Chapter 312: The Next World (2)

In a way, what happened was simple. The angry people expressed their anger, and the one who owed an apology offered one. Those who felt they had no right to comment on the world remained silent, feeling as though they had no right to add their opinion.

“Fuck,” the Assistant Writer muttered.

In front of the drawbridge, the Gray Spider remained kneeling, her forehead pressed against the ground. The Anti-Magic-Tower Alliance followers threw rotten fruit and scraps at her, vomiting out their emotions. A black lump collided with the Gray Spider’s back and slid off.

“

Ah.

” The Assistant Writer, who had been furrowing her brow, parted her lips. At the end of her gaze, a sharp dagger sliced through the air. “Wait, that—”

However, the dagger made a clear clang mid-flight and bounced away; I had fired aura the size of a go stone, knocking it down. The dagger landed helplessly on the ground, four meters away from the Gray Spider.

Someone in the crowd of thousands clicked their tongue. The Assistant Writer seemed to have heard the sound as well.

She shouted, “You there! What the hell are you doing?”

“Don’t stop them.” Mahos’ apostle grabbed the Assistant Writer’s arm to restrain her. “If you stop them, they’ll just get angrier. I’ve dealt with something like this on the battlefield many times. I know from experience.”

The Assistant Writer looked at the apostle, then turned to me. I said nothing. Even before I had shot down the dagger and even after I dropped it, I just stood there with my arms crossed, watching. Though no one else could see it, the Guardian mimicked my posture.

Seeing my lack of response, the Assistant Writer looked back at the apostle. Her glasses slanted up sharply like a frown. “Still, how can one strike someone who has surrendered? If you’re experienced, you should know that’s not what should happen!”

Mahos’ apostle didn’t even blink. “Has the Magic Tower been upholding those basics?”

The Assistant Writer gritted her teeth.

“Even you and Hamustra’s other followers suffered in the Magic Tower’s prison,” the apostle continued. “You people endured brutal torture until the Death King rescued you. On top of that, the world where you were born and raised is now the Magic Tower’s colony. I don’t think they would have governed their colonies any better than they did on the fiftieth floor.”

It had been a thousand years of colonization. The hatred that the Magic Tower had built up was deep and vast.

“The Magic Tower wasn’t wise, so you should act wiser, Assistant Writer. You’re climbing the Tower to represent your world. If you can afford to spare sympathy for your world’s enemy, it would be better to prepare for the next floor—“

“Thank you,” the Assistant Writer said, her voice low and cold. “Regardless of everything, you’re saying that for my sake, so thank you. But I have something else to say, so please listen.”

“

Hm

. I’m glad you appreciate me. So, Assistant Writer, I have a proposal. If you haven’t chosen the person you will accompany to the fifty-first floor yet, would you like to join m—”

“Fuck off.”

Mahos’ apostle shut his mouth.

The Assistant Writer’s eyes widened, and so did her glasses. A moment later, she flapped her arms. “I didn’t mean to say ‘fuck off’ to your offer, so don’t misunderstand, but,

um

, why the heck did you bring it up now anyway?

Ah

, forget it! Just be quiet for a moment, damn it!”

The Assistant Writer cleared her throat several times. She glanced at the apostle and then turned away, walking. She stood in front of the Gray Spider—or rather, in front of the crowd surrounding her.

“Hey, you bastards! Stop acting pathetic!” the Assistant Writer said.

***

Immediately, the people in the crowd bared their teeth.

“What?”

“Isn’t that the Assistant Writer? It’s definitely her, right?”

“Isn’t she the one who always messes up her grammar?”

“Why did that Hamster’s apostle suddenly show up? Did she get all cocky after helping out with the Magic Tower’s defeat?”

“Shut up, all of you!” The Assistant Writer shouted, drowning out the crowd’s murmurs. “First of all, the one who said I make grammar mistakes, stay after this. I won’t tolerate such slander, but there’s something even more unacceptable. You bastards, aren’t you ashamed of yourselves? If you want revenge, become stronger and make your own revenge! If you want to bully people, bully the ones you hunted down yourselves!”

Gritting her teeth, the Assistant Writer looked at the Gray Spider lying on the ground and the various pieces of trash scattered around her.

“What’s this? If you had hunted down the Magic Tower, the witches, and the Gray Spiders yourselves, I wouldn’t have said a word, but you didn’t. What the hell are you doing to someone else’s prey?”

The crowd was silent. The vast majority of people flushed. Among them, someone wearing a mask that hid their face had their mask turn red. The masked warrior stepped forward, carrying a large spear that looked ripped out from a dragon’s horn.

“Impressive, Miss Assistant Writer.” The warrior’s voice was hoarse and metallic. “Bravo. You’re truly a hero! You said all the right things: the proper things and the kind things. Now, we should be so ashamed that we should run off somewhere, but

uh-oh

. We’re just getting pissed. Is it because we’re ignorant fools?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t agree so easily... Anyhow, come on! You’re so confident that you can’t see people who aren’t confident, can you?” The masked warrior slammed the tip of his spear into the ground. “A thousand years. For a thousand years, the Magic Tower has ruled the fiftieth floor! The oppression grew stronger and stronger over time, and all the worlds that reached the fiftieth floor were sucked into the Magic Tower’s roots!”

Voices erupted from all sides. “That’s right!”

The warrior asked, “Assistant Writer, can’t you see the pain and suffering in their eyes?”

“That’s right!”

“People had to sneak through the alleys in silence to avoid being noticed by the Magic Tower! They lost their families or someone even more precious to them at the witches’ hands, and had no choice but to remain silent. Can’t you see or feel for such people?”

“Right! Right!”

“Assistant Writer, you’re talking about what’s right, but it’s only possible because you have the power to do so! What about those who don’t have that power? Are you saying that the weak shouldn’t vent out their emotions and shut up like they don’t exist, even in a moment like this?”

“Right! Right! Right!”

“How dare you try to silence the helpless victims! Isn’t that what’s really unjust and cruel?”

“Right! Right! Right! Right!”

Wild cheers erupted every time the masked warrior shouted. Even ordinary Hunters who hadn’t participated in the Anti-Magic-Tower Alliance raised their voices. The area turned into a frenzy of excitement, but the Assistant Writer quickly extinguished it.

She said, “Are you done with your bullshit, you extra?”

The masked warrior froze, and the crowd fell silent. Amid the stillness, the Assistant Writer slowly walked forward until she reached the masked warrior and stared straight into the two holes of his mask.

“Remember this, you bastard.” She raised her head like a stretching cat, bringing her face close to the warrior’s mask. “Even if you were a hundred times stronger than you are right now or as strong as the Magic Tower combined, I would still stand here and tell you that you’re spewing bullshit.”

The Assistant Writer pressed her finger firmly against the mask’s nose and said, “That’s why I was dragged to the Magic Tower.”

The mask turned red. It seemed the redness was a result of heat.

The Assistant Writer pulled her finger away in surprise. “Fuck, it’s hot!”

The masked warrior spoke in a voice resembling boiling magma flowing down a mountainside. “No, you were dragged away because Hamustra suddenly disappeared. You lost your backing, and you became weaker! It’s the same now. Now, just because some Death King or whatever is backing you, you’re all...”

“

Ah

, and one more thing. Actually, it’s two things. How the hell are you wearing that mask? It’s freaking hot,” the Assistant Writer grumbled as she lightly licked the tip of her burned finger. “Even if you were a thousand or ten thousand times stronger than you are now, even if you were as strong as the entire Magic Tower combined, you’d still just be a one-time extra character introduced to show how strong the protagonist has become.”

The masked warrior fell silent. The Assistant Writer looked away from him. Her eyes, framed by glasses, turned toward the crowd. While the masked warrior’s voice had grown louder as he spoke, the Assistant Writer’s voice did the opposite, growing quieter.

“Let’s stop making fools of yourselves. You guys are Hunters. You decided to climb the Tower because you wanted to go somewhere better and see a different scenery. Isn’t that right?”

Her voice grew fainter and fainter.

“Well, at least I did. Some might have come up here because they had nowhere else to go. Those of you who can’t read the room would think you’re here representing your worlds. But I don’t concern myself with anything grand like that. I’ve always only known myself and thought only about myself. Perhaps that’s why I believed in Mr. Indoor Librarian, since people are drawn to those who resemble themselves,” she muttered. “I came here to write my story.”

Her glasses drooped like her eyes as she scanned the crowd.

“Isn’t that true for all of you?”

The Assistant Writer’s gaze returned to me after scanning the crowd. There was no anger there, but regret—a twilight of emotions that emerged when recalling a conversation from long ago. Looking back at the Gray Spider still lying on the ground, the Assistant Writer asked, “Would the main character do this?”

Her shoulders slumped.

“No, they wouldn’t. It’s about time we became the protagonists.”

Those words created an echo.

“Well said,” one of the Sword Emperor Church’s followers spoke up.

The church would have undoubtedly suffered the cruelest treatment from the Magic Tower, yet they didn’t even glance at the first headquarters witches, who stood hesitantly on the glass bridge, nor did the followers pay any attention to the Gray Spider lying on the ground. The church followers walked over and stood beside the Assistant Writer.

“That’s right.”

“But the truth often wants to make people punch the speaker.[1] A lot of people would feel that way right now. To be honest, I do too.”

“But it’s still the truth.”

The members of the Sword Emperor Church turned around in unison after making their way behind the Assistant Writer.

“Without the Death King, this war would have been lost.”

“Therefore, it would be very wrong for us to argue here.”

“The Sword Emperor would have said the same.”

The crowd stumbled back.

—

Hmph. Well, they’ve finally grown a little after one hundred fifty years.

The Guardian said.

That was the beginning. The Jester, the only one who managed to kill me on this floor, stepped forward and stood beside the Assistant Writer and the members of the Sword Emperor Church. She said, “I think the same! This isn’t fair!”

The Berserker clicked her tongue, doing the same. “Damn it...”

The Paparazzo and other high-ranking members of the alliance soon followed. Finally, Mahos’ apostle walked over and became a corner of the human barrier standing between the Gray Spider and the crowd.

The Assistant Writer gave a slightly puzzled expression. “Why are you here? You told me to act wisely.”

“Because the tide is on this side. While it’s said that Lord Mahos prefers victory over justice, he actually loves righteous victory.”

“Do you know that you’re both an idiot and a scumbag?”

“But I’m a scumbag who fights well.”

“Right. That’s why I’m going to accept your proposal. Let’s go to the fifty-first floor together.”

“What an honor.”

As the human barrier grew stronger, the crowd’s fervor slowly subsided. However, it wasn’t dispersing. It was rather sinking and piling up like steam gathering under a pressure cooker.

The masked warrior lost it. “Damn it! You guys are nonsensical! Are you saying that victims who can’t get revenge on their own should just shut up and live their lives?”

“I never said that since I’m also a victim myself,” one of the Sword Emperor Church’s followers said. He raised his head. “You there. The spokesperson for the Magic Tower.”

The spokesperson, who had been watching nervously, stammered, “Y-yes?”

Anger could be hot but also cold. The church follower’s anger was cold because it was intense and calculated.

“You killed my sect brother. He led an easy life thanks to his lighthearted nature and talent. Perhaps because of that, he couldn’t die in peace. For nearly ten days, he was tortured until he died a horrible death, his bones compressed inside a glass coffin.”

The spokesperson avoided eye contact and stammered, “

Ha, ha... Um.

That’s... That’s unfortunate. I’m sorry, but why are you saying that now?”

“Just wash your neck and wait[2].”

“What?”

“As soon as I’m ready, I’ll go to the Lion Realm and challenge you to a duel. Is that okay, Death King?”

Yes, that was how I broke my silence. I smiled humbly. “Yes, I can’t stop a fair dueI. I’ll stop you from leading your troops in an invasion, but a duel is different. I have no right to stop you. However, if you die in that duel, I won’t be able to do anything either.”

“Of course. How can someone who isn’t prepared to die go out and kill someone else?” The church follower nodded before glaring at the spokesperson of the Magic Tower. “Just wait.”

“

Ha.

” The spokesperson of the Magic Tower gritted his teeth. “Seriously, you guys underestimate me a loooot, don’t you? Do you think you can defeat me in a one-on-one fight? I will make sure you understand that you are mistaken. It would be an honor for two sect brothers to die at my hands. Yes! I will make it a celebration! You’ll be surprised at how you die!”

“You can do that. Then my disciple will come for you again until the day my sect line is cut off or you die.”

“Freaking hell...

Uhhhhh

, please don’t do that! Mercy! Peace! Oppose war! Blood and revenge just beget more blood and revenge. Can’t we just forget everything and forgive each other?”

“I’m sorry,” the church follower smiled, baring his teeth. “I’m not that strong.”

The spokesperson for the Magic Tower hiccupped.

***

And so it began.

***

The witches of the Magic Tower received settlement notices according to the number of years they had spent there. Some did not receive any, but most received three or more. The spokesperson received a hundred and seven challenges to a duel and groaned.

“Goddamn it! This is all because you guys made me the spokesperson. I’ve been in the spotlight, so I’m getting all the heat. Hey, other headquarters directors! If you have a conscience, you should share some of this with me, but do you even have a conscience to begin with?

Oh

, yeah, you don’t... Fucking bitches...”

Seeing the spokesperson, Charumu sighed in relief. “

Phew

... I’m glad I only cleaned deep in the sewer... All according to plan...”

I patted his shoulder. “Be careful, Mr. Charumu. In the end, you can’t escape the life you’ve lived.”

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

“What? Why do I feel like you’re speaking from experience?"

Half a month passed.

Rummmmmble!

The sound of the Magic Tower’s last remaining spire collapsing echoed through the air.

[The Whip of Self-Tormentor has been unleashed from her seal.]

The central pillar supporting the spire swayed and collapsed. From a distance, it looked like an iron spike. As soon as it hit the ground, it shattered like glass. From within the broken pillar, a redheaded woman opened her eyes.

“

Ugh...

Where am I?”

“Sister!” The Berserker rushed forward at supersonic speed.

Boooooom!

When the two collided, a sound that wasn’t realistically possible from the collision between two people rang out. Fortunately, one of them was not human, but a Constellation. The red-haired Constellation gently caught the Berserker in her arms. “

Huh?

Oh my...”

“Sister! My Constellation sis!

Waaah

, I’m sorry I’m late! I’m sorry I’m late. I told you just to wait three years. Three hundred years have passed! I’m an idiot, a fool, a scumbag! I should have died! I should have died, but I couldn’t! I’m a coward.

Waaaaaaaaah!

I’m sorry!”

The Constellations sealed in the Magic Tower had been released. The red-haired Constellation patted the back of the Berserker.

“

Ah

, this idiotic self-deprecation is familiar. Yes, you’re definitely my apostle...”

The Berserker, who had been longing to reunite with her goddess, buried her face in the goddess’ arms. She shed tears and sniffled, getting the snot all over her goddess’ arms. In the end, the Berserker wept so hard that saliva flew everywhere.

“Yeah...” The red-haired Constellation looked at the Berserker with a troubled expression. “That’s disgusting, so please cut it out...”

Her cheeks were as red as the hair of the goddess she served. The Berserker said, “Thank you sooooooo much, Death King! This is all thanks to you! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to meet Sister again. Thank you so much

.

I thought you were a son of a bitch, but it turns out you’re an awesome son of a bitch!”

“Wow.” I sheathed the holy sword. My body wasn’t fully healed yet, so even though I’d only cut through one pillar of the tower, my shoulders ached. “Is that your entire vocabulary?”

“What? I think it sounds cute!”

“

Hmm.

I’ll give you that.”

1. Korean wordplay. Right(맞다) sounds similar to getting hit(맞다.) ☜

2. It's an expression meaning “I'm going to cut off your head, so get ready.” ☜