Chapter 602
Across from Signiel—
Amid the clouds high above, an old man and a young woman hovered in the sky.
The old man, staring intently at the burning entrance below, opened his mouth.
Vwoooom!
Blinding light flickered again and again.
The [System Manipulation] enveloping the entire city—
A duel field.
A hunting ground crafted by the Administrators for a perfect trap.
“The Sleeper Owl?”
“He failed to pursue. The target knows the system too well…”
“Of course. Of all people, the most troublesome one had to turn against us.”
The old man gave a bitter smile.
Among all the Administrators, the one who had contributed most to creating the Tower of Trials—
The one most obsessed with studying and building it—was the Sleeper Owl.
He’d been reliable when on their side, but now that he was an enemy, there was no greater obstacle.
“Will this be alright? We’ve already lost four Administrators because of Kang Jinhyuk and the Sleeper Owl. Not to mention Sae Yeongeonhwan as well…”
“It doesn’t matter. The flow won’t be stopped. More importantly… that man will fall this time. When that happens, even the Owl and the rest will have no choice but to yield.”
“Well… you’re probably right.”
“Forget about the barrier. Focus on manipulating public opinion outside the Tower. The key is turning humanity and the Veteran Corporation against each other. Especially ensure that the divine beings of the Millennium fully support the Indian rankers.”
“Understood.”
The long-haired woman nodded.
At that very moment, flames from Signiel blazed even higher.
BOOOOM!
The rankers of India were unleashing their mana—the battle was about to begin in earnest.
⁕⁕⁕
“Hyung! The first-floor lobby’s already been taken!”
Lee Tae-min shouted urgently as he monitored the situation through drones.
The moment the quest appeared, the area around Signiel had been surrounded by players. In preparation, Jinhyuk had ordered Tae-min to set up defensive towers throughout the hotel.
With the power of someone dubbed a [One-Man Army], Tae-min could at least hold a fortress-like defense.
But—
‘They’re stronger than I expected.’
The enemy was advancing and destroying defenses far faster than anticipated.
Defensive towers and drones were crushed one after another.
Laser traps, poison gas, all useless.
It felt several times more difficult than when he fought Nirasha.
“Damn it. Since we’re on the rooftop, it won’t be easy to secure an escape route. Now that we have to fight anyway, I recommend breaking through one point.”
“I’ll help too.”
Chun Yoosung and Teresa stood beside Jinhyuk.
“Are you sure? I’m the target here. If word spreads that you helped me, your homelands—”
“I don’t care. I won’t stand by and watch you get hurt.”
“Same. I’ll never allow anyone but me to bring you down.”
Their grips tightened around their weapons—resolute, unyielding.
A faint ache spread through Jinhyuk’s nose.
‘Guess I didn’t live in vain.’
Even in the worst situation, he still had comrades standing beside him.
“Good. Then it’s decided. How dare these lowly creatures invade my domain—I’ll wipe them all out.”
Alice cracked her knuckles, eyes blazing with battle spirit.
‘I didn’t want to waste our strength fighting humans, but…’
He wasn’t saintly enough to let someone slap him first and not return it tenfold.
“We focus on the fake. Finish this quickly, then head to the Awakeners’ Association HQ.”
“Oppa, we’ll stay behind to buy time. The moment you see an opening, get out of here. Grandpa’s still around, so they won’t dare touch me easily.”
“I can reinforce defenses if we limit the floors. I can’t hold forever, but I can stall them plenty.”
Yoo Yeonhwa and Lee Tae-min volunteered as the decoy unit.
They were perfect for it.
“Got it. I’ll leave it to you.”
Jinhyuk nodded.
Then he unleashed his gathered mana in a single burst.
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA!
[The Zodiac ‘Sagittarius’ awakens!]
The most important step was to create a crack in the barrier set by the Administrators.
Jinhyuk drew upon the power of Sagittarius—the strongest for breaking barriers.
Light gathered at his fingertips, radiant and fierce.
A massive translucent bowstring stretched tight, ready to snap.
[Unique Ability ‘Apostate’s Golden Apple’ – ‘Astrape’ is activated!]
When combined with Zeus’s lightning, the resulting heat and brilliance illuminated the night sky.
Now!
BANG!
The released arrow became a storm, tearing through the air.
Windows of the penthouse shattered as golden light streaked across the heavens.
“……!?”
“……Kuh!”
The two Administrators hiding in the sky widened their eyes.
They had expected an attempt to breach the barrier—but not at this power and speed.
And more than that—his aim was flawless.
He had targeted the exact spot where the flow of mana was most sensitive.
“Stop it!”
The old man shouted.
“Tch!”
The woman hastily used her ability to reinforce the barrier.
At that instant—
The arrow struck the barrier’s core.
The air split apart.
Space distorted, pulling the shockwave into the warped dimension.
The struggle between offense and defense held in fragile balance—
Until—
Crackkk!
Shards began to fall from the sky.
[Unique Ability ‘System Manipulation’ has been activated.]
He had thrown a massive weight onto an evenly balanced scale—
One [System Manipulation] clashing against another.
“Ability replication… You fool. Don’t tell me even System Manipulation was stolen?!”
The old man cursed, realizing they’d been completely outplayed.
But no matter how much he swore, it was too late.
The gap in the system had already grown too wide to fix.
[External communication has been restored!]
To clear this quest, several conditions remained.
With only his current allies, facing both the Administrators and humanity at once was impossible.
The breach began closing fast.
Still, they had a few minutes to act.
Jinhyuk quickly sent critical information to the factions he was connected with.
“…Do it.”
He rattled off instructions rapidly.
Just one more group to contact—and then—
Crunch… Slash!
A sharp, subtle vibration ran through the floor beneath his feet.
So faint that most wouldn’t have noticed.
“Move to the edges!”
Jinhyuk shouted.
BOOOOM!
The entire building lurched backward.
“W-what?!”
“The building’s tilting…!”
Furniture slid across the floor.
Something had sliced through Signiel itself.
A suffocating strike—so absurd it left everyone speechless.
“Damn it. You don’t have a backup plan for this? You live here, surely you’ve got something prepared?”
“Prepared…?”
“Of course you do.”
“I don’t.”
What was this, the Bat Cave? There was no way he’d remodeled a hotel into a fortress. Not once had he considered skydiving from this height.
“See you all alive down there.”
They were strong. They’d survive somehow. Probably.
He glanced down.
The ground was impossibly far.
‘Hmm. Maybe not.’
It’s fine.
He had [1-Second Invincibility] and the [Blessing of the Stars] resurrection skill.
The rest… only the strong would live.
Rumble!
The members began free-falling along with the collapsing building.
⁕⁕⁕
BOOOOM!
CRASH! KRAK! BOOM!
Debris rained down, turning the lake’s surroundings into ruins.
It looked like a volcanic eruption.
Dust filled the air, blinding everything.
The fall of a hundred-story landmark had left devastation beyond imagination.
“Think they’re dead?”
“Hard to say. Maybe not Jinhyuk, but at least a few of them must be gone.”
“Even cockroaches couldn’t survive that. At least a leg or two should be useless now.”
“Hahaha! Either way, the Korean government’s gonna lose it when they hear we blew up their landmark.”
The Gandhara rankers traded remarks as they watched the wreckage.
Without flight abilities, severe injury was inevitable.
“Don’t get complacent. Focus on mana detection. We finish it this time.”
Kumar’s sharp gaze pierced the smoke.
He was ready to strike the moment even the slightest mana fluctuation appeared.
And then—
Vroom!
Through the haze, bright headlights flashed.
With a roaring engine, a sleek coin-powered bike emerged.
Scratched and battered—but not one member of the Veteran Corporation was dead.
“So, Kang Jinhyuk’s running away?”
“I’ve got more urgent business than babysitting you lot. Let’s play properly next time.”
“Arrogant as they say. But who said we’d let you leave?”
Kumar raised his hand.
Right on cue, Antia gathered her mana.
“I’ll roast you nice and slow.”
Fwoosh!
Tiny flames scattered and merged into an inferno that could burn everything.
Hundreds of fire spears formed from the blaze.
[Antia activates the Unique Ability ‘Army of Flames’!]
The authority of Agni—
Hundreds of fiery soldiers raised their spears in unison.
No matter how fast that bike was, dodging all of them was impossible.
Especially with [Mandala] amplifying their speed and power severalfold.
Escape without a scratch was unthinkable.
Vwoooom!
The fiery spears tore through the air.
And at nearly the same instant—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
From beneath Seokchon Lake, hundreds of earthen spears surged upward.
Red and yellow streaks collided midair.
BOOOOOOM!
CRASH! SHATTER!
Flame spears met sand spears head-on.
“……What!?”
Antia’s eyes widened in shock at the sudden interference.
From beneath the lake, armored soldiers emerged—dark armor shaped like jackals.
And among them stood two Korean rankers.
“Sigh. How did we end up fighting humanity itself?”
“Hmph. Can’t be helped. Once that strange mark appeared, like it or not, we’re all in the same boat now.”
It was Lee Yuri and Min Jungwoo.