Chapter 388: God of Time |
‘I knew you’d come here.’
If a host was eliminated, another host could appear.
Ryu Min was waiting after taking care of the host in Montana, USA, under that assumption.
Fortunately, his prediction was correct.
However.
‘It’s not a host... is it?’
Reading the being’s mind, he realized it wasn’t a host but a higher entity called a ‘Seed.’
Although they looked similar, they weren’t the same; hosts moved solely through human life energy, but this being was different.
‘Its thought process isn’t simple; it’s complex. It has an ego to the point of naming itself.’
It was a seed of destruction sent by Deorant to collapse the world lines.
‘Now I understand better. The relationship between hosts and Seeds.’
Above the hosts, there existed the Seeds, superior entities.
The goal of the Seeds was simple.
When the hosts collected enough human life energy, the Seeds would appear to harvest it.
In other words, the hosts were like bees collecting nectar, and the Seeds were like wasps eating the bees.
Both operated under Deorant’s orders to destroy the world lines.
He also understood the detailed method of this destruction.
‘The Seeds that absorb the hosts continue growing and gain such immense energy that they can collapse the world lines.’
The number of humans required to gather such energy numbered in the billions.
This meant that the destruction of the world lines would only occur after nearly all humans had been exterminated.
In the end, the central point of destruction wasn’t the hosts but the Seeds.
‘Without the Seeds, the destruction of the world lines can’t happen. But we can’t ignore the hosts either.’
In a short time, Ryu Min obtained valuable information through Boluak’s thoughts.
He discovered that, unlike the hosts, the Seeds had an ego and a certain level of intelligence.
‘Although, in the end, they are still under my control.’
That intelligence could be a disadvantage for them.
Right now, Boluak had appeared to absorb the host and had fallen into his trap.
The Seed Boluak, with eyes burning with rage, asked:
“Who are you?”
“You should already know, right?”
“Don’t tell me you’re the host hunter...”
“That’s right. I am Black Scythe.”
——————
‘What? That guy?’
Boluak looked at the human who called himself Black Scythe with suspicious eyes.
He didn’t seem to have anything special.
He just looked like an ordinary human.
But the scythe on his shoulder was not normal.
Carrying a scythe matched what he had heard.
‘Did this guy really defeat the hosts?’
It was something impossible.
But the evidence before his eyes was clear.
He looked at the corpse of the dead host.
“What? Are you distracted? Do you want to absorb that?”
“What?”
Boluak, surprised, quickly composed his expression.
He had revealed his emotions involuntarily when his intention was guessed.
‘How did he know I want to absorb the host?’
But how did he even know that hosts could be absorbed?
‘I don’t understand anything, but...’
One thing was clear.
‘I must kill him here and now.’
Shing-
Boluak transformed one of his arms into a sharp blade.
He intended to quickly eliminate this insolent human and absorb his life energy.
He would also absorb the body of the dead host.
But the human showed not a trace of tension.
Instead.
“Do you want to fight? I was just thinking of testing how strong you are, so this is perfect.”
He provoked him.
Of course, Boluak wasn’t going to fall for such a cheap provocation.
“Foolish human. Are you trying to unsettle me to make me lower my guard? That won’t work...”
As he spoke, the world darkened.
It seemed as if night had suddenly fallen, but it wasn’t that.
He was completely isolated from the world.
Boluak realized where he was trapped.
“How did you...? How did you create a dimensional barrier...?”
“You don’t need to know.”
His opponent moved his finger.
“Go ahead. I’ll let you attack first.”
“Damn insolent human!”
Boluak, unable to contain his anger, charged forward.
In the blink of an eye, he closed the distance and thrust his sharp blade.
Until that moment, the human hadn’t made a single move, remaining still.
‘This ends now!’
Or so he thought.
Clang!
The blade was stopped by a barrier of darkness.
“Your speed is acceptable. You’re better than the hosts.”
‘Did it stop?’
The black sword transformed from his arm had the strength and sharpness to cut steel like tofu.
But it had been blocked too easily.
“You attacked first, now it’s my turn.”
Black Scythe swung his black-red scythe.
Whoosh!
“Ugh!”
The speed was unimaginable.
After dodging several times, he reached a point where he could no longer avoid it.
Clang!
He had no choice but to block it with his sword.
‘What...! Where does this strength come from...?’
The impact was unimaginable.
It was hard to believe it was the strength of a human.
“Are you surprised after blocking once? Come on, block more.”
Ryu Min’s scythe danced in the air.
Each time, Boluak could barely block the attacks.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!
“Ugh!”
Although he managed to block the attacks, he couldn’t hide his bewilderment.
‘What’s going on? No matter how powerful a player is, they shouldn’t have this speed and strength...’
Boluak, realizing he couldn’t continue like this, jumped back to create some distance.
He needed a moment to catch his breath.
“What’s wrong? Are you already tired?”
“Shut up, human.”
Boluak crouched down, waiting for an opportunity.
‘When he approaches, I’ll suddenly release the black rain.’
Boluak drew an imaginary line between him and his opponent.
If he crossed that line, he would unleash the deadly rain.
As soon as the opponent entered his range.
‘Now!’
He extended his body like a flying squirrel and released the deadly liquid.
Papapapapapapá!
The black rain scattered everywhere.
There was no space to dodge nor time to react.
From his perspective, at least.
‘Did he disappear?’
“I’m here.”
“What!”
Startled by a voice from above, he looked up.
Shnk!
“Aaaargh!”
He felt an unknown pain as his arm was cut off.
“Your speed is good, but your durability is poor. Disqualified.”
“You... damn...!”
As he picked up his severed arm, the liquid flowed from the wound and reattached the arm, Ryu Min smiled.
“Regeneration ability approved. But it’s ironic that you feel pain.”
“I told you to shut up!!!”
Despite his bold shout and attempt to attack, the situation had completely reversed.
“Gah!”
It was Boluak who kept collapsing, coughing up black liquid.
“You can’t win. Unless I allow it, you can’t leave this spatial rift.”
“How... How can a human have such power...?”
“Do you still think I’m an ordinary human?”
“...”
Boluak remained silent, having no way to refute.
“What’s wrong? Do you want to keep trying?”
“...”
“If you want to keep fighting, go ahead. I can face you all day.”
To be honest, Boluak had no intention of continuing the fight. He saw no chance of winning, no matter what he did.
‘The difference between him and me is like heaven and earth. There’s no chance of victory.’
He had nothing left but to await death.
But.
“...”
The enemy didn’t seem intent on killing him.
If he really wanted to, he would have attacked once more instead of talking so much.
‘What’s the reason?’
He wasn’t sure, but it wasn’t a bad situation.
‘If I take advantage of this opportunity... there might be a chance.’
If he could detach just a drop of his biological tissue and attach it to the enemy...
He could absorb the biological energy and reverse the situation.
‘In the end, he’s still human. If I get just one chance, it won’t be difficult to kill him.’
In moments like these, brains are needed, right?
Boluak decided to talk to Black Scythe, planning a surprise attack when his guard was lowered.
“Who are you really?”
“You must have heard of me, I am Black Scythe.”
“Black Scythe? Is that your name? How peculiar.”
“Don’t play dumb. You must have heard of me as a player from Arquízar. And you also know I’m waiting for the right moment to attack you with my biological tissue.”
“What...?”
His plan was discovered before it could even begin.
The enemy already knew what he was scheming.
But the most surprising thing was that the name Arquízar came out of his mouth.
“How do you know about Arquízar?”
“What do you think?”
Ryu Min responded as if it were a riddle, making Boluak doubt and use his imagination.
“I knew you would come looking for the hosts, Boluak.”
“You know my name too?”
“What do you think?”
“Is it possible...?”
Boluak’s pupils trembled as if there was an earthquake.
‘Is there a traitor among us? Did someone leak the information that I would come here?’
Come to think of it, it was strange.
When he went to retrieve the body, Black Scythe appeared as if he were waiting for him.
How did Black Scythe know he would come?
And how did he know his and Arquízar’s names?
‘There’s no doubt someone from the Seeds’ side leaked the information.’
And his guess was correct.
Black Scythe confirmed it.
But the information that came out of his mouth was quite shocking.
“Arquízar gave me the information. He asked me to eliminate Boluak.”
“What...?”
He never would have imagined that the traitor was Arquízar.
“Arquízar warned you not to touch the hosts in America. He did it on purpose.”
“What...?”
“He knew that if he warned you, you’d be suspicious and come to absorb the body. And his assumption was correct.”
“Has he been manipulating me...?”
Boluak was shocked, but of course, it was a lie.
Ryu Min had read his thoughts and made up a plausible story using his information advantage.
Boluar couldn’t even imagine it.
“Arquízar wants to eliminate the Seeds. He wants to get rid of all the Seeds except himself.”
“Why...?”
“He wants to take all the credit for the destruction of the world line. For him, the other Seeds are just competitors.”
“...”
The idea that Arquízar wanted to eliminate the Seeds was a shock.
Ryu Min laughed internally at Boluak’s stupid expression.
‘He’s believing a lie as if it were the truth.’
And it’s no wonder.
He had mentioned both the leader and Deorant.
‘To tell a believable lie, you must mix in some truth.’
Ryu Min had explained, but that didn’t mean all of Boluak’s doubts were resolved.
“Why are you telling me the truth? Rather, who are you really?”
“Me?”
Ryu Min responded as if he had been expecting the question.
“I am the God of Time.”
“God...!?”
“I felt the presence of the hosts and descended into this world using a human body. I met Arquízar by chance, and he submitted.”
“Submitted...?”
“He allied with me. He provided the locations of the hosts, and I would deal with the Seeds. But now I’m changing sides. From Arquízar to you.”
Ryu Min said this while extending his hand toward Boluak.
“Ally with me. I’ll give you the chance to take revenge on Arquízar.”