Chapter 283 - The 18th Round Begins
For 15 days, Ryu Min distributed points to everyone he had promised over a month, not just to Seo Arin.
No less than a million points per person.
"Min Juri, Seo Arin, Christine, Jo Yong-ho, Heo Taeseok, Eom Jun-seok, Russell, Victor, Sophia, Jeffrey, Alex, Dorothy, Yamti, John Delgado, Joo Sung-taek... Who else was there?"
Counting on his fingers, it was a total of 15 people to whom he had distributed points.
15 million points had vanished in a month.
"Do I only have 1 million points left?"
Even if there wasn't much left, he didn't care.
"Anyway, these are useless points that won't do any good even if I have them. It's much more beneficial to strengthen those who will be useful in the boss battle."
With 1 million points, he could do several things, from acquiring expensive equipment to creating at least two of legendary quality.
"Of course, I’ll need to know the combinations."
With experience packages, he could level up five times at once.
Well, it wouldn't compare to the God rank, but still.
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Time waits for no one.
Midnight on June 1, 2023.
As expected, on that day, 286 players stepped onto the land of another world.
"Huh? Where are we?"
Scorching heat, sulfur dust floating in the air, a sky that seemed torn apart.
An environment that seemed to have reached the end of times greeted the players.
This would be the stage for the 18th round, Hell.
"This round is supposed to be a battle in Hell..."
"It's exactly as I imagined."
"So Hell really looks like this."
"Will the war start here soon? With demons?"
"Is this something to worry about?"
"How will the demons look?"
People murmured, each nervous in their own way.
While this would be the first time they saw demons, participating in a direct war was what made them most nervous.
Ryu Min smiled wryly as he watched them.
"In these times of peace, we were too busy competing among ourselves at our desks to imagine we'd be embroiled in a war between angels and demons."
Technically, it wasn't a real war, just a friendly game, but what difference did it make?
The players' lives were at stake, it was just like a real war.
At that moment, a light shone in the sky, as if a meteor were falling.
"Have they come? Our brave players?"
The sight of a smiling angel would have angered anyone under normal circumstances, but for some reason, people didn't react to the provocation.
"Today we will need much of your help on the side of the angels. What does that mean? We will first reveal the mission and then explain it!"
◀ ROUND 18 ▶
<Main Mission>
Victory in the war against the demons
[Unified Area CA-EA001]
Participants: 286
Achievements: 0/143
It was a mission they had heard in advance.
They were already mentally prepared.
So no one was surprised.
Except the angels.
"Huh? Why isn't anyone surprised? As if they knew the mission in advance?"
"Should we be surprised every time you make a joke?"
The players, who weren't even surprised by the mission, looked at Ryu Min with narrowed eyes.
The response to the angels came from Ryu Min.
Even Millen, the angel, looked at Ryu Min in surprise.
“How dare you talk about human affairs?”
Although I'd like to strangle them with my own hands, unfortunately, I've already done that a long time ago.
Moreover, this round is blocked from using strangulation because the angels and players are on the same team.
Even if there were uses of strangulation left, they couldn't be used.
[Facing humans for the first time? It's really ridiculous.]
"Whether it's ridiculous or not is not my concern. Wouldn't it be enough to explain the missions to the players instead of always talking nonsense? Did the system order you to do that?"
[Are you... crazy? Did you reach round 18 and finally lose your mind? Do you want to die?]
"Can you kill me? Then try."
[...]
"Are you so scared that you can't come down from the sky? You can't even join the battle angels' ranks, right? You should be busy with the guide angels' affairs that you can't even do that."
Millen's expression stiffened as if his brain had stopped.
Was the attack too direct?
"Even if you're from a low position, you should know. I'm the human psychopath who killed six archangels."
[...]
"Do you think I couldn't kill you while you were in the sky? So far I've been calm because I needed the help of the guide angels, but if you keep being annoying, I can kill you too. You know that even if I kill you, you'll simply be replaced by another guide angel."
Although there wasn't a hint of wind, Millen's wings trembled.
Looking at his expression, it seemed he wasn't angry at the insulting words but was afraid of his own threat.
"So do your job and explain the missions or instructions. Don't ramble or mock without reason. It may be fun for you, but it's not for us."
[...]
"I understand. I will continue with the explanation."
Millen began explaining following the orders, hiding his confusion.
"This round, as its name suggests, is a war against the demons. You must join our race and fight against the demons to win."
Millen glanced at Ryu Min for a moment.
His sharp gaze was as chilling as a sharp blade.
"You may not be happy to have to fight with us. But you must not try to kill the angels. Everyone will be considered part of the same team, so you won't even be able to kill each other."
Although he knew that Black Scythe couldn't kill him, Millen was still scared.
After all, he would be the guide angel in the next round.
"Unlike the last round, this time, even if we win the war, not everyone will survive. Based on your contribution to the victory, you will be ranked, and only half will survive."
This time, not everyone will survive.
Only half will.
That was also information that Black Scythe had heard, but there was no change in people's expressions.
Instead, they maintained a tense expression from the beginning until now.
Although they were on the same team, it was a competition in a certain sense.
"Although we have many grievances among us, this time, let's unite and take down the head of the wicked demons together. Good luck!"
"Even faking a 'good luck' you don't feel. This is pitiful."
It was then that Ryu Min let out a sarcastic laugh.
Buuuuu...
The sound of war trumpets echoed, shaking the earth and sky.
"Ha... it's begun. Well then... good luck!"
The guide angels disappeared as if fleeing.
And with that, doors opened.
From the bright portal of light that appeared nearby, battle angels dressed in resplendent armor emerged.
Meanwhile, from the dark portal that appeared beyond the hill, demons dressed in crimson armor emerged.
Angels and demons crossed the doors and stepped onto the land of hell.
Innumerable, continuously.
"How many are they?"
The reinforcements that kept coming from the portal became so numerous that it was hard to count them at a glance.
When it reached that point, the doors closed, and the reinforcements ceased.
Comparing the forces of both sides visually, it was overwhelmingly evident that the demonic side outnumbered the angels.
"Are the demons twice as many?"
"Can we win this?"
People's faces darkened.
It was natural to worry when they had never faced demons before, but soon they would realize.
How weak they actually were.
"If we consider them as monsters, demons are at the level of high-ranking orcs. Of course, that's for the weakest ones."
Although the numerical difference was significant, that didn't mean the angels were at a disadvantage.
Even sixth-rank angels could easily kill a high-ranking orc on their own.
"It seems that not only are there sixth-rank angels, but also fifth, fourth, and third ranks, appearing variably."
The rank of the battle angels could be determined by the symbols on their armor.
By observing carefully, one could even see first-rank angels.
Ryu Min felt intrigued as if he had found a quality prey.
But there was something that really made him happy.
The appearance of Michael as he had anticipated.
"Oh, have you come?"
Although Ryu Min acted as if he knew him, Michael seemed cautious about starting a conversation.
"It seems you want to talk alone for a moment."
"Sure."
Michael, aware of the gazes around him, took Ryu Min to a quieter place.
Upon meeting again, Ryu Min smiled as if he was happy to see him.
"Are you okay? I was worried about what would happen if you had died."
"Fortunately, your plan worked. I was able to fool the gods."
But somehow, Michael's expression was uncomfortable.
"But why that expression? You look like a puppy that needs to relieve itself."
"Well, it's just that... I have a request for you..."
Seeing Michael hesitate to speak, Ryu Min immediately understood.
His expression seemed forced.
"This guy is acting."
And as expected, while his face showed doubts about what to say, in his mind, Michael calculated the right moment for his lines of dialogue, as if following a script.
"What request do you have?"
"Could you go talk to the Archduke Demon once?"
"You want me to meet the Archduke Demon?"
"The gods still want to hand you over to the Archduke Demon. It doesn't mean they will sell you. They just need to see that you two meet and then the gods will consider their promise fulfilled. They won’t listen to what you talk about."
"So you just need to show contact from above, right? No need to surrender to the Archduke Demon."
"Yes, exactly. It's not a difficult request, right?"
Ryu Min nodded.
It’s not really a difficult request.
From the beginning, he had also intended to meet Plunictos in Round 18.
The problem is that Michael is deceiving me.
"This guy is talking as if he had omitted all the content of our negotiations. Besides, when I step into the demon realm, it seems I can't get out," he said.
Although it seems there's no danger, he's just telling me to go and talk, but it's not that simple at all.
The demon realm is an area that cannot be entered like the celestial realm.
Once a player enters there, they won't be able to leave unless Plunictos allows it.
"Don't worry about not being able to get out. If you just exchange a few words with the Archduke Demon and then escape to our side, there won't be any problem," he said.
Although he said this as if to reassure me, both Ryu Min and Michael know that I won't be able to get out.
"How despicable. After saying he must live to become a god, he betrays me to the demon realm?"
Instead of handing over control of the Akashic Record, I discovered through reflection that I had extended the postponement period until Round 18 and had decided to pass control to myself.
I'm not sure what exactly the Akashic Record is, but...
"It seems he was more afraid of losing in the war than of becoming a god."
I understood, but I was surprised at how bold he was to push me towards death with such a calm face.
Of course, I also had the intention to use Michael and kill him.
"It seems I'm screwed for using him for so long. I should have expected this."
Without even realizing he had decided his own fate, Michael hurried for a response.
"Please, could you do it?"
In response to that question, Ryu Min laughed while pulling the corner of his mouth.
"Of course."