Chapter 145 - Chapter 145

"This is…."

Hwashim looked around in surprise.

"Kill the monsters."

Yoon Seo instructed in an indifferent tone and walked out of the shield. Hwashim tried to follow quickly, but he was blocked by a transparent wall and couldn't get out. Hwashim and the other Revengers widened their eyes in disbelief.

"This, this is …."

Unlike ordinary shields, didn't allow free passage between the inside and outside. Only the shield user, Yoon Seo, could pass through at will. Since both the Revengers and the monsters were trapped inside, they had to engage the monsters in battle despite the confusion.

Kraaack!

Monsters left outside of charged at Yoon Seo. To him, they were no more than pesky flies. Yoon Seo slaughtered the monsters with the Existing Spirit as he approached the boss monster. The boss monster let out a grotesque sound and spat out a blob of mucus, but Yoon Seo didn't dodge.

Blue magical energy surged around Yoon Seo.

It was clear that this was no ordinary movement. It felt like the precursor to a great storm…. The blob of mucus disintegrated in the shimmering magical energy.

[Using skill .]

[The Gaia system protects the user of .]

Kugugugung.

From a distance, the sound of something enormous approaching resonated like low thunder in the sky.

Yoon Seo's mana quickly diminished.

[Mana is at 10%. Entering mana depletion state.]

[Mana is at 7%.]

[Mana is at 3%.]

[Mana is at 0.4%. You are about to lose consciousness, so prepare yourself.]

[The God of Life bestows a blessing upon you.]

[With the blessing of the God, your mana is restored.]

[The God of Death bestows a blessing upon you.]

[With the blessing of the God, your mana is restored.]

[The Watcher bestows a blessing upon you.]

[With the blessing of the God, your mana is restored.]

Kukung, kugung!

Yoon Seo could barely stand as his vision blurred. Thousands of rocks fell from the sky. They were asteroids and meteors. Similar to , but this skill summoned thousands of asteroids with a power far beyond it. While would drop dozens of megaton-class asteroids, this skill summoned thousands of gigaton-class asteroids to crash down to the earth. These rocks were not only large but also possessed deadly characteristics. Some were chunks of sulfur, others were fireballs, some contained hydrochloric acid, and others exhaled cold air….

Grrrr—

Even a blob of liquid that was immune to physical attacks was nothing in the face of the overwhelming force of .

Rocks pierced through the boss monster's body, penetrating and exploding from within. As the body of the boss monster crumbled, slime burst forth like a fountain. In the midst of the hazy vision, several system messages popped up. It seemed there was even a message indicating the boss monster had been defeated.

[Mana: 640/9999]

Thanks to the Watcher, there seemed to be more mana remaining than expected. Since the asteroids from did not harm the caster, Yoon Seo was safe, but the people inside were not so lucky.

[Durability of : 5/100]

The power of was damaging the , and even though Yoon Seo felt like he might collapse at any moment, he used to push the falling meteors away from the . His vision was blurry, and he felt a tightness in his chest.

What? You didn't come here to receive protection?

The righteous weak… should just keep quiet and accept protection if the strong offer it.

'Don't protect us!'

'Don't use shield skills, just attack!'

This was really annoying. Who did they think they were to tell him not to protect them?

Kwon Jihan would understand this frustration. He would tell Kwon Jihan everything later.

Boom! Bang! Crash!

Explosions erupted, debris shattered, and the ground trembled. The swamp could no longer be called a swamp. Alone, Yoon Seo, who had been protecting the amidst the chaos, noticed that the meteor shower was starting to subside. His remaining mana was at 3%.

'Ah, no one should die now, right?'

Suddenly, Yoon Seo spotted a cliff collapsing in the distance. It was a landslide.

The meteors pouring down from couldn't leave a scratch on Yoon Seo, but the cliff was a different story. Rocks tumbling down from the cliff would crush his head, and uprooted trees would pierce his body.

Thinking that, Yoon Seo trudged towards that direction.

The depletion of mana crushes a person's will to live, stripping away all emotions except despair, sadness, anger, agony, and pain. As the hopeful feelings of expectation for the future and the desire to live a little longer vanished in an instant, Yoon Seo found himself wishing only for death.

Kwaang!

The collapsing cliff was closing in. Fragments of rock broke away and struck Yoon Seo's body, yet he felt no pain.

Then it happened.

'I hope you live, Hyung.'

'For a long, long time. Happy, without any suffering, fully enjoying the pleasures of life…'

As Kwon Jihan's voice brushed through his empty mind, Yoon Seo's steps faltered. The haze clouding his thoughts under the influence of mana depletion suddenly cleared.

With the falling rocks looming dangerously before him, Yoon Seo blinked.

There was someone who wished for him to live, and the thought crossed his mind that he shouldn't die…

But that realization was fleeting. Soon, the dark emotions of mana depletion surged back, and his desire to die consumed all other thoughts and feelings.

However, before the darkness could dominate all emotions, someone seized that brief moment.

"Stop. Don't."

'Huh?'

Yoon Seo tilted his head, hearing a low voice in his mind.

"Stop moving and deactivate the ."

What is this voice?

"Seo Chaeyoon."

Though Yoon Seo tilted his head in confusion, he didn't stop walking… The pile of rocks that fell from the cliff grazed his hair precariously before plummeting down.

"It might be better to knock him out."

The low voice said this with a click of the tongue.

And then, Yoon Seo's consciousness was abruptly severed, as if someone had cut it with scissors.

The was deactivated, and Yoon Seo's body, which had been precariously standing, began to crumble. Just before it hit the ground, someone embraced him. 

The man embraced Yoon Seo with one arm while blocking the falling rocks with his sword.

"Hyung!"

Soon, Soo Jaehee's appeared, seemingly enraged, and smashed the fragments.

"Hwashim Hyung, get him away quickly!"

At Soo Jaehee's shout, Hwashim, carrying Yoon Seo, kicked off the ground and escaped the spot. blocked the rocks that were about to fall on them.

Once they reached the safe zone, Hwashim looked down at Yoon Seo with a perplexed expression.

"Seo Chaeyoon."

Yoon Seo, wearing a white mask, remained unmoving. Since he had fainted, it would take some time for him to wake up.

"Haah."

Hwashim let out a long sigh.

Before his eyes, a translucent spear was glowing.

[Skill is activated.]

***

21. Gaia's Mind

The cultists of Galaxaia were bound by restraining items, their limbs shackled, and their mana forcibly sealed, rendering them worse off than unawakened individuals, trapped inside the barracks.

They could not ascertain the situation outside, but it was clear that something unusual was happening.

A notification appeared announcing the emergence of a boss monster, followed by roars and screams, and then a deafening explosion shook the ground before everything fell silent.

The cultists focused all their attention on the outside of the barracks. Though their mana was sealed, their awakened bodies could still hear sounds if they listened carefully.

"Seo Chaeyoon… exhausted…"

"…Seo Chaeyoon… lost consciousness…!"

"…Chaeyoon… needs healing skills…"

Though they couldn't discern the details, it seemed that Seo Chaeyoon had lost consciousness and was in need of healing skills.

The leader of the cultists shouted towards the outside of the barracks.

"Hey!"

"...."

"Hey, is there no one outside?"

"...."

"Listen!"

A hunter, covered in blood, entered with a frustrated expression.

"Everyone's in a panic, so shut up!"

"Hey. Has something happened to Seo Chaeyoon?"

"I don't know."

"I kindly ask you to tell me. Seo Chaeyoon told us to contemplate and reflect here, and we all did just that. Since we can't move from here anyway, we'll be bound as soon as we leave the Great Dungeon. If there's anything we can do to help before that, I'd like to assist. I'm an A-rank healer, capable of both mana healing and cooldown healing. I also have potions stacked in my inventory."

The blood-covered hunter stared at the leader, then sighed.

"You're not going to be of any help anyway. They say Seo Chaeyoon has resistance to healing skills."

"What…?"

"What I mean is that Seo Chaeyoon came in here in a state worse than an unawakened person."

"...."

"If you understand, then shut up."

The hunter left the barracks.

While the outside was chaotic, a heavy silence fell inside the barracks.

'Seo Chaeyoon came in here in a state worse than an unawakened person.'

The leader clenched his fist, and red blood dripped down.

***

Yoon Seo felt a sensation lightly tickling his cheek.

The thought that someone was beside him emerged along with a memory of the situation just before he lost consciousness. He recalled using to defeat the boss monster and then walking towards the pouring rocks due to mana exhaustion.

Ah, I don't want to get up.

Yoon Seo did not open his eyes. He didn't want to.

If everything had ended while he was unconscious… if they had cleared the Great Dungeon and this place was the hospital with the white ceiling from before, that would be great. But such a story-like and dreamlike scenario was unlikely.

The period he had been unconscious was probably two to three days.

This place was likely a maze area. They must be in the midst of searching for the boss. They had decided to progress through the raid in scattered pieces. Seo Chaeyoon had fainted, so they must be having quite a hard time, and he needed to wake up soon.

'…Munchkin.'

Yoon Seo suddenly recalled that word.