From Today, I'm a Player

Chapter 178: A Changed World Pt. 3

“How incredible.”

The scene unfolding before them was so terrifying that even Yeo Seong-Gu was trembling before it.

Hundreds of thousands of monsters were charging at the veil under Hel’s command, exploding against it as if they were trying to die again. In an instant, thousands of monsters would disappear, leaving nothing but blood.

“Is this supposed to be proceeding properly?” Jeong In-Chang asked.

More than just being something that one couldn’t see every day, this was a method that also had to be successful. It had to work in order for them to get to Gyeonggi-Do and Seoul.

“Isn’t that just monsters running at a wall…?” Jeong In-Chang asked in a low voice.

“How would I know?” Yeo Seong-Gu answered.

The answer he wanted wasn’t available, as the only one who could actually answer that question wasn’t in a situation where he could respond to them.

“...”

Lee Jun-Kyeong looked down at everything unfolding as he guided Hel’s energy. There was so much sweat running down from his forehead that it drenched his chest as well.

Jeong In-Chang closed his mouth when he saw Lee Jun-Kyeong trembling, feeling sorry for some reason.

“I feel like I’ve become the idiot for asking you a question in this state…”

Kim Su-Yeong could only gape.

“Gasp.”

He was just trying to control his breathing and somewhat understand the scene before them. He had thought that he had seen and experienced many things in the cataclysm, but the scene in front of him was something completely out of the ordinary. Nothing he had seen before had ever shocked him like this.

“Is it almost over…?” Yeo Seong-Gu asked carefully.

Hundreds of thousands of monsters had started, and those numbers had been noticeably reduced. Now, there were only about twenty thousand monsters throwing themselves into the veil.

As for the veil itself, it had been stained with the blood of monsters, and the dark and murky veil had now become solidified.

“It’s become a blood veil… something about it is creepy.”

The monsters’ blood had hardened, and their flesh was pasted onto the walls. It was now a barrier formed from the bodies of corpses.

Seeing that grotesque and disgusting sight, Kim Su-Yeong couldn’t hold it in any further. “Bleughk!!”

“Back… up…” Lee Jun-Kyeong, who had been silent so far, struggled to say.

Yeo Seong-Gu nodded back without delay.

Shing!

He even made a shield to protect their party using his power, assuming that all of the preparations had been completed.

Shhh.

Lee Jun-Kyeong took a step forward, and Hel, who had been waiting, stood by his side. Together, the two looked over at the veil stained with corpses.

–I will begin, master.

All of this had just been preparation, and the beginning had only just started. Lee Jun-Kyeong then nodded.

"Oh… oh, my God!"

Drip, drip, drip.

The veil was beginning to melt.

“No…! No, that’s not it! It’s not the veil, but the bodies that had been plastered onto it that are melting!”

“Then…?”

“That means this is just the beginning!”

Hel waved its hands like a conductor.

RUMBLE!!!

There was a tremor that shook even the heavens, beginning from the veil and spreading out, causing the members of the party to shake uncontrollably.

As the tremor stemming from the veil worsened, Lee Jun-Kyeong struggled to say a final word.

“Ex…”

The veil tremored.

“...plode.”

BOOM!!!

Then, it collapsed.

***

"Hurry up!"

Yeo Seong-Gu ran forward quickly with Lee Jun-Kyeong on his back.

“Goongje!”

The princess’ job was to carry Kim Su-Yeong as his ability was lacking as compared to the rest of the party’s. Thus, the party was running forward at full speed as an invisible explosion erupted from behind their backs.

That explosion didn’t spread out to Seongnam or Seoul, where people were staying. However, the mana contained within it temporarily had broken the veil. In fact, it seemed almost alive.

“Why the hell are you chasing after Jun-Kyeong?”

“AGHHH!”

It was almost as if the explosion was running after Lee Jun-Kyeong to consume him, and it was a storm of mana that was invisible to the ordinary person.

“Bleughk!!”

"You won’t take responsibility for what happens if you throw up on the princess' back!"

“Gulp!”

However, they, as Hunters, were able to see that very substance was chasing after them. It was a monster, a mishappen, grotesque monster with no form. It exuded a pressure that made the party want to prostrate before it, inducing a fear that shook them to their very bones.

“Cough, cough!”

They were barely able to survive within the storm of mana by running until it felt like their legs had fallen apart. Following that, the party quickly turned around after having run for what seemed like forever, sensing that the monster made of mana that they had been so afraid of was backing down.

Looking at it, it seemed to almost…

“Is it laughing at us…?”

The congregation of mana seemed to almost be laughing at them as if it was telling them that whatever happened next, it would have been better for them to have been consumed by itself. Although the party wasn’t able to see anything about it properly, for some strange reason, they could understand that point more clearly than anything else.

“We’ve entered it. This is Gyeonggi-Do,” Yeo Seong-Gu said.

After entering, the receding storm of mana retreated far away, heading back for the place they had broken through.

“The veil…it’s returned.”

The veil returned back to the way it had been before Lee Jun-Kyeong had broken it, dark and murky, and it was back to enveloping everything.

Yeo Seong-Gu finally relaxed and put down Lee Jun-Kyeong, whom they had thrown over his shoulder as they fled.

"Jun-Kyeong!!”

Although he shouted at the Hunter, there was no answer in response.

“Cough!”

Instead, Lee Jun-Kyeong was throwing up black blood while having a seizure.

“Just what…what’s making him like this?” asked Kim Su-Yeong, who was trying to reorient himself.

“His mana…”

“It’s reversing,” Yeo Seong-Gu and Jeong In-Chang said simultaneously.

No one had expected the insane actions Lee Jun-Kyeong had taken to break through the veil. Moreover, none of them had even considered something like that to be a possibility, let alone for it to succeed. However, somehow, Lee Jun-Kyeong had made it happen. Now, he was paying the price.

No matter how strong he was or how robust his mana reserves were, there was still a limit. The power that he had used to break through the barrier that blocked the city was more than enough to destroy the user.

“He used a strength that was beyond his limit,” Yeo Seong-Gu said, putting his hands on Lee Jun-Kyeong’s body, beginning an emergency treatment.

“Ugh!”

However, the result was disastrous.

"Cough! Cough!!"

Barely able to breathe, Yeo Seong-Gu began to projectile vomit blood–a necrotic, murky black blood.

It was as if his intestines had been damaged from that slight contact, forcing him to vomit a huge amount of blood to the point where he was only able to manage to control the backlash.

"How insane..." said Yeo Seong-Gu with drained eyes. He was barely able to wipe his mouth.

"What kind of mana...”

This was the first time that Yeo Seong-Gu had properly seen the extent of Lee Jun-Kyeong’s power. It was an incredible power, and it seemed to know no end.

Lee Jun-Kyeong’s mana was different from anything Yeo Seong-Gu knew.

“No, that’s not mana, it's…”

‘It was like looking into an abyss.’

It was a vast abyss that he shouldn’t have dared to lay his eyes upon. It was almost as if he had tasted it, a hint of the mana of the veil that had chased after them.

Yeo Seong-Gu was terrified. Had he not cut off the connection quickly, he, too, would have collapsed under the weight of the mana backlash as well.

“What the hell are you…” Yeo Seong-Gu screamed at Jeong In-Chang in a blood-curling voice. It was because Jeong In-Chang was putting his hands on Lee Jun-Kyeong just as Yeo Seong-Gu had done.

“Stop it. There’s nothing you can do,” Yeo Seong-Gu said, trying to get him to stop his movements.

“So what, do we just leave him like this to die?” Jeong In-Chang rebutted.

“...”

“I have to save him,” Jeong In-Chang continued in a firm voice.

“But...!”

“There is no but.” The glint in Jeong In-Chang’s eyes was firm and with conviction. “I will save Mr. Lee, no matter what.”

“Are you…confident?”

Although it could be said that Jeong In-Chang had become stronger, there was still a sharp difference in his strength as compared to Yeo Seong-Gu’s.

Yeo Seong-Gu had even gone so far as to unseal his seal in order to treat Lee Jun-Kyeong. Despite that, he had almost been consumed by that terrifyingly enormous mana—no, that unmovable, all-encompassing power.

“You’re going to die,” Yeo Seong-Gu said, warning Jeong In-Chang from continuing.

Jeong In-Chang didn’t seem to care. Yeo Seong-Gu shouted again, “I told you, you’re going to die!”

He was sure of it. If anyone tried to cure Lee Jun-Kyeong, they would die.

Although that was why Yeo Seong-Gu had stopped treating Lee Jun-Kyeong, Jeong In-Chang smiled and continued to put his hand down completely onto Lee Jun-Kyeong’s body. “I told you, it’s different for me.”

They could feel the mana shifting in the air, and it was too late for Yeo Seong-Gu to stop him now.

However, Jeong In-Chang really was confident to some extent.

‘As I’ve…’

He was different from Yeo Seong-Gu. No matter how powerful Yeo Seong-Gu was, Jeong In-Chang had something fundamentally different from the Hunter.

‘I've learned the mana stream.’

.

Lee Jun-Kyeong had taught him the secret of power: the ability to understand the flow of mana and manipulate it. That was where his confidence lay, confidence in the mana stream and its ability to do something that even Yeo Seong-Gu couldn’t do.

Thrum.

As the mana shifted, a change occurred almost immediately as Lee Jun-Kyeong began to tremble even more and seize even harder.

“Help…me please…” Jeong In-Chang said to Yeo Seong-Gu and Kim Su-Yeong without taking his hands off of Lee Jun-Kyeong. The two quickly ran forward and held the Hunter down.

“Huhhh…. Whew…”

Jeong In-Chang continued to circulate his mana as he breathed deeply, a hint of pain in every breath. He could see the flow.

‘What a great abyss…’

He was also seeing what Yeo Seong-Gu had seen, but he wasn’t scared. No, Jeong In-Chang was confident.

‘If it’s to save Mr. Lee, I can even give up my life.’[1]

With that mindset, he continued to create changes.

"It's working...?”

Yeo Seong-Gu looked back and forth between Lee Jun-Kyeong and Jeong In-Chang alternately as if he couldn’t believe it.

It was working. Lee Jun-Kyeong’s seizures were abating and the backlash of the reversing flow of mana was receding.

Lee Jun-Kyeong…was on his way to stability.

"Hahaha…”

There was the sound of laughter, and with a bloody smile on his lips, Jeong In-Chang shouted jubilantly, “I saved him…!”

Lee Jun-Kyeong completely regained stability. His seizures had ended, and the vomiting of blood had stopped.

“Jeong In-Chang!”

“Mr. Jeong!”

However, Jeong In-Chang fell over backward.

Although the princess quickly supported him, the front of Jeong In-Chang’s shirt was quickly turning red, doused in the vomiting blood.

“You crazy bastard…!”

Stabilizing Lee Jun-Kyeong hadn’t been possible without a cost.

"Potion!" Yeo Seong-Gu shouted, trying to give aid to Jeong In-Chang while leaving Lee Jun-Kyeong behind, as the Hunter had already reached stability.

But, then, they heard a stranger’s voice.

"Get out of the way."

It was an unfamiliar voice.

"I'll do it."

It was an unfamiliar face.

None of them had felt anything, but a man had suddenly appeared standing next to them. However, after a second, Yeo Seong-Gu soon began to recognize the man’s face. It was slightly confusing as the face was different from what he had remembered, but he was sure of it.

“Won-Hwa…!”

It was the Hunter that Lee Jun-Kyeong had brought back with him from China. Yeo Seong-Gu remembered the face as the man had incredible medical skills and had become a companion of Lee Jun-Kyeong. However, he looked completely different from before.

“Your arm…?”

“That’s not important right now.”

The left sleeve of Won-Hwa’s coat was empty, but Won-Hwa didn’t give any explanation regarding it.

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

He moved quickly, taking silver needles from an acupuncture box and swiftly embedding them into Jeong In-Chang. All they saw was a flash, an unbelievable amount of skill, even to the untrained eye. Won-Hwa quickly covered Jeong In-Chang’s entire body with silver needles and spoke to Yeo Seong-Gu.

“Please take Lee Jun-Kyeong and the princess,” Won-Hwa said with a glint in his eyes. “We need to leave here right now.”

Rumble!!!

They could feel a tremor cross the ground they stood on. None of them had to speak about it as they could sense the impeding auras; they knew what it was without saying anything.

Monsters were approaching them. Not one, not two, but hundreds of them. The vast mana of the incoming monsters felt immense.

"Hurry up!" Won-Hwa said, rushing the party.

“Damn it.”

Already, black specks could be seen over the horizon. It was a vanguard of monsters. Although they had a familiar aura, for some reason, it seemed amplified well beyond what they were used to.

“Goongje!”

The princess, who had been injured as they crossed the veil, expanded to her battle form and stepped forward, clearly indicating a desire to keep Jeong In-Chang safe.

“You…can’t…” Jeong In-Chang said as he stretched his hand weakly toward the princess.

Her condition wasn’t good, and she couldn’t be left to fight in this state.

“Princess! Don’t be ridiculous and follow quickly!”

“Goongje…?”

“Someone else will take care of it!” Won-Hwa roared at the princess as he stomped forward.

The party quickly followed after him, who was quickly disappearing away from the monsters.

“I’ll handle it.” Behind their backs came another voice, “Take the master and flee from here.”

1. #waifu ????