Chapter 97

The hesitation was brief, and the decision came quickly.

Only five minutes remained before Ajos’s rampage ended.

He had to take down the Great Conqueror Khan within that time.

No—this wasn’t just about killing him.

He ‘had’ to die.

That certainty came after standing before Khan and speaking with him.

‘He’s not someone who will help.’

Not for humanity’s future, nor for Park Chan-woo’s own.

He was not the type to be of help.

Khan was arrogant, self-righteous, and cruel.

No different from the other Creators.

For someone revered as the Great Conqueror by warriors, he was beyond disappointing.

“Ha ha! That’s quite a bold statement. You want to kill me?”

Rumble—

Khan rose from his seat.

Amusement curled in his smile.

At that moment—

Ding!

[‘Legendary Quest’ has changed.]

[An unexpected and unprecedented new ‘possibility’ has appeared.]

[The challenger takes on a ‘New Myth’!]

The quest had changed.

From legend—to myth.

A sacred and absolute tale of heroism.

It had begun.

‘He’s got the heart of a beast.’

Khan’s eyes gleamed with interest.

Even if he had defeated the Guardian Warriors one after another, Khan was still several tiers above them—the master of this land.

Yet the human before him showed no fear.

He had been like that from the beginning.

No trace of reverence in those eyes.

They were the eyes of one who had crossed countless death lines.

Eyes that feared no death, submitted to no one, and followed no cause—eyes only held by a wild warrior.

Over the long years, he had met a few like that.

Tempting specimens, but never tameable.

He tried to win them over, coax them, intimidate them—but a beast’s nature couldn’t be suppressed.

This one would be the same.

‘If I don’t kill him, he’ll tear me apart.’

Even if his arms and legs were severed, if alive, he’d bite with his teeth.

Ending him cleanly was the only mercy Khan could offer.

Because no matter what, this human challenger was still the one who had freed him.

Yet, Khan never spared anyone who defied him.

“Ajos. My loyal and devoted warrior. Could you truly bring yourself to kill me?”

Khan asked with leisure.

The palace’s Gatekeeper Ajos had been a truly faithful warrior.

Even if he had changed form and now followed that beast’s commands, surely he couldn’t abandon the respect etched deep into his soul.

All Valhalla’s warriors were the same.

They could not betray Khan.

Even if transformed or forcibly subdued, the loyalty Khan had branded into them ran deep—too deep.

They had been trained to follow Khan, no matter what.

Ajos had been the most loyal of them all.

To guard the palace gates meant to be Khan’s most devoted subject.

He had watched Ajos since birth.

Personally trained and shaped him.

So as long as that soul remained intact—how could he possibly strike Khan down?

And then—

Boom!

Ajos launched forward, pounding the ground with all his might.

At full speed.

As fast as light.

Slash!

…He beheaded Khan. (T/N: WTF. That was soooooo anticlimatic.)

—

Once the Legendary Quest was completed—

A ‘message’ appeared before everyone’s eyes.

[A new legend has been updated!]

[‘Legendary Quest’ has been completed.]

[Bow your heads with all due reverence.]

[All participants who show respect for the completion of a legend will receive the title ‘Witness of Legend.’]

The message was simple.

Revere!

Bow your heads in respect.

To the one who completed the legend.

Show your respect, and you shall be granted a title.

The moment they read it, the participants were in an uproar.

“The Legendary Quest’s been completed?”

“So wait—what exactly happened?”

“Whoa, a title!”

“Thank you! Thank you!”

Strictly speaking, they hadn’t even witnessed anything.

No one knew who had done what, or where.

But never in any previous Abyss had a challenger been elevated like this.

It proved just how monumental the Legendary Quest was.

And now, they were offering a title just for bowing.

It didn’t matter who had done it or what the situation was.

“I respect you!”

“Amazing!”

Everyone bowed their heads.

Titles were already hard to come by.

Even if the respect was fake—even if there was no sincerity—just the act of bowing was enough.

Practically a free title.

And who in their right mind would refuse something free?

There was no reason ‘not’ to bow.

[Your respect has been confirmed.]

[You have acquired the title ‘Witness of Legend (Intelligence +1).’]

“Wow!”

“Awesome!”

“They actually gave it?”

As the title was granted, gasps of awe echoed all around.

The effect wasn’t jaw-dropping, but gaining a stat point just by bowing your head?

Especially to Intelligence—one of the hardest stats to raise.

While research on stat mechanics was still ongoing, it was known that Intelligence was closely tied to resistance and skill proficiency.

And that wasn’t all.

[‘Great Conqueror Khan’ has appeared in the territory of the ‘Second Night’!]

[The ancient being ‘Khan’ was originally the rightful owner of this land.]

[The influence of ‘Master of the Moon Ahheta’ begins to diminish.]

[Valhalla’s blessing spreads across the entire area of the ‘Second Night.’ All participants with the title ‘Witness of Legend’ regain some health.]

[The ‘Doppelganger’ horde begins to weaken.]

[The ‘Second Night’ will end in one hour.]

[When the ‘Second Night’ ends, final contribution scores will determine rewards.]

Gaining the title was shocking enough—but now even their health was being restored.

Everyone had been at their limit.

The ‘Second Night’ had pushed them to the edge over more than 24 hours.

They couldn’t even sleep.

Staying up with nerves stretched for a whole day was harder than most thought.

They could be copied by a doppelganger at any time—trusting other human participants wasn’t an option either.

“The doppelgangers are weakening?”

“One hour left! Move out!”

With restored health, the participants scrambled into motion.

Every [Chaser]—every one of them now had a golden chance to rack up contribution points!

Only a fool would waste this opportunity.

They say a sound mind dwells in a sound body.

Now that their bodies were healed, their minds returned too.

And at the same moment—

The chaos wasn’t limited to just the ‘Second Night.’

The Creators’ community.

A virtual space where all Creators exchanged information.

Even there, the situation had sparked heated discussion.

—Did I just see that right?

—No way. The Legendary Quest was cleared?

—Did Ahheta just stand by and watch?

—The Master of the Moon’s reputation has hit rock bottom.

—Tch. Looks like humans really do have some kind of untapped talent.

—We’ll know for sure when the Second Night ends and we analyze the doppelgangers.

—Damn, I should’ve invested more coins…

Varied reactions.

But the common thread was ‘shock’.

No one expected the frail humans to unlock and complete a Legendary Quest in the ‘Second Night.’

It was as shocking as when humanity first conquered the Tower of Arrogance.

Because…

The Master of the Moon Ahheta wasn’t just some ordinary Creator.

He was considered a genius when it came to crafting Creation Abysses.

Ranked alongside the highest Lords, Ahheta was one of the Creators the Twelve Species feared the most.

Yet now he had been conquered by a human—by what was considered the weakest species.

Losing territory through a Legendary Quest was an unforgivable humiliation to any Abyss Lord.

—Didn’t even detect the intruder?

—What the hell is Ahheta doing?

—He better not waste our investment.

—Those doppelgangers better not get wiped out.

—Damn, it’s frustrating not being able to see what’s happening.

The investors who had bet coins on the outcome were especially restless.

If the doppelgangers were wiped out—or if Ahheta took serious damage in the ‘Second Night’—they could lose their entire investment.

Sure, Ahheta was the Master of the Moon with countless territories, so he’d probably survive.

But humanity’s knack for creating unexpected variables was exceptional.

Things no one could predict were happening one after another.

No one could afford to relax.

Yet there was one thing that every Creator seriously pondered.

One question burning in every mind watching this unfold:

—A human who unlocked and completed the Legendary Quest…

—Who is it?

—Could it be the same one who conquered the Tower of Arrogance?

—No way someone could do both…

—But what if it ‘is’ the same person?

—…Then the next Species War might be worth watching.

—Yeah. Someone like that won’t stay hidden.

—If I could just make someone like that my Incarnation…

—…I need to find them first. No matter what.

Every Creator had become obsessed with Park Chan-woo.

Before, they were just curious.

Now, it bordered on madness.

‘Looks like he’s doing quite well.’

Watching the Creators’ community, Adora smiled faintly.

She had a good idea who the subject of all the chatter was.

There was only one human capable of doing all this.

Park Chan-woo.

Revived by Kankun’s heart and the [Wish]—he had created a legend.

It wasn’t surprising.

Each of his steps would go on to become a part of a great legend.

This was just the beginning.

Adora calmly posted her comment in the Creators’ community:

—That’s not someone a bunch of worms like you could ever make into your Incarnation. Wake up from your dreams, maggots.