Layer, and the girl’s grip on the grass giving way—happened almost simultaneously.
“That’s it…!”
Thwack!
The instant Seol Jihoo’s foot connected with the delighted man’s ribs, his mouth fell open slightly.
A face emerged from the pit. The man turned out to be the same one who’d spoken passionately as the Minority Faction’s representative during the assembly.
He couldn’t believe that someone from within the Minority Faction—and one who’d led the rally, no less—would do such a thing. But there was no time for shock.
Seol Jihoo bent his waist at once and thrust his arm down into the hole. Whether it was the girl or her head or something else entirely, mercifully his grip closed around something heavy.
Fearing the door might close, he clenched hard and pulled with urgency.
“Nrrraaaahhh!”
A thickly muscled forearm shot upward. The moment his hand pressed against the earth, a massive figure hauled himself from the pit like a swimmer emerging onto the meadow.
With the White Headband Girl balanced across his shoulder.
‘This man…’
In his confusion, Seol Jihoo recalled that this giant had been the last one to climb out during Stage 1. It seemed he’d been thrown into the pit, regained consciousness, and was clawing his way back up.
The giant glanced sidelong at Seol Jihoo, his breathing rough and ragged.
“Those damned bastards….”
An eerie, phlegm-laden sound scraped from his throat.
“How dare they… use Sleep Incense on me…?”
Whether from the drug or from fury—his eyes were bloodshot, his gaze so savage he looked ready to devour them whole.
Unsteadily, he set the girl down with care.
“Krraaaaaaaahhh!”
He howled like a wounded beast. The ferocious roar echoed across the meadow, reverberating endlessly.
The situation ended there. Six people were needed to open the door, but with two unexpectedly incapacitated, there was no way the passage to the Misaligned Plaza of Desires would open.
When others caught wind of what had happened, they swarmed out like hornets, and escape became impossible.
All who had fallen into the pit were rescued, but the six were slaughtered mercilessly by the enraged mob. With no way to stop the killing, the count dropped to 110.
Though they’d managed to prevent the attempt itself, the second incident was like pouring oil onto an already roaring fire.
Not only had another act of tyranny occurred within hours, but it was shocking to discover that someone from the Minority Faction had been swayed to participate.
Who could have foreseen that the very person who’d so ardently defended them against the strong would bend to manipulation?
Now a rift had opened that seemed unbridgeable—no one knew where to turn or what to do anymore.

Seol Jihoo opened his eyes.
“It’s because of me….”
The girl raised her head quietly, her voice small. She was just one person, after all; seeing her eyes wet with tears and her reddened cheeks, he felt apologetic for the expectations he’d harbored.
“My brother got badly hurt trying to save me….”
The giant and the girl were blood siblings. They didn’t look alike, but this wasn’t the moment to mention such things.
From what he gathered, she said that even after Stage 1, her brother’s body hadn’t been in good condition. When he fought Lionel, he’d pushed himself too hard protecting his younger sister, reopening his wounds.
So while his injuries recovered, after eating and drinking Healing Water, he’d fallen asleep for a bit—and in that window, a group had scattered Sleep Incense everywhere and shoved him into the Plaza of Sacrifice.
“If only I hadn’t been there….”
She faltered, her voice breaking, unable to continue. Only then did Seol Jihoo place his hand on her frail shoulder.
“No.”
For some reason, the girl’s body stiffened. A tremor began to run through her head.
“Neither of you are to blame.”
As he spoke softly, the shaking gradually subsided.
“Those six were simply beyond saving.”
The girl sniffled, her eyes glistening as she looked up.
“Will my brother… be alright?”
“Of course.”
Seol Jihoo, kneeling on one knee, offered a gentle smile.
“I’ve already asked the high priest to see to him. He’ll definitely recover.”
Whether his kind words brought comfort or not, the girl began to cry and leaned against him. As he patted her fragile back softly, Seol Jihoo let out a quiet sigh.
What in the world was this banquet?
He didn’t even understand why it had been given such a grand name in the first place. “Living hell” would be far more fitting.
While consoling the girl who sobbed like a child, Seol Jihoo activated the Nine Eyes. The two distant pits still shimmered with golden light.
‘Why.’
He understood the Misaligned Plaza of Desires, but not why the Plaza of Sacrifice glowed gold. How could such a filthy, dangerous space not register as a threat under Danger Detection?
Had the Nine Eyes simply not classified it as a danger?
Or…
Was there something in this Stage 2 that transcended Danger Detection itself?
The former possibility couldn’t be ruled out, but his thoughts were leaning toward the latter.
A suspicion suddenly took hold of him. Perhaps the Nine Eyes had been seeing through the entire banquet from the very beginning.
Seol Jihoo stared endlessly at the Plaza of Sacrifice.
‘Yes.’
There had to be a reason.
A reason visible through the Golden Law.

The hourglass had stopped after the first successful clear and never turned again.
At first, he’d felt relief at escaping the coercive pressure. But looking back now, the hourglass’s stopping had brought slack, and that slack had twisted into betrayal and abuse, festering into distrust.
You could see it in the Minority Faction alone.
Double-faced. Though they still held together out of necessity, their outward behavior and inner thoughts would be worlds apart.
Time was flowing without meaning. Cooperation was essential to push the clear forward, but circumstances had deteriorated so far that the atmosphere itself had grown murky.
For these people now, survival mattered more than clearing.
Seol Jihoo lit a cigarette. The taste was bitter. A thin thread of self-reproach wound through him.
‘I’ve accomplished nothing. Again.’
When he’d entered Stage 2, he’d been bristling with resolve. He’d sworn to try something, to show at least some sign of progress.
Yet faced with reality, he was simply retracing the same path Stage 1 had worn.
Of course, Seol Jihoo knew he wasn’t the sort of person to take the lead here.
Stage 2 was different from Stage 1—it encompassed everyone, and formidable fighters were thick on the ground. Even the higher-ranked couldn’t afford to step forward carelessly; they could only watch and wait.
A warrior of mere Level 3 had almost no room to maneuver.
‘And yet.’
Was it truly right to just stand and observe?
He hadn’t done anything worth a guilty conscience, but the thought of how the consequences of mere passivity might circle back terrified him.
Because it was the Golden Law. He’d seen it work firsthand during Stage 1, experienced it himself.
Fear made his heart race. Every instinct screamed that he couldn’t let sensation flow away like this, that he had to twist the current somehow, force it in another direction.
It wasn’t baseless.
The current total headcount was 110. It was scarce, perhaps, but Seol Jihoo felt this number like a last line—a threshold not to be crossed.
If they all pooled their strength even now, there might be the thinnest possibility of a breakthrough.
But if even a few more people fell from here… then an attempt at the Plaza of Sacrifice would become impossible.
The numbers were hemorrhaging by the day. There was no time to waste further.
He didn’t have a clear answer yet, but that didn’t mean there was no way forward. A breakthrough existed, he was certain of it.
In fact, everyone here probably knew it as well.
They simply didn’t step forward.
Because they already anticipated that the path to that breakthrough would be brutally difficult, and had given up in advance.
Seol Jihoo was no different. With everything already so twisted, the rift of conflict already so deep, how could he possibly guide everyone toward the answer?
Even thinking about it left his mind foggy and helpless.
“Hah…”
Another sigh—he’d lost count of how many.
No matter how many times he thought it through, doing it alone seemed impossible.
But Seol Jihoo wasn’t alone. With more people, he had allies he could trust.
[Why is it wrong to use what you’ve built fairly and squarely?]
Kazuki’s words flashed across his mind.
‘I can do this.’
No.
I have to.
Seol Jihoo drew a deep breath and moved forward.

“Hmm?”
Kazuki looked slightly startled by the sudden visitor.
“Kazuki.”
“?”
“What are we going to do from here?”
“I don’t know.”
Faced with the abrupt question, Kazuki raised the white flag.
“Before we could even do anything, incidents kept erupting. And this Stage is harder than anything we’ve faced before. Honestly, I can’t even get a handle on what we should do.”
Kazuki showed a hint of embarrassment. Of course, none of this was his fault, and there were unavoidable circumstances, but the frustration was undeniable.
“We probably need to hold another meeting.”
“Will it reach a conclusion?”
“…No.”
Kazuki shook his head and smacked his lips, then his eyes widened sharply.
Something felt off, though he couldn’t place it. Seol Jihoo’s expression seemed oddly subdued. Not his usual bright, playful face, but something harder to read.
It was so dreamlike that it almost felt like looking at someone else entirely.
‘Could it be.’
Kazuki’s eyes glinted.
“Do you have some idea in mind?”
he asked hopefully,
“All the good options are gone.”
Seol Jihoo answered coolly.
“…True enough.”
Kazuki folded his arms and stroked his chin.
The methods and means of action shift with circumstance—there’s no escaping that. What Seol Jihoo was saying was that the opportune moment when they could have employed a reasonably sound strategy had already slipped away.
“If there’s a method suited to this situation…”
“There’s only one.”
Kazuki fixed him with a steady gaze, and Seol Jihoo opened his mouth.
After the explanation ended, Kazuki fell into deep thought.
“Interesting. So you’d choose a frontal assault.”
“I don’t always come up with good ideas either.”
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
Kazuki waved his hand.
“Certainly, there’s no other way. Everyone probably knows and recognizes it by now.”
“I’d imagine so.”
“But they only know it in their heads.”
Kazuki spoke quietly.
“The Majority Faction isn’t refraining because they don’t know.”
He hesitated briefly before continuing with difficulty.
“I’m the same way.”
……
“Even with cooperation, it’s Levels 4 and 5 who’d have to stand in the front lines during the assault. If we go your route, both factions have to give up non-negotiable conditions… The Majority side definitely won’t appreciate a situation where they’re trading on equal terms. There’ll definitely be complaints.”
“I don’t see it that way.”
Seol Jihoo spoke.
“On Stage 2, the relationship between the Majority and Minority isn’t antagonism.”
“I know. But there’s clearly a difference between those who have a choice and those who don’t.”
It was blunt. But it was also undeniable.
“The Minority Faction is backed into a corner. Whether your plan appeals to them or not, they have no choice but to agree. But we’re different.”
Seol Jihoo’s eyes grew sharp.
“There’s a way.”
“…What?”
Kazuki’s eyebrows drew together—the first crack in his otherwise composed expression.
Seol Jihoo opened his mouth.
“There’s a way to turn what they think is antagonism into symbiosis.”
Kazuki’s lips sealed shut abruptly.
It’s an established fact that the larger the group, the easier the assault. But the Majority Faction knows it’s simpler to eliminate the Minority and slip away than to laboriously push through a proper assault.
What Seol Jihoo was saying must mean there exists a means to overturn this thinking.
‘What is it?’
If it truly existed—a single card that could flip their dire situation on its head all at once. A comeback move.
“Then why…”
Kazuki began to speak, then saw Seol Jihoo’s hesitation and understood why he hadn’t said it from the start.
“I can’t be certain.”
Kazuki nodded slowly.
“But it’s worth checking. Three or four times—no, one or two attempts would be enough.”
Seol Jihoo spoke again.
“One or two attempts would be enough.”
……
“Help me.”
In his repeated words lay a desperation he couldn’t quite name.
Kazuki lifted both hands and rubbed his face.
After a long moment of deliberation, he opened his mouth with a weary tone.
“…I’ll need to convince the Minority Faction first.”
Kazuki.
Seol Jihoo’s expression brightened.
“Next time, I should consider working with Carpe Diem more. Somehow, every time I’m around you, I end up walking a tightrope.”
Kazuki let out a short laugh, then
turned serious.
suddenly grew grave.
“I don’t like repeating myself, but there’s bound to be pushback. You came to me knowing that, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then promise me one thing.”
Kazuki, who had been watching intently, continued in a firm voice.
“If you’re going to do it, do it decisively.”
Seol Jihoo’s eyes hardened with resolve.
“From here on, it’s all or nothing. I won’t accept anything half-measures like Stage 1.”
“I understand.”
Kazuki seemed taken aback that Seol Jihoo answered so readily.
“I think I’m starting to understand.”
Seol Jihoo offered a thin smile.
“What you told me — about finding the right fit.”
“…Is that so?”
Kazuki tilted his chin slightly, studying the young man with careful scrutiny.
He didn’t seem to be lying.
“Then give it a try.”
A thin smile played across his lips.
“I’ll set the board.”

(To be continued in the next chapter)

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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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