Chapter 261: The Seven Deadly Sins (2)

In the seventh room of the Antichrist’s Tomb.

The Witch of Wailing stared at a huge glass orb, cursing under her breath.

“What the hell is this lunatic…?”

It was a sight too absurd to merely call bewildering.

No wonder she was taken aback.

Every action of the human who had entered the ruins far exceeded the boundaries of common sense.

“My Apostles… are all getting crushed?”

At first, when the battle started with the Apostle of Pride, Reaper, she thought it was just a slightly exceptional intruder.

A person with outstanding combat skills and confidence could certainly defeat the Apostle of Pride.

However, the intruder who had quickly subdued the Apostle proceeded to break through the Silent Passage.

And soon after, he was mocking the Apostle of Sloth, who guarded the end of the passage.

To defeat the Apostle of Sloth, do nothing. Be more lazy and slothful.

Only those who have forsaken everything can pass the second gate.

But…

The intruder was realizing this strategy to the extreme.

“Damn it! What kind of player gets a heart attack from being too lazy to let their heart beat?!”

There was nothing to say about a body that had turned into a limp, boneless mass lying on the ground.

A body that had become so extremely lazy it had driven itself to the brink of death.

Even the Apostle had a look of exhaustion as he backed away.

On top of that, there was the absurdity of wearing a ridiculous outfit that made the Apostle of Lust scream and run away.

Or engaging in personal counseling with the Apostle of Envy and reforming him.

He passed through the gates with ridiculous and extraordinary methods.

It’s a situation that naturally elicited curses but also had to be acknowledged as the most efficient strategy.

‘Already… four Apostles have been breached.’

There were also guard monsters protecting the Apostles, but they were swept away by a man who used strange machines and a woman who fought with martial arts.

The female mage who used magic was no less formidable.

In less than two days, four Apostles had lost their lives.

The pressure the Witch of Wailing felt was unimaginable since she had never expected the gates to be breached so quickly.

At that moment.

“That’s why we warned you. He’s not a human to be taken lightly.”

“We’ve already fallen victim to him several times. If you don’t prepare properly, even the great witch will have to drink the punishment liquor we had.”

A pair of man and woman appeared next to the Witch of Wailing.

Gawain and Tristan, the rankers of the Round Table leading the Demon’s Association.

They had already emphasized the danger of Jinhyuk several times.

The Witch of Wailing had scoffed at their warnings.

“Yeah… it seems I took your words too lightly. I underestimated him.”

At this point, she had to admit reality.

This intruder was different from the adventurers or witch hunters who had come before.

“So, what do you propose?”

“Throwing multiple weak punches at him is pointless. It only serves to weaken our forces.”

Tristan approached the glass orb.

Her pitch-black hair flowed over her shoulders and down her back.

“We need a strong single blow. One that will make it impossible for him to even think about getting up.”

There is a way.

The Demon Association came here precisely for this reason.

“Tell me what you need. I’ll do anything within my power. Watching those pests invade my domain is infuriating.”

The Witch of Wailing accepted the demons’ proposal.

A bright smile spread across Tristan’s face.

“Time.”

The vast space of the ruins and the advantage of numbers.

If they could leverage these two factors, they could prepare a severe blow.

“Keieee!”

“Craaa!”

The cries of monsters echoed.

On the tips of the fangs of those in the ‘Tomb of Swords,’ sword techniques of demonic swords were unleashed.

Slice!

A beetle-like monster was cut in half.

A monster resembling a moth and centipede was also sliced to pieces without lasting even a moment.

But there was no time to rest.

For the insect-type monsters with swarm characteristics, dozens of them could be replenished at any time.

“They’re coming from the sides again!”

Maria, who was casting magic, shouted.

In response, Yeonhwa and Taemin reacted.

“Hup!”

Thud thud thud thud thud!

Blue energy gathered at Yeonhwa’s fists and feet.

The Taechunhwahang Technique, which had surpassed five stars, could now emit tangible energy more than 30 cm.

“Graaa!”

As the gigantic stag beetle’s pincers closed in to rip Yeonhwa apart.

[Yeonhwa activates Lv13 ‘Red Flower Palm Strike!’]

The condensed energy exploded forward.

Boom!

The stag beetle’s body burst from within, and the surrounding insects were instantly pulverized into powder.

On the opposite side, Taemin moved.

Armed with mechanical armor similar to the Empire’s Titans, Taemin launched off the ground.

Boom!

A leap with immense weight.

The deck on his back opened, launching magic bombs in all directions.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The result was a carpet bombing reminiscent of a fiery inferno.

Nothing is better for killing insects than burning them.

Dozens of magic bombs created a path of flames in the huge room.

Moreover, the combination of titanium shields and shortswords enabled close combat, making this a truly versatile armament.

And…

The grand finale was Maria’s Hellfire, which she had just finished casting.

“Thank you for buying me time.”

[Maria summons Lv7 ‘Hellfire!’]

Crackle!

Moisture evaporated.

The air dried up, and the taste of iron filled her cracked lips.

This was one of the strongest fire spells.

Hellfire, known as the final stage a player can reach.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Nothing remained in the wake of the fireballs.

Even the common sound of screams was burned away.

Thus, the Apostle of Greed, who had lost many insects, was gradually cornered.

“More… I need more insects. More curses. It’s not over yet.”

Crunch!

Ultimately, he lost his life at Jinhyuk’s hands.

[You have obtained the ‘Key of Greed.’]

[You have obtained the ‘Key of Sloth.’]

[You have obtained the ‘Key of Lust.’]

[You have obtained the ‘Key of Envy.’]

Including the Key of Pride, that made five keys.

Jinhyuk stored the keys he had collected from the Apostles in a corner of his subspace inventory.

It had been an exhausting period, pushing his magic to the limit.

“Haa. Haa. Haa…”

“Really. Are you a monster, Oppa? You didn’t get tired at all despite everything we did? You weren’t just slacking off while we were fighting, right?”

“Unni. Hyung took care of all the insects in the rear. Plus, he killed the Apostles by himself. His stamina management is… beyond human.”

The three who had accompanied him were already close to exhaustion after dealing with the mobs near the Apostles.

They needed a little rest.

Jinhyuk took out three glass bottles filled with blue liquid from his subspace inventory.

“These potions help recover magic. I got ones with especially good efficacy, so take one each.”

“Are you giving these for free? Really?”

Yeonhwa’s eyes widened.

“Our comrades’ safety is at stake. Do you think I’d charge for it? Just focus on recovering your bodies.”

“Hyung…”

“Oh. You’ve changed a lot since before. Have you grown some sense?”

“Thank you, Jinhyuk.”

As everyone expressed their gratitude, Jinhyuk’s mind was already working quickly.

Each potion cost about 2,000 coins.

But the secondary earnings from the experience and coins obtained through videos of the three working together were worth at least 70,000 coins.

It was a deal that netted at least 30 times the cost.

Jinhyuk’s lips curled into a smile.

Recover quickly.

So I can make you work hard again.

Gulp. Gulp.

As everyone sat comfortably, drinking potions and resting, Jinhyuk quietly moved to the back.

‘What could it be… what kind of reward is it?’

This was a reward given by an entity equivalent to an operator.

‘It’s definitely something unobtainable through ordinary routes, like a special privilege for the first to conquer the tower.’

Thump! Thump! Thump!

His heart pounded excitedly.

Trembling fingers reached for the status window.

At that moment.

[Ding!]

The long-awaited reward appeared.

[Shadow Gate]

Acquisition Difficulty: Impossible

Details: The ‘Shadow Staircase,’ where senior administrators reside. This hidden world within the tower is accessible only to senior administrators. However, by using the Shadow Gate, made of material outside the laws, you can enter this staircase. (The gate will be destroyed after one round trip.)

This was completely unexpected.

An artifact that allows access to the senior administrators’ domain.

That’s why the Tower of Trials is so fascinating.

New variables kept emerging, unknown even to the veterans.

[The Hidden Floor of the Tower, Shadow Staircase]

Even in the past, when he had seen the top of the tower, he had never visited this area.

This was a place where players were not allowed entry.

‘I’ll be able to meet not only Hastis but also other senior administrators.’

Jinhyuk bit his lower lip.

The potential uses…

He couldn’t even begin to guess.

This variable might shake the foundation of everything.

Five days had passed since entering the ruins.

As time passed, the first attack team, to which Nirasha belonged, became increasingly anxious.

They had made no visible progress in five days, while the second attack team had gone much further ahead.

Moreover.

When they learned that Arun, sent as a watcher, had been bested by the opposition, it felt like everything was collapsing.

-There is a way to wake up from sleep quickly, and I can offer it at a very reasonable price. Less than 300,000 coins, just 299,999 coins! If you send 299,999 coins, I’ll tell you immediately.

It was strange that he had lost contact, so they sent people and found Arun and the other Gandara Guild players in a deep sleep.

A note placed neatly by their heads was a bonus.

‘I need to come up with another plan.’

This was no time for pride or bravado.

The real problem was becoming mere background characters to the opponent.

But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t come up with a solution.

Then.

A very slight magic reaction was felt inside Nirasha’s personal tent.

“…!”

A black wave surged from the ground.

“A demon…?”

A thick killing intent emanated from Nirasha’s body.

The opponent was a demon known publicly worldwide.

Uuuung!

The tent began to fill with the glow of the Mandala.

However, the opponent did not resist.

Nor did he seem to have any intention of being subdued easily.

“Huhu. I hope you don’t look at me with such a biased view. I have a proposal that will benefit not just you, but all of us.”