Return of the Shattered Constellation - Chapter 181

Chapter 181

『Urrgghhh!』

Sinmara loudly groaned in pain, refusing to scream at the top of her lungs. Although the system had significantly weakened her to adjust the trial’s difficulty level, the best <Muspelheim> warrior was tenacious way beyond anyone’s imagination.

Considering her heads had been cut off, she had to be in a lot of pain. However, instead of retreating, her eyes filled up with spite. She threw her weapon on the ground and reached out to the navy-blue Fire Giant. He tried to escape from her grasp by moving backward, but Sinmara was quicker—grabbing him by the collar before he could dodge. She then ripped the Giant vertically in half.

[The Giantification has been canceled by force!]

Her physical strength was truly formidable. Chang-Sun still wasn’t proficient in using the Giantification, so the least he could do was maintain his navy-blue Giant form. Forcefully undone, Chang-Sun appeared before Sinmara, whose gaze landed upon his soul for the second time.

At that moment, Sinmara saw the destiny of Chang-Sun’s present, but what she saw wasn’t the human named Lee Chang-Sun. It was a severely wounded ‘Divine Twilight’ waiting for his enemies to lay themselves open to attack.

『You…!』

Among the myriad of destinies that Sinmara had seen so far, Chang-Sun’s was the most horrible and painful. Hence, she found it difficult to say something about it. Although she wanted to say that Chang-Sun wasn’t here just to become Surtr’s heir, Chang-Sun didn’t intend to let her talk about his destinies anymore. After all, doing so would risk the Celestials, who were watching him, finding out about the ‘Divine Twilight.’

Hence, Chang-Sun forced himself to cross the [Yuchang Sword] and [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth] despite his nearly mind-breaking dizziness, which he felt due to the forced termination of his Giantification.

[The Authority ‘Kalokagathia’ has been activated, forcing you to stay conscious!]

[The Skills ‘Black Mountain King’s Second Claw’ and ‘Black Mountain King’s Third Claw’ have been activated, combining into one!]

By <Molting> twice, Chang-Sun successfully acquired the [Black Mountain King’s Third Claw], which had an indescribable synergy with the [Black Mountain King’s Second Claw]. Moreover, Chang-Sun imbued his attack with the Retribution Fire—which held divine and demonic energies—that he had previously used for his Giantification. As soon as he delivered the blow, an explosion as big as the stronghold occurred.

Rumble―!

Slash, slash!

A red cross was drawn on Sinmara’s last face, and her head burst right after. With all her heads decapitated, her corpse helplessly collapsed backward, releasing a cloud of black smoke.

Thud…!

The sound was ground-shakingly loud to Chang-Sun, which was an indication of how heavy Sinmara was.

[You have successfully defeated the thirty-sixth gatekeeper.]

[The last gate has opened.]

[You may now enter the old treasury of <Muspelheim>.]

“Huff…huff…!” Chang-Sun panted hard. He couldn’t even be happy about the message he received, which basically meant he could now obtain the ‘Laevateinn.’

[Warning! Your HP and Mana have fallen below 10%. Please go to a secure area and take a rest.]

‘… Gosh.’ Chang-Sun clenched his teeth.

Upgrading his Title to [Jigwi Giant Incarnation] significantly increased his HP and mana, but it seemed the continuous battles still managed to deplete them.

‘If I knew things would turn out this way, I likely would have taken their offer to take a rest. I can’t even use [Soul Exploitation] in here,’ Chang-Sun thought bitterly.

He didn’t really feel that way, however. He was certain that he would have made the same choice even if he could restart the trial since it was the best option he had, considering he had to conquer the ‘Rhaegaren’ before the desert train departed.

Besides, the residents of this place had no soul. Although Chang-Sun had defeated Sinmara, she wasn’t technically dead. The stronghold would just be restored and the gatekeeper would resurrect in the ‘Rhaegaren’ after the trial was over.

‘Even if I could use [Soul Exploitation], I don’t plan on using it.’

After all, he was greatly moved by the ‘Rhaegaren’ gatekeepers not only because he had successfully become a Giant himself but also because of their honor and pride. From Gustaf to Sinmara, the <Muspelheim> Giants were true warriors, so Chang-Sun didn’t want to taint their honor using a cheap trick like [Soul Exploitation].

『You are…』

Just then, the head in front of Chang-Sun noticeably moved, causing his eyes to widen. It was her right head, which he had cut off using his navy-blue Giant form. This was the third time Sinmara had seen him, which could be a problem. Since Chang-Sun didn’t think she could still talk in such a state, he pondered whether or not he should crush her face. Although he wasn’t sure if Sinmara was aware of it, her right head kept talking.

『You are truly bizarre.』

Why did she bother to talk in that state when she could just reset the stage? Deciding to let things unfold a bit more, Chang-Sun narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ is very curious about what the old Giant queen saw.]

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ pays full attention, thinking he might be able to finally figure out something about you, the snake.]

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ licks his lips.]

『It’s as I said. It seems your present is in a complicated situation, so I don’t think I need to bother mentioning it… And your future is… Umm….』

It took quite a while before Sinmara could continue, making Chang-Sun truly unsure of what she was trying to say.

『You are ■■■, and ■■■■ will ■■. That ■■ a ■■■, but in ■■…!』

However, Sinmara’s remark was muffled by loud noise, so Chang-Sun couldn’t even ‘perceive’ what she was saying.

‘The system is stopping her?’ Chang-Sun’s eyes widened as he looked up high into the sky.

There was only one reason why anyone wouldn’t be able to understand what a divine being was saying: the system autonomously decided to prevent Chang-Sun from getting specific information since he should never find out about it.

『■■■ ■■ ■■■■?』

After belatedly realizing that her voice was being muffled, Sinmara narrowed her eyes.

『■■■■… ■■■■ ■■ ■■■! ■■■■!』

Chang-Sun still couldn’t tell what she was saying, but her face was bizarrely distorting, showing her fury. He wasn’t certain who she was furious with, but one thing was for sure. The system already censored her remarks, so it would be difficult for anyone in the world to find out what she was trying to say. It also meant that Sinmara had given out a prophecy that was divulging a <Secret of Nature> that she couldn’t handle with her Class.

‘She’ll be useful,’ Chang-Sun momentarily thought.

Even though he felt the same toward the other Giant warriors, he suddenly wished to recruit her. She had been defeated, but the real Sinmara was a Celestial so great not even ‘Divine Twilight’ in his prime could be certain he could win against her. Being the best <Muspelheim> warrior and a prophet who could divulge a <Secret of Nature>, she could certainly become a huge help to Chang-Sun’s plan in the future.

“Hey, Sinmara,” Chang-Sun said.

『■ ■■■?』

Chang-Sun quietly moved his lips, sending telepathy.

『You said you saw my future destiny, right? Were you not beside me in that destiny?』

『…■? ■■ ■■ ■■■ ■■…!』

Sinmara trailed off but soon burst into laughter, seemingly realizing something.

『■■! ■■ ■■? ■■ ■■ ■ ■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■■■■?』

The system was still censoring her remark, so Chang-Sun still couldn’t tell what she was saying exactly. However, he did get a rough idea of it.

‘Haha! Do you know your future just changed when you said that? ‘

Of course, Chang-Sun just quietly smiled.

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ hops around in frustration, wanting to know about the conversation you exchanged with the Giant!]

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ clicks his tongue, thinking you are up to something again.]

『■…!』

The moment Sinmara was about to say something again…

“Hahaha!” Grizman suddenly looked up in the sky and maniacally laughed.

[The Celestial ‘First Samaritan Mage’ bursts into laughter, thinking he will finally achieve his goal!]

After over twenty attempts, Grizman finally reached the gate to the treasury of the ‘Rhaegaren.’ Hence, his eyes filled up with madness. His iron mask even heated up and let out steam.

“I’ll finally get my hands on [Bestla’s Poem]! With that, I’ll be able to rip Jacque Valentine to shreds and put an end to the curse that bastard Peter gave me!” Grizman shouted.

Chang-Sun couldn’t understand what Grizman was talking about, but he didn’t miss Grizman mentioning Jacque, the name of which he was also familiar with. The Immortal Overlord Jacque Valentine was the Revenant Clan leader and the ‘king’ who represented France. Chang-Sun thought Jacque could be related to Peter’s curse, which Grizman was talking about.

‘Peter the Apostle is related to the Immortal Overlord?’ Chang-Sun thought.

Equipped with Death Scythes, the two Specters surrounded Chang-Sun. At the same time, multiple magic circles appeared all over the ruins, summoning new Specters one by one, all of which were similar to the two summoned earlier.

[The Summon ‘Admah[1] Curse’ shows hostility toward you!]

[The Summon ‘Zeboim[2] Spirit’ wants to devour you!]

…

[The Celestial ‘First Samaritan Mage’ laughs slyly as he looks at you!]

Grizman’s eyes sharpened, clearly filled with murderous intent. His Specters’ Death Scythes were thickly covered in demonic energy, making them as sharp as ever. Nevertheless, Chang-Sun couldn’t help but chuckle. ‘How are the villains like him so predictable?’

Chang-Sun had already considered the possibility of Grizman betraying him after defeating Sinmara since it was very suspicious of Grizman to readily give him all kinds of information about Bestla. Hence, he didn’t really feel betrayed. However, he couldn’t help but wonder what Grizman was thinking.

“You’re going to backstab me despite making a [Mana Pledge]? Are you sure you should do that?” Chang-Sun calmly asked, but Grizman just wickedly chuckled, maybe because he thought Chang-Sun was pretending to be calm despite his fatigue. Grizman already knew Chang-Sun’s HP and mana were low.

“Pledge? Well, I can just make the other guy deal with it.” Grizman shrugged.

“Are you going to make ‘Grizman Adelie’ suffer all the penalties?” Chang-Sun narrowed his eyes.

“Ha! You’ve noticed already?” Grizman giggled.

“That’s old news when it comes to Celestial-possessed objects.” Chang-Sun nonchalantly answered.

In Chang-Sun’s wide-opened [Viper Eyes], everything was blue except for Grizman’s iron mask, which was colored black. Taking that into consideration, he only had to be careful of Grizman’s iron mask.

Celestial-possessed objects referred to items that had accumulated a significant amount of energy over time and gained self-consciousness. Eventually, they also gained divinity and became a demigod. In other words, the ‘First Samaritan Mage’ was Grizman’s iron mask, not Grizman.

‘I still wasn’t sure how he fled from Peter even though he did gain immortality, but it would make sense if Simon Magus was in the form of an object all this time.’ Chang-Sun nodded.

Even though Simon was a demigod, he only managed to get away from Peter the Apostle because he cheated. By ‘swapping bodies’ through the iron mask—his medium—he survived over a thousand years. His current vessel was Grizman Adelie.

‘If one of Peter the Apostle’s descendants was hunting Simon and… that descendant is the Immortal Overlord, then everything makes sense,’ Chang-Sun thought.

Chang-Sun didn’t know since when Simon started living as the ‘Iron Mask’ Grizman Adelie. Maybe it was right after Grizman became a first-generation Player or a demonic being, but it didn’t really matter. After all, the real Grizman had likely died long ago.

“And you have decided to take my body next.” Chang-Sun assumed.

“Hehehe, that’s right! You’re a <Muspelheim> Giant. Moreover, I’m not sure how you’ve done it since the famous <Nihil> has always been a mystery even for a great mage like me, but you managed to ignite the navy-blue fire using it! ” Grizman said.

Chang-Sun could instinctively tell that Grizman was laughing very happily even though his iron mask covered his face.

“Well, I’ll soon find out once I start picking your brain apart. [Bestla’s Poem] and the body of a Giant! With those, I can become the new Bestla!” Grizman slowly walked toward Chang-Sun, chuckling maniacally.

Meanwhile, more of his Specters appeared, besieging Chang-Sun and showing that Grizman didn’t really try his best in their battle against Sinmara. Although he was in grave danger, Chang-Sun remained expressionless, as if he too was wearing a mask. “Did you ever consider the possibility that I turned into a Giant in front of you on purpose?”

“What nonsense…!” Grizman couldn’t finish speaking when Chang-Sun slowly started to get up.

Although Chang-Sun was just standing up, Grizman felt suffocated for some reason. Chang-Sun was surely pale, and his breath was ragged. He clearly didn’t even have enough power left to lift his sword. Nonetheless, the Infernal Sights in Chang-Sun’s eyes were ominous.

“We’ll find out soon enough if I’m talking nonsense. Sinmara, what’s your answer to my question earlier?” Chang-Sun asked.

The expression on Sinmara’s head, which was still rolling around on the ground near Chang-Sun, became subtly distorted. She then chuckled. Even though Sinmara wasn’t sure how he planned to make her his subordinate, she was starting to feel that it wouldn’t be a bad idea since the ‘future’ that she had seen of Chang-Sun made becoming his subordinate worth it.

『■■.』

‘Good.’

Chang-Sun could tell what she was saying this time too because, oddly enough, he could hear Sinmara.

『■■■ ■■■ ■■■■ ■ ■■■ ■. ■■■■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■■ ■■ ■■■ ■■■.』

‘I’m going to disappear soon anyway even if I stay here, so it won’t be bad to serve a new master.’

“You’ll never regret it,” Chang-Sun said.

Woosh, woosh, woosh…!

Kiyahh―!

The ghost’s wail, which was incomparably more ominous than the howl of Grizman’s Specters, echoed throughout the stronghold. At the same time, the dreary wind started to blow like a storm.

[The ‘Changgwi Cave’ has opened!]

Something opened up behind Chang-Sun, followed by an army of will o’ wisps appearing one by one. The army of the dead, including Jin Prezia and the Elfin Root, had come.

“Wh-what…?!” Grizman unwittingly took a step backward, feeling nervous for some indescribable reason. As he did, Chang-Sun held out his hand to Sinmara’s head.

[Will you give your new subordinate a ‘Name’?]

“Sinmara,” Chang-Sun said.

[The subordinate selection has been completed!]

[Your Subordinate has been named ‘Sinmara.’ She will become your ‘shield’ and stay by your side from now on.]

Just as how Jin was his sword and the Elfin Root was his spear, Sinmara became his shield. One by one, Chang-Sun was gathering his own ‘weapons.’

Rumble!

A pillar of fire violently rose up from underneath the ground and turned into a Fire Giant.

[Your Subordinate ‘Sinmara’ looks at the enemies with her three faces, reading their futures!]

[Her Reading: Execution.]

Ooooo!

With Sinmara’s loud howl, the army of the dead began to move.

1. A city near Sodom and Gomora. ☜

2. Another city near Sodom and Gomora. ☜