novelraw Chapter 175 : Almighty - (3)
Chapter 175 : Almighty - (3)
Chapter 175: Almighty - (3)
At the same time.
Han Hyunjeong was receiving a call from Lee Yeon.
Normally, she wouldn’t take work calls at dawn, but Lee Yeon’s contact was an exception.
If her right-hand woman was calling, that meant the matter was urgent.
Lee Yeon had never dialed Han Hyunjeong’s number for trivial matters.
“Hey, Yeon.”
“Do they look like they’re from the Jeongpung or Sun Guild?”
“Who the hell are they?”
Han Hyunjeong still didn’t know the identity of the Constellation Devourer.
However, since Sanghyun had a close relationship with the Eden Guild—
She naturally suspected the opposing Jeongpung and Sun Guilds.
But weren’t they said to be foreigners?
And if they couldn’t be identified in the secret player database she held—
It meant they were players who had never made any public appearance.
In other words, they weren’t high-quality players. Or perhaps, they were incompetent.
But if it were the latter, there would be no reason to secretly tail Sanghyun like this. 100%, it was the former.
“I’ll contact Mr. Sanghyun. Yeon, you keep your distance and trail them without being noticed.”
“Good work.”
The call with Lee Yeon ended.
Ever since she signed the sponsorship contract with Sanghyun, Han Hyunjeong had always kept someone by his side.
Originally, it had been another member of Hyunjeong Corporation.
But as Sanghyun’s value rose, she felt he needed more solid protection.
So she assigned her right-hand woman and most trusted aide, Lee Yeon. It was, in essence, the best possible protection.
“Something feels off, though.”
Han Hyunjeong’s gaze deepened.
The Sanghyun she knew was an extremely cautious person.
He never let pride or arrogance get the better of him, and he was careful in everything.
Sometimes he seemed reckless in dungeons, but that was only when he had solid reasoning to act.
So the idea that Sanghyun, moving alone at dawn, wouldn’t notice a tail—it didn’t sit right.
She immediately called him.
And as if he had been waiting, Sanghyun picked up the phone right away.
“Mr. Sanghyun. How about a glass of wine?”
A random mention of wine.
To an outsider, it would seem like nonsense, but it was a kind of code phrase between the two.
It was a way to confirm if the call was secure, and Sanghyun had just answered that it was.
Using a relay device installed in the car, the call was now switched to a secure line between the two.
“You’re being followed. Three people. Two cars. They’ll look like delivery vehicles at first glance.”
“What?”
Han Hyunjeong tilted her head at Sanghyun’s calm response.
If he knew, then why this situation?
Shouldn’t he have turned around and returned to Seoul, or asked for backup?
Sanghyun’s words were simple but oozing with bloodlust.
For a moment, Han Hyunjeong felt a chill run down her spine just listening to him.
Of course, when it came to battles between players, self-defense had a wide range of interpretations.
If they had tailed him and even showed the slightest intent to attack—
Then even if Sanghyun killed them on the spot, it wouldn’t be a problem.
Fights between players rarely ended in mere injuries anyway.
And the fact that they were chasing Sanghyun this deep into the night was already strong circumstantial evidence.
“Yeon can assist you.”
“Hm……”
“I understand what you mean.”
Simply put, he was saying Lee Yeon would be a hindrance.
If she got into danger trying to help Sanghyun, he wouldn’t be able to ignore it.
Sanghyun had many skills to rely on, starting with his undead abilities.
“Understood. Reporting to the Association?”
“Do you know who they are?”
The call ended.
A question mark formed in her mind.
How could Sanghyun know about tailers that even Han Hyunjeong, with her excellent intelligence network, couldn’t guess?
It didn’t seem like someone had tipped him off, as there was no possible link.
He hadn’t made any personal enemies, so it wasn’t likely to be a grudge either.
“Could he have access to something deeper than I do?”
Worry for Sanghyun kept surfacing in her heart.
But the person in question wasn’t just calm—he looked like he had everything planned, making it awkward for her to intervene.
If she went by the Sanghyun she had seen so far, then today’s situation was definitely something he had confidence in handling.
Han Hyunjeong decided to trust him.
Lee Yeon’s role would be enough as a witness.
“It’s really pouring.”
Arriving at the promised location, Sanghyun frowned as he looked at the increasingly heavy rain.
In fact, bad weather was actually a favorable condition for Sanghyun. The environment itself became a variable.
Especially when the ground became slippery, making it hard to maintain balance.
If you weren’t used to such weather, it was very common to struggle in combat.
But Sanghyun was familiar with it.
All of that familiarity ultimately stemmed from his previous life.
Things he had experienced, learned, and felt in his bones.
With those regrets and resolutions still lingering, Sanghyun never wanted to repeat the same mistakes.
“This spot’s just right for a fight.”
Sanghyun grinned as he looked around.
Even if he had been the one tailing, it would have been hard to find a battleground this ideal.
A place not too far from Seoul, yet also sparsely populated.
In fact, since dungeons and gates were often found in unexpected places, it wasn't unusual at all.
There were a few CCTV cameras along the way. They were mandatory installations near dungeon and gate paths.
But in this kind of foul weather, they were nearly useless.
Even if the culprits’ faces were caught clearly, it wouldn’t matter. They were living outside the law to begin with.
Thud!
Sanghyun stabbed his Nameless Sword into the rain-soaked, softened ground and waited for the tailers.
A while later—
From a fair distance, three figures began walking toward Sanghyun.
He had expected them to drive deeper into the area.
It seemed they had wanted to tail him as covertly as possible.
The intention wasn’t bad in itself, but to Sanghyun, who had known about them from the start, it just looked ridiculous.
“Well, well.”
Sanghyun examined their faces.
Since they weren’t even covering their faces, their intent was clear. They wanted to kill Sanghyun.
If they could kill him, it didn’t matter whether their faces were seen or names known. The dead don’t talk.
A swordsman, an assassin, and a mage.
“Nice setup.”
The combination looked pretty solid.
In fact, it was one of the most ideal compositions.
The swordsman holds the front line and tanks, the assassin sneaks in from behind,
And the mage creates variables with magical attacks against an opponent focused on physical defense.
It’s the most textbook formation, and when comprised of skilled members, it can be very tricky.
“Hm.”
None of their faces looked familiar.
They weren’t among the faces of the Devourers who would later be listed as wanted by the World Player Association.
But just the fact that they hunted other players’ Constellations and absorbed their powers—
Still meant they were strong.
Just then—
The assassin player at the front, Kay, spoke to Sanghyun. Alongside his teammates Jay and Roel, he was using an alias.
He spoke in English, and since Sanghyun had no problem with the language, he understood right away.
“Is that bravado?”
“What bravado?”
“You’re acting like you’ve been waiting here, even though you're cornered.”
“We’ve met before, haven’t we? Back when I took on the Blood Tower Quest, one of you was near me.”
“……”
He remembered clearly.
It had been Kay who was briefly caught tailing him back then. His necklace had reacted.
“No need for talk. Just come at me. You came to kill me anyway. What’s the point in chatting?”
“If you tell us someone else worth devouring instead of you, we’ll let you live. How about that?”
“You want me to sell out a target?”
“Exactly.”
Kay nodded with a smirk.
He had made the same offer to previous victims.
To someone gripped by fear, it was a sweet temptation. Though trusting them would be foolish.
“Fighting three-on-one already makes me sick, but listening to this crap? It's nauseating. Just come at me.”
Shing.
Sanghyun drew his Nameless Sword.
A plain-looking blade, lacking any flashiness.
If they could have identified the grade of the sword—
Kay, Jay, and Roel would have fled without a second thought.
Such was the power of the word Almighty.
An Artifact beyond reach! A disaster standing before them that could end their lives in a single strike!
But the three of them couldn’t even imagine that Sanghyun possessed such an Artifact.
“You two, stay back. I’ll take care of him myself.”
Kay licked his upper lip with the tip of his tongue and stepped forward.
At his current level of 377, he was a swordsman far above Sanghyun in level.
Kay knew that well, and he was confident in the clear gap between them.
Moreover, with four Constellations backing—or forcibly binding—him, Kay brimmed with confidence.
“One-on-one?”
“No need to go three-on-one like you said. I’ll handle it cleanly myself.”
“Oh? That sounds more fun.”
Sanghyun took a combat stance.
In fights against multiple enemies, the most important thing was always to reduce their numbers.
Managing stamina or skill usage came after that. Sanghyun immediately deployed Over Psychedelic.
Because he was already maintaining a state of No-Mind, No-Self, the awakening effect of Over Psychedelic was even greater.
At that moment—
Crack!
A flash sparked from Kay, and a surge of electricity flew fiercely at Sanghyun.
The current that started from his sword was undoubtedly "Sword Magic." A rare form of attack.
But—
[Path of Magic Resistance]
The Nameless Sword’s built-in unique effect, “Path of Magic Resistance,” activated and blocked Kay’s magical attack with ease.
It wasn’t that Sanghyun braced for defense, dodged, or even consciously reacted.
The magic simply veered away from Sanghyun on its own, as if terrified.
At that moment—
“Fuck.”
A curse escaped Kay’s lips as he witnessed the unbelievable scene.