novelraw Chapter 158: Dimension Gate (3)
Chapter 158: Dimension Gate (3)
Translator: Dreamscribe
Seoul was as peaceful as ever. Perhaps because it had rained yesterday, the sky over Seoul was moderately clear, and the weather had warmed up, making it quite pleasant. It was a perfect day for an outing.
And it was right on the brink of destruction.
From the sky, Erosion poured down like a rain shower. It turned Seoul gray, covering buildings and roads with a sticky liquid.
Swamps of Erosion that had accumulated on the rooftops of tall buildings flowed down along their surfaces. Due to their viscosity, they resembled slow waterfalls, and countless monsters screamed and struggled as they tried to crawl out.
Thudududuk!
Monsters poured out from the swamp of Erosion that had piled up on the ground, turning the city into chaos.
The forms of the monsters were horrific. The body of a troll was entangled with mummies, skeletons, and goblins, and their limbs were grotesquely twisted. Goblins with numerous eyes and ears all over their bodies formed groups and dashed along the roads, destroying everything in sight. They broke down doors to enter buildings, smashed tables and chairs, and vomited liquid filled with Erosion.
In Seoul, peace and destruction coexisted. It was an absurd story, but those wearing Soul Glass could feel both peace and destruction at the same time.
Kwagagaga!
An ogre the size of a two-story building rampaged wildly, destroying several stores.
The owner of a bar, wearing Soul Glass, stared blankly at his shop.
“Wow! Everything’s wrecked.”
“Kya, this is it!”
“They're swarming like crazy over there, huh?”
Originally, the area was sparsely populated, so business hadn’t been good.
He had applied for Stage 3 of the Gate of Souls, encouraged after watching videos of Arsilan Saga. Since it was free, there was no burden. By applying for Stage 3, small business owners could receive Soul Glass and Soul Link Lite on a free one-year rental through the self-employment support program.
‘Sir, the seal will be lifted next Friday. I think it’d be good to open your shop early that day.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes, this spot is amazing! It’s going to be a hit.’
‘Haha... if that happens, I’ll have no more wishes left.’
That’s what the staff who installed the Gate of Souls had said.
When the day came, the bar owner, just in case, opened his shop early.
As a result, it was packed with customers!
The shop was full of excited customers. Everyone was either watching the scene outside through their smartphones or wearing Soul Glass. Word had spread through social media, drawing a large crowd.
Most of them were production-class Heroes who wanted to watch comfortably, or newbies to Arsilan Saga. There were also quite a few tourists visiting Seoul.
As the FS Games employee had said, this place was truly a prime location.
Right in front of the shop, sticky Erosion poured down, and in a spot clearly visible from the shop, a tower made of ashen bones had formed.
[The Towers of Erosion have been erected throughout Seoul.]
From the Tower of Erosion, countless monsters continued to pour out. A moment later, the Legion of Light appeared, heading toward the Tower of Erosion.
“For Arsilan!”
“Protect Seoul!”
“Uwaaaa!”
Loud shouts rang out.
Heroes mounted on all sorts of vehicles, unimaginable in reality, filled the roads and charged forward like mad. Watching them explode monsters left and right was an overwhelmingly exhilarating sight, impossible to see on Earth!
And they could enjoy it all with chicken and beer!
By selecting “View in Soul State” on the Soul Glass, one could transform into a chibi SD character form in the Other Side World and watch without interference from monsters. Of course, there was a penalty. Until that Other Side World ended, the Hero character in Arsilan Worlds would remain in a dead state, and interactions would be limited.
“L-Look, it’s Leon nim!”
“Wow...”
“He looks insane in person.”
Leon could be seen in the distance.
He was sweeping away monsters with his Holy Sword. A giant monster ripped out a street tree and swung it toward Leon.
Kwagagaga!
The tree tore through the wall of a large building and struck toward Leon. Leon raised his Holy Sword to block the tree. A massive shockwave blasted out, sending everything around flying in all directions.
Whooooosh!
Leon’s body was flung sideways and came flying toward the bar like a cannonball.
“H-Huh?”
“Uwah?!”
The customers were startled.
Leon’s body had slammed into the wall of the shop and crashed inside. Leon stabbed his Holy Sword into the floor and barely came to a stop. The interior of the bar instantly fell silent.
“Phew.”
Leon got up and exhaled. Debris clinging to his body fell to the floor with a thud.
Thud! Thud!
A monster was charging madly toward the shop. Even though they knew it wasn’t real, all the customers tensed up and held their breath. The bar owner, terrified, pressed himself tightly against the counter.
Leon met eyes with the customers.
He gave a faint smile, then gripped his Holy Sword with both hands and pulled it back.
Fwaaaah!
Radiant light burst out from the Holy Sword, becoming a powerful booster. Leon’s body shot forward, leaving afterimages behind.
Slice!
He flew at the charging monster and sliced its neck clean through. The monster’s massive head dropped to the ground and turned to ash before disappearing. Landing on the road, Leon casually shook off the light from his Holy Sword and turned his head toward the shop.
“Kya!”
“U-Uwaaaa.”
“That’s insane.”
The customers inside the shop cheered at Leon’s display. The bar owner, equally thrilled, shouted out loud. He had thought of it as just a game and never considered trying it himself, but today, his entire worldview had changed.
Leon, along with the Legion of Light, continued mowing down the monsters as he advanced. From the Dimension Gates that had formed all over Seoul, Heroes and Arsilan citizens kept pouring out, charging toward the Towers of Erosion.
"Your Highness Leon!"
A warrior from the Helby Lovers Group approached quickly.
"We've completed the Seoul map information. I'll share it now."
All Heroes and Arsilan citizens were affiliated with the Kingdom of Sillion. Just like a party system, they could share information. Receiving the data, Leon nodded as he looked over the map that appeared in the info window.
“All the Towers of Erosion have been completed.”
“Yes, the Ohsung Tower... in other words, the tallest building in Seoul has become the central point, and Towers of Erosion have been erected throughout the city.”
Sticky Erosion was gathering around the Ohsung Tower. Just by looking at it, it was clear that once complete, something enormous would emerge. Leon looked up at the sky.
“We must eliminate the Towers of Erosion before that thing is completed. Commander Heina.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“I leave the command to you.”
Heina deeply bowed her head and immediately began issuing commands. Her instructions were transmitted to the Heroes and Arsilan citizens as messages.
At that moment, a Quest Window appeared.
[Seoul] Destroy the Towers of Erosion!
Seven Towers of Erosion have been erected across Seoul. The Towers of Erosion are drawing Erosion from the Great Rift and attempting to summon a powerful entity. Destroy the Towers of Erosion and stop the Erosion’s plot.
Participants: Arsilan
Deadline: Before the anomaly occurs.
Reward: ???
“A quest just popped up!”
"It's telling us to destroy those tall towers.”
The Quest Window appeared before the Heroes.
“So this is what a quest is?”
“Wow, that’s fascinating.”
Even the Arsilan citizens saw the Quest Window. To them, it was no different from logging into Seoul. Now they could enjoy Arsilan Saga together.
The Heroes smiled as they saw the reactions of the Arsilan citizens.
“You get rewards if you complete it.”
“Really?”
“Wow, there are so many monsters near the towers.”
“Nice! Let’s go!”
The Heroes and Arsilan citizens charged toward the towers. Although monsters of Erosion kept pouring out, the Arsilan citizens were no longer powerless.
Slash!
An Elf moved swiftly and severed a monster’s neck with a dagger. An Orc leaped over the Elf and slammed a massive club into the ground, shaking the terrain and sweeping away monsters in front of him.
As the monsters fell to the ground, a Magic Circle appeared over them.
“Fire Rain!”
As the Fire Rain cast by the Mage Hero poured down, the monsters were roasted whole.
“That was a great finish, Hero-nim.”
“Hehe, thank you! Ah, did the EXP come in?”
“So this is what you call EXP? Hm, I do feel stronger.”
The Mage Hero grinned at their replies.
“Let’s keep going! Let’s mob hunt and power level!”
“Power level... I see, I understand.”
“Haha! As expected of a Hero, so bold.”
The Elf and the Orc smiled and charged toward the tower with the Hero.
-Anyone heading to Tower 1?
-Me!
-I’ll share the coordinates.
-Too many monsters at Tower 2. Need backup.
-Yes! Hero-nim, Langin warriors are on the way!
-Can I get a ride?
-Possible.
-Oh.
A Seoul World Chat was newly established. It consisted of multiple channels and was managed by the Magic Tower, allowing Heroes and Arsilan citizens to freely share the situation on the battlefield. They could send messages to World Chat by consuming mana at set intervals.
-X832, Y344 requesting bombardment! Tons of monsters hiding at the Hanun Group HQ!
-Confirmed.
Gugugugugu!
The sound of a magic engine came from the sky.
Leon, along with the Heroes, looked up. The airship unit of the Helby Lovers Group passed through the Dimension Gate and was now flying above Seoul.
Pheeewww!
A Hero close to the Hanun Group HQ fired a signal flare. The airship spread its wings and flew toward the Hanun Group HQ.
-3, 2, 1
-Drop!
From several airships, magic bombs poured down.
As they struck the Hanun Group HQ,
KWAGAGAGAGAGAGANG!
The building was completely blown away. A tremendous explosion followed by a shockwave swept everything around it. Even the road was torn apart and melted from the heat.
“Hmm....”
Watching through the Soul Glass from the chairman’s office of the Hanun Group HQ, the chairman wore a bitter expression.
“Haha, our HQ building just disappeared.”
The Hanun Group had once been a rival to the Ohsung Group. Now, even if ten Hanun Groups joined forces, they still couldn’t compare to Ohsung.
“Well, at least it was good advertising. The whole world’s watching, after all.”
“I hope so. You may leave work. I’ll head out later.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
By the chairman’s orders, the entire Hanun Group was off work for the day.
The chairman picked up his smartphone and opened the Arsilan Worlds app.
ForRiceMoney: Yo, don't you need rice? I'll make it cheap.
LifeHunter: Busy. Go to hell.
ForRiceMoney: ㅠㅠ....
LifeHunter: I saw your HQ just got blown up.
ForRiceMoney: Yep. I came to work today. Got hit by a bomb ㅋㅋ
LifeHunter: You’re not dead? Be careful of heart attacks.
ForRiceMoney: I’m good. I've been working out lately. Off to farm now, later.
Recently, rice prices in Arsilan had been plummeting rapidly.
Should I start growing fruit? The chairman began seriously contemplating.
The secretary, leaving the chairman’s office, glanced back at him. Seeing the chairman with such a grave expression made their chest tighten. He’s worrying so deeply for the future of Hanun Group!
The secretary resolved to work even harder.
Dash!
But first, time to enjoy Arsilan Saga!
The secretary quickly went home.
Slick!
The chairman locked the door to his office and pulled out the Soul Link. Though Seoul was in chaos, he focused on farming.
The Legion of Light pushed through the monsters and advanced toward the Towers of Erosion. The Helby Lovers Group’s airships continued dropping bombs. Buildings collapsed, roads were destroyed, but they didn’t stop. Helby, standing atop an airship, unleashed her breath.
KWAGAGAGA!
Helby’s breath pierced through tall buildings. The buildings collapsed in vain, crumbling into debris that crushed the monsters below.
The Heroes and Arsilan citizens agilely dodged or leapt over the falling debris.
On a rooftop, Mage Heroes had gathered. They were all veterans in the magic class who had reached second advancement. As soon as they emerged from the Dimension Gate, they began preparing their spells.
A magic circle filled with countless calculations rose into the air. It was an enormous circle created by a hundred people gathered together. They forcefully poured in magic power, and all 100 of them simultaneously began spell computation.
They broke through the limits of B-rank and reached A-rank.
A-rank.
It was the moment they touched the realm of high-tier magic.
“Coordinates input complete!”
“Forming mana lines...!”
“Spell computation complete!”
Flaaash!
The magic circle gradually grew larger and slowly rose into the sky.
“The greatness of magic...”
“Let’s show it to the world.”
This time, we’re the main characters!
Countless people across the world were watching. The viewership had long since surpassed that of a World Cup final. The mages had gathered all their resources to create this magic circle.
The mages’ chanting echoed like a song. As the spell was completed, the mages released all their magic power and raised their staffs high.
Kugugugugu!
From the magic circle that had ascended into the sky, intense flames erupted and thunder rumbled. Leon and the Legion of Light, who had been charging toward the Tower of Erosion, briefly stopped and looked toward the building.
At that moment, the air rippled and the sky turned red. Piercing through the clouds, a meteor the size of a small building emerged, burning.
“Me-Meteor?”
“Crazy....”
“I’m seeing this in Seoul?”
The Heroes were speechless.
Meteor Strike.
It was the meteor summoning spell the Heroes had used for the first time. Though it was said to be an Other World, the mages were dropping a meteor right on Seoul.
"They've grown."
Leon’s voice was full of admiration, and not only the Heroes but even the Arsilan citizens nodded in agreement.
“There’s no need to head to Tower 1.”
The meteor was clearly falling toward Tower 1. With a summoning spell of that magnitude, it could easily obliterate a Tower of Erosion. In fact, they needed to retreat significantly. The Legion of Light, which had been headed toward Tower 1, panicked and quickly withdrew.
The meteor, engulfed in flames, hurtled toward Tower 1. The Heroes and Arsilan citizens braced for the impact and were ready to cheer. A tremendous explosion was imminent!
“Huh?”
Fweeeee!
The meteor grazed the tip of Tower 1. It only scorched a tiny portion, then continued past the tower and fell into the Han River.
KWAHHHHHH!
As soon as it hit the river, it exploded, creating a massive cloud of steam. The surrounding bridges collapsed, and everyone watching through Soul Glasses flinched and shut their eyes.
“......”
“......”
A moment of silence fell.
Perhaps because it had provoked Tower 1, even more monsters began pouring out.
Leon nodded.
“...Perhaps this is a kind of growing pain.”
Everyone nearby remained silent at Leon’s words.
"They didn't grow at all."
“Still..., well, at least they dropped it.”
“The bridges are all wrecked.”
Instead of another meteor, a streak of light fell from the sky, Ella. As soon as she landed on the ground, a wave of light burst forth, eradicating the oncoming monsters.
“Advance!”
At Leon’s shout as he pointed toward Tower 1, the Legion of Light charged. Countless Heroes and Arsilan citizens advanced toward the Towers of Erosion across all of Seoul.
Sensing danger, the Erosion began reacting. The Great Rift widened further, and something started to emerge. What came forth, covering the sky in pitch black, were tentacles with bat wings. At the ends of the tentacles, sharp fangs emerged as they opened up.
Those flying monsters, like a swarm, darted through the air and latched onto the airships.
Fweeee! KWAANG!The airships crashed, exploding as they hit buildings. The flying monsters that rained down from the sky struck the Legion of Light, releasing intense Erosion energy and exploding on contact.
They were suicide attackers.
"Put up barriers!"
“There are too many of them!”
The flying monsters targeted the cannons and equipment the Heroes had brought and self-destructed. A Mage Hero nearby observed the flying monsters carefully, then took out a Magic Stone from their inventory.
They threw it onto the rooftop of a distant building. Then,
KWAANG!
The flying monster that had been gliding through the sky crashed into a building and exploded. The Mage Hero nodded and looked toward Leon.
“They seem to be targeting mana!”
“I see. You figured that out so quickly, how impressive.”
“Hehe....”
At Leon’s praise, the Mage Hero scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed smile.
“May I borrow a Magic Stone for a moment?”
“Yes! Of course. Here you go.”
Leon, having received the Magic Stone, looked at him briefly.
Dding!
As Leon’s Affinity increased, the Mage Hero raised both arms high in joy.
Leon looked to the sky and raised his Holy Sword.
“Ella-nim, please.”
Ella reached her hand out toward Leon. Light ignited on the Holy Sword, gradually increasing its size.
Leon jumped toward the sky.
In an instant, he soared to the height of a three-story building. As gravity tried to pull him back down, Ella brought both hands together and began casting a sacred technique.
As light enveloped Leon’s body, wings made of light formed, propelling him rapidly into the sky.
Swoosh!
Helby appeared behind him and placed her hand on his back, accelerating his ascent even further.
“O-Ohhhh!”
"Your Highness Leon!"
“He’s flying!”
When Leon took out the Magic Stone, the flying monsters all turned their heads and rushed straight toward him. Leon soared upward through the sky, brushing past the flying monsters.
Beneath Leon’s feet, countless flying monsters gathered in a pitch-black swarm. It was as if a curtain had been drawn across the sky.
As the effect of the sacred technique ended, the wings of light vanished.
“Haah!”
Leon, falling downward, swung his Holy Sword with both hands toward the flying monsters.
In that moment, a brilliant flash of light erupted.
The radiant light extended, annihilating even sound as it swept across all the flying monsters. It extended all the way to the ground and blew away half of Tower 1.
Leon began to fall rapidly toward the surface. Landing where there was a tall building, he drove the Holy Sword into its outer wall.
Screeeech!
He carved a long scar into the building’s surface as he gradually reduced his speed. Once he had descended far enough, he pulled the sword free and landed on the ground.
“Kya!”
“That’s Leon nim for you!”
“Think we can pull that off someday?”
“Wow, the building split.”
The Heroes were in awe of Leon’s actions. Their King, Leon, always stood strong and supported the Heroes. The Arsilan citizens cheered loudly, their morale rising.
“How are we supposed to watch regular movies after this?”
"It has all genres."
“...I don’t think anything could surprise me anymore.”
People who had laid out mats to watch from Hangang Park were utterly entranced.
Foreign broadcasters stationed all over Seoul were left in shock. With support from FS Games, they were able to capture the Other World through their cameras.
“L-Let’s just record everything for now.”
“Think we can get an interview?”
“With Leon-nim?”
“Yeah.”
At the word “interview” the eyes of the nearby reporters lit up with passion.
Those who had come to steal the Gate of Souls technology despaired. Disguised as tourists wearing Soul Glasses, they had tried in every way to interpret the technology.
They were spies from countries under the Arsilan Saga service restriction.
But after witnessing this transcendent spectacle, their motivation was completely crushed. It felt like they were barely learning basic addition and subtraction, and someone suddenly told them to solve the Riemann Hypothesis. Even if Lee Jinwoo kindly disclosed every detail of the technology, they probably wouldn’t be able to replicate it.
“...Should we just give up and turn ourselves in?”
“Hm, think they’ll accept naturalization? I kind of want to hand over intel....”
Looks fun.
They, too, gave up everything and just wanted to play Arsilan Saga.
It felt like they’d lost their entire life’s value.
*****
TL Note:
Merry Christmas🎄, happy holidays, and happy New Year to all of you!
I'll be taking a short break and will start posting new chapters in the first week of the new year.
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