Chapter 42: Spectacle

Chapter 42: Chapter 42: Spectacle

Like flies, the Penitents of the Mist fell one after another. As the minutes passed, not a single one remained alive, and Victor was left kneeling among all the corpses. He was breathing heavily, barely able to move. No, in fact, he couldn’t move at all.

Every muscle in his body had become a source of pain, for he had overused the powers he had only just obtained. This was the price he had to pay for a little power.

Just as the description of the Ironclad Defense skill stated, it consumed a tremendous amount of stamina every time it was used. Considering how much he had abused it, it was a miracle Victor was still conscious.

’I can’t take this anymore...’

He gathered what little willpower he had left and tried to stand up, but the slightest movement sent him crashing face-first to the ground, unconscious.

The darkness of his subconscious filled his mind, mixing with all the emotions that had overwhelmed him over the past few minutes. It felt like a spiral of absolute chaos in which only he and whatever it was that surrounded his power existed.

Then, a moment later, he opened his eyes. His body was buried in dust, with barely his face sticking out. He immediately sat up as he felt the powerful impact of the dusty gale.

He instinctively closed his mouth and shielded his face with his arm, but raised his eyebrows in curiosity, as his eyes were safe behind his aviator goggles.

At the same time, his cloak struggled to remain wrapped around his body, while powerful white lightning bolts briefly illuminated the darkness at intervals.

Each flash revealed the silhouettes of houses through the black mist and, in the distance, the immense outline of a mysterious structure with several different "peaks."

’Damn it. The storm...’

Fortunately, he was better equipped this time than when he had opened the door and nearly swallowed all the dust that had blown into the house. Although every speck of dust striking his body felt like the gentle prick of a needle, he could endure it thanks to his new clothes.

Thus, he stood up and pressed forward into the darkness. He cared little about the corpses he had left behind or the potential raw materials he could have obtained from them. At that moment, he was focused on his goal, and nothing could make him stray from it.

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Further ahead, Victor settled into one of the houses to sort through what he had managed to keep after killing the Penitents of the Mist during his breakdown.

Sitting on the floor beside the door, he held his breath as he finally saw what the System window had shown him during his fight. He was being watched right now, and that was no small matter.

"Gods...?"

He looked up at the ceiling, genuinely annoyed.

[The god "Fisher of Opportunities" thinks your reaction is quite amusing.]

[The god "Serpent That Bites Its Own Tail" wants you to spill more blood.]

[The god "Serpent That Bites Its Own Tail" wants you to go out and kill more Penitents.]

[A nameless god watching you in silence frowns.]

Victor turned his gaze back to the window, making sure they really were watching him.

To be honest, he had no idea how to react to this. He knew the gods had been watching him from the very beginning, but now that they had explicitly revealed themselves in the System window, it all felt like some sick joke...

It felt like an insult.

"You... you damn bastards."

[The god "Serpent That Bites Its Own Tail" laughs at your adorable vocabulary.]

[The god "Fisher of Opportunities" finds your attempt at an insult entertaining.]

Victor gritted his teeth in genuine annoyance. He stood up and, without taking his back off the wall, punched the wooden surface, cracking it in the process.

"I’m not your spectacle! Leave me alone!"

[A nameless god suggests that you calm down and look for options.]

[A nameless god says you can still overcome this predicament.]

[The god "Fisher of Opportunities" agrees with the nameless god.]

[The god "Fisher of Opportunities" says it’s time to fish for opportunities.]

With a heavy sigh, Victor slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor again.

[The god "Serpent That Bites Its Own Tail" says your break time is over.]

’Seriously... Are these idiots actually supposed to be gods?’