Chapter 46. Paver of Paths (1)

"Honey, don't you think it's time for Yul to start learning Hangul?"

"She’ll pick it up when she’s interested. Let her play for now. She’s still young."

Han-Wool should have listened to his wife back then.

"But I heard other kids are learning English too..."

"She’s going to spend her whole life studying. So there’s no need to rush."

He believed Yul had a whole life ahead of her—one devoted entirely to learning, without anything getting in the way. Just as it should’ve been.

If only he hadn’t been so naive, Yul would’ve been able to read her father's final message.

- To: Kim Yul

- From: Kim Han-Wool

- Message: You’re hiding well, right? I love you, Yul. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you until the end. Please, stay safe and

Thud!

"Crush the traitors of death!"

"

Raaaargh!

"

That way, being trampled to death by a Skeleton Soldier wouldn’t have been so painful.

"

Keugh!

My daughter—"

Thud!

He had believed that Yul would grow up, go to elementary school, make friends, and flash that cheeky smile in her school uniform.

Thud!

He also thought that one day, her friends would mean more to her than her parents, and that she’d bury herself in books, wrestle with schoolwork, survive fierce competition, suffer setbacks, and somehow grow into adulthood.

Thud!

He also believed that the day would come when she’d meet a decent man, nothing special but kind. She’d smile, get married, start a family of her own, and become a mother to a child as lovely as she had once been.

He had believed she would lead such an ordinary life.

Cough!

"In the... next life..."

If I could be born again, I want to be her father once more...

"I will..."

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

His lips moved, yet no sound came out. His mouth was dry and his vision blurred.

Was it because of my age? Is this my end?

Just like that, the father closed his eyes.

Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!

Then, from far beyond the veil of death, a familiar sound echoed. It was the sound of those who had relentlessly tormented him.

However, somehow, it was somewhat different this time.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Hearing a thunderous march loud enough to wake the dead, he couldn’t help but open his eyes.

What filled his vision was feet bones. There were rows and rows of skeletal feet marching like a net across the road.

Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink...!

"White?"

Something was wrong because his assigned unit had already been annihilated, so where had these soldiers come from?

Clatter—!

As if that wasn’t strange enough, a towering Skeleton Soldier stood at the front, a helmet fashioned from a beast’s skull.

Wait, is that the Demon King?

Purple smoke swirled beneath his feet. He stared straight ahead with deadly purpose, a sinister glow filling his eyes.

Behind him, the setting sun painted the sky in red, its reddish hue bathing the figure like a divine spotlight.

"All forces! Halt!"

The moment the leader stopped, everyone stopped. Then, someone pointed at him.

Swish.

Han-Wool forced his blurry eyes open, trying to lift his heavy head. Then, with slow, steady steps, a long shadow approached.

Thump.

The closer it came, the more oppressive the air grew. Han-Wool trembled under the weight of it.

Huh? What’s going on?

Han-Wool couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Why was his daughter sitting on the Demon King’s shoulder?

No way...

"Han-Wool."

“Daddy!”

Swoosh.

The figure extended its bony fingers.

“Get up.”

Clack.

Han-Wool took that frail, skeletal hand.

***

The room was too cluttered to be a museum, and far too enormous and chaotic to pass as a research lab. In fact, it was once referred to as a natural history museum, and the owner didn’t entirely disagree.

Floating in vividly colored liquids were various preserved limbs and body parts, each belonging to a different creature. They were all tangible proof of the vast and varied evolution occurring across the universe.

Each jar was overflowing with a fragment of natural history.

“Blood sample, check.

Hmm,

this skin sample should be fine.”

Ding!

As the shaggy-haired researcher sliced nature's sacred story, a system alert announced the start of a new chapter in that history.

[Simulation has been completed.]

Finally!

The researcher, nose-deep in reagents, snapped his head up.

[Predicting the victor...]

This was it. The culmination of his life’s work was about to shine. The entire universe would soon sing praises of the one who had reached the realm of gods.

Giddy as a kid waiting to be praised, the researcher urged the system on. “Alright, come on! Let’s hear it!”

He was brimming with confidence. Obviously, the black ones—his own creations—would be the victors. There wasn’t a single opponent worth noting, except

that

one.

“Other than that freak, the rest of them are toast. Wait, what?!”

[Black - 1%]

[White - 99%]

“One percent?! That can’t be right!”

Sure, the foot Soldiers had minimal stats because he had to distribute resources evenly. However, he had personally assembled the Knights, embedded them with intelligence, and sent them forth.

“Show me the white’s data! Now!” he shouted, slamming his hand on the counter.

The vials wobbled, their fluorescent contents sloshing inside, but he didn’t care.

[Displaying calculation basis...]

The thing he trusted most—his data—was now lying to him.

[Black]

[Skeleton Knights(Lv. 1) - Destroyed]

[Skeleton Soldiers(Lv. 1) - 70]

[Remaining Forces - 70]

[White]

[Skeleton Knights(Lv. 1) - 17]

[Skeleton Soldiers(Lv. 1) - 1,803]

[Remaining Forces - 1,820]

The researcher’s jaw dropped. “A bug?!”

It had to be because there was no other explanation for such an overwhelming difference. He was still frantically combing through the white team's data when something unprecedented happened.

[Black]

[Remaining Forces - 20]

[White]

[Remaining Forces - 1,870]

Crack—!

The flask slipped from the researcher’s hand and shattered against the floor.

“... Lee Eun-Ho...”

It was him. It had to be him because no one else would be capable of something this insane. However, the real question wasn’t who, but

how

.

“How the hell did the faction change?! Sure, there’s an allegiance field in the attribute data, but how the hell would he even know that?!” the researcher mumbled like a lunatic, pacing in frantic circles. “Well, even if he did figure it out, how did he change it?! He couldn’t have accessed the source code. No way!”

[Updating the prediction model...]

The system recalculated the simulation on its own. The new projection came in almost instantly.

[Black - 0%]

[White - 100%]

Just like that, the researcher stopped asking “how.”

“Are you serious?!”

Now he was just curious. What kind of brain must that guy have, to come up with a method not even the creator had considered?

He wanted it. He wanted to hold that soft, squishy brain and press his face against it, inhaling its sweet, faintly metallic scent.

“

Ha.

Send someone down. Anyone.” The researcher licked his lips, with anticipation. “Just bring him. I don’t care if he’s alive or not.”

He needed the specimen, but that stupid system couldn’t follow even a basic order.

[Command failed.]

[Insufficient resources.]

“We have prototypes, don’t we?!”

[Command failed.]

[Insufficient data. Stability is not guaranteed...]

“Useless machine!”

Beeeep—!

He shut the system down entirely, his eyes gleaming with a grotesque, ravenous light.

***

Along the massive Han River boulevard stretching from Yongsan Station to Samgakji...

Clatter! Clack! Clack—!

The wide six-lane road was crawling with Skeletons—a sight that would send any sane person running.

A thick blanket of violet mist rolled along the ground as the bone-white army marched forward.

[You are walking the Path that Defies Death!]

Whether it was fog or smoke was unclear, but the oppressive atmosphere made the entire street feel more like a death march than anything defiant. If it weren’t for the system buffs floating in the corner of his vision, he would’ve turned back himself.

[You are immune to all status effects caused by fear and disease.]

[You cannot die unless the skull is destroyed.]

[You are immune to mental domination.]

[Wound recovery rate has drastically increased (+100%).]

[Defense has increased (+50%).]

These clean, sharp lines of text were so much more useful than the childish chat window full of idiots hiding behind dumb nicknames.

[Night-Shift Fairy from the Bureau of Audit asks if that torch-wielding Skeleton really is the Subject Lee Eun-Ho.]

[They say this wasn’t what they expected and they’re a little shaken.]

[The Crow from the Bureau of Management laughs and says the Skeleton is just a decoy, and the real body is the torch.]

[The Prince from the Bureau of Investigation says the Skeleton’s growing on them and maybe Eun-Ho should just stay that way.]

“Idiots,” Eun-Ho muttered, making a mental note to kick them all if they ever met in person.

“I-I’m sorry, Hyungnim!” Jae-Hyuk replied from behind, startled.

“

Huh?

”

“I must be out of my mind not recognizing my own savior.”

Jae-Hyuk scratched his head furiously, his face twisted in sincere remorse. To be fair, he had a reason to feel guilty.

“T-that sword! That armor! Even the torch?! Don’t tell me you...?!”

The moment he saw Eun-Ho in the form of a Skeleton, he had sprinted forward and screamed,

“You damn Skeleton! How dare you touch my Hyungnim?! Die!”

With all his might, Jae-Hyuk swung his weapon down on Eun-Ho’s head, howling like a wild animal out for vengeance.

“You’ve got a hell of a swing, Choi Jae-Hyuk,” Eun-Ho replied.

“I-I’m really sorry! I thought those bone bastards had killed you!”

“It’s fine. I didn’t take any damage.”

“But...”

Thanks to the helmet and his boosted defense, he hadn’t been hurt. Besides, honestly, watching Jae-Hyuk cry and scream for revenge had been oddly touching.

“Plus, you’re the most normal one I’ve met so far,” Eun-Ho said.

“... Sorry?”

As Eun-Ho marched from Ichon District, past Sinyongsan Station, toward Samgakji, Eun-Ho had been absorbing the Skeleton Soldiers, both black and white, one by one.

Then, out of nowhere, Yul had come flying out of the sky. Where had she even

been

hiding?

“Miiiister!

”

“W-watch out!”

Then there was Han-Wool. Even while wobbling unsteadily, Han-Wool bowed deeply, murmuring a prayer that sounded more like a chant than anything useful. It had taken him quite a while to stand.

“Get up.”

Han-Wool remained silent.

“I said, get up already!”

Then, there was Ji-Eun, joining the group after staring at Eun-Ho for an awkwardly long time and making the weirdest comments possible.

“Yep, it’s really you, Eun-Ho!”

“

Hm?

You’re not going to ask more questions?”

“That shoulder line’s unmistakably yours. And the proportions too.”

“... What?”

Then there was the foul-mouthed guy. The moment he spotted the blade in Eun-Ho’s hand, he exploded into a monsoon of profanities. He was definitely not normal either.

“You son of a bitch! Do you even know what sword that is, you piece of—”

“It’s me, Lee Eun-Ho.”

“What the fuck?!”

Regardless, Eun-Ho marched forward, absorbing both ally and enemy troops along the way. Therefore, the numbers kept climbing.

[You have recruited additional Skeleton Soldiers(Lv. 1)!]

[Remaining units: 370]

[You have recruited additional Skeleton Soldiers(Lv. 1)!]

[Remaining units: 512]

[You have recruited additional Skeleton Soldiers(Lv. 1)!]

[Remaining units: 683]

...

[01:00]

Before they knew it, the trial was nearing its end.

Pzzz—

“One minute left, Hyungnim!” Jae-Hyuk shouted.

“Oh, you’re right. Everyone got their flags right?” Eun-Ho asked.

Pzzz—

“With your help, we’ve got ours young man!”

“Yes! Thank you, sir...!”

Everyone thought it was over.

However, suddenly, the system broadcast started glitching like a broken radio.

[00:55]

Then, the timer, which had been counting down normally, twitched.

[00:&%]

Then it turned to gibberish.

[%~$*&]

The screen scrambled into strange symbols and static.

[Emergency... transmission... initiated!]

Before they could process what was happening, a sudden broadcast echoed through the air.

[Emergency!]

[By the acting Administrator's authority, the Mock Battle trial has entered Overtime!]

Overtime?! That wasn’t in the trial proposal!

Eun-Ho thought.

An icy chill ran down Eun-Ho’s spine as dread crept throughout him.

“Overtime?!”

“What the fuck?! We

got

the flags! What kind of bullshit is this?!”

Ye-Ji and the foul-mouthed guy both shouted in disbelief. The system, naturally, didn’t care.

Then, a moment later, the overtime began with a high-pitched mechanical screech not in the ears, but in the head, like something stabbing the brain directly.

Beeep—!

“

Kyah!

”

“What was that?!”

Next came the sky. There was a tiny black speck at first, easily mistaken for a bird. Then it grew and grew into sun-sized, then cloud-sized, swallowing the skyline.

It was a hole, which was a pitch-black, swirling void that was massive enough to suck in a building.

No way... I’ve seen that before,

Eun-Ho thought.

“Didn’t that thing appear on the KTX ceiling?!”

“It’s similar in shape but much, much bigger!”

Eun-Ho knew exactly what was coming. There was soon going to be a monster. A huge one. Something far worse than anything they’d faced so far. A whole legion of demons had come from a similar hole, and this was worse.

“Holy hell! At that size?! A tank wouldn’t even survive that thing charging!” the foul-mouthed guy yelled, his face went white as a skeleton.

Whoosh—!

The black void trembled, oozing menace and saturated with dread.

“Get ready,” said Eun-Ho

“Yes, sir!”

“Got it, Hyungnim!”

Ji-Eun and Jae-Hyuk flanked Eun-Ho, unwavering.

“You’re not seriously planning to fight that thing, right?! Can’t we just hide?!” Ye-Ji was trembling, practically begging. “I know you’re strong, but that’s too dangerous! Maybe we should run as far as we can—”

“No,” Eun-Ho replied firmly.

It was far too big, so there was no way to hide. If they tried, they’d just get trampled. What a pointless death that would be.

Running wasn’t much better as Skeleton Soldiers had average agility stats between 1 and 4. The odds of taking a hit in the back were practically guaranteed. Of course, unless he abandoned everyone and ran alone, which he wouldn't.

“Listen, all forces!” Eun-Ho raised his voice with complete conviction. “Surround the hole!”

The order echoed with confidence and the Skeletons reacted instantly.

“Yes sir...!”

“Surround the hole...!”

Clatter! Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!

Fifteen hundred white Skeletons began to move just like a crashing wave of ivory. They weren’t in sync, yet united. Shoulders bumped, heels crushed underfoot, but each found their place.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

A wall of Skeleton Soldiers rose behind him. Jae-Hyuk stood firm at the front, Ji-Eun took her place beside Eun-Ho, and even the foul-mouthed guy crept up, hesitantly joining the formation. The line was set.

[The Mock Battle trial has entered Overtime!]

[Eliminate enemies and survive!]

“What is that thing?!”

Come on, then. Ghosts. Demons. Monsters—whatever the hell you are. Bring it on. I’m not afraid of any of you.