novelraw Chapter 238 : Fight to the Death (5)
Chapter 238 : Fight to the Death (5)
Chapter 238: Fight to the Death (5)
First, Sanghyun was recalling what he had just heard from the Goddess of Luck.
He fully agreed with the idea of letting Luka babble on about the Eye of Calamity.
As long as he prodded him just right, the guy would likely run his mouth without fear.
Even in the conversation right before the fight, the guy had revealed quite a lot of information.
Of course, Sanghyun also thought that Luka might be trembling in fear now that they were evenly matched in combat.
So, he planned to show a strategically inferior side of himself. That would only make Luka even more arrogant.
‘Actually, there’s nothing strategic about it. Even if I loosen up a little, I start getting pushed back by him.’
Luka’s skills were tricky.
Perhaps it was because he had devoured multiple Constellations by killing many players, but each of his skills was immensely powerful.
To exaggerate just a little, it felt like getting hit directly by one of those skills could kill him on the spot.
On top of that, his skill casting and activation speed were at least twice as fast as that of a normal player.
If Sanghyun wasn’t in his Over Psychedelic state, he would have never been able to keep up with that speed.
That’s why Sanghyun planned to utilize a skill reset when the Over Psychedelic duration ended.
Objectively speaking, without Over Psychedelic, he shouldn't even be fighting Luka.
In other words, he had to settle this within the maximum total duration of 32 minutes that he could maintain Over Psychedelic.
‘If I use the skills I’ve been saving, that means I’m throwing down a decisive move. Until then, I have to hold back no matter what.’
There’s a saying that “if you save too much, it becomes useless,” but Sanghyun thought this situation was an exception.
The higher the tier of the players, the more often the battle would end in a single moment.
Fights that consisted of 99% probing and ended in the 1% of decisive moments were common.
Sanghyun was certain that Luka knew far less about his skills than he thought.
The information Luka had was only what Sanghyun had deliberately revealed to him.
Even Sanghyun himself sometimes forgot what kind of skills he had or how diverse they were.
So there was no way an outsider like Luka could know them in detail. He could only see what he already knew.
Anyway, considering he had clearly lost one of his arms in the earlier fight — although he had regenerated it —
It was a perfect moment to let out a groan, so Sanghyun furrowed his brows and continued speaking.
“…I wonder if it really had to come to this. We could’ve lived peacefully without interfering with each other.”
When Sanghyun intentionally poked at his still unhealed wound to induce more bleeding, his clothes were quickly soaked in blood.
It hurt, but that made the performance even more realistic. It was so painful he couldn’t keep his expression straight.
Luka laughed.
“Kehaha! The reason is simple. Your very existence is a hindrance to the master I serve. Then what do you think? You’ve got to be removed.”
Luka’s energy had noticeably risen.
The moment Sanghyun had clearly lost an arm just now played a big part in that.
Luka believed he had gotten a solid read on Sanghyun.
He thought that if he acted just a bit faster than his own calculated timing, Sanghyun wouldn’t be able to react.
Sanghyun confirmed that Luka’s eyes were brimming with energy and added another layer to his method acting.
And then.
[This entire conversation is being broadcast to the Constellations and Thrones in the Dimensional Group. Including the God of Storms, all the Constellations with me and you are gathering divine power to watch this scene. It’s a perfect opportunity to make him confess to his crimes. It’s a hassle, but please bear with it.]
The message from the Goddess of Luck also came through.
There were many spectators.
And the stage was already set.
The prey was right in front of them.
Which meant the most important thing was the leading actor who would guide this drama as desired — himself.
“One of us will die, no doubt. But is this kind of fight even meaningful?”
“It’s true one of us will die. But it won’t be me. That means it has to be you.”
“You might be getting used, too, Luka Viole.”
“Getting desperate, so you’re spouting nonsense now, huh? Listen, Shin Sanghyun. Back when my master offered you power and a future — you should’ve bowed your head instead of acting arrogant!”
Luka spoke with force and began forming a hand seal.
Sanghyun realized it wasn’t an actual attack, just a threatening gesture, but pretended to be startled and backed away.
Luka burst into hearty laughter. Apparently, Sanghyun really looked like a frightened pup.
From Sanghyun’s perspective, he could’ve used the ‘Extremely Demonic’ skill to evade Luka’s skill attacks.
Not only could he devour the skill, but he might even recover mana in the process.
But he avoided doing so in order to build up toward a single, decisive strike.
‘Now that I think about it, I was fighting while weighing myself down with sandbags on purpose.’
Technically, Sanghyun wasn’t fighting at full power either.
He was intentionally holding back his most powerful skills, so it was only natural that he was getting pushed by Luka.
Even so, the fact that he’d managed to hold his ground and even gain the upper hand earlier was impressive.
Just then.
Luka began forming another hand seal.
When Sanghyun acted like he was trying to dodge, Luka launched a homing magic skill that had accounted for that movement.
‘Let’s take the hit. If it goes wrong, I can regenerate. I’m just making the feast more delicious.’
Even though he had the easy option of using Extremely Demonic, Sanghyun ignored it and took Luka’s skill on purpose.
That didn’t mean he would just stand there and take it, so he aimed for a borderline hit.
And then—
Pshshshsh!
“Graaagh!”
A magic skill tore through the muscle in his left thigh, spraying blood in all directions.
It was quite painful, but ironically, the injury was far from a fatal one.
Instead, the visible scene was filled with red blood trails—perfectly satisfying from a visual standpoint of aggression.
As Sanghyun fell backward, unable to even keep his balance, Luka grew even more arrogant.
“Kehaha! What could a guy who can’t even beat me possibly do? You think you can interfere with my master’s will?”
“No matter what… to the end…”
“My master said that if you die, even the Scale of Good and Evil, which maintained balance in the Dimensional Group, would crack. Your pathetic life won’t just end here. It means the entire Dimensional Group will tip over. All in favor of my master.”
“If I’m really that pathetic, I didn’t know my death carried that kind of value. Cough!”
Sanghyun let out a dry cough and frowned. It wasn’t a fatal wound, but it really hurt.
This wasn’t acting.
“There’s not much time left. Soon… in the Dimensional Group… my master’s world will…”
After that—
Luka started to spill everything the God of Storms had ever told him.
From Luka’s perspective, it was closer to explaining to a dying man why he had to die.
Yes, it was surely the composure of a victor. That humiliating courtesy—“Know why you’re dying as you die.”
But he never imagined that all this would be heard and seen by every Constellation in the Dimensional Group.
Not just Luka, but also the Eye of Calamity, the throne deity he was contracted with, was in the same boat.
If they had sensed anything strange, they would’ve shut Luka up immediately. But they didn’t know, so they didn’t.
Thanks to that, Sanghyun was able to understand the full picture of the situation through Luka’s words.
There was no need to overthink it.
The Dimensional Group had long existed as a balanced world divided between good and evil-aligned Constellations and Thrones.
Except during rare periods of dimensional instability, they never interfered with other worlds.
Just like now, they simply pointed their invisible cameras at a world and watched like a broadcast.
They shared a portion of their power with chosen ones and observed their growth. That was their only amusement and joy.
Having grown used to peace, the Constellations and Thrones mingled more freely than ever and maintained order.
These were things only higher beings with intelligence could accomplish. They pursued stability and avoided change.
But peace had unknowingly planted seeds of complacency and weakness in everyone’s hearts…
And the Eye of Calamity took advantage of that gap, planning to reshape the future of the Dimensional Group—something no one was worried about.
He saw a loophole—not just to become one of the Thrones in the Dimensional Group—
But a mediator, a supreme being who could oversee the entire Dimensional Group just by acting on his own will and executing a plan.
And now was the moment he had set everything into motion. 99% of it was already successful.
If he had killed the Model Student Constellation sooner, or had been given just a little more time, the plan would’ve been complete.
But it was still only "planned"—it hadn’t yet become reality. It was 99%, not 100%.
At the same time.
Luka’s words were being broadcast in real-time throughout the entire Great Sanctuary.
Many Constellations and Thrones reacted with surprise to the public broadcast, something they hadn’t seen in ages.
And with good reason. To show a public broadcast like this, the one initiating it—
Would have to permanently consume divine power built up over tens or hundreds of years. It couldn’t be restored.
That’s why public broadcasts were never used unless the entire fate of the Dimensional Group was at risk.
Typically, they were only used by dying Constellations or Thrones, or by messengers in interdimensional wars.
The God of Storms had used up most of his divine power, and the Goddess of Luck along with other Constellations had chipped in as well.
It was a collective decision, because they all clearly understood just how dire the situation had become for the Dimensional Group.
The conversation between Sanghyun and Luka revealed far more information than they had expected. Far beyond what the God of Storms had initially thought.
So, he decided this was enough reason to make a bold move, and the God of Storms raised his voice.
[Convictions may differ. It’s not a matter of right or wrong, nor good and evil.
At the very least, the reason our Dimensional Group has prospered for so long and become a mediator preserving order across many worlds is just one.
We never broke the foundation of order.
Even if that order was poorly formed, we still maintained and protected it.
For dimensions that lost their sense of morality, we allowed the order of strength to prevail—and even that worked out successfully.
We always engaged in fair competition, and earned our places accordingly.
But now?
Do you truly believe you’ll endure in a Dimensional Group restructured to suit the Eye of Calamity’s whims?
Will you still be able to compete fairly? Will you be able to reign by your own power, with pride?
If the Scale of Good and Evil collapses, then the base of our Dimensional Group will be overrun by unruly, shady evil spirits and demon beasts.
Before the fallen ones who have lost nobility, purity, and the value of existence—will you be able to live with pride?]