Novel Full Chapter 552
Chapter 552
The autopsy of Gregory’s chief secretary, who had been turned into a living puppet, left Se-Hoon with two distinct doubts.
First, how could a high-ranking hero who possesses extraordinary physical and mental resilience succumb so easily to the transformation? And second, why hadn’t Baek-Yeon’s Revelation warned them even once when so many were turning into living puppets?
Some new technique explains the first, but the second… things just don’t add up.
No matter how minor, Baek-Yeon’s prophecy had always struck like an arrow the moment a threat to humanity’s future emerged. Although the criteria for a “threat” had always been ambiguous, Puppeteer’s malice had been so blatantly broadcast.
Yet no warning whatsoever? Feeling like it was disturbingly out of place, Se-Hoon hadn’t blindly charged into conflict with Puppeteer and instead bought time to uncover the truth—thus leading to the barrier.
Woong!
Shielded from Puppeteer, mankind gained the time to observe the strange changes occurring among fellow humans. And it was during that period that the true culprit had shown itself.
Not beneath the earth, not upon it, and not even in the sky. It was past the sky itself: a puppet moon, drifting in outer space.
Anyone who looked up at the moon in the night sky—at Lunatic—would suddenly gain indescribable knowledge. However, that knowledge was something only high-ranking heroes, who had tempered their bodies and souls over long years, could comprehend.
That’s…
Could it be…?
The method of transcending bodily limits and elevating the soul to new heights—at a glance, of course, that was purely bizarre and suspicious. It was something that they would have distrusted outright.
However, that was only in the past. Experiencing resurrection through the Blessing of the Eternal and soul refinement through the Blessing of the Sacred Lantern, the heroes no longer found such a thing as alien.
If the Blessing of the Eternal frees me from physical constraints…
If the Blessing of the Sacred Lantern further refines my soul…
The knowledge whispered by Lunatic easily masqueraded as enlightenment, catching the heroes that tirelessly trained to attain it in its grasp. Then, when their thirst for enlightenment unconsciously activated the Law of Repentance…
Woong-
All new laws were twisted to follow Puppeteer’s blueprint, mutating the heroes’ bodies and souls into living puppets.
They observed the fake moon with the Blessing of Prevision, absorbed the knowledge to the brink, and then let the Blessing of the Eternal and Blessing of the Sacred Lantern refine their bodies and souls.
Because the transformations were begun by the heroes themselves, neither body nor mind resisted. At that point, without them even realizing it, Puppeteer had turned them into another living puppet among her countless.
“…”
Se-Hoon looked up at Lunatic, which was staring down at him.
How many had inherited Puppeteer’s knowledge before he deployed the barrier? Considering the moon was one of the few constants that existed even before the emergence of the Towers of Heroes, becoming a familiar presence to all. Worst case, potentially billions—maybe even all of humanity—had already been exposed.
“Hehehe…”
Lunatic sneered grotesquely at Se-Hoon, gazing down through the now-closing sky. It was undeniable that Puppeteer had struck precisely at humanity’s weakness: their failure to fully systematize the blessings. With just one move, Puppeteer may have already won the war against humanity.
…No, it’s not over yet.
It took time to fully transform a hero into a living puppet. There was a reason Puppeteer had disguised the contamination device as the moon and waited. So, for her to have gone public with the living puppets a week ago, it meant she had finally completed her preparations.
And yet, she hadn’t made any more moves.
There’s only one thing that means.
The power of Se-Hoon’s hastily developed barrier had most likely proven itself to be more devastating to Puppeteer’s plans than anyone could have imagined.
“Terra.”
“Yes!”
Terra’s vibrant voice instantly echoed in response, seemingly resonating across the entire planet. From just that, it was as though she had become one with the planet itself.
Turning to look at her, the one who had perfected the Planetary Reinforcement Project, Se-Hoon seriously asked, “Do you think you can do exactly what I just thought of?”
“…!”
Connected through the Sphere, their thoughts were linked. There was no need for explanations for Terra to understand both the current situation and Se-Hoon’s bold new plan.
This won’t be easy…
Terra hesitated, wondering if she could pull it off. The plan was so audacious that others might panic upon hearing it. However, precisely because it was bold, that may make it the key to overturning the situation.
“You’re suggesting this because you believe I can do it… right?”
“Of course.”
There was no hesitation in Se-Hoon’s voice—and that was enough to sweep away the last lingering doubts in Terra’s heart. For someone like her especially, someone who had inherited the Seeker’s mindset, trusting someone else’s judgment unconditionally like that was far from easy.
“Then I can do this.”
However, there was one person in the world for whom that was possible: the man in front of her.
He was the one who made up her other half, the ideal that she must reach someday.
[A bond has been successfully established with the subject ‘—’.]
[The bond with ‘—’ has grown to Lv. 2.]
[Since the bond has grown to Lv.2, a Relationship has been established. Your Relationship with ‘—’ is currently ‘Ideal’.]
[Relationship: Ideal]
[An ideal is an unattainable dream, an irreplaceable and eternal longing. Some may call it an unending nightmare, while others an eternal chain. However, should one continue to pursue it, the bond with their ideal will never break.
*A Fatestone is created whenever the subject gets closer to their ideal.
*The maturation rate of the Fatestone increases whenever the subject dreams of their ideal.
*Currently created Fatestones: 1]
The achievement messages flashed before Se-Hoon’s eyes. Though he’d seen similar ones countless times even before regressing, the ones before him now felt profoundly different.
After all, they were proof that Terra—once merely the Seeker’s avatar—had finally defined herself to become truly human.
Why is the name blank… ah, right. She’s never actually been given a real name.
Even though everyone naturally called her “Terra,” that was merely a designation for the planetary control system the Seeker had created long ago. So, with her having broken free from that completely, and having never once considered “Terra” her true name, it made sense that the record showed a blank.
“Hm… Terra.”
“Yes?”
“When all this is over, let’s pick a real name for you. Something prettier and better than the one the Seeker just slapped together.”
Those words made Terra’s eyes grow round with surprise before she quickly nodded with a radiant smile.
“Yes! I’ll look forward to it!”
And with that, the Netherworld’s night sky returned to normal as the temporarily lifted barrier once again enveloped the world. To the outside eye, little had changed. However, with the secret of the living puppets and the location of Puppeteer’s base exposed, there was now no longer any need to prolong the standoff.
We have… almost no time left.
Besides, Puppeteer had likely taken the past week to prepare. In contrast, they—humanity—were only now scrambling to react.
Still, that didn’t mean Se-Hoon thought much about which side had the upper hand.
“Well, we’re still the ones with the leisure.”
Because no matter the situation, the side with the regressor that had been preparing for decades would always have the upper hand.
***
A blue planet drifted in vast space, more than half of it swallowed by the black sludge of the Abyss of Demons. As for the rest, that side was barely enduring behind white walls and multicolored barriers. Altogether though, the blue planet made for a mystical, grotesque sight that would’ve left any human from decades ago speechless.
“I don’t know if I should call them persistent or just plain annoying…. They certainly know how to survive,” Tuner murmured, observing from within Lunatic.
Since the emergence of the Towers of Heroes fifty-five years ago, humanity had teetered on the brink. The Abyss of Demons constantly spewed malice, seeking their destruction, while the Tower of Heroes merely watched and offered trials only to those who entered.
Honestly, it was almost strange that they hadn’t become extinct. But despite the odds, they’d survived—and now even sought to wipe out their predators.
Maybe… their extinction isn’t even possible anymore.
If that were true, then what would become of the survivors? Contemplating countless possibilities, Tuner eventually chuckled and just brushed them all aside. In his opinion, trying to understand the chaotic world from a chair was meaningless theory-crafting.
From here on, whether we succeed or fail, we’ll have to move.
Perhaps Puppeteer had sensed the truth instinctively when she suddenly acted without Tuner’s advice.
A shame, in a way.
Propping his chin on one hand, Tuner began musing—
Boom!
The door slammed open to reveal a massive lion beastman with a chaotic blend of black and white fur—now overall gray—standing at the threshold, face twisted in rage.
“Tuner… you bastard.”
Clang-
His bristling mane clashed like blades; sinister winds and black sludge burst from underfoot; the living natural disaster known as the Beast King roared with fury.
Yet Tuner didn’t even glance his way.
“Out of meds already? I told you not to eat those when you’re hungry…”
“Why did you give her the Origin?”
Tuner paused.
“…So that’s why you’re here?”
“What else! That was supposed to be mine! I should’ve become the next Harbinger of Destruction, not that freak!” Beast King fumed, angry at being sidelined.
“Oh~? You’re really saying you should’ve become the next Harbinger of Destruction?”
“Yeah! Who else—”
“If you had really become a Harbinger of Destruction, could you make something like that show of hers?”
“…”
“If you really think you can, I’ll give it to you instead. Unlike you, she doesn’t care much about who gets the Harbinger Shard. So? Can you?”
The Beast King clenched his fists, lips twitching with a response. It was only after a long silence that he finally muttered through gritted teeth, “I… can’t.”
“Of course you can’t. That’s the limit of the vessel I gave you.”
With frigid eyes, the Tuner stared at Beast King, who was trembling in shame and rage.
“L-105. Don’t overstep. Got it?”
“…Got it.”
Spitting out those words, Beast King stormed off.
“Tsk, that was my only successful specimen too…. How embarrassing.”
Maybe it was because he’d seen Se-Hoon’s recent masterpiece, but Tuner felt more bitter than usual as he pondered over whether it was time to start again.
“…Hm?”
He sensed something strange. Noting the presence rising from beneath, he instinctively looked down—
BOOM!
A pure white pillar pierced straight through Lunatic: a Tower of Heroes had turned into a colossal spear from Earth.