Chapter 343.

[Synthesis failed]

‘Don’t calm down . Wait, that’s not right . Calm down . ’

I took a deep breath . The Mystic Key and Athena’s Arrow might have been destroyed, but there had to be a better solution .

—…Oi, you okay?

A voice rang in my head . I turned my head in a daze . Shimurin and Jain were staring at me .

—Hajin, what’s wrong~?

I couldn’t hear them well, almost like I was underwater . Suddenly, I felt sleepy . Perhaps everything would return to normal if I went to sleep and woke up .

Wait, no, that was just running away from reality .

“…What’s wrong with him? He’s seems out of it all of a sudden . ”

Shimurin’s voice woke me up . I suddenly remembered something . Right, I still had something I could do, even if it was going overboard .

“Time Reversal . ”

“Huh?”

Even though it would hurt a lot, I could just go back in time .

“Huu, huu . ”

I took deep breaths . Once, twice, thrice… .

“What are you doing?”

Shimurin and Jain stared at me strangely . I took one final breath and turned to face them . Using Time Reversal just to recover destroyed items…

A sudden philosophical thought popped up in my head . Would Jain in the present be the same person as Jain three minutes in the past?

I shook my head and threw the thought away .

“See you in a bit . ”

I closed my eyes and activated Time Reversal . The wind blew backwards and a warping sensation surrounded my body . When I opened my eyes, [Athena’s Moonlight Arrow] and the [Mystic Key] were both in my hands .

“…Haa . ”

I breathed out a sigh of relief . My legs gave out, and I slumped down on the ground again . Jain and Shimurin gave me strange looks, but that didn’t matter .

Looking at the key and the arrow in my hands, I fell in thought . Should I try fusing them again? Or should I be content that I restored them?

It was then that something strange occurred .

A bright orb of light appeared in the air above the items . The sun-like orb began to bloom like a budding flower . I stared at it with widened eyes .

As the orb gave off a dazzling, golden light, a system window popped up .

[The ‘accumulation of luck’ stacked eight times activates – Miraculous Retry]

[For the next 30 minutes, your invariable stat, ‘luck’, rises to 9 . 99]

**

[Colosseum]

“…What happened to the thing I talked about?”

On the other hand, in the Colosseum’s waiting room, Jin Seyeon asked Cheok Jungyeong who was lounging around on the couch .

“Do I really have to bring it?”

Jin Seyeon had asked Cheok Jungyeong to bring the furniture from the Chameleon Troupe’s hideout, knowing how much Vassago was interested in them .

“Yes, I told you, they will come in handy during our negotiation . ”

“What, after we beat him up, we’ll console him by giving him some furniture and tell him to go home?”

“…Regardless of what the plan is, having more options isn’t bad . ”

Vassago’s Colosseum had a simple format . The challengers would put their lives on the line to fight, just like gladiators . There were ten levels to the Colosseum, and challengers had to clear all levels before they could challenge Vassago . His logic was that he would only accept challenges from the strong .

“But it’s not like we can leave this place, right?”

Jin Seyeon furrowed her brows at Cheok Jungyeong’s question .

“Don’t you guys have Khalifa? Tell him to come here . ”

Challengers couldn’t leave the Colosseum once they entered, but Jin Seyeon and Cheok Jungyeong earned the right to invite a guest after crushing their way through to level 8 .

Cheok Jungyeong got up from the couch and asked .

“You know Khalifa?”

“…Pardon? Ah, well, the Chameleon Troupe is famous, after all . ”

Cheok Jungyeong still gave her a suspicious glance . Jin Seyeon let out a few dry coughs and explained .

“I did some background investigation . ”

“Why?”

“… . ”

Jin Seyeon raised her brows unhappily, and Cheok Jungyeong did the same .

“You think I can trust someone who investigated us so easily?”

“…Tsk . ”

Jin Seyeon scratched the back of her neck . She trudged to the bed and lied down . Cheok Jungyeong smirked and lied back down on the couch . Just like that, silence filled the room .

The level 8 challenger’s waiting room was large and quiet . After a moment, a soft voice cut through the air .

“You guys killed my father . ”

It was Jin Seyeon’s voice .

Cheok Jungyeong murmured while still lying on the couch .

“…It’s pretty common . ”

“Killing people?”

“In this world, it’s common to kill and be killed . You should know it too . Think of all the Djinns you killed . Aren’t they human too?”

“… . ”

Jin Seyeon twisted her body to the side . Her bow was leaning on the head of the bed . It was the same bow that had taken the lives of hundreds of Djinns .

Jin Seyeon spoke calmly .

“My father was my only family . ”

“That’s common too . There are also people who are born orphans . ”

“I sometimes wish I was born an orphan too . ”

“…Pft . ”

Cheok Jungyeong suddenly chuckled . Jin Seyeon furrowed her brows and glared at Cheok Jungyeong .

“What’s funny?”

“Nothing, I just remembered something . There was someone who used to make fun of me by calling me ‘Orphan Producer . ’”

“What?”

“Puhahaha . I think it’s funny . You don’t have to laugh if you don’t think so . ”

Cheok Jungyeong got up from the couch, his large body towering over Jin Seyeon .

Looking at her, Cheok Jungyeong smiled .

“If you want to avenge your father, I’ll welcome you at any time . I don’t know if I’m the one who killed him, but the Chameleon Troupe is one being . But just know that you’ll have to put your life on the line as well . ”

Cheok Jungyeong spoke calmly . He had no fear of death, having spent most of his life with one foot in the River Styx . Jin Seyeon’s face quickly turned vicious .

“…No thanks . You weren’t part of the Chameleon Troupe when that incident happened . ”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yes, you were busy running around the steppes of Manchu killing people . ”

“Kuhum, you even know about that? …Oi, don’t look at me like I’m some sort of a monster . I’m not the man I used to be . ”

“Oh please, there are even rumors that you eat human flesh . ”

Jin Seyeon pulled the bedsheet over her head . Cheok Jungyeong replied, almost like he was giving an excuse .

“Human flesh? I don’t eat things that aren’t tasty . Plus, it’s true that I changed . That guy changed me before I even noticed . ”

“…That guy? You mean Black Lotus?”

“Yep . ”

“What do you mean by that?”

When she heard Black Lotus’s name, Jin Seyeon peeked her head out of the bedsheet . She was attracted to Black Lotus for reasons she didn’t understand .

Was it admiration, fear, respect, or rivalry? She didn’t know how to describe her feelings for him . But her intuition as the Divine Archer told her that there was something about Black Lotus that resembled herself .

“Feel free to tell me more . ”

Jin Seyeon spoke gently . Cheok Jungyeong raised his head . Jin Seyeon was looking at him in anticipation . However, Cheok Jungyeong only gave off a cold smirk before lying back down .

“Nah . ”

“…Just a bit . ”

“No . I’ll talk to Khalifa about that furniture though, not that I think it will help . ”

“… . ”

Jin Seyeon scratched her cheek . She was still happy about the information she pried out, so she gave it a rest for the day and closed her eyes .

“Good night . ”

**

[Baal’s Castle – Banquet Hall]

An orchestral classical piece was still flowing in the air as Jin Sahyuk stared at Yi Yeonjun . Yi Yeonjun continued as he looked deeper into Jin Sahyuk’s eyes .

“Do you get what kind of an existence you are now? You’re nothing but a puppet . ”

“… . ”

Jin Sahyuk didn’t say anything . She simply thought Yi Yeonjun had gone crazy . But she also didn’t think he was completely insane .

At that moment, Shin Jonghak spoke up .

“That fool must be misunderstanding something, right?”

“What?”

When Jin Sahyuk furrowed her brows, Shin Jonghak smirked and continued .

“I don’t know if it’s his delusion or a side-effect of his Gift, but he must believe that this world is a novel . He’s living while believing that it is . ”

Shin Jonghak was saying that Kim Hajin was a megalomaniac who deluded himself into thinking that this world was a novel he wrote .

However, Jin Sahyuk knew Baal was more than capable of discerning reality from fantasy . As far as she was concerned, it was more probable that Yi Yeonjun had gone crazy rather than doubting Baal .

“…Shush . ”

Regardless, what she had to do was simple .

“Where’s Baal?”

To find Baal . She would know the truth once she talked to him .

Yi Yeonjun readily replied .

“Baal’s upstairs . ”

“So what do we need to do to go up?”

“You need more people . ”

As he said that, Yi Yeonjun pointed at the banquet hall’s door . Jin Sahyuk and Shin Jonghak both turned their gazes downwards .

Kiik— And at that moment, the door creaked open . Jin Sahyuk frowned, and Shin Jonghak’s face wriggled with joy .

—Huh? Where’s this?

On the first floor of the banquet hall, Chae Nayun was looking around with a greatsword in her hand .

—I’m not sure… some sort of party?

Yun Seung-Ah’s gaze scanned the hall .

—I see Suho-ssi over there .

Rachel pointed at a couple dancing in the middle of the hall . Kim Suho and Aileen also spotted them . Kim Suho couldn’t hear Yi Yeonjun because he was focused on dancing . Once the others arrived, Kim Suho greeted them with a smile .

—Hey, Suho… it’s been a while .

Yun Seung-Ah stared at Kim Suho from a little distance away . She was happy to see him but didn’t show it on her face .

—Ah, yes, it really has been a while .

Kim Suho stood straight and bowed slightly . Yun Seung-Ah smiled bitterly and told Kim Suho and Aileen about who they met .

—We met Black Lotus .

—Really?

—Yeah . He said he’s helping you . Is that true?

—Yes, it is .

Jin Sahyuk turned back to Yi Yeonjun .

Yi Yeonjun opened his mouth, like he was waiting for this moment .

“Now that there are eleven of you here, you should be able to go up . Go ahead . Find Baal and hear the truth . Then, you can fall into despair . ”

Shin Jonghak hopped down to the first floor to see Chae Nayun, leaving only Jin Sahyuk glaring at Yi Yeonjun .

But not long afterwards, Jin Sahyuk made her usual proud smile .

“Yi Yeonjun… it looks like you’re mistaken . ”

Jin Sahyuk gathered magic power in her hands . Her black magic power coalesced like a storm and emanated its overwhelming presence . Her Authority blazed up as it devoured reality .

“I don’t care what the truth is . Even if what you’re saying is true, it doesn’t matter to me that this world is a novel . ”

Guoooo… She reached out with her burning right hand and grabbed Yi Yeonjun’s head . Looking at Yi Yeonjun’s empty eyes, she shouted loudly .

“I am not a puppet, but a king! And the one who decides that isn’t you or this world! It’s me! I am the one who decides who I am! As long as I’m alive, I am a king, and that’s all I need to know to live in this world!”

She could feel several presences from her spot on the balcony . Chae Nayun and Shin Jonghak, Kim Suho and Yun Seung-Ah, Aileen and Kim Youngjin… there were even more climbing up the staircase .

She could even feel Kim Hajin, watching over her from outside .

Jin Sahyuk made a faint smile .

“I am different from you entirely!”

KOOONG—!

Suddenly, an explosion erupted in the middle of the banquet hall . Yi Yeonjun scattered into dust, and Jin Sahyuk looked down from the balcony with widened eyes .

—W-What happened!? Who are these people?

The men and women, who had been dancing in the hall, had all turned into Death Knights .

“What… . ”

Jin Sahyuk froze . She looked down at the first floor in a daze .

—Take out your weapons, everyone! Aileen Unni!

—Yeah, I know . I’ll take care of it .

Hundreds of Death Knights were surrounding the group . But what shocked Jin Sahyuk wasn’t the sheer number of Death Knights or the sudden disappearance of Yi Yeonjun .

The Death Knights weren’t wearing helmets, so Jin Sahyuk recognized them . Even if they were wearing them, she wouldn’t have missed the insignia on their armor and shield .

A crown of ice and a wolf .

That was the symbol of Jin Sahyuk’s kingdom, Plerion .

They were the knights of Plerion, who had protected her until the moment she died .

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