Chapter 271. Berserk (1)

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The day when they had first met.

The man who laughed at him with a funny mask.

Hansoo spat back at the man.

— Go ahead and fuck off if you’re just going to make fun of us.

Though he was weak, he was still an adventurer of the Otherworld.

The viciousness he had grown in order to survive did not lose out to anybody else’s.

And the man laughed at Hansoo as if he was cute and then spoke.

— I’m just saying this because you look so damn poor… Shall I help you?

Hansoo chuckled.

He knew that this man was strong.

But that was it.

The ones who were chasing him were immortal.

The <Ant Eater> clan was not something a small group of adventurers could handle.

— Don’t bother bluffing around and just fuck off.

At that moment.

— Hahahaha! How far can this bastard run! You’re now…

The bug killers stopped as they saw the man with the strange mask.

— Fucking hell…

As Hansoo grinded his teeth at the bug killers who had caught up, the man in front of Hansoo chuckled as he spoke towards the bug killers.

— I’ll deal with this guy so just leave. I’ll talk to the guys above so don’t worry.

Like an order.

‘Is he insane?’

Did that dumb mask boost his confidence or something?

While Hansoo made a dumbfounded expression, a shocking thing happened.

— Mmm… Understood.

— For you to have come here personally… We’ll send a message to the vice leader for you.

The people who had been chasing Hansoo backed off peacefully.

And Hansoo was lost for words.

— How is it? Fun right?

The man took off the mask on his face and smiled.

This was the first time Hansoo had seen Jang Oh’s face.

***

As Hansoo thought back to the past.

Jang Oh spoke:.

“This is the final time I’m saying this. Stop all this and just follow me. And… Make everyone under you surrender. Then they’ll at least be able to keep their lives.”

It wasn’t too late to stop yet.

Though Tiamet treated the adventurers like crap, he didn’t try to pull them out by their roots.

He merely kept them below him and controlled them.

Hansoo replied expressionlessly.

“What about the Ains?”

Jang Oh shrugged at Hansoo’s words.

“… Nothing we can do about them.”

The adventurers would just leave this place.

But the Ains and Mudusella wouldn’t stop trying to get across that mountain range.

And this was something Tiamet was dreadfully afraid of.

The Empire and the Kingdoms wouldn’t sit by and watch.

And even now, there were preparations going on in the Empire.

‘Destruction Cannon.’

Jang Oh muttered to himself as he thought of the hidden weapon underground back in the Empire’s capital.

It had been 800 years since the Ains had been trapped.

They, who had sealed the Ains in fear, always thought of the worst case scenario.

What would happen when the Ain’s seals were released?

What would they try to do once they got released?

And what would happen to the Empire and the Kingdoms because of the Ains.

The natives had constantly worried and prepared about this for the past 800 years and they had even prepared for a situation where the Ains got to the Spirit Land, a place themselves couldn’t enter with ease.

The Ains would try to cross the mountain range but would eventually all get killed before they got there.

Since there was a huge difference between those who had been preparing for 800 years and those who had been in stasis.

“Just join us.”

Hansoo chuckled at Jang Oh’s words.

If he took this offer, he would be safe temporarily.

He would also be able to reduce the deaths by a large amount.

But that meant that their lives will always be under the control of these guys.

The reason why the Empire and the Kingdoms could not move out with ease wasn’t because of the War Fortress.

It was because of the Ains who were slowly gaining back their strength.

And for Hansoo to betray the Ains, who will become his strongest allies, and kill them all?

At that point the balance of power will be broken and there would be nothing they could do when Tiamet decides to kill them all off.

And even so, it was not something he could accept when he needed to receive the Spirit’s powers.

‘Well, at least I got to confirm two things.’

First, Tiamet was very wary of the Ains and the adventurers who could become variables.

Second, that the variable was across that mountain.

‘Let’s see what’s above it then.’

Hansoo looked at Jang Oh after organizing his thoughts.

Since their opinions and situations varied, they could not avoid a collision.

And he wasn’t looking to avoid it anyway.

It was probably the same for Jang Oh as well.

‘Because of our past… I’ll give you an offer as well.’

As Jang Oh gave him a final offer because he pitied Hansoo and the others, this was the final thing Hansoo could do for Jang Oh.

Hansoo steeled himself in order to not show his emotions and then spoke towards Jang Oh in a resolute voice.

Wanting him to accept.

Though he wouldn’t.

“Shall I make a better offer?”

“… What is it?”

Hansoo clenched his spear and spoke.

“Quietly hide until this all ends. Don’t interfere. Then after everything ends we will treat you guys well.”

Keldian had told Hansoo to kill everybody who interferes.

Along with the Dark Lord of this zone, Jang Oh.

But there was something Keldian didn’t know.

He didn’t know how the people below Jang Oh were living their lives.

‘They haven’t done any wrong.’

Jang Oh had decided to shoulder all their sins.

But the moment Jang Oh heard Hansoo’s words, his expression froze.

He could not do such a thing.

This other guy was probably saying this because he thought that he would win in the end.

But his thoughts were different after a long period of watching Tiamet’s strength.

Tiamet would win and this guy would lose.

So before this guy took all of humanity into oblivion, he needed to kill him.

‘You should’ve stopped here.’

Then.

Boooooooooom!

Shadows exploded out from Jang Oh’s body and surrounded him.

Not the cloud-like shadows like the ones he had used so far but rather thick and dark shadows.

And soon a black knight appeared before Hansoo’s eyes.

Whooooosh!

Jang Oh swung across the air with the shield in his right hand.

Towards Hansoo who seemed to have expected all this and had started to thrust with his spear.

Boooooooooom!

The moment the Forked Lightning in Hansoo’s hand collided with the shield, a tremendous explosive sound occurred as a shockwave spread out in all directions.

Veins popped out from Hansoo’s hands.

An attack which carried all his strength behind it.

But the shield had successfully blocked his attack.

‘Tsk. I knew this would happen.’

He was superior in terms of the physical capabilities of his body and in mana.

But his opponent had many cards to play as well.

Boooom!

Boom!

Hansoo’s spear twisted around like a snake then cut across the air towards the black knight.

The attack which could even smash apart a master player arrived in front of the knight but that’s as far as it went.

Jang Oh deflected the attack away with his shield then dispersed his body into fragments of shadows.

Then.

Whooooosh!

A dangerous aura from below his feet.

Hansoo lifted up his feet and dodged away from the shadows that were charging towards him.

The shadow blades that rose out from the shadows below his feet.

Boooooooooom!

Jang Oh, who had been focusing on defense previously, suddenly threw the shield towards Hansoo and Hansoo quickly lifted his spear up in order to block mid-air.

Though he had lost his balance, he was still superior in terms of strength and mana.

But then.

Oooooong!

Jang Oh’s shield made a strange humming noise as it started to let out yellow light.

The moment that yellow light passed by Hansoo.

Shwoooosh!

The Demonic Dragon’s Reinforcement that surrounded Hansoo’s body and his artifacts got shattered apart and the shield smashed towards Hansoo’s bare body.

Booom!

Veins popped out in Hansoo’s arms as he blocked the shield with his spear.

And as Hansoo jumped back after pushing away the shield.

Whooosh!

Hansoo frowned at the chain-like shadows that exploded out from beneath his feet.

‘Dark Spirit. Annoying. That shield too…’

Crunch!

He had ripped apart the chains with brute strength but the shield had succeeded in dodging the spear and smashing into Hansoo’s chest.

Booooooom!

A tremendous amount of force smashed into Hansoo’s chest and Jang Oh didn’t let a single momemt go to waste as he continued to push Hansoo back.

Boom!

Boom!

The surrounding flora all got snapped and broken from the shockwaves as the nearby lake melted due to the collision of mana.

And Hansoo was taking all of these attacks with his bare body.

Booooom!

Every time he got hit, cracks appeared on the Thousand Soldiers Armor and the spear got bent to the point of breaking.

Hansoo smashed the shield which dispersed his mana with the yellow light every time it hit him and jumped back more.

But Jang Oh didn’t let Hansoo do as he pleased as a storm of shadows rushed in towards Hansoo.

‘So this is how it’s like to fight against him.’

He could not tell where the body, skills and weapons were.

It was just all darkness.

He surrounded the entire body with darkness and stormed through.

Cut the enemy’s vision and attack from the shadows.

Endlessly.

Even if he gained the Spirit’s power, he could not do such a thing right now.

This was the accumulation of endless effort.

Jang Oh, who had succeeded in integrating his entire body, all of his skills and his artifacts with the shadow was nothing but a mass of darkness.

A form which did not resemble a human at all.

‘But… He’s still human.’

Boooooooom!

As the yellow light dispersed his mana again and the shadows were about to smash into his body again.

Hansoo spoke.

In a cold manner.

“Michael Dawson. How does it feel to sell out your comrades?”

Then.

Jang Oh stopped in place.

Michael Dawson.

One of the two clan leaders of the Ant Eater clan.

The name that made Jang Oh regret for all of eternity.

— If there is a hell… I’ll be the first one to go there.

‘Jang Oh… Your mentality is way too weak.’

The moment the shadows around Jang Oh’s body trembled.

Crunch!

Hansoo’s spear flew towards Jang Oh’s.