Chapter 98: Orange Zone (4)

---

‘What does he have for him to act like this?’

Ken, who had seen Sofía’s expression, flinched a little bit but then quickly loosened up.

‘There’s no reason to get scared.’

And he wasn’t alone.

“Do you think that this is the Red Zone? Don’t interfere with our work.”

Ken, who had sent a carrier pigeon saying that he had found one of the Departed Souls somewhere, shrugged his shoulders as he spoke.

Ken had seen a lot of things in the past year while roaming around the Orange Zone.

He had seen a countless amounts of scenes but ironically the scene that left the strongest impression on him was the first thing he had seen when he came up.

It wasn’t the giant Margoth.

The important thing was what happened afterwards.

Which was the reason for their wait here.

“Don’t get in the way and just watch.”

Ken, who had muttered while looking at Sofía, looked at his comrades running towards the newcomers for their plan.

***

“Hoo… that was terrifying.”

The captain of the tracking team of Triple Lights Union, Epilen, sighed in relief as the giant lifeform made booming noises and walked off.

‘Let’s see.’

Epilen looked at his surroundings and then frowned slightly.

‘As I expected… They all separated.’

They had all been separated due to the strong current that occurred along with the light.

But Epilen shrugged his shoulders.

‘Well. It wouldn’t matter much.’

Epilen looked around after sending a carrier pigeon to his clansmen to tell them of his location.

People who were so-so compared to him, the captain of the tracking team of Three Lights Union, but had the rights to come up.

‘Well. It wouldn’t be that boring on the way at least.’

Since he could just order these guys around.

“Hey! Over there!”

“Hmm? Me?”

Epilen, who had shouted towards the middle-aged man who still hadn’t completely waken up, smashed the man’s stomach.

Smack

“Kuhuk!”

“This bastard. Go scout around the surroundings. You and you over there too.”

The man, who had been hit in the stomach for no apparent reason, grinded his teeth in pain.

Why did this guy order him around when they weren’t even from the same clan?

But the man saw the symbol of the person who had smacked him and then grinded his teeth because he knew that he couldn’t retaliate.

‘Fuck… Triple Lights Union.’

The amount of strength he had was quite a lot but the Six Pillars was not something he could go up against.

‘Damned bastards… They were oppressive below but still are after they come up…’

But there was nothing he could do.

“You thought something would change when we came up? Come on. Let’s hurry.”

The strong will get stronger and the gap between them and the weak will only get larger.

The fact that the rich get richer and the poor poorer didn’t change in this world either.

Epilen looked at the giant creature which had puked him out after ordering a few guys after smacking them a few more times.

Kuooooooo

‘…Amazing.’

He was laughing before but his mind wasn’t at ease either.

How could his mind be at ease if such a large, dinosaur-like creature was roaming around?

It was even worse because he had seen the chaos created by the Ouroboros and the Calamity Fish below.

While all of Epilen’s consciousness was focused on the giant creature, a sharp and deadly aura sniped him.

‘What?’

Booom!

A black arrow flew in from the distance and then smashed Epilen.

With extreme speed and accuracy.

Epilen could only receive a hit without even being able to activate a single skill due to this.

‘Kuhu… Damnit. Who was it?’

Epilen stumbled as he quickly caught his balance.

He then looked towards the direction where the person who attacked him was.

A familiar face.

Epilen thought for a while as to where he had seen the person who had attacked him and then clicked his tongue

“Look at this?”

“It’s been a while Epilen.”

A person which he didn’t even remember the name of.

But he could think actually think of one thing.

That the bastard over there had hurriedly ran over to the Orange Zone to get out of his hands.

He was extremely let down when that guy had ran into the mirror while he was hunting.

Epilen couldn’t go after and catch him because he was enjoying the Red Zone and had no thoughts of heading up.

Though he had repaid it all onto his lover.

But for him to act this confidently after just eight months.

It wasn’t like he was playing around in the Red Zone.

Epilen loosened up his body.

“I regretted not being able to catch you then, this is good.”

He needed someone who knew well about this world anyway so this was good.

A person would at least know the basics no matter how weak they were if they’ve been here for 8 months.

‘I just need to leave his mouth intact.’

Gitae laughed coldly as he charged towards Epilen.

***

Ken thought of last year.

The group of people which had specifically targeted the strong people of the Six Pillars as soon as they crossed over.

The Six Pillars and the Twelve Roots who acted without knowing how high the sky was were sliced apart.

They had first thought that these guys wanted to massacre them and steal their artifacts and skills so they had been frightened but these guys checked their list and then walked off.

— Meh. You aren’t on the list. live well and don’t make grudges with others.

And then Ken found out their identity after roaming around the Orange Zone for the past year.

They weren’t some incredible guys.

Actually they were people who were similar to him.

‘Those who had been chased up.’

Those who had ruled around the Red Zone thought that 1 to 2 years of difference was okay so they stayed behind in the Red Zone.

To compensate for the hard times they’ve had.

In order to enjoy.

And during that time they trample upon others and have a joyful time.

And those who get trampled by these guys run to the Orange Zone in order to survive.

Like himself.

That abrupt choice, and because of this choice the gap between these two people in two different zones get larger.

Though it was the same time, the difference of how fast one got strong in the Red and the Orange zone was like heaven and earth.

Those who couldn’t deal with the tyranny of the Six Pillars or the Twelve Roots and then barely fulfill the requirements to come here will struggle in order to survive while those in the Red Zone laze about.

And get stronger at a speed a speed befitting that.

Ken was like that too.

Ken had some thoughts while looking at himself getting stronger at a quick rate.

Though he had gotten here first and was getting stronger, once Amil Stadan, who had been chasing him, got here then he would get stronger here as well.

No, since he had gotten strong fast in the Red Zone there was a high chance that he will get stronger than him once he got to the Orange Zone and had some time.

And since these guys were people who had been close below, they will send out carrier pigeons even if they were separated for just a moment and bunch up again.

Ken knew after thinking to this point.

Why the others had caused a huge massacre near the Margoth.

The moment when the Margoth was spitting them out.

If it was now then it was possible.

These guys will get separated because of the dimensional current of the Mirror.

And they would be confused by the existence of something like the Margoth and would have been weakened too.

Those guys were at Orange Rune 0.01.

They were over 30% because they had hunted for a whole year.

Amil Stadan of the old days was something Ken had trouble even looking at.

But Ken was confident now.

That he could smash Amil Stadan 99 out of 100 times if they fought now.

Ken thought up to this point and then went to search them out.

In order to participate in the revenge.

People who had gathered in order to return the pain they had received in the Red Zone.

No, it was actually people who had gathered to cut off the roots.

While they hated them this much, the people who came up wouldn’t really like them either.

And when those guys got strong again then the thing that happened below will just repeat itself.

Because of this they had to cut off their necks in this period where the door opened once a month.

So it was a group that that gathered once a month.

Ken stared at the participants who were causing a massacre all around.

***

“You son of a bitch! Did you really think you will be able to live long after killing my friend?”

“Die! You bastard! You didn’t know that things would turn out like this!”

There was chaos everywhere.

As soon as the Margoth made some distance from them the people who had been on standby had assaulted the clansmen.

Epilen was part of the people who had been swept over by this tidal wave.

Epilen couldn’t believe the reality.

‘This is insane… It has only been 8 months.’

Epilen, who had both his arms smashed apart, looked at the person charging at him with an expression of disbelief.

And Gitae was bleeding in front of that Epilen but was in a much better state than Epilen.

Epilen grinded his teeth and the shouted to his surroundings.

“You bastards! What are you doing! Help out!”

As the people were watching from the side with an awkward expression, Gitae shouted out coldly.

“If you aren’t part of this then don’t butt in! This has nothing to do with you! Look! Our targets are just these guys!”

Then the people who had been looking at this situation realized that those words were true and quickly backed off.

They knew even after looking at it for a bit.

That the people who were charging at them were precisely charging at their targets only.

And there was no reason why those from the Six Pillars or the Twelve Roots who were getting attacked would look as people who should get saved to them.

No, it actually felt rather good.

The fact that people who had been oppressing them and were acting arrogantly had gotten beaten up and sliced apart.

“This damned…”

Epilen made an expression of despair as he looked at Gitae slowly walking towards him.

***

Ken, who had been invigorated from the massacre that was happening all around, smirked at Sophia.

This place was a very honest world.

In some way, much more than the modern society they used to live at.

In society, once a gap was created between then closing that gap was almost impossible.

Like how no matter how much a normal businessman made, they wouldn’t be able to get richer than the landlord who just laid about lazily.

But this place was different.

The moment they get strong and relax, a chance is created for those who struggle.

The people dying off over there was the evidence for that.

Those guys had looked amazing when they were below but it was different once they had gotten up here.

‘You guys are just… Departed Souls. Just a title.’

Their attitude was the problem and not the strength.

One would get left behind even by just lazing around for 1 or 2 years.

Those who had been lazing for 8 to 9 years would be even further back.

Those who had come in the Otherworld at the same time as the Departed Souls could probably kill off the Departed Souls with just a press of their thumb.

At that time a Carrier Pigeon flew towards Ken.

‘The reply to the carrier pigeon before had come.’

One couldn’t look over every Margoth mouth in this wide open area.

So they shared the information.

When a person on the list came into view, they would either send a carrier pigeon to those who had grudges against them.

Or kill them for them instead.

There were a few carrier pigeons belonging to the Six Pillars out of those flying above but most of them were theirs.

There were two things written on those carrier pigeons.

First, that they had found Amil Stadan whom he had grudges against.

Second.

‘Sofía Vergara… You got onto the list too huh.’

While Ken was mumbling, Sofía’s eyes squinted in an instant.

The status of him changed on her trait

From passive to hostile.

Though he wasn’t showing it from the outside, he would charge in as soon as he got the chance to.

‘Look at this kid.’

She didn’t have such a bad temper to the point where she would beat them down because she had been ignored but hostility was a different story.

Though she wanted to turn him into frozen tuna right now but causing a face to face fight the moment she came up was a bit unattractive to her.

Since the aura of those charging weren’t average.

‘And we haven’t understood the situation completely yet either.’

And another thing.

‘This Hansoo guy had a plan I think.’

It might’ve been different if she was acting alone but once you had comrades, you couldn’t act any way you wanted.

Sofía tapped Hansoo with her elbow as she whispered.

“What are you going to do?”

Hansoo looked at Ken in front of him at those words.