NOVEL NEXT Chapter 19
■ Han Yu-seong LV1
ㄴStatus
Strength B, Flexibility D+, Reflex B, Resistance A-, Mind C, Appearance E
ㄴTraits
Abnormality Devourer S, Outsider A-, Superhuman C, God’s Egg G
[The state window] displays my stats.
Considering that the average stats of trained agents like the Bear each fall between F and E, mine were already extraordinary enough to be viewed as superhuman, but they were still insufficient to face the Alliance Leader.
“I didn’t want to bring this up.”
I gritted my teeth and gazed at the [Achievement System]’s points.
[2,756,590]
Isn’t that a lot?
Yes, it is quite a lot.
It’s essentially the points accumulated from nearly every action I’ve taken since birth.
Although points are given in small increments of 1 or 2, having lived for 20 years, I’ve managed quite an amount.
Even so, the reason I’m reluctant to spend points until this moment is simple.
《Would you like to increase Strength? (Cost: 500,000 points)》
That’s ridiculously expensive.
The lowest F rank costs 100,000 points, and the price rises by 100,000 points each time the rank increases alphabetically.
In other words,
《Strength has increased. B > B+》
《Strength has increased. B+ > A-》
《Remaining points 1,656,590 (-1,100,000)》
That’s how it works.
“These points were meant to be saved for emergencies…”
It’s inevitable to feel like shedding bloody tears over the amount flowing out.
Wait, can I do this?
To be precise, the physical abilities of the Alliance Leader were actually weaker than mine.
It’s not surprising for an old man liable to die at any moment, but the problematic part is his momentum and skill.
The pure pressure—not Aura nor Magic, just raw pressure—compressing the body was an experience I had never encountered, despite having lived seven times before.
That alone could probably be compensated by increasing strength.
This strength isn’t just about pure power.
It starts with simple strength and escalates through muscle endurance, durability, power projection, speed, and all aspects of muscle activity enhancement.
Therefore, I could disregard a slight pressuring feeling.
Now, the remaining problem is…
“Damn it, if the reward is too little, I won’t let it slide.”
I muttered under my breath while biting the Alliance Leader.
*
“This is troublesome.”
The Alliance Leader grimaced at the [God] before him.
Not strong at all.
The [God] present seemed overly weak to truly be deemed a [God].
“If my physical condition had been just a little better, this would have ended long ago!”
Shawww—
Even with more than half of its upper body blown away, the surrounding ashes began to gather again to reconstitute the lost body.
A rather impressive regenerative ability, bordering on immortality.
“Still, it seems that it’s almost over.”
“Ahhh…”
The pressure of the flames noticeably dwindled.
The essence of that [God]’s regeneration was amusingly the ashes he himself had burned.
If it could burn eternally without consuming stamina or mental faculties, it would indeed be an almost immortal ability.
“Now, I won’t allow you time to replenish those ashes.”
Until now, due to the overwhelming magnitude of the power, it felt like attempting to fill a bottomless pit, eroding little by little, but the visible flames dying down signals the approaching limit.
As he brought in ashes to replace the lost body, the fuel for the flames kept decreasing, weakening the fire, and thus, the replenishment of the ashes was delayed.
An endless vicious cycle.
The [Ashen King], who appeared invincible against shadow soldiers, was now slowly dying helplessly against the Alliance Leader due to his weakened abilities and lack of experience.
At that moment, as the Alliance Leader was beginning to conclude the fight…
Boom—
“Huff!”
Suddenly, a projectile flew through the flames saturating the atmosphere.
Kaahhh—
He hastily raised his sword to block it.
Crumble—
Upon clashing with the sword, the projectile shattered under its own weight.
What the…
“Is that… a stone?”
Although it broke and vanished quickly, the Alliance Leader had seen clearly.
Small stones scattered everywhere.
He managed to block it, but the strength imbued in the stone made the elderly Alliance Leader’s arm start trembling.
Even if he had grown old and weak, is he really struggling against a mere stone?
“Don’t bother the weak. Fight at the appropriate level, will you?”
“…Right, the original target was you.”
Han Yu-seong appeared through the wall of flames.
It was hard to believe he had passed through such destructive fire and came out unscathed.
Indeed, I thought he was alive but wondered if he had spread the flames everywhere in the process.
As I expected…
“You’re definitely not human.”
He pierced the flames of the [God] with his bare body.
Even though he has the form of a human, can we really consider him one?
“What are you saying? You’re the one who looks least human here!”
Is there another such monstrous human who has lived for thousands of years?
“You lack self-objectification.”
Despite calling himself [Abnormality] and whatnot, anyone could see that old man is the real [Abnormality].
Han Yu-seong fiddled with the stone in his hand, a grin creeping across his face as he looked at the Alliance Leader.
“It’s Phase 2, you old fool.”
*
While I had been catching [Abnormality] with a gaming mentality, Han Yu-seong was not actually perceiving the world as a game.
If he died, he truly died.
Even if he knew about reincarnation, he was confident in retaining his memories, but that did not make the weight of death feel any lighter.
The sensation of death tightening its grip as the body and soul are ripped apart could be terrifically horror-inducing, no matter how many times experienced.
Thus, Han Yu-seong’s first principle of action is safety.
He didn’t want to die.
He didn’t want to feel pain.
If asked whether everything he did so far was risking his life, he would sincerely say no.
Han Yu-seong always took care of his own safety in every situation.
Entities and guards?
They were never a challenge, merely side income.
Backrooms?
The fall itself was something out of his control, getting into an accident was possible at that level.
From the start, he would have avoided that if he hadn’t aimed for recovery.
[Alliance] agents?
Was he supposed to feel threatened by that?
The [God] of the abandoned school?
He brought along 30 entities for safety.
The fight with the [God] was only initiated after losing one sacrifice to gauge its firepower.
Regardless, Han Yu-seong always prioritized his own safety above all.
But how about now?
The [Alliance]’s raid.
The barrier stretched across the sky blocked the recovery ability he had relied on.
Though he had a meager human relationship, every neighbor he knew had disappeared completely.
Being attacked by shadow soldiers who resurrect continuously and gather in groups gave no answer, no matter how hard he thought about it.
And just earlier, the heart he had pierced.
How many times had his life been threatened in a single day?
Had he not absorbed the abandoned school before the raid, he might have been dead long ago.
That’s why Han Yu-seong was under a considerable stress.
Why was he in this pathetic situation?
The [Alliance] attacked.
Who sent the intruders that had hidden in his house before?
It was the [Alliance].
Who ordered that bastard?
It was the Alliance Leader.
The one who just made a hole in my heart?
That was the Alliance Leader too.
Exactly!
All the terrible things I’ve encountered recently happened because of that old man!
So what’s the best way to release the pent-up stress?
What am I worrying about?
Of course…
“It’s to torment that old man.”
Kaahhh—
“Ugh!”
Before retrying, I kept contemplating while the [Ashen King] continues to hold on.
Kaang—
“Ugh!”
How can I piss off that old man even more?
Whoosh—
“Ugh!”
Suddenly, an oddity from the battle came to mind.
“Strike! Dentures confiscation successful.”
Thud.
A stone accurately hit the Alliance Leader’s mouth, shattering teeth and scattering them everywhere.
The Alliance Leader, holding his torn mouth with his hand, glared at me as if he wanted to kill me.
“It was strange, I thought your physical abilities didn’t look that good.”
Even a light graze cut his skin and blood started to ooze.
You might say that’s common sense, but it surely isn’t.
The power absorbed after capturing the [God] of the abandoned school far surpasses the strength gained by catching [Abnormality] for 20 years.
Indeed, it was a superhuman body.
A modern, base body lacking magic, aura, or chi has long surpassed the capabilities of the enhanced body.
Simply put, it could withstand an attack from a supercharged aura-wreathed expert.
Of course, the Alliance Leader is strong too, yet even a superhuman physique wouldn’t be unbeatable…
But being lightly grazed without any resistance, just to see his skin split?
That’s nonsense.
I noticed my confidence after witnessing the battle between the [Ashen King] and the Alliance Leader.
Ah, so that’s the ability of the sword.
Presumably, it’s a sword that excludes [Abnormality].
I thought the Alliance Leader would naturally win in a fight against the [Ashen King].
Even so, given their attributes, I thought the [Ashen King] would at least hold out for a bit.
Indeed, the [Ashen King] did a fantastic job in buying time.
The problem lies in the process.
The flame extinguishes.
Of course, the fire that disappeared was quickly replaced by a new torrent, but I definitely confirmed that the flames in direct contact with the sword vanished.
Thinking back to that sword strike that sliced through my body, I merely envisioned the sword splitting the flames.
But after witnessing that battle, I realized something.
That body is way weaker than anticipated.
Though the techniques and momentum were on another level and concealed, in the end, it turned out like this.
“If it’s a sword that excludes [Abnormality], then I should just attack without [Abnormality].”
Ultimately, if I’m not confronting [Abnormality], that sword is just a somewhat sturdier and sharper sword.
Kaang—
“Ugh!”
The Alliance Leader, who had been fighting while blocking even the fire of the [God], was struggling with nothing but a stone.
The stone itself isn’t [Abnormality], just a plain stone anyone can find anywhere…
“That’s a slingshot thrown with Strength A!”
With the throwing human’s strength already surpassing the realm of superhumans, that’s something you can’t even call a weapon.
Boom—
The moment it was thrown, it ripped through the air with a sound of explosion.
For an ordinary human, it would be powerful enough to shred their body to pieces on contact!
Kaahh—
“You!!!”
As if that initial hit was a mistake, the Alliance Leader swung his sword again to block the stone.
That was the last stone consumed.
“I’ll kill you!”
It seemed he had completely forgotten about capturing me and was genuinely enraged, readying himself to kill me.
‘Here it comes.’
As the air settled, the surroundings of the Alliance Leader distorted.
Just like before.
A strike transcending space pierced through my heart.
Space bent.
Woosh—
“Huh?”
The sword cutting through the void.
The moment the Alliance Leader was caught off guard.
Bam—
My fist smashed into the Alliance Leader’s face.
“Do you think the same trick will work again?”
Who do you think I am?
Reflex A.
I’ll shred down techniques with my stats!