I Became an Illegal Cheat User

42 – The Corrupted (2)

A storm of magic raging from the corrupted’s body.

Within that magical storm, the corrupted’s body gradually underwent mutation.

Thud─!

With a hopeful heart, I tried firing my rifle.

But whether it was because my strength was lacking or it was a phenomenon like a game.

The bullets, enhanced by cheats, could not penetrate the magical storm and disappeared.

Still, thinking a bomb might work, I threw a grenade.

Kwaaang!

The noise was deafening, but the magical storm didn’t dissipate at all.

I lowered my gun, tongue-tied by the sight.

These days, it’s the trend not to wait for a transformation…

To think I have to just watch as the enemy grows stronger.

Is it a god or a developer, which one is it?

No, if the game became reality, should it not be possible to skip phases?

… grumbling in dissatisfaction, the moment he took out a gas mask from the inventory.

Ding.

────────────────────

Event Quest – [Great Deed]

【Survive】

Survive against the corrupt.

※ After 5 minutes, reinforcements will arrive.

– Reward: 50,000 points (additional rewards based on performance), ???

– Failure: Death.

────────────────────

An event quest appeared.

And with the label ‘Great Deed’ attached to it.

“… An achievement quest appears here?”

Even as we transitioned to phase 2, the enemies were getting stronger.

Of course, the appearance of an achievement quest doesn’t mean the enemies are twice as strong.

But when an achievement appears, it means the death flag is looming.

Yet, right now, my anticipation outweighs the fear and anxiety.

“50,000 points and a question mark reward… At the very least, it must be a choice voucher, right?”

That’s because of the quest’s reward.

Even though the content of the quest is not ‘defeat’ but ‘survive.’

The reward must be incredibly sweet, given that it involves risking one’s life.

“Just 5 minutes, survive, and that’s it.”

No, it’s not just about surviving.

If I do well, I might even kill the guy.

I have two chances to shoot him down right now.

“Hoo.”

I expelled a tense breath, swiftly swapping out the magazine of my rifle.

Though there was still half of the ammunition left, it’s better to replace it with a fresh magazine beforehand.

That way, the firepower increases even if just by a bit.

Whooooo….

The mutation of the fallen seemed to be nearing its end as the raging storm of demonic energy began to subside.

In response, I checked my gear once again, peering into the storm.

And there, amid the storm, a pair of crimson eyes glaring with an eerie light became unmistakably visible.

What those eyes revealed was an intense determination to kill me.

That’s all there was to it.

I didn’t avert my gaze from those eyes.

Although my body trembled involuntarily due to its frailty.

Thanks to my reasonably strong mental fortitude and ‘Strong Mind (A),’ I felt no fear or dread.

Perhaps because of that.

Was it my nonchalant response that angered the disdainful me inside the monster?

《Grrr….》

The fallen emitted a rough, beastly growl, intensifying the assault of its life force.

“Now, have you chosen to behave like a beast rather than a human?”

But instead of being frightened by such a display of vitality, I, in fact, ridiculed it.

《Bite…, tear…, tear into shreds….》

“Oh, seems like you’ve completely turned into a beast, huh?”

Although it still retained some semblance of reason, it threatened me in a muffled tone.

Continuing to mock, I provoked its nature.

《Kyaah! Kyaahhh!》

That’s how it became a bit easier to deal with the creature.

Thus, for a moment, I scraped away at the fallen’s rationality.

Whooo…, thud.

The demonic energy storm disappeared.

《Kyaahhhhh!》

As if waiting for it, the fallen let out a sharp sound, slamming the ground.

Crash!

With a thunderous roar as if a bomb had detonated, the ground shattered.

In an instant, the figure of the fallen one blurred.

“…!”

A sharp sensation coursed through my entire upper body.

In response, I sprawled onto the ground.

Ssshaaak─!

Then, a powerful shockwave swept over me like the earlier ballista.

Following that, the stinging sensation on my back made me roll sideways.

Kwaaang!

The spot where I had been exploded.

And there, transformed into a creature with limbs regenerated, the fallen one stood on all fours like a beast.

Watching that sight, I grimaced.

“Indeed, the fallen ones in the second phase are repulsive.”

Until just a moment ago, it had retained a humanoid form, but now, in the second phase, the fallen one’s appearance was sheer disgust.

If I were to describe the appearance of such a fallen one.

The body resembled that of a tiger or beast, but the head took on a human form.

On its back, eight tentacles moved, and all over its body, numerous red eyeballs, akin to those on its head, squirmed with a nauseating sound.

Looking at that figure, I couldn’t help but realize how insane the worshippers of corruption were.

No matter how much I wanted to become stronger, would I ever want to take on such a form?

If it were me, I’d rather die than assume such an appearance.

Ah, lunatics.

《Krrr…》

Now, only instinct remains.

Between the sharp teeth of the fallen one gazing at me, saliva dripped steadily.

Having vowed to kill me relentlessly, it seemed that only the instinct of a beast remained in the end.

The desire for gluttony had become stronger than the intent for a sure-kill move.

In response to that sight, I smirked.

Thus, dealing with it became considerably easier.

Of course, it becomes fiercer and more powerful when reason is present than when driven by instinct alone.

However, unless that guy possesses strength above the highest tier…

He has enough strength to react to my attacks and evade them.

But still, does his method of attack become so simplistic?

If only my means of attack were a bit stronger, by now that guy would have had his head exploding and rolling on the ground.

However…, as there’s only one weapon effective against him, I can’t help but proceed cautiously, being extremely cautious.

So, reveal to me.

Your vulnerability.

“Spilling saliva like that, am I starting to look delicious to you?”

*Giggles*

Did he think I gave up because I didn’t flee?

The fallen one slowly approached me with a disgusting grin on his face.

As if toying with prey.

I realized that despite the loss of rationality in the fallen one, their true nature remained unchanged.

Truly, these beings might be as terrifying in a game as they are in reality.

“But, what now?”

I have no intention of being devoured by you.

As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I swiftly drew and fired from the holster.

Bang─!

*…!!*

Though driven purely by instinct, did he remember the pain of losing an arm due to the bullet I fired?

He jerked back in surprise, distancing himself from me.

*…? Giggles*

However, as the bullet went astray, the fallen one, mocking, approached me once again.

Amidst the fallen one’s mockery, I retorted, spilling sarcasm just like him.

“Idiot, did I expose a vulnerability?”

[Super Accuracy [ON / OFF]]

The cheat that had been set to OFF before firing the shot.

Let’s switch it back to ON.

Ding dong.

Along with the sound distinctive to the cheat tool.

[Super Accuracy [ON / OFF]]

The cheat began to apply again.

And the effect of the cheat was applied to the fallen angel.

Swiftly changing its flying direction, it rushed towards the fallen angel’s head.

Boom!

It hit the fallen angel’s head… No, it shattered its right shoulder.

“…aaah!!”

Although it barely managed to block it when it had its sanity.

Now left with only its instinct, it bent its head to avoid the bullet flying from behind.

But it only managed to avoid instant death. Due to the effect of the fallen angel, its shoulder exploded and melted from below the neck, almost turning into a dough-like state.

I chuckled at the sight.

“Pathetic, they can’t even do smoke effects properly.”

That’s right.

The fallen angel, this bastard.

It’s acting right now.

“Kraaack! Kraaah!!”

Falling to the ground, the fallen angel is vomiting black blood.

But the fallen angel possesses regenerative abilities that surpass even the superhuman level.

And as it enters its second phase and transforms into a demon, its regenerative power increases almost twice as much.

Yet, why isn’t its wounds healing like that?

Of course, it could be because of the effect of the fallen angel, weakening its regenerative abilities.

But even if it’s because of the fallen angel, unless its head has exploded, it’s impossible for it to not regenerate at all like that.

So, right now, just like how the fallen angel revealed its weakness, it’s waiting for me to reveal mine.

In that case… I’ll show it what it wants.

“I won, didn’t I?”

As I stood up from my position and spoke, the fallen angel contorted its body even more painfully.

With a triumphant smile, I aimed my gun at the fallen angel and fired.

Bang! Bang!

Kick!

As if it had been waiting for that, the fallen angel suddenly stood up and thrust its somewhat regenerated shoulder forward.

However, contrary to the bastard’s expectations.

Thud.

What collided with my shoulder was a rubber bullet.

《…?》

The fallen one looked at me with a vacant expression.

It should have felt painful just like before, so it was strange that there was no pain this time.

I pointed the gun at the fallen one, showing him breaking down.

“Fake, you idiot.”

Ding-dong.

《…!!》

The fallen one opened his eyes wide and looked behind.

No, even before he could see.

Puaaah─!

His head disappeared.

Kwoong….

The fallen one without a head collapsed limply.

I aimed the gun at him.

Still, the magic is disappearing…, it seems.

“Hua!”

After confirming that the magic surrounding the surroundings like a barrier was disappearing, I lowered the gun and let out a sigh of relief.

The disappearance of the magic means that the fallen one has undoubtedly died.

With that, the tension that had been building up in me dissipated.

With my strength drained, I plopped down to the ground.

– The magic barrier has been lifted!

– The hero is alive!

– O Hero, are you okay!

It seemed like they were banging on the magic barrier from outside, as the weapons of the white knights and soldiers were shattered, leaving them in a sorry state.

These guys…, it’s moving.

You guys are better than the ones who were supposed to be heroes.

“By the way, how much time is left for the quest now?”

I opened the minimized quest window.

And when I checked the remaining time.

[00:01]

…

[00:00]

…

The time had just expired.

And just as the quest stated.

The reason is──!!

In the distance, my assigned mentor, Kang Cheolsu, was rushing towards me.

I chuckled as I watched him.

“Ah, the cliché of the academy.”

Academy-style.

Always appearing after the situation is over!