Chapter 92

Chapter 91: The Path of Choice (2)

"Give yourself the remaining dose. The poison we drank is in gaseous form, and without an antidote, you'll die."

Jinhyuk handed the syringe, which was half full of liquid, to Andrey.

"Wh-what? Yes. Yes."

Andrey took the syringe with wide, rabbit-like eyes.

And he carefully injected it into his own arm.

'No way... this is...'

It was true.

Just a moment ago, his veins had started to itch, but the moment the medicine was injected, everything disappeared as if washed away.

Andrey stared at Jinhyuk intently.

'...What kind of person is he?'

At first, he was just a terrifying presence.

With overwhelming power, he killed the agents of God and swept away the believers.

But as they talked, the fear gradually faded, and now curiosity was rising.

A curiosity to know more about this person.

Moreover,

'He's not just strong.'

Andrey had heard rumors about the Path of Choice.

No one who entered this place had ever come out alive.

They would wander through countless choices and die.

But this man broke through the gates as if mocking everything, and he did it so quickly that it was hard to understand how he got this far.

His unmatched strength, his composure in any situation, and his ability to create results based on the information he had.

Everything was so unbelievable.

Andrey's pupils trembled slightly.

'If it's him...'

Perhaps he really could kill the high priest and end the hellish life.

"What are you doing? We need to go."

"Huh? Yes!"

Andrey nodded quickly.

Kukukuk!

The third gate immediately opened.

This room was quite simple compared to the previous ones.

A chair in the center, a black lever in front of it, and a pipe extending toward the lever.

[Phew. The third gate is...]

Footsmell spoke heavily.

His voice lacked any enthusiasm.

"Stay strong."

[What?]

"You're the best footsmell... no, the manager of the 5th floor. Don't be depressed; explain with strength. I'll listen to the hint and then make a choice."

The way he even worried about the monsters in the tower.

Isn't this what a true veteran should strive for?

Jinhyuk nodded repeatedly, seemingly proud of himself.

Of course, for Footsmell, who had to watch this, it felt like the world was collapsing.

[Alright. The third gate is 'Self-Sacrifice.' As you can see, one person must sit in the chair and pull the lever to open the door to the next gate.]

"Does that mean I just sit and pull the lever?"

Andrey was delighted at the seemingly simple condition.

[Before you get too excited, remember one thing. The moment you pull the lever, flames will shoot out from the pipe in front of you, slowly burning the hand that pulls the lever.]

There was no way to avoid the flames due to the restraints on the chair.

A door that could only be opened by burning oneself.

It was a gate that perfectly matched the theme of 'Self-Sacrifice.'

"No way..."

Andrey stuttered, instinctively realizing there was no easy way out this time.

Right then,

Clap! Clap! Clap!

"Wow, self-sacrifice! What a great word. So, what's the hint?"

Jinhyuk clapped his hands and joked.

[The hint is... you don't necessarily have to sacrifice yourself. I'm sure you can figure out what it means.]

"So, if you don't want to get hurt, you can force someone else to sit there and pull the lever, right?"

[Exactly.]

On the surface, it was about self-sacrifice, but if you could force someone else to sit, you could escape unharmed.

Andrey's body trembled slightly.

If one of them had to be sacrificed, it was obvious who that would be.

But Jinhyuk sat in the chair without hesitation, fastened the restraints, and placed his hand on the lever.

[What? You were planning to sacrifice yourself? I didn't see that coming.]

Huh?

"What sacrifice?"

Sorry, but the magic book's activation time still has about 3 minutes left.

In other words,

'I can use a skill.'

[Lv8 'Glacial Formation' activated!]

The cold from Jinhyuk's fingertips froze the entire pipe.

Clank!

He immediately pulled the lever.

Kukukuk!

The door began to open with a violent vibration. Of course, the flames that were supposed to burn his hand did not appear.

[...]

Footsmell, at a loss for words, froze on the screen.

If someone who didn't know the situation saw this, they might think it was a still frame.

"I'm sorry."

Andrey bowed to Footsmell and hurriedly moved toward the next gate.

Jinhyuk, with a sympathetic look, clicked his tongue.

You should have been more selective about who you dealt with.

'Why did you have to meet me of all people?'

Still, don't be too discouraged or self-deprecating.

Like the sun rising in the east and setting in the west, this result was predetermined.

***

The traps in the Path of Choice total seven.

But the fourth and fifth gates were also broken through.

In a rather anticlimactic manner.

"Can't you come up with something more original? Something that makes my heart race and my back sweat. That would be nice."

Jinhyuk didn't hide his boredom.

Clearing it quickly is good, but, how should I put it?

He wanted a bit more excitement.

The DNA of a seasoned veteran demanded a hellish difficulty.

'This is a bad habit I really need to fix...'

What could he do?

Eleven years of honed instincts were hard to change.

[Something more original... than this? T-that...]

"Why? Surely you don't mean there's nothing? That's strange. The path designed by a named character on the 5th floor can't be this easy."

Jinhyuk tilted his head.

Then, as if something occurred to him, he clapped his hands.

"Ah! Could it be that you intentionally placed easier challenges at the beginning to make us let our guard down?"

[T-that's right. The sixth gate is Valseeter's masterpiece.]

Footsmell hurriedly shouted.

And three seconds later, the sixth gate was also broken through, setting a new record.

"..."

"..."

[...]

An awkward silence hung in the air.

But it didn't last long.

[Shit. I'm out.]

Footsmell cursed and turned off the screen.

This is...

Jinhyuk scratched his head awkwardly.

'I ended up making the manager quit.'

Such an event would be unprecedented in the entire Tower of Trials.

That's why he was looking forward to it.

'How many views will this video get when it's uploaded?'

The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth turned up.

It seemed the top spot on the 'Hall of Fame' was already decided for the time being.

Right then,

The illusory barrier that formed the 'Path of Choice' began to collapse.

Kukukukuk!

The real game was finally about to begin.

***

[You have entered the high priest's hideout.]

The scenery had completely changed.

A stone chamber filled with bizarre sculptures and blood-drenched symbols.

In the center, the high priest was doing something with a corpse.

"Wow, I thought you became a high priest to preach. Turns out you were practicing anatomy?"

So, you were a science student after all?

Judging by your medical school acceptance, you must have studied hard in your student days.

You might even be a contemporary of Chanyeong.

"What? Valseeter was broken through?"

"Don't be too hard on him. He seemed more timid than I thought."

Jinhyuk shrugged.

"Indeed, what he said was true. He warned me not to let my guard down, but I didn't realize it meant this."

The high priest's expression showed genuine surprise.

Of course, he had no choice.

Jinhyuk, who had been babbling in prison, was not even considered worth being an enemy.

Therefore, he believed without a doubt that Jinhyuk would be torn apart by the agents of God.

But,

That prediction was completely off.

"By the way, Lancelot, or rather, Hosenfelt, isn't here."

"He left a while ago."

Left...

Somehow, I had a feeling he would.

"Still, he's quick on the uptake."

"Quick on the uptake? What do you mean by that?"

"He must have realized he would die if he stayed and fled first. That's the story."

"Kukukuk! Amusing. Your overconfidence is a work of art."

The high priest burst into laughter.

Then, his laughter suddenly stopped.

"I don't know what you did, but you violated the tower's rules and used your unique abilities and skills. I must admit, I was surprised. I never thought a human could defy the absolute order."

"I'm pretty good."

To be precise, not just pretty good, but mind-blowing.

They say it's virtuous to hide 30% of your strength, so he planned to stop embellishing himself at this point.

"I look forward to seeing how far your confidence will take you. And how desperately you'll scream in a moment."

The high priest reached for a table next to him.

On the table was a black jar.

"Are you going to use a holy relic?"

"......!"

The high priest's hand froze at Jinhyuk's words.

This time, his genuine confusion was evident.

"You know about holy relics?"

"Roughly."

He had once collected all the holy relics to make a collection, so it would be a lie to say he didn't know.

Still, he acknowledged that it was difficult to gather them all.

A few were so hard to obtain that they caused hair loss.

"......You are truly remarkable."

His tone was a mix of surprise and shock.

Of course, such admiration didn't last long.

The following words were laced with thick malice.

"But if you know about holy relics, you must also know about their power."

The cursed holy relics used to resurrect the Demon King possessed immense magical power.

Especially, the 'Jar of Filth' in front of him was a holy relic of the 'blue' grade among the seven colors.

"Isn't its cooldown incredibly long? Are you going to use it just to catch me?"

"I doubt I'll encounter anyone more troublesome than you. Instead of saving it, I plan to use it decisively when I can."

Hmm.

That's hard to deny.

This guy has a surprisingly sharp side.

Right then,

[The holy relic 'Jar of Filth' has been activated!]

An indescribable curse erupted from the depths of the jar.

A black wave that could burn the air itself.

The surging aura rushed toward Jinhyuk like a wave.

Kukukukukuk!

A truly lethal ability, with an absolute kill judgment!

Jinhyuk tried to put some distance between them, but it was a type of attack that couldn't be avoided.

Thus,

Swish!

The wave pierced through Jinhyuk's chest.

Gag.

Black blood flowed from his mouth.

The pain was horrific, enough to make him lose his mind in an instant.

"Kuh... Kuh! Kuh!"

His voice was hoarse, his lungs pierced.

"No!"

Andrey let out a sharp scream.

And,

"Die in your arrogance, human."

The high priest smiled bitterly.

A person with holes in their body couldn't survive.

That was the end.

Jinhyuk's consciousness faded, and his body collapsed.

[The 'Demon King's Curse' from 'The Rotting Heart' has been removed due to the caster's death.]

A message appeared because the caster had died.

And,

The unique ability triggered by the caster's death intersected.

[The caster has died.]

[The condition has been met.]

[The unique ability 'Blessing of the Stars' has been activated!]

From beyond the sealed ceiling, a night sky unseen on the 5th floor.

Woo!

Light filled with the energy of the stars poured down.

At the same time,

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The heart that had stopped began to beat again.