Chapter 271. Revolution (3)

As he fell, Eun-Ho slammed down onto the bird’s saddle, landing hard as if colliding with a blade. The headwind was as fierce as the Razor-Beaked Bird’s speed, forcing him to squint just to keep his eyes open.

Through the shrieking wind, a clattering noise reached his ears.

“Commander!” someone shouted.

“Huh?!”

They were the Skeletons. They were barely holding themselves together, with shoulder bones jammed crudely back into place, and severed shin bones tied together with rope.

Then he spotted Jae-Hyuk, clad in tattered armor, gripping a dented mace like it was something precious. “I came too, Hyungnim!”

“Y-you look—” he muttered.

“My pain-dampening armor broke... but I’m fine!” Jae-Hyuk said quickly.

Up until now, Jae-Hyuk had been able to fight recklessly thanks to Soeju’s armor. Without the armor to dull the pain, he couldn’t imagine how much Jae-Hyuk had endured.

“Doesn’t it hurt?” Eun-Ho asked.

The trauma from childhood, along with the endless fear and pain, had likely been carved into his very flesh. Everything had likely come rushing back.

“Hyungnim, you’re hurt too, aren’t you?” Jae-Hyuk grinned. “Your right-hand man can handle at least this much. I’m still standing!”

Jae-Hyuk was too bright, too determined. Eun-Ho couldn’t bring himself to stop him or send him away. In the end, all he could do was nod. “Alright.”

Soon after, flocks of birds began pouring in from all directions.

“Kiiik!”

“Kiiiik!”

Black birds rose into the red sky all at once, creating a breathtaking sight. Then he saw someone flying in, supported by one of the Skeletons.

Eun-Ho gasped. “Huh?”

It was the assistant instructor, who had collapsed as if he had folded in half. Yet now, he had returned, barely patched up with hurried first aid.

“I can’t let only the students fight,” said the assistant instructor.

“Students?” he echoed.

It wasn’t wrong. After all, both Eun-Ho and the Skeletons had learned from him.

Fragments of earlier voices echoed faintly in his mind.

“You’re a fool! I should have erased you back then!”

“You should have. Instead of trapping me in that hell of time.”

This man, too, had unresolved hatred toward the chairman. It seemed to be a story from a time Eun-Ho didn’t know, a knot the man wanted to tie off himself. Then he should be allowed to.

“Be careful,” Eun-Ho said.

“Umm...” the assistant instructor started.

“Master,” Eun-Ho added.

The instructor froze mid-motion. He had been about to nod, to say something but the word stopped him cold. He seemed to savor it silently, a faint smile forming.

Then, in that very moment, a surge of lava erupted between them, blasting upward like a highway tearing through the air.

Fwoooooosh—!

[Severe burns have been detected!]

[The Armor of the Sun, Kavacha, absorbs part of the impact.]

Thanks to the Razor-Beaked Bird reacting first, Eun-Ho managed to evade it, though barely. Though it only grazed him, his Stamina still dropped sharply.

“How dare you...” the Dragon growled. Its blood-red eyes rolled back in fury. It seemed shocked or even enraged that its blood was spilt. “I will tear you to pieces.”

Its breath transformed into a blazing pillar, shooting forward like a storm of spears.

“I will chew you up myself.”

With each inhale, it dragged the flock of birds into a violent wind. Then, with each exhale, it spewed molten lava. Even wounded, it dominated the skies in every direction, as if it was his own domain.

“I will not leave even a single thread of what you’ve built.”

Eun-Ho’s team couldn’t even gather together, let alone coordinate an attack. All they could do was entrust themselves to the birds’ instincts and speed, waiting for the right moment.

“Pretty sure that’s not something a naked exhibitionist lizard should be saying.” Just then, Eun-Ho heard Swear-Master’s loud, grating voice. “Wait, was that wrinkled hide supposed to be clothes? Looked like a damn trash bag to me!”

Is that really Swear-Master? Eun-Ho wondered.

Clinging desperately to the wildly bucking bird, Swear-Master hurled endless insults.

“Which lunatic dares wag his tongue so—” the Dragon began.

“Too much fat on your neck to turn your head? I’m behind you, you damn oversized lizard bastard!” Swear-Master shot back.

Each curse seemed to spit out dark, murky smoke. The disconcerting smoke crept along the Dragon’s tail, scales, and up toward its neck.

Tzzzzzzzzzt—!

At last, the smoke forced its way deep into the Dragon’s ears. Then, with a sickening tearing sound, the red Dragon’s cheek visibly shrank.

That’s Swear-Master’s ability, Insult.

[39.9%]

The Dragon’s Stamina, which was already below half, dropped further by two percent.

[37.9%]

Hadn’t that skill originally shaved off ten percent?

However, this was an Ancient Dragon that had reached the realm of gods. Of course it wouldn’t be that effective.

“W-what did you just say?! I’ll rip you apart!” the Dragon roared.

It was the ultimate taunt, a provocation so potent it could draw the fury of even a divine Dragon.

“Skeleton Knight Order!” Eun-Ho shouted.

Others would laugh it off as a trivial ability, but Swear-Master put his life on the line to execute it. In that case, Eun-Ho was ready to make use of it.

“All units! Formation!” he commanded.

In the fleeting opening created by Swear-Master, the scattered Skeleton Knights converged.

“What?!” the Dragon snapped.

Eun-Ho took the lead, with the assistant instructor and Jae-Hyuk right behind him. Skeleton Knights Number One and Two stood behind them. Then, more followed in pairs, spacing out gradually as they lined up.

“You insect-like wretches! I will wipe you all out!” the Dragon snarled.

All of them combined into a single arrow, like a school of sardines so vast even sharks would avoid them.

“Try it if you can,” Eun-Ho said.

“Do you think I can’t?!” the Dragon bellowed.

They carved a silver path through the empty sky.

“You insignificant pests! I can simply start over again!” it roared.

Gripping the reins, Eun-Ho stared straight at the raging Dragon ahead. “Charge!”

He kicked off the bird’s side and launched forward. Then, like diving seabirds hunting prey, the Skeleton Knights surged ahead as one.

Swoosh—!

When lava flew toward them, the arrowhead split apart. When claws struck, they cut them down with a dozen arcs of Sword Force. Their distance shifted and their speed adapted, but their direction never changed. They flew only toward the Dragon’s head.

“The company exists because of me!” the Dragon declared.

Now, they were right in front of it. Its bloodshot eyes rolled back, swelling until they were as large as its entire frame.

“Without me, there is no company!” it roared.

“Hey, Chairman,” he called out. “This is something office workers where I come from like to say, but even without you, the company will keep running.”

“Nonsense!” the Dragon spat.

That applies to the boss, too, Eun-Ho thought.

“I guess that’s a fitting last line for your way out.”

The final thing reflected in the Red Dragon’s pupils was the blue gleam of Sword Force.

Craaaack—!

The Sky-Shattering Blade drove in. Dozens of blades all pierced into the sky.

“Counterattack!” Eun-Ho shouted.

“Counterattack!” his team echoed.

They were ready to crush, shatter, and break the Ancient Dragon that had reached the realm of gods, the system that had solidified over countless years, and the oppression everyone had accepted as inevitable.

[All of your Resistance Points have been consumed.]

[Accumulated damage has been converted into attack power.]

Crack—

Fractures spread across the Dragon’s bones. Blinding light burst forth, and just before his vision was consumed, a gray system window appeared.

[System Error!]

[Error Code: 0]

[Rebooting...]

Those were the only words left behind, as the world turned completely red.

[The axis of time is twisting.]

[The clock of the abandoned begins to move.]

[The Trial Compass guides the wanderer.]

...

Fwoooosh—!

Heaven and earth exploded and the clockwork rewound itself.

Tick—

***

In the beginning, there was light. Its first memory was of blazing sunlight and thick, sticky liquid, along with two humans.

“It sprouted! It really sprouted!” one of them had exclaimed.

“What? Seriously?!” the other had asked in disbelief.

One had chestnut-colored curls, still fresh and bright like a newly sprouted seedling. The other, with black hair, gave off a far fiercer impression.

“It’s so small though! Are you sure this is a Drosera seed?”

“Uh yeah, I think so. I even poured potion instead of water so it would grow faster.”

Drosera was a fragile predator of the jungle, a plant that mimicked surrounding vegetation to lure in foolish prey before devouring it.

“W-wait! It’s... it’s turning into something like me!” the curly-haired one had shouted.

Among countless Drosera, it couldn’t understand why it alone had awakened intelligence. Perhaps it was because it had ended up in their hands. Either way, it didn’t matter. Its time with them hadn’t been unpleasant.

Then, time had passed.

“A declaration of independence?”

“Yeah. This counts as independence for us too.”

They planned independence from the company’s oppression. Hearing that, the Drosera began to wonder. Could it achieve independence as well? Instead of parasitizing others by copying their bodies, could it one day have a form and power of its own?

However, in the end, those hopes proved meaningless.

“... It’s all over. Please... Stay safe everyone. Let’s meet again. Here.”

The rebellion failed and countless lives were lost.

“The sinner will be sentenced to erasure.”

From the Pathfinder—who had brought them together, saved them, and led them onward—many were deleted, taken for experiments, or tortured.

“Drosera... That seems to be a useful ability.”

It was no different for this man, as he could not stand on his own, rooted helplessly to the land.

“Reflect on your sins while serving the company for eternity.”

After that, an immeasurable amount of time passed. There was no regret. Its emotions wore away, and its memories faded.

At times, it even wondered if it had been born and raised here from the very beginning. Like a withered, ancient tree, time passed meaninglessly without markers. Until one day, a human poured water onto a sprout long since dried up.

“You’re not a doppelgänger, are you?”

***

In the beginning, there was a path, a soft dirt road, a trail woven from straw, a smooth wooden deck, and a stone bridge that had to be crossed at a run. The countless paths he had seen upon first earning the title of Pathfinder stretched out before him once more.

With a ripple, his soul floated into the air. Below him, he saw himself walking along the path.

What is this?

Endless roads extended into the distance, lined with faint, pale curtains of light. Everything was similar to when he had once glimpsed that child’s memories.

Then the owner of these memories is...

However, this time, something felt different. There was the warmth in the air, the scent of crumbling grass and a faint, aching sense of longing.

His heart throbbed, an unexplainable tension tightening his chest. He then stepped toward the nearest curtain.

With another ripple, countless lives appeared along the roadside.

“Why did you let yourself get caught?! You should’ve run!”

“They were chasing me relentlessly. I had no choice.”

“That’s a lie! If you really wanted to, you could’ve run to the ends of the world!”

Among them stood a black-haired man, bound tightly with rope. He was a rebel who tried to overturn the system, like a bone growing in reverse.

“You foolish Rebel. I will punish every single one who follows you.” The chairman’s presence bore down mercilessly even on a wounded enemy. He looked down at the kneeling man. “I will impose a penalty that cannot be repaid even after eternity.”

His eyes gleamed, sharp and cold like a reptile’s. “You will neither live nor die. You will spend that time serving only the prosperity of the company for the very company you despised so much.”

His declaration rang out as if commanding heaven and earth. Then, a sickening smile spread across his face, which gave people shivers.

However, the kneeling man lifted his head instead. His gaze was unwavering and unshaken. His lips parted and then, their voices overlapped.

“I...”

***

In the beginning, there was land, a barren wasteland, abandoned as useless. The chairman built a house there on land that resembled him all too well.

The house became a village. The village became a city. The city demanded more land. Then, houses became buildings. Finally, buildings became skyscrapers that reached toward the sky itself.

“I will make you into gods,” he had declared.

It was a progress toward a higher stage. Therefore, all who lived on that land had to obey. They had to serve only the prosperity of the company because that was how it was supposed to be.

“I...” The kneeling man was bound with rope all over, even around his neck. “I will not die.”

Even if his flesh disappeared from this place, his soul would never perish. He said it with the same eyes as the insect now standing before the chairman.

A chill spread throughout the chairman. As the ominous realization pierced its mind, his eyes snapped open. “Lee Eun-Ho!”

However, his vision had already been flooded with a cold blue light. The Sword Force tore through his sight, plunging deep into his bones, where it collided with dozens of converging strikes.

Craaaaack—!

The roar of the Heavenly Dragon came to an abrupt halt.