Level -99 Archmage

Chapter 16. The Radiant Anubis

‘It must be a mistake.’

At first, he denied reality. But no matter how many times he looked, the face floating above the sun was undeniably his own.

‘It’s just someone who looks like me.’

His name wasn’t mentioned. That meant there was still a possibility that it was just a lookalike, right?

Besides, why would he have to die in the first place? Kim Byung-han read the text that had appeared once again.

“Find the ‘person floating above the sun’ and kill him.”

“Upon completion, ‘Abyss’ will end.”

“Time limit: 72 hours.”

“Failure will result in the appearance of ‘Death Knight.’”

Kill him. But why?

Everything about this Abyss was different from yesterday’s. Back then, he only had to deal with monsters. But now, he was being told to kill another human being. Was that even reasonable?

“It really looks like you, Team Leader.”

“…Don’t cross the line, Lee Min-su. How does that look like me?”

“It’s you. The background is even reflecting our office. Look, when I wave my hand, you can see it next to the face up there, right?”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Thud!

Kim Byung-han roughly smacked away Lee Min-su’s hand. Because he could see Min-su’s waving hand reflected in the sun. It was clear to anyone that Kim Byung-han was the target, yet he continued to deny it.

“Does this even make sense? I’m not a monster.”

“…You don’t know that for sure.”

But Min-su’s expression had gone cold.

“Hey, don’t you know me? I’m Kim Byung-han, your team leader!”

“Team Leader… I actually experienced an ‘Abyss’ myself yesterday during lunch.”

“…?”

“In my Abyss, creatures that looked human chased us down. So for six hours straight, I just ran like crazy. Do you know what happened to the ones who tripped or collapsed from exhaustion?”

“How would I know that…?”

“They were eaten alive. Their eyes were gouged out, their brains leaked out, their stomachs were ripped open, and the monsters buried their faces in their guts, devouring them.”

At some point, a dagger had appeared in Min-su’s hand.

His gaze was chilling.

Kim Byung-han stiffened upon seeing the murderous intent in his eyes.

“You… don’t do something you’ll regret.”

“If such Abysses exist, doesn’t it make sense for some monsters to act just like humans?”

“Lee Min-su! Do you seriously not recognize me? Do I look like I’m faking this?”

“I realized something after what happened yesterday. The only answer is to escape the Abyss as fast as possible. Ah, I still hear their voices begging for help. Damn it, I thought coming to work would help me forget…”

Thump! Thump!

Min-su started pounding his head with his own hand. The person who had been joking around with Byung-han just moments ago was now gone. From the very beginning, it had been an act. Min-su had deliberately come to work, pretending everything was normal, hoping to forget. But he couldn’t. This wasn’t a dream. It was reality. A cruel, merciless reality.

“Why does the Abyss drag even children into it?”

“It doesn’t make sense. The monsters chase at adult speed, how are kids supposed to outrun them? It’s not even a fair competition.”

At first, Min-su tried to run while holding the hands of the children. But in the end, he let go. Because if he didn’t, he would have been eaten too.

“Snap out of it, man!”

“I don’t want to stay in this place even a second longer!”

Despite Byung-han’s desperate plea, Min-su lunged forward, ready to stab him. But Byung-han wasn’t about to go down without a fight. He quickly dodged, leaning backward to avoid the dagger’s blade, and then kicked Min-su with full force.

BAM!

Min-su was sent skidding across the floor. Byung-han swore as he glared at him.

“You bastard! After everything I’ve done for you! You ungrateful piece of shit!”

Just five minutes ago, Min-su had been flattering him, calling him the best team leader. Now, here he was, trying to kill him. Furious, Byung-han swung his hand through the air. Suddenly, items began falling from his ‘Inventory.’ The moment they touched his body, they resized and equipped themselves automatically. Now fully armed, his eyes gleamed with deadly intent.

“I’m going to beat the living hell out of you—”

“He’s here!”

“Get him!”

“Kill him, quickly!”

A flood of people rushed toward him, and Byung-han could do nothing but stare in shock. The entire building had turned against him. At least fifty people were coming for him. Even with the power he had gained from surviving two Abysses, taking on fifty people at once was impossible. Byung-han swung his sword at the approaching attackers.

Slash! Slash!

“D-Don’t come any closer! I’ll take down the first one who tries!”

But there was no way out. Within moments, he had been cornered in the office.

“I’m Kim Byung-han! I’ve worked with you for over ten years!”

He screamed until his throat burned, but no one listened. To them, he was nothing more than a target to kill. The number of people surrounding him only increased. And amidst the chaos, Park Chan-woo was lost in thought.

‘What kind of grudge did he earn to get targeted like this on just the second day?’

It was a rare sight. No, he had never heard of someone being targeted this quickly. Opening an Abyss was risky even for its creators. If the goal of this Abyss was simply to kill ‘one man,’ then even they wouldn’t gain much from it.

‘Is there really something to gain from killing Kim Byung-han?’

But as far as Chan-woo could tell, Byung-han was just a small fry. And yet, he was curious. What had this man done? What could he have possibly done to deserve such immediate and overwhelming hostility?

“Push forward!”

“Kill him! Hurry up and kill him!”

The crowd, full of bloodlust, had grown to nearly a hundred people. Chan-woo only had one magic ability: Reflection. In this situation, he had no way to help Byung-han escape.

Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

He glanced down at the floor. A small, white, furry creature was circling around him. He read the name floating above it once again. A window appeared before his eyes.

Name: The Radiant Anubis

Level: 1

Grade: Legendary

Description: A young Anubis. It calls upon death, consumes death, and guides death like a grim reaper, but due to the effect of ‘Riddle,’ it has become radiant.

Strength: (10)

Endurance: (20)

Agility: (10)

Intelligence: (10)

Magic Power: (10)

Unique Magic:

Gigantification (Epic)

Flower of Life (Legendary)

Even at level 1, its stats were exceptional. A total of 60 stats points.

‘This thing is comparable to most level 10s when its level is one.’

Moreover, its level is not even in the negatives. Since the Radiant Anubis is recognized as a “pet” rather than an equipped item. However, even Park Chan-woo had rarely seen a legendary-grade pet. That was because pets were extremely rare to obtain in the Abyss. After all, the Abyss was a world created by demons. A place filled only with monsters aiming to kill humans, so the very existence of a pet that follows humans was a contradiction in itself.

“Enlarge.”

Poof!

Upon using the skill, “Radiant Anubis” swelled up in size with a puff of smoke. It transformed into a furry mass, about 1.5 meters in height.

“What, what is that?”

“A m-monster!”

“Run away!”

People, mistaking Anubis for a monster, turned pale and scattered in all directions. Meanwhile, the giant furball started hopping away. Kim Byung-han, already exhausted beyond measure, saw the approaching furball and made a final plea.

“P-Please, stop……!”

Swoosh!

Kim Byung-han’s body was pinned under the furball. At the same time, Anubis, securing Kim Byung-han with its coarse fur, leaped out the window.

Crash!

With the sound of shattering glass—

‘I-I’m going to die. I’m really going to die!’

Kim Byung-han began plummeting from the 11th floor.

* * *

“Where the hell is that bastard hiding?”

“Did you find him?”

“He’s not here!”

“Damn it!”

People who had been inside the building came out, searching for Kim Byung-han.

“Huff……!”

Tremble, tremble!

Hiding under the rubble of the building, Kim Byung-han covered his mouth and held his breath. Like a frightened animal, he trembled uncontrollably. The white furball that had pulled him outside disappeared the moment it touched the ground. From then on, Kim Byung-han had no choice but to sneak around, avoiding people’s gaze.

‘Why are they doing this to me?! What did I do to deserve being hunted down like this?!’

He screamed inwardly. He felt like he was going insane. Why had he become a target that needed to die? He wondered if this was some kind of hidden camera prank, but the killing intent in their eyes was real. They truly wanted him dead.

『Night has fallen.』

『‘Spectral Bats’ now roam the streets.』

『‘Spectral Bats’ search for their target and their target alone.』

『If a ‘Spectral Bat’ finds its target, it emits a sound and shines a bright light from its eyes.』

As night fell and the moon rose, Kim Byung-han’s face didn’t appear in the sky like during the day. Instead, bats called ‘Spectral Bats’ flew in all directions. The Spectral Bats searched even the smallest crevices where human hands couldn’t reach.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

“Damn……!”

Eventually, Kim Byung-han’s hiding spot was exposed. He ran with every ounce of strength he had. However, as time passed, more and more Spectral Bats latched onto him. They shined bright lights from their eyes, exposing his location. At this point, his surroundings were as bright as broad daylight.

“There he is!”

“I Knew he was hiding nearby!”

“Catch him!”

Swish!

Thunk!

“Agh!”

An arrow struck Kim Byung-han’s side. Letting out a scream, he rolled onto the concrete ground. He tried desperately to get back up, but—

Swish!

Thunk!

“Ugh!”

This time, an arrow pierced his left thigh. The pain was so intense that he couldn’t even scream anymore. It felt like he was dying. As he crawled along the ground, dozens of people surrounded him.

“You should’ve just given up and died quietly.”

“All this trouble just for one fat pig?”

“Step on him!”

“I never liked this guy from the start!”

“Always acting cocky even though he’s nothing special!”

One by one, they spat insults and stomped on Kim Byung-han with all their might. Curled up in pain, tears streamed down his face. He prayed over and over again that this was all just a nightmare. Because the people trampling him, they were once his colleagues, people he had laughed and eaten meals with. Faces he had met at least once as they moved between departments. Yet, the moment circumstances changed, they immediately resorted to mob violence against him.

‘P-Please… save me…….’

He could no longer even speak. There wasn’t a single person on his side in this world. In fact, weren’t they the real monsters? They all looked like demons.

Poof!

At that moment—

A familiar sound echoed.

“Huh?”

“I-It’s that monster from before!”

“But… who’s that next to it…?”

People gasped in shock and stopped stomping on Kim Byung-han. In that brief moment, Kim Byung-han managed to lift his head and confirm who had appeared.

‘T-That person…?’

He had definitely seen him before. Yesterday, the man who had killed the Game Master Andariel and formed a party with Lee Hyuk-soo.

“He… he’s not human, is he?”

“He’s a demon!”

As the so-called demon, Park Chan-woo, approached with his enlarged Anubis, the crowd instinctively backed away. By the time he reached Kim Byung-han, everyone had already scattered. Kim Byung-han, his face battered beyond recognition, looked up at Park Chan-woo.

“P-Please… save me……”

His broken teeth made his speech slurred. Park Chan-woo smiled and asked. “Do you want to live?”

“……!”

Kim Byung-han frantically nodded his head.

“Then you must answer my questions with absolute truth.”

“A-anything…! Ask me anything……!”

“Did you form a ‘Revelation’ contract with the Creator?”

“I-I didn’t do that……”

“I’ll have to go back.”

If he goes back now, people will swarm again. And then, he will really die. As Park Chan-woo turned his back, Kim Byung-han urgently shouted. “I-I did it.”

“With whom?”

“That… It was with the ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’……” Kim Byung-han hesitantly answered.

When forming a contract with an Incarnation, there was an absolute clause forbidding one from revealing it to others. However, when facing imminent death, such rules hardly mattered.

‘So that’s how it happened.’

Hearing Kim Byung-han’s answer, Park Chan-woo’s smile deepened. Now, he was certain why Kim Byung-han had been ‘sniped.’ The ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’ was the most despised type of creator among all creators. The reason was simple.

“What did you steal?”

The Creator of the Invisible Hand coveted the treasures of other creators.

“Huh?”

“No, let me rephrase. What did the ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’ order you to steal?”

“Th-That is……”

Kim Byung-han hesitated. The Creator of the Invisible Hand had offered him an Incarnation contract and granted him power. However, the conditions for receiving power were somewhat peculiar. If he stole an item that the creator desired, he would receive an appropriate reward in return. And yesterday, Kim Byung-han had stolen something from the ‘Abyss of the Night.’ After the Game Master Andariel died!

“I-I just… swiped a small ring……”

“Where is that ring?”

“The ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’ already took it……”

“No, it should still be with you. Check again.”

Kim Byung-han groaned and rummaged through his pockets. Then, from his back pants pocket, a ring popped out.

“W-Why is this here?”

“It was dumped on you after being caught.”

Park Chan-woo answered candidly. Now, the entire situation was clear. The ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’ had proposed an Incarnation contract to Kim Byung-han. Kim Byung-han accepted it and, following the creator’s orders, stole the ring. Afterward, he handed the ring over to the creator, but the true owner discovered the theft. To cover things up, the creator secretly returned the ring to Kim Byung-han and made him take all the blame.

‘The Creator of the Invisible Hand. That thief has done the same thing with multiple Incarnations before.’

His actions were so distinctive that they were hard to forget. He was a creator who was antagonized not by humans but by other creators. But what kind of ring was it that led to an ‘assassination attempt’? Park Chan-woo carefully examined the ring. And then—

‘……Getting sniped makes sense now.’

Now he understood why a creator wanted Kim Byung-han dead. Of all things to steal, he had stolen that.

‘The Ring of Oath of Dead!’

“Hah.”

Park Chan-woo let out an admiring sigh. Not necessarily because of the ring’s abilities.

‘The ring itself isn’t extraordinary…….’

It didn’t even have any notable unique options. The only ability it had was one.

‘A ring that can seal the user’s power.’

One could seal their own magic within the ring. And Park Chan-woo had definitely seen this ring in the ‘First Abyss of the Night.’

‘Game Master Andariel. That guy was wearing it.’

Why had Andariel been wearing the ‘Ring of Oath of Dead’? The answer was simple. To run the game. If he had let his aura as a high-ranking demon leak out, the humans wouldn’t have been able to endure it. Originally, Andariel was a monster stronger than all twelve divine generals combined!

‘That means this ring still holds the essence of a high-ranking demon.’

A chill ran down his spine. High-ranking demons were considered monsters with a minimum level of 80. They weren’t supposed to exist in these beginning abysses. Thus, the ring undoubtedly contained an unimaginable amount of sealed magic. The thought of how that immense magic had been inscribed into the ring made him unbearably curious. But even more astonishing was Kim Byung-han.

‘I always knew he had sticky fingers.’

He had seen him steal from other temple members multiple times before. And now, in that split second right before Andariel’s death, Kim Byung-han had used the power granted by the ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’ to successfully steal the ring. The creator attempting to kill Kim Byung-han was likely someone deeply connected to the deceased Andariel. What a reckless fool.

‘What should I do with this……’

It was a troubling dilemma. The Creator of the Invisible Hand. His power was nothing short of a miracle within this Abyss. If he truly and desperately wished to steal a treasure, it wouldn’t disappear even if it was transferred to someone else. That was precisely why the ‘Ring of Oath of Dead’ still remained even after Andariel’s death. Because of its abnormality, other creators loathed the ‘Creator of the Invisible Hand’ to the extreme. Which meant—

‘……I could take this ring for myself.’