Chapter 127

At that moment, Tae-un, who had been staring intently at the strange person, took a short breath and pulled Soram closer.

"Mentioning the 1st Great Rift reminded me. I know who that person is."

"Huh, really? From where?"

"He's someone who fought as an agent during the 1st Great Rift. ...He lost both legs during the battle."

"..."

At that time, there was no system, no organization, and no title or treatment as hunters. Moreover, before the 1st Great Rift could be resolved, the 2nd one broke out, so they probably didn't receive proper compensation at the time. Policies for hunters only came out after Park Jae-seon took the director's position.

'So, in the last life, Director-nim here...'

Soram quietly bit the inside of his cheek.

Even if he didn't receive proper treatment at the time, the strange person had been a brilliant 1st-grade awakener. Despite his identity being revealed, he seemed unimpressed.

"I thought you might have told him since you two seem quite close this life, but I guess not. It must be painful to live hiding and pretending not to know anything."

Instead, he mocked Soram with an attitude as if he already knew.

"What is he saying?"

"Just, picking a fight."

"Tell the person next to you that this is the final form of the person the country hailed as a hero!"

"..."

That was something Soram had wanted to say several times since he first met Tae-un in this life. However, he didn't want to convey it through the words of a person in that state.

"Why?"

"It's nothing. This time he moved too quickly, so I couldn't understand."

"...I see."

It wasn't a believing tone, but at this moment, it was difficult for Soram to gauge his reaction. All his attention was focused on the strange person. This person was a 1st-grade hunter... Suddenly, a question arose.

"Um, but isn't the difference in destructive power too great to be the same 1st-grade?"

On this side, dozens of hunters were swept away by the power of one person. Among them, there were about a dozen 1st-grades, combining those from the Busan Branch and those who came to support from various regions. The balance of power was quite unfair.

"This is just my thought."

Tae-un, who had been thinking for a moment, opened his mouth.

"A lot of people despair and die not when one side is overwhelmingly strong, but when it's evenly matched and the fight is fierce."

"Ah."

"So, if you harbor something opposite to the wish of saving the world, maybe you can exert as much power as those protecting this place."

"..."

Hearing those words, something came to mind. 20 hours in the first life, 26 hours in the second life, and 48 hours in the third life. That was the time it took for the lull to come in the 3rd Great Rift.

Soram's skills had developed dramatically as he went through the first, second, and third lives. And because Min-ki and Ga-eul, his peers, grew watching such a Soram, their skills improved faster with each round.

Jin Soram, Kim Ga-eul, and Seo Min-ki were called special high school students from the first life, but it was from the third life that they gained such an overwhelming presence as now. And the difficulty of the 3rd Great Rift at that time increased significantly.

Dungeons that broke out stronger and earlier with each round.

"..."

His mind became complicated with too much information rushing in at once. But Soram had one more thing he absolutely had to ask.

"Are you repeating lives like me?"

"I wasn't given such a choice. I can only glimpse into the past at the moment of causing a Great Rift."

Well, if he had regressed, he would have changed the event where he lost his body and fell into despair first.

"However, this life seems to be ending without much fun. If I'm going to start over anyway, I have no reason to spare my body."

He grinned as he looked down at his own body buried in the rift.

"It's a shame I can't see the power I've used so recklessly amplified by the countless number of your lives. How much has this country crumbled? It should have been destroyed as much as I protected, and should have died."

Ah, as expected. The difficulty increased with each round because of me.

"..."

It probably wasn't just his skills that were the cause. But he couldn't deny that he had been at the center of it. Soram's shoulders trembled as he lowered his head.

He covered his mouth with the back of his hand. When Tae-un, surprised, examined him and called his name, Soram raised his head.

"Ah, damn... Pfft, kuk, ah, ha... Ahahahaha!"

At the same time, laughter burst out loudly.

***

Soram was injured, and laughter used more muscles throughout the body than he thought. But even while clutching his burned arm, Soram couldn't stop his body from shaking for a long time.

"Ha, really, I had a feeling but..."

20 hours in the first life, 26 hours in the second life, 48 hours in the third life.

And.

In the fourth life, it took 42 hours until the lull. Soram moved his hands, unable to erase the smile from his lips.

"Sorry for laughing, but honestly, my feeling is that this time was much less desperate than the previous round."

It wasn't just the time that had decreased compared to the last life.

The 3rd Great Rift in the last life swept all of Busan's coastline from the start. Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon didn't die at the beginning of the fight, but instead died while buying time for evacuation. And the lava that rushed in annihilated the hunters. For 48 hours, far from protecting Busan from the dungeon, the lava rushed into Gimhae and Changwon.

In this life, surprisingly, they defended the barricade erected in Busan. And Soram knew something that had a significant impact on the average power of the hunters in this country.

A regressor who couldn't reveal his identity to anyone. A person who would probably be determined to be the strongest in this country if measured with all his might. Nevertheless, the skills of someone who had been lying down for 8 years couldn't be better than before.

"Ha, this is really crazy..."

Soram in the 3rd round ran with literally all his might in an accumulated state of experience.

Of course, the current fourth life was stronger than the first and second lives where he couldn't properly grasp his abilities and was crushed by mental pressure. But it was bound to regress significantly, unconditionally, from the third.

Soram's skills had dropped sharply. Ga-eul and Min-ki also didn't train breathlessly beside Soram who was running anxiously like a mad horse, and Soram, who had seized power at the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters and led intense training, had also disappeared.

It was a story that would make everyone lament if they heard it, but...

...It was good that he just lay down doing nothing.

"Aha, ha. Kuk, ha."

"Soram-ah."

"Ah, it's nothing. Just, ha, I'm a bit dumbfounded..."

"Have you lost your mind, or are you happy that the intensity was a bit less because it was a life you had given up on?"

It wouldn't be much different anyway. As he waved his hand, he seemed unaware of how lazy, idle, and inactive Soram had lived. It was really tremendous until Han Tae-un came.

Yes. That's how it was.

Soram exhaled a long breath and looked at the ceiling. Then he looked down at the strange person again.

"Han Tae-un. You didn't listen earlier, so I'll replace it with this order."

Strength entered the hand gripping the sword handle.

"Close your eyes. Don't open them until I say it's okay."

"..."

Even though he knew he was coming to kill him, the strange person giggled.

"You're better than Park Jae-seon who acted hypocritically saying let's get out alive together. See you in the next life. Anyway, even if not this time, your life will end with the 4th Great Rift."

"Before you die, let me answer what you asked earlier."

"...Fine. Come to think of it, why are you using a sword again? Has there been a change of heart?"

Again? He had never used a weapon other than a sword in his past life, did he think he would die by the paper airplane? Soram shrugged, ignoring the words, and raised his sword. Then he answered at a distance where his mouth shape would be clearly visible.

"The hunters protected more than 70% of Busan's land. By the way, both Director Park Jae-seon and Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon are alive. Just as righteous as ever."

...What?

As if asking that, the strange person's mouth opened. From Soram's calm expression, he confirmed it was the truth.

"Even so, it's already too late! No matter what, the 4th Great Rift will be as much as your regression,"

The strange person, who had been staring intently at Soram's brown eyes, gasped urgently, making a wind sound of "eh, eh, eh" from inside his throat. Something was strange. Let alone using the sword again, that appearance, and the gloomy air clearing from his face.

His eyes, allowed to see the past, exerted their last strength to capture Soram. ...Why, the number of times is only this much... The strange person's eyes trembled.

Jin Soram said "the dungeon has weakened." If that wasn't a misconception, the cause was.

"Wait, wai..."

"There is no next life."

Soram declared firmly.

His memories, which had been passed on and on, ended here. Soram moved his hand that wasn't holding the sword.

"Goodbye. I envy you."

When a person's neck is cut, there is no crunching sound as expressed in movies and such. There was just silence, followed by the head falling to the floor with a thud.

Soram turned around and passed by Tae-un. Then he pointed to the rift vibrating on the floor.

"This will be a bit easier to destroy than other rifts. It won't be able to resist or recover because it has nowhere to draw power from."

Two hours later, two figures emerged from the black mountain. Along with them, the dark red lava spread over Busan's land turned to ash and slowly drifted away.

The Republic of Korea had overcome the 3rd Great Rift.