316 – Fighting the Returners (35)

In the corner of the party hall. Guntar was tied to a chair, his head bowed.

There was no sudden movement like before. Because Cheonma had already taken control of the body.

‘… Hmm.’

Cheonma himself chewed over the situation. What should he have done?

Right after the fake Guntar started to convulse, Cheonma failed to take control. That’s why Guntar grabbed Kim Junho by the collar and shook him hard, which was the first reason why the situation became complicated.

‘It was already too late when I took control.’

The flustered Kim Junho immediately released his magical power, and Guntar’s body froze. Because of that, when Cheonma took control, he was already unable to move. If he had been involved in a fight with another water man, he would have run away or at least induced a return. However, that power was a power that Cheonma could not counter unless he released his magical power. Cheonma, whose body was frozen, had to accept the restraint obediently.

Another misfortune was that Kim Junho’s magical power was not included in the category of ‘wounds’. If he had been injured in the process of subduing Guntar, that magical power only hardened his muscles, so regression did not occur.

The trigger condition for the return is to be hurt by ‘others’. Now, Cheonma could not return at will.

‘Is there any point in going any further?’

Cheonma pondered deeply. The situation was already very complicated. The fake Guntar had a seizure and was thus restrained. If Cheonma were to act in his own way from now on, there would be a possibility that he could be released safely. But would it really be efficient to put in that much effort?

‘… If we start over from the beginning.’

Wouldn’t it be more efficient to create a better situation in a more perfectly planned game and try again?

But that too… didn’t suit him. It felt like admitting defeat right away. Cheonma didn’t like any of the directions, so he worried and worried again.

“Whew.”

Meanwhile, Kim Junho let out a nervous breath. It had been a long time to get here. He had put in his heart and soul to keep Choi Jiwon’s presence hidden, and he had worked tirelessly to do the same things, say the same things, and make the same expressions even as the rounds repeated. Thinking that Cheonma might sense the discomfort,

it was basic to write down what he said on paper and memorize it, and he even rehearsed it with Choi Ji-won. Despite that, the difficulty was close to impossible, but it seemed that he benefited from the increased intelligence stat thanks to the status window.

Now. Now is the first, last, and only chance to kill Cheonma. All his efforts up until now were to create this opportunity, this moment.

Thanks to his efforts, Cheonma firmly believed that he would regress. He believed that if he got hurt, he would return to the past, so he would have a second chance.

In other words, if he killed Cheonma now and didn’t regress… Cheonma would really die. This was the only chance to kill the transcendental strongman who could not be killed no matter what he did.

Victory. Victory was right in front of him. If he closed his eyes tightly and stabbed with his sword, the monster called Cheonma would die.

However, he couldn’t enjoy his victory. It wasn’t over yet. As far as

Kim Jun-ho could tell, the current owner of that body was not the fake Guntar, but Cheonma. It seems like he is acting as harmless as possible, but the subtle sharpness itself has changed. The fact that Cheonma can pop out even when it is not a battle situation means that Cheonma has taken over all control of his body.

In other words, Cheonma can release his magic power without much effort. It seems that he is probably conscious of the archangels and does not use his power, but Cheonma can release his power whenever he wants.

And when Cheonma releases his power? That is the end. It doesn’t matter if he is tied up, has no limbs, or is blind. A Cheonma using magic power can never be defeated. That guy was a monster that was on the verge of becoming a transcendent being, and he felt death just by approaching him from afar. Cheonma who released his power was more like a phenomenon than an enemy.

So, what Kim Jun-ho had to do was simple. He had to kill Cheonma while preventing Cheonma from releasing his power. It was an extremely difficult task, but it was not completely impossible.

Kim Jun-ho planned to respect Cheonma from now on. He won’t let his power out in a fit of rage, but he’ll make sure he doesn’t resist when Choi Ji-won stabs him with her sword. If he fails here, a monster that has noticed the regression will be born. Then, no matter what you do, there’s no turning back.

The play is about to begin. I sincerely hope that it succeeds.

“Guntar.”

Kim Jun-ho stepped forward. His slightly trembling voice was not acting, but rather sincere.

“No, are you Guntar?”

“… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Guntar, no. Cheonma, answered quite plainly.

“As you know, I’ve been sick before. When you… misunderstood me. That’s when I went into hiding because I had a mental illness.”

“A mental illness?”

“Yeah. Sometimes, my dark impulses can’t be controlled.”

Cheonma had never played someone else in his entire life. He was Cheonma wherever he went, and he was a ruler wherever he went.

But just because he’s never done it before doesn’t mean he’s not good at it. Sensitive geniuses often do things for the first time. Acting was no exception.

“…”

And acting meant that they didn’t have the will to do anything rash yet. Not yet.

“Guntar.”

“…”

“I came here with suspicions that you might be… Cheonma.”

Kim Jun-ho spoke cautiously.

“The martial arts you used in the past… were said to be similar to those of Cheonma, who destroyed a planet in the past.”

An awkward silence flowed.

“Guntar, you must be related to Cheonma in some way. Isn’t that right?”

“…”

Cheonma didn’t answer. Instead, he was lost in thought.

Kim Jun-ho was most likely a climber. The reason was that he seemed strangely accustomed to fighting despite his lack of talent, and his strength was formidable. (Conversely, he had assumed that JW wasn’t a climber because his talent was so outstanding.)

Then, was that information obtained while progressing through the tower? Was the target of this floor itself Cheonma? No, that couldn’t be the case. Kim Jun-ho’s level was too low for that to be the case. If Cheonma had been set as an enemy, he would have been much stronger.

Then, the fact that that climber came here… wasn’t just a coincidence.

“Guntar. JW holds a grudge against Cheonma. I don’t like Cheonma either.”

“…”

“Please, answer honestly.”

Kim Jun-ho also inferred that Cheonma was conscious of the Transcendent. He believed that Cheonma would have experimented with self-harm and acquired the information that releasing his magic power does not trigger regression. (This was also something Kim Jun-ho derived.)

In other words, there must be another reason why Cheonma suppresses his temper and avoids killing, but since Cheonma doesn’t know that Kim Jun-ho is the one responsible for the regression, he must have thought that there was a divine being who granted him regression. This is because the conclusion is that he is conscious of that being and is killing him.

So, as expected by Kim Jun-ho.

“Who are you?”

If he doesn’t provoke Cheonma excessively, he doesn’t use violence. He’s conscious of the god who might be watching from somewhere. That

’s why Kim Jun-ho always uses honorifics now, and why he only talks from afar. It’s different from before when he covered up stimulation with stronger stimulation. Absolutely, no matter what, Cheonma should never use violence.

“Why are you only talking?”

That was a question to Cheonma. Unlike Kim Jun-ho until now, the guy was acting too humble. To Cheonma, this was a strange situation, and suspicion always stems from strangeness.

“I hope you’re not Cheonma.”

“… Why?”

“If you’re Cheonma, my friend JW will try to kill you.”

“If I’m really Cheonma, you’ll be the ones to die, right?”

“That doesn’t matter to someone obsessed with revenge. It’s human nature to attack an absolute being that can’t be defeated.”

“… Hmm.”

An absolute being that can’t be defeated. Isn’t that a really nice expression?

“So, just say it. You… are not Cheonma.”

Now that I look at it, Kim Jun-ho seems to want to let Cheonma go. He felt like he knew he would lose if they fought. Indeed, he seems to know his place.

“Get out of the way!”

“Hey, hey! Stop it!”

At that moment, a commotion was heard from behind. Some of the people watching fell over, and JW, biting his lips tightly, rushed in.

“Hey, I told you to stop!”

“That woman is too strong!”

“It’s an act of majeure!”

JW, breathing heavily, spoke softly.

“… Are you Cheonma?”

“Wait a minute, wait!”

“Say it.”

The woman called JW walked forward with a knife in hand. It was clearly a gesture to kill, but Cheonma could sense the hesitation at the tip of the knife.

“Just say it! You are not Cheonma!”

Cheonma was troubled. Should he admit it? If he just said one word, “You are not Cheonma,” he could get over it.

But there was a big difference between what the fake Guntar said and what Cheonma himself said. There was a really big difference.

He lived his whole life as Cheonma. He originally had a certain humble name, but he had long since abandoned it. His title was first Madman, then Toogwi, and finally Cheonma.

Cheonma. A devil from the sky. He always liked this title. It seemed to confirm that he was different from weak humans, and it seemed to emphasize his essence of always winning.

Cheonma was always confident. He was proud of himself. He was Cheonma wherever he went.

He could even say that he was not Cheonma. But. But denying his own identity with his own mouth.

“Who am I?”

It was impossible for the ruler who had commanded a universe.

“I am Cheonma.”

As soon as he finished speaking, JW rushed in. His black ponytail fluttered, and the blade rushed toward Cheonma’s neck.

Cheonma did not move. The day was getting closer.

Still, Cheonma did not move. The thick fur surrounding his neck was cut.

Cheonma was…still silent. Finally, the sword and Cheonma’s skin met.

Even now, as the blade dug into his skin, if he could release his magic power, Cheonma could win. He was Cheonma, the one who reigned, the one who always won. The devil of the sky. There was no one above him, and he had the world at his feet.

Even now. Even now, 0.1 seconds before Cheonma met his death, if Cheonma had the will to fight, he could annihilate everyone here in one go.

But Cheonma didn’t do that. He didn’t resist, and calmly accepted death. It was because he had been caught up in the ‘honorable return’ that Kim Jun-ho had planned, but it was more because he had gathered his thoughts.

‘After returning… I’ll have to stay away from Kim Jun-ho. I’ll kill him when I get the chance.’

There were many reasons. First of all, it was to show the Transcendent that he had changed. Another reason was that even if he killed everyone here and now, it would be more like simple venting. The drones had already recorded the entire situation, and it had been revealed that he was Cheonma.

However, these were all just secondary reasons.

Next. He believed that there would be a next time even after he died. He thought that time would turn back, and he just had to not repeat his small mistakes next time. Rather than denying his own identity, Cheonma chose to start the whole process from the beginning.

Returning… changed Cheonma.

If Cheonma had lived a life of struggle, he would never have made such a mistake. When he walked on the edge of a knife, he could not forgive even the smallest flaw. He was Cheonma, and everyone was after his neck. Cheonma,

who was like that. Cheonma, who had treated all living things. At some point, he thought that ‘death’ was not the ‘end’.

That was a mistake. It was Cheonma’s fault.

The sharp blade cut through flesh, briefly catching Cheonma’s spine. However, the sword wrapped in magic power did not stop there, and moved busily to completely separate the head and torso.

‘?’

When the blade dug into more than half of his neck, Cheonma sensed a sense of discomfort. Normally, at this point, he should have felt the characteristic feeling of losing consciousness, but he only felt a lot of pain, and no signs of regression.

‘No way.’

It was really absurd, but what if regression didn’t activate now? Then… In fact, all the regressions Cheonma had experienced up until now were…

-Crunch.

It was too late.

-Thud.

His head fell to the floor. The wolf’s face was furrowed as if he was deeply contemplating something.

And so Cheonma died.

So futilely.