Chapter 197 – 197. What Is in the Heart

A situation where there is a lot of back and forth.

A fallen angel cannot withstand the pressure of the exorcism temple. You must be humble and fearful.

Because that’s the rule of the world they live in.

However, the prayers from the Exorcism Temple did not work at all on that monster. Instead, as if to show off, they crushed three silver-level adventurers and even blocked the entrance.

‘What on earth does that mean?’

No confrontation. A monster with no weaknesses.

There is no way to deal with it.

Moreover, in the background, Balrog was swinging a club and steadily reducing the strength of the raiding party.

‘How can I get out of here?’

I thought my opponent was a fallen angel and jumped in thinking I could win, but the situation turned out to be too bad.

How could they have known? The dimensional door that opened in their world was connected to another world, and the most vicious survivor of that world was coming in and causing trouble.

They probably didn’t know either. This was possible because Kang In-ho’s world was slowly falling apart. It continues from here and there, and all kinds of miscellaneous things flow into the Earth.

The continuation of winter and night is only the beginning. Unless the symbols of paganism are destroyed, Kang In-ho’s world will continue to be distorted.

Because excessive concentration of causality distorts everything. Even Kang In-ho was distorted like that.

It is the result of the disasters of that world, which were thoughtlessly abandoned by the man who is said to be the savior of the parallel universe, weighing down and oppressing Kang In-ho’s world.

And above all, the evil spirit was the most dangerous. A cosmic malice whose origin is unknown has crash-landed. It has made its home in a world where almost all gods have been exterminated.

There will be no way out of this crazy apocalypse other than steadily destroying pagan symbols and driving out evil spirits.

That’s why Kang In-ho pulled out his sword.

He doesn’t care at all whether the opponent is a human from another dimension or a loser inside the gate.

Whether the other person is innocent or guilty, all he can see in his eyes is whether he has useful skills.

Eat delicious skills. Even if they are not there, they kill them and sell their bodies and souls. All trash skills will be converted into coins by selling previously acquired skills…

For some reason, Kang In-ho seemed impatient.

“Quaaa!!!!!”

The head of the warrior who was retreating exploded.

Subsequently, an arrow flew at Kang In-ho and stuck in him, but he grabbed the head of the thief who was approaching from behind as if he could not feel pain, slammed it to the floor, and threw it towards the woman holding the bow.

Brain fluid poured out from his crushed head, and the fishy scent of blood made Balrog even more excited. When Kang In-ho killed someone, Balrog became even more excited by the smell of blood.

This small chain reaction shattered the raid leader’s shield.

“Kwaaaaa!!!!”

The arm of the man known as the Iron Wall was bent beautifully. Balrog did not miss this opportunity and struck an additional blow by stomping on the head of the fallen leader of the raiding party.

“I! Fuck!!!”

Kang In-ho, who had noticed the defense skills that the raid leader possessed, became furious and shouted at Balrog when the raid leader died helplessly.

It’s because he didn’t even expect that he would die in vain like that.

Still, I was expecting to be given butter for two more minutes, but I couldn’t last more than a minute and died at the hands of Balrog. As a result, Kang In-ho was feeling a great sense of loss.

Even though there is certainly no need to feel that sense of loss.

Something was strange. Although I am usually greedy for skills, it has been very rare for me to react so passionately.

‘Something is strange.’

Agaf reacted to this. She had already recognized Kang In-ho as her companion. Therefore, when Kang In-ho becomes strange, she reacts very sensitively.

[Hey, she didn’t think she could kill them all anyway.]

“That’s right.”

A shocked response comes back. There was still some anger left in Kang In-ho’s heart.

‘No way.’

Only then did Agaf notice.

Something has really changed inside Kang In-ho.

‘If things continue like this…’

Kang In-ho will collapse.

Deep in his heart…

A feeling of despair took over.

Despair. It is a curse with the most terrible name that no survivor should have.

Until this time, Kang In-ho had a vague sense of anxiety rather than despair. As he watched the world gradually falling apart, he always wondered if his future would be bright even if he survived like this.

However, I was able to survive because of the women. After playing at night, Kang In-ho always smiled with a refreshed expression.

Because he had seen it, Agaf did not quickly notice his change.

‘This guy…’

Agaf thought. The source of this despair.

And it was soon discovered without difficulty.

‘Bad body.’

Until then, the enemies Kang In-ho had encountered had a clear reality. They were also enemies that could be killed by shedding blood. However, the chest is different.

‘A monster without substance. An enemy that cannot be faced.’

That made even Agaf tremble. Just as the members of the attack team trembled at the sight of Kang In-ho going crazy, both Kang In-ho and Agaf were feeling an almost instinctive fear of evil spirits.

It is a monster that created an opening and attacked simply because it was trying to trade the corpses of heretics.

Moreover, if Asmorphia had not risked its existence.

Kang In-ho probably died on the spot. Or he would have been devoured and become the bearer of disaster.

You should not try to find balance in a chaotic world without rules or order. Just because of a little carelessness, a mistake, or bad luck, you could be targeted and killed.

Yes, it’s that kind of world.

‘The fear of an enemy I cannot face has gone too deep. This is a kind of curse.’

The despair buried deep inside was weighing on Kang In-ho, knowingly or unknowingly.

He thought he had relieved all his anger by playing with women, but the fear left behind by the evil spirit remained deep in his subconscious, still trying to weigh him down and break him down.

‘It is dangerous if left like this.’

If you don’t banish despair, it will soon start to crack. Agaf couldn’t even predict what the future would be like if that happened.

However, Agaf had no way to resolve this situation. Even though her despair has settled into his heart, she has no way to bring him out.

Yes, she knew her role very well.

‘My role is… A helper.’

A helper who will silently follow Kang In-ho’s path.

Nothing more or less than that.

So even though she could cheer him up, she couldn’t help him get up when he was falling.

The guide who will lead Kang In-ho is Asmorphia. Although Kang In-ho rarely showed himself, he was deeply dependent on a higher entity called Asmorphia.

It has to be that way.

It is a being that provides direction to an uncertain future that cannot be seen even an inch ahead. Asmorphia is the one who always provides the solution in situations where even the slightest mistake can lead to death.

Just because we met not long ago doesn’t mean the depth is shallow. Having been saved several times, Kang In-ho, an individual, was always looking at the existence of Asmorphia as a kind of indicator.

But this time things were very different. Asmorphia, who I thought would always be there, has disappeared.

In a way, it was like a religious person witnessing their main god disappear before their eyes.

‘Has it completely disappeared?’

Kang In-ho was definitely like that. He said that Asmorphia saved him just before he was dragged into the evil spirit.

‘Maybe it was a sacrifice of everything.’

Before entering the Nether Tunnel, when he entered Raythena’s collapsed sanctuary.

In fact, Agaf and Kang In-ho felt the same way at that time.

However, both turned their eyes away from the truth.

‘Raythena’s collapsed sanctuary. The abyss bugs that were underground…’

They all disappeared.

It is not only Asmorphia that has disappeared. As if a burden had been removed, everything in that infinite labyrinth disappeared. Now it was just an empty cave.

However, Kang In-ho denied that fact. He arbitrarily concluded that it was just because the abyss was so deep that he couldn’t feel it with his senses, as if to console himself.

I tried to be optimistic that Asmorphia would return safely next week.

In reality, everything inside the labyrinth had already disappeared.

Even if next Monday comes, Asmorphia will no longer appear.

‘…’

Agaf thought. In a situation where the only divine being who could properly help Kang In-ho disappeared, he had to face the dark future virtually alone.

No matter how much he raises his companions, they will not be able to enter the fixed labyrinth together. This was a fact that both Kang In-ho and Agap had vaguely felt after visiting the Forest of Fallen.

Kang In-ho’s women can be his wives, but they cannot be his colleagues. No matter how much you give and strengthen skills, there is a limit.

Because if Kang In-ho shares his talents to strengthen others, he will ultimately be defeated.

That thought became stronger right after I managed to escape from the Demon King’s cellar. Kang In-ho instinctively realized that the moment he shared his talents to raise his colleagues, he would eventually collapse in front of a stronger enemy.

That’s why he monopolized the inheritance items. If it were his original personality, he would have given either Baek Ah Yoon or Yoo Sae Ah a set of demons to strengthen them.

However, this time he monopolized both the demon set and the annihilating evil set. From here, you can realize that Kang In-ho’s mindset has changed.

‘It’s such a heavy burden. But…’

These are disasters that there is no way to overcome other than Kang In-ho’s burden. All the elixirs and talents had to be devoted to just one person.

A world where there is no pantheon or anything. Most of the gods disappeared or lost their power due to old age.

The universe where the lights are going out is the world that Kang In-ho belongs to.

‘Without anyone watching. ‘Lonely.’

Agaf promised that he would not be left to fight alone like that.

Since she chose to accompany him in order to obtain her own lost body, she and Kang In-ho are in fact her destiny community.

Of course, before that fact, Agaf had come to not want Kang In-ho to fall even more strongly than his own death.

‘It’s been a long time since I had fun. It can’t end like this.’

She recalls the distant past.

A recollection of the first master I followed when I was firstborn into the world.

A vague memory of the time when we were still mere creatures, unable to even form a human form, truly nothing more than beasts.

‘How long has it been since I felt this way?’

I remember the journey I took with my owner when I was young. The journey with Kang In-ho was similar. Fight powerful enemies, gain something, and become stronger.

In a way, it’s a typical story.

‘I will do my best to help you until I return to my world.’

Agaf is also a being that bounced away. He was one of the things that the self-proclaimed savior had thrown away. Therefore, he just vaguely wanted to return to his own world.

But now she thinks. What difference does she make when she goes back? In the beginning, there was almost nothing precious left in the world.

When Kang In-ho’s story ends, she will have a choice. Should I go back? Will I stay? So she must do her best until then. In order to meet the moment of her choice correctly.

‘The lighthouse that showed the way has disappeared. A pitch-black night. The ship won’t be able to move forward. So me. I must be the light.’

That’s the conclusion Agap reached.

Since the lighthouse that brightly illuminated the sea at night disappeared, a temporary solution had to be prepared.

Otherwise, Kang In-ho will collapse here.

It is a terrible thing that the only person who holds the key to salvation will soon face the end.

[Hey, Kang In-ho.]

“Huh?”

[After this fight is over. Let me tell you one of my skills. So don’t be too obsessed with skills right now. They’re all just A-level anyway.]

“Technology?”

[Okay. I’ll tell you a spell that will kill you. So focus on dealing with those for now. Defeat your enemies. You’re good at it. Isn’t that right?]

“Under. Haha… What is it? “Are you rooting for me now?”

[What. Isn’t this what we’ve always done?]

“Hehe… Thank you again.”

Kang In-ho suddenly felt a little more at ease.

It corrected Kang In-ho’s slightly distorted mind.

He didn’t realize what it was. He doesn’t know that someone has swallowed the curse of evil spirits deep inside him.

The beast of death is a fetish to ward off evil created by ignorant humans during the mythical era.

Therefore, they absorb their master’s curse instead. So, when it reaches saturation point, it is designed to reverse the master-servant relationship and devour its master.

“Good. Let’s do it.”

Now, the terrible despair that was deep inside Kang In-ho has disappeared.

******

[Survival rating has increased by 1.]

He burst the chest of the Balrog, who was staggering from exhaustion, and sat down on his corpse.

Survival level increased by one. Now all you have to do is rip off this bastard’s head and get out.

“Keueuuuuu…

Liza, the spearman who had lost her sight, was crawling on the floor, moaning, and most of the other humans were lying around in disarray.

I plan to pack Liza up, put it in my inventory, and take her out.

Before that, we need to persuade him so that he doesn’t disappear from the inventory. Or, it would be a good idea to drive an iron stake into Azrael and make him unable to move.

“God.”

And one more priest was captured. I plan to steal information about the exorcism temple. Because it seems to be the best technique when dealing with demons or corrupted beings.

“Whoa.”

[Are you okay?]

“Okay?”

I lost two fingers halfway while fighting the Balrog. Also, my thigh muscles were slightly torn, and the bones seemed to be cracked. It really hurts like crazy.

I want to collapse right now, but there’s still work left to do here.

“Let’s get some rest.”

I already told the dark spirits to pick up the awakening stones. It’s nice to be able to do chores.

Now all we have to do is sell the remaining corpses in a spiritual and physical transaction.

‘What kind of reward will Balrog give?’

I decided to sell Balrog’s spirit and body first before finding out information about the Exorcism Temple from the priest.

[One of Balrog’s spiritual and physical bodies…]

The message is somehow different from before.

They say that even if a person is sacrificed, it is a lowly matter of spirit and body. Balrog was separately written as Balrog. Balok itself is used as a proper noun.

[Can be exchanged for one skill fusion ticket.]

“Wow.”

The reward was quite enormous.

It was a reward of similar value to the blessings I had received in the past.