### Chapter 272 – Room ???, The Cursed Room – ‘????’ (10) Fin(?)
—
“Hey! It’s not easy, is it?”
Not that it had been a walk in the park since we entered this room, but right now, we were in the thick of it! If it weren’t for that massive, mysterious beam of power out there, Ahri alone could have wiped the floor with all of us. The only other one among us who had that kind of fighting power was me, when I used ‘Descend.’
Yet here was Ahri, ready to take us all down single-handedly. Two major reasons for that: her mastery of the terrain and the penalties bestowed upon us by the hotel.
While we were fumbling around, utterly clueless about using the layout of this crumbling city to our advantage, Ahri was popping in and out like a pro. She had the place completely mapped out, making it incredibly easy for her to get the upper hand by maneuvering and spotting attacks.
Moreover, the hotel had set the odds in favor of Ahri with the penalties it imposed.
With Cha Jinchul’s combat powers severely diminished due to the weakening of his blessings and me losing my alert system, I was on the run, darting between buildings like a headless chicken! On the flip side, Ahri didn’t even have to depend on blessings inside this Cursed Room.
To make matters worse, we had lost our most powerful psychic: Elena. She was like a big fat target who got popped before the bell even rang. Talk about a rough start!
In the end, if we scattered, Ahri would hunt us down one by one. We had to stay huddled together and not reveal any weaknesses. In retrospect, Grandpa’s strategic shout of “Over there!” the instant the fight began was pretty spot-on.
As if by some miracle, when Cha Jinchul, Grandpa, and I stuck close together and started zig-zagging around the buildings, it became harder for Ahri to get a clean shot at us and we kept the standoff alive. Of course, that didn’t mean it was all sunshine and rainbows for us.
— Swoosh!
A blade whizzed through the air and ripped right through the air above Grandpa’s hands! His plan to sneakily pop off a shot with his gun turned out to be a big fat zero. I mean, who were we kidding? Shooting from this distance was already a long shot!
“Grandpa! When’s Ahri going to spill some blood?”
I’d been wondering about that for a while now. Isn’t one of her weaknesses her stamina? “Old blood” drains the user’s life force; it shouldn’t sustain this long, right?!
“Must be that damn glass jar! She got her hands on it and now she’s stocked up on blood to pull this shenanigan!”
“Man, we need to bury her in snow outside or something!”
“Good plan, but do we even know where Seungyub is?”
I was starting to wonder where that kid disappeared to. I saw Grandpa toss him somewhere at the start, and since then, he vanished like a poof of smoke!
“He usually does his own thing when left alone, so let’s focus on ourselves. Anyone got a good idea? Kain, what about your ‘Descend’?”
Upon hearing that, my gaze instinctively drifted skyward.
Flurry: X
“Can’t use it.”
Just like my status window, ‘Descend’ also had its text all jumbled up, with a big fat X next to it. I guess when blessings are restricted, ‘Descend’ goes kaput too? Even if I could use it, I’d probably hesitate anyway. It was my last remaining ace in the hole.
A strong instinct was slapping me in the face, screaming that using it would lead to something irreversible. But if we were all about to bite the dust, I’d have no choice.
“Something’s been bothering me.”
“Uh, if you use that without any blessings, isn’t it basically a suicide mission?”
“Hey, if I’m going down anyway, I might as well drag someone down with me!”
“Wait, that’s not exactly—”
— Swoosh!
Just a hair’s breadth away, and I nearly got to witness the back of my own head! But after dodging that last attack, I was sure of it: Ahri exposed her position the moment she unleashed that sharp energy wave.
“Focus!”
*
Moments later, Cha Jinchul and Kim Mooksung both sprang up simultaneously from between the buildings. Of course, the second Ahri aimed her lethal energy at us, she darted behind a wall.
At that moment, everyone lunged toward that building Ahri was hiding in!
Since earlier, Ahri had been using the entire city as a bunker, occupying advantageous positions at every turn. Meanwhile, we were fumbling around, completely clueless about the city’s layout and definitely not daring to venture inside a dark building where danger could lurk behind every corner.
So far, it was Ahri who was using a safe bunker to pick us off one by one. If we dilly-dallied too long, she could recharge that nasty beam of hers and we’d be toast.
Ultimately, someone had to make the aggressive move. We had to storm the building where Ahri was holed up!
Inside the building, it was pitch black—absolutely no light. Cha Jinchul and Grandpa, having just burst through, both flinched at the overwhelming darkness. Of course, we weren’t just leaping in there like idiots.
“I’ll go first. You guys do your best!”
With not a care in the world, Jinchul flashed a cheeky grin as ‘Star of Another World’ appeared in his hands. The very air around him began to pulse as waves rippled outward.
The building’s walls began to twist as they took a direct hit from the wave generated by the star. Cha Jinchul swung that piece like a club, sending the walls crashing down!
“Come out! Don’t hide in this crummy building, you little—Ugh! Already?!”
Time was of the essence. When it came to using his star, Jinchul had literally no time to lose!
Grandpa and I used the light filtering in through the collapsed wall to dart upstairs—where Ahri had previously shot at us. We could hear Ahri bustling around, sensing our approach. At long last, we found ourselves within earshot of each other.
Barely a wall or two separated us, and everyone realized we were right across from each other. A tense atmosphere filled the air. Grandpa and I locked eyes once before making our move.
I stepped into the lead. According to plan, my life was expendable now.
As we ducked behind a gigantic couch, Ahri swung her arm through the air, unleashing a dreadful energy.
I felt that surge crash over me. Instead of dodging, I leaped straight in!
“Gotcha!”
In that instant, my long-harbored teleportation tattoo started to glow, and I materialized right in front of Ahri. Just as she lunged to grab my neck, a book appeared in my hand.
A sense of consciousness began floating away from me.
*
I was falling endlessly into a cavernous darkness.
It was bizarre. I had possessed numerous bodies by now, but had anything like this ever occurred? Usually, I’d feel a momentary lift and find the new body I claimed after a brief burst of consciousness.
But right now…
Nothing could be seen. It felt like I was in free fall, plummeting down an endless abyss, where I couldn’t even glimpse the floor.
If I thought back fondly, even the first time I possessed Ahri felt somewhat different compared to other experiences. I had control over my body, yet Ahri had kicked me out in no time. At that point, I thought it was just because of her powers.
But how could she so easily repel the powers of the grimoire? If it was the power of old blood, I could understand that. No matter how grand the powers of heritage might be, defending against them with ones tied to the same heritage seemed reasonable.
I wondered if Grandpa was faring well.
Honestly, my plan ended here. The goal was never about what to do once I possessed her, but merely the act of possession itself. I already knew she might kick me out; I’ve been there once before. Therefore, possession couldn’t act as the final blow.
Still, I knew that Ahri would need a few seconds to get rid of me, and those precious seconds were more than enough for Grandpa to pop her head clean off! That was the gist of the plan.
Jinchul was supposed to smash through the building to let us in. As I gain control of Ahri, Grandpa would finish her off.
“A quick decision. Didn’t expect that. Such a bother.”
Just then, I realized I had suddenly stopped falling, and someone loomed in behind me.
“Who are you? Where’s Ahri?”
“Just a bit longer, and the ‘final gleam’ will finish charging. I didn’t expect you to dive in while I was waiting. Did I perhaps pressure you too much? Could be a mistake on my part.”
“Got no intention of answering, huh?”
The figure before me took the form of a jelly-like substance floating through the air. How does something like that even speak? But then again, this wasn’t exactly the realm of reason, was it?
“Descendant of the traitors. Your judgment isn’t bad, but diving into this body is a foolish choice. Don’t think you’ve caught me; it’s I who have you!”
I looked into their countless eyes sprouting all around me. In the vast expanse of Ahri’s mental realm, I could feel all those glances focusing on me—
And I realized.
I understood how Ahri could use the power of old blood to defend against my possession. I also understood why that being was so confident in saying, “I’ve caught you!”
You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing. You can do nothing.
Endless phrases drilled into my mind over and over. Just before consciousness slipped away, I thought.
This place is the hell of suggestion.
Thus, no one can defeat Ahri inside her mental realm. Yet I already knew that defeating her through possession was impossible from the start. So realizing the specific reason for that didn’t change anything drastically.
The reason we were losing lay elsewhere.
But why?
Why hasn’t Grandpa put Ahri down yet? Why is she still alive?
*
— ???
— Splash!
Just the tiniest puddle of blood—barely enough to dip a toe in. After stepping lightly onto it, a girl pondered. This outcome was unsatisfactory. It was somewhat disappointing for her score. That was surely how she felt.
The brave heirs of the traitors stepped into ‘Paradise’ of their own accord.
If all she were going to do was shred them to bits personally, she wouldn’t need to throw herself into the mix. She could have just hidden somewhere safe, calling upon the entire security unit scattered throughout the mountain range to do her bidding.
After all, the heirs of the traitors could never contend with those security units across the range. The only one capable of matching them was the one turned to ash by the final gleam.
She had wanted to collect samples. It was bizarre. How long had it been since the blood of the traitors had bled into this age of hers? Was it not nearly 2,000 years? Their bloodline had been degrading for over 500 years.
And yet, strangely, within just a few years, they had produced descendants whose power was utterly ridiculous. Those descendants not only closely resembled the strength of their treacherous ancestors but were thought to be even stronger.
What in the world happened?
It was necessary to secure many physical specimens from among the heirs. Yet—
“So what? I got carried away and now look at this mess.”
In the end, the tactics employed by the enemies were confounding yet again. It was nothing complicated: the owner of ‘Star of Another World’ broke down the buildings while the owner of the ‘Grimoire’ froze me in time, and Kim Mooksung finished me off in that window.
This simple strategy sent chills down her spine.
Cha Jinchul had zero chance of survival once he summoned ‘Star of Another World.’ Han Kain had no hope from the moment he slipped into my consciousness.
This entire plan was predicated on the deaths of both! What kind of creatures are we? Are we to just croak while you wrap things up? And they say this came as naturally as breathing to them?
This unpredictable strategy was baffling, hence she had to borrow the power of the security units poised nearby. Unfortunately, those units had no concept of fire control, and so Kim Mooksung vanished, leaving nothing but a puddle of blood behind.
“Because they believe in the next.”
A strange phrase brushed past her vision. A sudden headache struck as she cupped her head in confusion.
“What on earth…?”
“This attempt has failed. However, we have successfully extracted two. Let’s await the next opportunity. By the way… that ‘little kid’ seems rather precarious. It’ll be interesting since he caught sight of something crucial.”
The shadow of a blue creature, born from starlight, flickered before her. And then an alert appeared before her that she would never comprehend, even if she woke from the dead:
/All participants have either escaped or been eliminated, and no participants remain inside the Cursed Room! The Cursed Room will reset in 3 seconds./
*
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 131
Current Location: Floor 2, Snowfield
Sage’s Advice: 3]
— Han Kain
As I fainted, filled with anxiety about whether I’d wake up this time, I was relieved to find that at least someone had escaped. The moment everyone rejoiced at our reunion, there was still one crucial task we had to address. It was an easy process as everyone — including Grandpa, Jinchul, and Elena—agreed.
“… Do I really have to stay like this?”
“Shut up!”
Outside on the second floor, the ambiance of the wide snowfield painted around us looked quite convincing. It sure felt even more convincing with a girl buried in the snow, her head poking out!
“… No, I don’t really remember anything at all.”
Ahri’s genuinely aggrieved expression was quickly buried beneath an avalanche of snow, courtesy of Grandpa.
—
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