“Bang bang!”
Yoo Ji-won quickly assessed the situation and rushed to attack Kang Si-hoo. He raised his index and thumb, shaping his hand like a gun, and aimed his fingers at him. As he shouted, “Bang!”, the sound of a shot rang out in sync with his voice. A bullet materialized at his fingertip and fired at Kang Si-hoo.
But Kang Si-hoo, looking amused, effortlessly deflected it and slid down the mountainside with ease.
Kang Si-hoo, who had a build similar to Baek Tae-beom, wore a white coat that fluttered as he moved. A man with brown hair and red eyes. But those red eyes were dull and lifeless, like a doll’s—moving blindly, as if controlled by invisible strings.
“Haaah!”
Aquila swung her hoe, but Kang Si-hoo immediately parried it and slipped inside her guard, invading her space. In the blink of an eye, his hand shot forward and clutched her shoulder with a force that seemed ready to crush it. The grip was so powerful that it dislocated her shoulder, causing her hoe to fall from her hand.
“AAAHHH!”
“Noona!”
It was unclear when they’d become close, but Yoo Ji-won shouted her name and charged at Kang Si-hoo, teeth clenched. He lunged and yanked her away from Kang Si-hoo, who still had a grip on her shoulder. But Kang Si-hoo, completely disinterested, paid him no mind and simply kept walking forward.
Straight toward me.
“How is Kang Si-hoo here…?”
[CH.#fdl990/One More Dazzling Than the Sun] : That’s not what matters right now! You need to get out of there first!
[CH.#fdl990/Warrior Who Protected Civilization] : What the hell is that thing? How is this kind of interference possible inside a dungeon?
[CH.#fdl990/Warrior Who Protected Civilization] : No way!
[CH.#fdl990/Warrior Who Protected Civilization] : If my hunch is right, then don’t tell me…
[CH.#fdl990/Free Wind] : Ga-hyeon, snap out of it!
“Move, Choi Ga-hyeon!”
Oh Kwon-hyuk, still grappling with Kang Si-hoo, shouted at me. I snapped back to my senses and pointed my staff at Kang Si-hoo as he strode toward me. I swallowed hard.
“Don’t come any closer.”
“Hello, Choi Ga-hyeon.”
Kang Si-hoo laughed out loud. Blue Star flinched in alarm and asked,
“Who the hell is that guy to know your name?”
“He and I have a… very complicated history.”
“Yeah, I definitely don’t wanna know.”
[CH.#fdl990/First Brother Who Became a Star] : What is this terrifying aura?
[CH.#fdl990/First Brother Who Became a Star] : Don’t tell me… he used a human as a sacrifice!
‘Used a human as a sacrifice?’
“Either way, he’s clearly our enemy, right?”
Blue Star glanced at the collapsed Baek Tae-beom and rang his bell. The chime rang out clear and sharp, transforming into a bronze spear.
“Take another step, and you’re gonna regret it.”
“Such bravado, Son Dong-chan.”
“I told you not to call me that!”
I obediently hid behind Blue Star, who was shouting in response to Oh Kwon-hyuk. Then I looked over at Baek Tae-beom, who lay motionless in the distance.
‘Is he badly hurt?’
There was no movement from his body. It looked like he’d been stabbed in the abdomen—was it deep? I bit my lip, anxious.
[The Constellation, ‘Upgrading…’ asks if Baek Tae-beom is okay.]
‘What the hell kind of name is ‘Upgrading…’?’
I sent a message, but there was still no response from Baek Tae-beom.
“Choi Ga-hyeon.”
Kang Si-hoo called my name. As soon as I turned to him, he was already standing right in front of me. Blue Star had already been knocked to the ground.
“I’ve been waiting for the day I’d see you again. You know that?”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”
The curse flew from my mouth before I could stop it. Kang Si-hoo grinned, his red eyes gleaming. Anyone could see he wasn’t sane.
Did he go off the deep end while I wasn’t looking?
Just as that thought crossed my mind, a flash of light burst before my eyes. My head whipped to the side. A sharp sting burned across my cheek as my body slammed into the ground. Realizing I’d been hit, I gritted my teeth to suppress a groan as pain surged through me.
Kang Si-hoo grabbed a fistful of my hair and forced me to look at him.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“…Tell you what…?”
The moment our bodies made contact, I felt a powerful sense of wrongness. It was like coming face-to-face with a Constellation.
Instinctively, I knew. Angrboda had rooted herself far too deeply within Kang Si-hoo.
‘Information.’
[Displaying target information.]
[Kang Si-hoo of the Black Rain]
[Title: Of the Black Rain, One Who Took Root With Wings, One Who Holds Despair…
Rank: S
Status: Cannot be confirmed.
Contracted Constellation: Bringer of Sorrow
Held Coins: Cannot be confirmed.
Skills: [Madness] [Slash] [Wave of Absorption] [Killing Intent] [Deliver the Final Blow] [Thirst for Blood]…
This is an Awakened individual contracted with a Constellation of a higher rank. Caution is advised.
Currently afflicted with a status abnormality. Recovery is required.]
He wasn’t even comparable to how he’d been before. Now, he felt like a completely different person. Not Kang Si-hoo, but the distilled embodiment of his rage and despair—a sentient, cursed thought-form.
“You never told me my parents died because of you. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“That’s…”
“No—more precisely, they died because of that pitch-black bastard who knows nothing but violence.”
“……”
“Angrboda told me everything. And still… you won’t deny you had some part in it, right?”
“……”
“Did you hope I’d forgive you?”
“Forgive?”
I clenched my teeth.
“This isn’t something that can be fixed with forgiveness. No one meant for your parents to die. It was just… an accident.”
“An accident, you say?”
“Oh Kwon-hyuk was afflicted with a status effect at the time. I just happened to be standing in front of him. You really think we planned the Monster Calamity? That we deliberately caused it to kill your parents?”
“……”
“I lost a lot in that incident too. But I never blamed Oh Kwon-hyuk. Because it wasn’t something he did intentionally!”
I grabbed Kang Si-hoo’s wrist—the one still holding my hair.
“I don’t know what kind of garbage Angrboda whispered to you, but this… this isn’t what you should be doing.”
Kang Si-hoo. The original protagonist of this world.
His eyes, swirling with hatred and the hunger for vengeance, were too much for me to look at directly.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you earlier. But—!”
“Shut up. No more excuses.”
“It’s not an excuse, it’s—ugh!”
The pain from my scalp felt like my hair was being ripped out at the roots. Still holding on, Kang Si-hoo began dragging me across the ground. I thrashed, but all I could do was flail and momentarily resist while being hauled across rotting corpses.
“You know what? I’m going to kill them all.”
Kang Si-hoo hummed the words like he was enjoying himself. I could do nothing but struggle.
“You insane bastard…! Doing this won’t change a damn thing! You’re only pushing us closer to the destruction Angrboda wants!”
“My original plan was to bring Hell with me. But I’ve changed my mind. Angrboda gave me something else—the power to take revenge.”
“There’s no one here you can take revenge on!”
You’re the protagonist. Why are you doing this? Snap out of it. Those words were on the tip of my tongue.
“Destruction… You mentioned that, didn’t you, Choi Ga-hyeon?”
Kang Si-hoo looked down at me and smiled with his eyes.
“I don’t care what happens to the world. If my Constellation wants destruction, then I’ll make it happen.”
“Ghh… ngh…”
“She’ll give me the revenge I want, too.”
The real Kang Si-hoo was long gone, tightly bound to Angrboda. Not only was he being manipulated, the word revenge itself had become a web, entangling the two of them. That’s all I could think of. His eyes still held no life.
This bastard was completely broken.
No—more likely, he’d been brainwashed by Angrboda.
I could see the Constellations speaking, but I couldn’t read the chat properly. Every time I opened my mouth, Kang Si-hoo would kick me in the stomach. Blood trickled from my lips after I bit my tongue.
“You said there’s no one here to take revenge on, right?”
Then it’s better if there’s no one left from the start. Kang Si-hoo mumbled to himself, grinning as he looked down at my barely-moving body.
I gripped his wrist with all the strength I had left. Golden light began to bloom across the back of my hand.
“You… didn’t Angrboda tell you anything?”
“What?”
“When she sent you here, didn’t she say anything?”
Coughing hard, I raised my head. Kang Si-hoo looked down at me, his expression now darkened.
“What the hell are you babbling about?”
“She didn’t tell you there’s a way you’re supposed to treat someone when you take them somewhere?”
[You use a skill. Skill: Hand of Sunlight]
[Activating Hand of Sunlight. The Constellation’s blessing is delivered.]
“…!”
At that moment, Kang Si-hoo let go of me. An arrow, having missed its mark, grazed his arm as it flew past. Not missing the beat, I opened the shop.
Then I bought random junk items, grabbing whatever I could see.
[Price: 500 Coins
Would you like to purchase? (Yes / No)]
[You have purchased: Spiky Thorn Ball F.]
[Current Coins: 19,500]
[Price: 1,300 Coins
Would you like to purchase? (Yes / No)]
[You have purchased: Chattering Wind-up Toy E.]
[Current Coins: 18,200]
I hurled the junk items at Kang Si-hoo as he reached toward me.
[Price: 700 Coins
Would you like to purchase? (Yes / No)]
[Current Coins: 17,500]
[Price: 2,400 Coins
Would you like to purchase? (Yes / No)]
[Current Coins: 15,100]
“You trying to play house with me or something…?!”
The juice-filled fruit smacked into Kang Si-hoo, halting his movement for a brief second. His face twisted in rage.
I didn’t care. I just kept buying items and throwing them nonstop.
[Price: 800 Coins
Would you like to purchase? (Yes / No)]
[Current Coins: 14,300]
[Price: 1,800 Coins
Would you like to purchase? (Yes / No)]
[Current Coins: 12,500]
Kang Si-hoo, unable to get near me, finally exploded with fury and drew his sword. While slicing through the flying junk, he unfolded his wings and charged toward me, catching my throat before I could retreat.
“Ghk…!”
“Playtime’s over.”
“…Playtime?”
Even as I choked, I laughed. I wasn’t laughing at him.
It was the sound of wings behind me—light, assertive flaps.
“This? This is what we call stalling, dumbass.”
Kang Si-hoo’s face stiffened as he slowly looked down at his abdomen. A sword, gleaming silver, had pierced straight through it.
Baek Tae-beom, having driven the blade into Kang Si-hoo’s side, let out a long breath. He looked at me—and smiled.
