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Chapter 186: Star, Execution Sword (2)

Jin hated—no, he loathed assassins the most in the world because they didn’t even have the courage to reveal their faces. As the former heir of the Prezia Family—the most prestigious noble family in Arcadia—Jin had learned to lead people and naturally acquired the belief that he should never forget about honor and pride.

Hence, Jin couldn’t and didn’t even want to understand assassins. That was why he was looking at Czestochowa, who disguised herself as Mireille Aliano, with contempt.

“You’re quite good. I never expected the Tyrant to have such a skilled summon… Tailing him was certainly the right choice.” Czestochowa giggled, standing on the edge of a sharp thorn on the heart wall.

Clang, clank, clink!

The more she giggled, the more the dozens of masks, which were spread like a curtain behind her, collided with each other and created noises.

[The ‘Laughing Demon Face’ is smirking at the enemy!]

[The ‘Crying Demon Face’ is sad because the enemy is about to die soon!]

[The ‘Sulking Demon Face’ is very irritated because the enemy is still alive!]

…

Czestochowa fixed her grip on her dagger after wiping her lips with her thumb. Having received an order from her Guardian ‘Big Sick Bug,’ she came all the way here in pursuit of the [Seven Cryptical Book of Hsan]. She faced unforeseen incidents in the process, but she still rejoiced so much that she felt goosebumps all over her body several times.

She initially thought this mission would be easy, but she was proven wrong. The desert train had left by the time her encounter with Chang-Sun and Jaegal Hyeon-Ryong had finished, so she had to pull out the [Contorted Doggaebi Face], her best [Demon Face]. It gave her the ability to use [Doggaebi Play], which allowed her to transform into someone she had killed by using their skin.

Thanks to this ability, Czestochowa could assassinate Mireille, who was the [Fifth Cryptical Book of Hsan]’s original owner, and use her skin to act like her. Since Czestochowa was acting based on the memories left in Mireille’s body, Czestochowa’s disguise was so perfect that even Henri Bosque, her lover, didn’t notice it. No, it didn’t seem to be absolutely perfect.

‘Lee Chang-Sun seemed to have already detected me before I revealed myself.’?Czestochowa narrowed her eyes.

Czestochowa cautiously tailed Chang-Sun by making Henri and Nicolas Pouquet take the lead, but he didn’t react at all. He didn’t even seem to care when he noticed her and Henri following him into the ‘Rhaegaren.’ Hence, she couldn’t help but wonder.

At that moment, she realized that perhaps this was all according to Chang-Sun’s plan—that he had expected Czestochowa would follow him, so he had led her into a Hidden Stage where nobody would be except them.

‘That has to be it.’?Czestochowa nodded.

For as long as she was chasing after the cryptical books, she had to shadow Chang-Sun. Despite knowing that, Chang-Sun still lured her here, so she couldn’t help but love how cautious and confident he was. However, she also couldn’t help but think that she had to kill him here and now.

‘Considering he’s already this strong even though it has been less than a year since he became a Player, he would probably be as strong as an Overlord already in a year. No, I’m sure he would be.’?Czestochowa’s eyes turned sharp. ‘What else could be more thrilling than crushing a growing sprout?’

She was about to use the Concealment Skill and assassinate Chang-Sun after taking out Henri, but Chang-Sun’s summon pounced on her first, interrupting and starting a fight with her.

‘I have to get rid of him quickly.’?Czestochowa frowned.

She planned to personally teach Chang-Sun’s annoying summon what true fear was. Under normal circumstances, the summon would’ve been her perfect toy, but she had to focus on assassinating Chang-Sun. Her Guardian was throwing a tantrum as well, ordering her to bring him the cryptical book as soon as possible, so she had no time to play around.

[The Celestial ‘Big Sick Bug’ is urging you to end it quickly because this fight is becoming boring.]

‘If I have a chance to take care of him too…’?Czestochowa massaged her face, casually having thoughts that no other apostle would dare to have.

Click!

[The ‘Contorted Doggaebi Face’ exudes ferocity!]

Mireille’s face disappeared when the mask adjusted, and a bizarrely contorted face appeared in its place. Since the mask was dark red, she looked as if she had become angry.

[Your madness is getting out of control!]

[The persona hidden under your subconscious has appeared.]

The [Contorted Doggaebi Face] wasn’t scary just because it enabled Czestochowa to transform into the people that she had killed. It was actually very minor among the abilities that the Doggaebi Faces had. Drawing out one’s unconscious, which was located at the lowest level of one’s soul, was their most important feature.

[Demon Faces] represented the skill user’s personas, which meant Czestochowa’s [Laughing Demon Face] was molded based on her happily laughing face, and her [Crying Demon Face] was based on her crying face.

On the other hand, her [Doggabi Faces] were based on her real personality, so putting on one of them strengthened her instincts, which were full of impulses. Unable to think rationally anymore, she was left with murderous intent as her only drive. She could draw out her power to the maximum as a result, becoming an Aberration. That was why the mask she was currently wearing was called ‘Doggaebi.’ The one fighting right now was a Doggaebi, so her way of fighting ought to be called ‘Doggaebi Play.’

[The Skill ‘Doggaebi Play’ has been activated!]

Paah!

Czestochowa disappeared and showed up right under Jin’s nose in a flash.

「…!」

Jin hurriedly leaned backward, but Czestochowa was quicker with the rapier in her right hand. Like an artist drawing a dot with a brush, she threw the rapier toward Jin’s forehead.

[The Skill ‘Single Red Dot’ has been activated!]

Swoosh!

The moment Czestochowa activated her signature skill, Jin instinctively sensed imminent danger and, instead of counterattacking, turned his head in the opposite direction. Unable to avoid her attack completely, he suffered a deep cut to the left of his nose bridge. It was a truly close call.

「How dare you!」

Ji’s expression crumpled up. Although he had managed to dodge the Killer Overlord’s signature skill, which could kill her target before they even realized it, a mere assassin injuring him significantly hurt his pride.

[Your Subordinate ‘Jin Prezia’ has activated the Skill ‘Snowstorm’!]

When her attack missed, Czestochowa immediately changed the course of her attack to activate [Single Red Dot] again. Noticing what she was trying to do, Jin immediately activated his skill.

Woosh, woosh, woosh…!

A snow-chilled wind rose with Jin in the center, shoving Czestochowa away. Czestochowa couldn’t just break through Jin’s [Snowstorm] head-on, having instinctively realized that each snowflake in the snowstorm was made up of a significant amount of Aura. The snow-chilled wind was very horrifying as well. If she charged into it, she could end up being imprisoned in the wind blades that were trying to surround her.

Clang, clang, clang―!

Boom, boom, boom!

Just as she had expected, Czestochowa heard Jin’s Aura getting deflected whenever she used her rapier to clash with the snowstorm, creating loud explosions. The metallic sound coming from her rapier also thunderously echoed throughout the heart.

[Your Subordinate ‘Jin Prezia’ has activated the Skill ‘Frozen Realm’!]

Czestochowa had another problem. When she tried to back away, she found herself unable to move, her feet seemingly glued to the ground. The air temperature dramatically fell in seconds, causing the snowflake-covered ground to freeze up and clamping Czestochowa’s feet together.

She could easily destroy the ice if she kicked it using her mana, but in the middle of a battle between people as skilled as Czestochowa and Jin, even such small movements could kill her.

[Your Subordinate ‘Jin Prezia’ has activated the Skill ‘Ice Bush Forest’!]

From the lower left to the upper right, Jin swung the [Frost King’s Greatsword] diagonally, unleashing multiple ice thorns from the frozen ground. The ice thorns tried to pierce through Czestochowa.

Boom, boom, boom!

As she kicked the ice that was gluing her down to the ground, Czestochowa wildly swung her rapier, drawing dozens of lines in the air and chopping up all the ice thorns. However, the ice thorn fragments absorbed all the moisture in the air and quickly became bigger, living up to their Skill name [Ice Bush Forest]. In an instant, the thick ice vines and thorns surrounded Czestochowa to chaotically pierce her.

Stab, stab, stab―!

Despite how quick Czestochowa was, she failed to deflect or slice them all. Although she managed to fend off quite a lot of the ice vines and thorns, way more ice thorns stabbed into her.

Crack―!

[The ‘Ice Toxin’ spreads!]

Jin wasn’t done. The Ice Toxin that he had mixed with each snowflake was quickly spreading inside Czestochowa’s body. Hence, she looked as if frost was covering her pale face, making her even paler.

「Let’s end this.」

An assassin’s speed and Concealment skills made them frightening. After all, those made it difficult to detect their presence. Since Jin didn’t give the assassin in front of him the opportunity to hide herself, nothing about her was scary anymore. Feeling certain about his victory, Jin fiercely swung the [Frost King’s Greatsword] horizontally.

Rumble―!

The [Ice Bush Forest] was instantly destroyed—no, it exploded, creating a shockwave strong enough to shake the entire heart. Jin believed that no human could survive such an explosion, so it was only natural for him to be baffled. He should have definitely slashed someone, but all he could feel as he swung the [Frost King’s Greatsword] was ice. At that moment, a will o’ wisp lit up behind Jin.

[The curtain of the Skill ‘Doggaebi Play’ rises!‘]

It was literally the play of a Doggaebi. Czestochowa moved behind Jin so quickly that he couldn’t tell when in the world she got there. She then repeatedly used [Single Red Dot], thinking it would be enough to leave a red dot on the arrogant summon’s forehead. However, just like Jin, it turned out Czestochowa was also wrong.

[The State ‘Cruel Tiger’ has been activated, activating the Additional Skill ‘Cruel Tiger’s Venomous Fang’!]

Feeling a shiver—one incomparably colder than the one she had felt while dealing with Jin—run down her spine, Czestochowa hurriedly turned in the opposite direction.

Boom!

Czestochowa hurriedly changed the course of her [Single Red Dots] and made them collide with the [Cruel Tiger’s Venomous Fang], creating a powerful explosion. Unable to withstand the [Yuchang Sword], Czestochowa’s rapier immediately shattered, its fragments flying in the air. Moreover, Czestochowa herself couldn’t endure the shockwave completely, pushing her far back.

Czestochowa straightened her posture with difficulty, but she had to stop and force herself to hold down the blood that came up through her esophagus. Although they only clashed once, she already suffered a severe internal injury. The sudden dizziness also prevented her from even seeing straight.

“What…!” Czestochowa yelled, baffled, after putting on a Doggaebi Face. Chang-Sun had gotten way stronger since their last battle.

She was aware that he had gone up against the gatekeepers and quickly became even more powerful, but the gatekeepers normally adjusted the trial’s difficulty level according to the contender’s skills, so she naturally believed that Chang-Sun couldn’t have significantly improved. In fact, the only fight of Chang-Sun’s that she had personally witnessed was his summons hunting down Simon Magus. Hence, even if Chang-Sun did become notably stronger, she thought he would have done so by focusing on making his outrageously powerful summons’ even more powerful.

However, Chang-Sun’s attack just now proved her otherwise. It was a surprise attack, but that didn’t explain how the Killer Overlord had gotten pushed away even though she was already wearing the [Contorted Doggaebi Face]!

Wearing his iron mask crookedly, Chang-Sun just drooped his shoulders as he held the [Yuchang Sword] and [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth] in each hand. He didn’t say anything and stayed nonchalant. However, in Czestochowa’s eyes, it looked as if he was mocking her.

[The Celestial ‘Big Sick Bug’ glares at the arrogant-looking mortal!]

Unlike when she fought Jin, Czestochowa couldn’t bring herself to launch an attack against Chang-Sun because even though she tried her best to find a weakness, she couldn’t find any.

Woosh!

Meanwhile, a navy-blue fire ignited underneath Chang-Sun’s feet, enveloped him like armor and wings, then soared up high in the air. The ten-meter-tall tsunami of fire transformed into a bird, then into a Giant.

[A ‘navy-blue Fire Giant’ has shown up!]

Maybe the Giant was protecting Chang-Sun—no, perhaps he thought of himself as Chang-Sun’s shadow or even Chang-Sun himself. Either way, the ruthless and overwhelming Giant stood and looked down at Czestochowa. On the other hand, Chang-Sun’s Infernal Sites, which were also frightening, sparked to life underneath the iron mask.

The two sets of Infernal Sites—Chang-Sun’s and the Giant’s—shone vividly, making Czestochowa feel as if she had been tied up with an invisible chain. Pressured by the Giant and Chang-Sun’s auras, she unwittingly took a step back.

[The Celestial ‘Big Sick Bug’ scolds his apostle for acting pathetic!]

Reading the message that popped up before her, Czestochowa bit her lower lip and tried to pull out a new weapon to continue fighting.

“Czestochowa, do you know what your biggest mistake is?” Chang-Sun spoke for the first time since he appeared.

For some reason, Czestochowa felt as if Chang-Sun wasn’t looking at her. Rather, he was looking at someone ‘behind’ her.

“Out of all the places you could come to, you’ve chosen to trespass into the land that has become my territory. To top it all off, you brought your star sign.” Chang-Sun faintly smiled.

[The Celestial ‘Big Sick Bug’ urges his apostle to kill that mortal!]

“I, Lee Chang-Sun…” Chang-Sun solemnly continued behind the cold-looking iron mask, “...will begin the sealing process of the criminal Xue Yong as the special-rank <Underworld> reaper.”

Clink!

As soon as Chang-Sun finished speaking, sounds similar to a giant clockwork turning began to reverberate.

Creak―!

As the sounds continued, the world around Chang-Sun and Czestochowa turned upside down.

[The Authority ‘Execution Sword’ has been activated!]