The Hero Returns - Chapter 188:

The gatekeepers. They were inhabitants of every 10th-floor who received points and provided hints about the trials to people. There were countless rumors about their identities.

Some said they might be monsters, not humans, and some said they might be transcendental beings related to the Tower of Trials. Some said the gatekeepers were probably the same as other inhabitants but beggars, just begging for points.

There was no clear explanation for their existence, but Su-hyeun thought they were important. Although they dressed like humble beggars, no, even more, because of that, Su-hyeun was sure that they kept big secrets, not like other inhabitants of the tower.

“Gatekeepers…” Luslec nodded at Su-hyeun’s word. “It’s a good metaphor. Yea, that’s not wrong.”

“I’ve wondered about it before. Why do the gatekeepers only appear on every 10th floor? Why there are no gatekeepers on the other floors?” Now, Su-hyeun got the answer to his question. “It wasn’t like that they didn’t exist there. They just didn’t show themselves to us. Now I see one right in front of me.”

“The final match begins,” the host announced.

He seemed to have no interest in the conversation between Su-hyeun and Luslec. It was the same with the other spectators and players. They moved as if their behavior was programmed. The only one who didn’t follow the rules was Luslec. That was why Su-hyeun doubted Luslec.

“Did you create this world?” Su-hyeun asked Luslec.

“No, nothing so big as that. Creating a world? No, way. I’m not a supreme-ruler or something. That’s not possible.”

“But still, isn’t it true that you’re in control of this trial?”

“Yes,” Luslec said. “Because I am the administrator of this floor.”

The one who supervised the trials, the administrator. It was the perfect name. It was a much better name than ‘gatekeepers,’ so named because they were the ones that people met before they entered the trials.

“I thought I made it pretty well…I guess it was too obvious because I made it in a hurry.”

“Yes, it was,” Su-hyeun agreed. “Unlike other worlds, this world has too many artificial elements.”

The spectators, players, and hosts, everyone except for Su-hyeun and Luslec, all moved as if they were dolls. They watched or moved or tried to win without purpose, as if they were just programmed to do so. Among them, the only being that had expressions, emotions, and thoughts was Luslec.

“So, that was how I figured out that you’re not a being of this trial. And the skill you used was also suspicious.”

“My skill?”

“If you were just an ordinary sorcerer who can deal with souls, there would be nothing weird. But the souls you used were the players in this trial.”

Su-hyeun realized it after Luslec’s fight with Hercules. The shadows that Luslec had used were similar to the players there. At first, Su-hyeun assumed Luslec mimicked the people there, but the shadows’ power was too high for them to just be mimics.

“So, why did you do all this? Why did you show up in the trial yourself? And what are all those worlds that you guys called ‘trials’? And why are you guys—”

“Wait. Stop, stop.” Luslec waved his hands.

The game had already started, but the two kept talking.

“I am sorry, but there is no way I can answer your questions. Actually, this is already very different from what I promised.”

“Promised?”

“Yes. There was a promise we had made. Well… But still, since we faced each other like this, I can answer a little bit… This trial is an unusual case.”

“What do you mean? Unusual?”

“Yes. I made this stage in a hurry just for you, not like other trials, because I wanted to fight with you like this.”

This stage was made in a hurry. Su-hyeun understood the meaning quickly. There was an undoubtedly large gap between the other trials and this one in the details. There was a kind of scenario in the trials except for the first floor. Trials were conducted to achieve certain events or objectives, and achievement points were awarded in the process.

Of course, there were trials like this one, to just join a competition and to win. But usually, those trials had an apparent reason why the games were held or what the prizes were. But this competition was missing many things, from the players with no background to the unclear purpose behind it all. The players didn’t know why they had to fight. Chun Ha-jin couldn’t even remember why he had wanted to be stronger.

“Those players over there, and the players who already died, they all once existed in the past. Anyway, I was curious about how far you could go against them.”

“So—”

“The strongest was Luslec, right here. Chun Ha-jin was the second, and Hercules was the third. And I thought you still could win against all of them.”

“So, are you saying this trial was just a way to sate your curiosity?” Su-hyeun asked.

“Yes. And I adjusted the level of difficulty. If you wanted just to pass the trial, you could leave after the quarterfinals. So, don’t feel too bad.”

Su-hyeun closed his eyes for a moment. His head was spinning. Most of the things he had thought turned out to be true. But the reason why this world was made was too shocking.

<<A made-up world. No. Luslec said he didn’t make this world.>>

Luslec had said he wasn’t a supreme-ruler.

<<He may make this world with hallucination skills way higher level than Johnny Brad’s. Or it could be some other sort of skill than hallucination skills.>>

The one thing Su-hyeun was sure was that these administrators were related to the Tower of Trials. And people, including Su-hyeun, were graded through the trials they, the administrators, held and went to a higher level. The current trial was another in the process.

“The players here… are they really alive?” Su-hyeun asked.

“They were, once.”

“You mean they all died?”

“Exactly, they’re like illusions. They did exist once, but not anymore. To use the terms from your world, they’re a sort of archival data.”

“Data…”

“I’ve copied and taken the memories and bodies of beings that once existed. Well, is that enough to satisfy your curiosity?” Luslec asked and scratched his head. “Ok, that’s it. I would like to tell you more, but I can’t. Honestly, I hoped you would pass without noticing me.”

“Yes, this was enough,” Su-hyeun said.

“Good. Anyway, don’t feel too guilty about killing people here. Just think about them as illusions.”

At Luslec’s remark, Su-hyeun realized why Luslec had spent so long explaining things to him. It seemed like Luslec knew about Su-hyeun well. Su-hyeun didn’t kill anyone except Chun Ha-jin throughout the competition. Luslec wanted to see Su-hyeun’s fighting against other players. But, to just dominate an opponent, without killing him, made the game more challenging. Luslec wanted to make Su-hyeun not hesitate when he dealt with other players’ souls.

“Don’t overthink it. Even if you do, there’s nothing you can figure out right now. Think simple. Think about what you have to do, just like you have been doing.”

Rumble—

Puff—

As he finished talking, numerous shadows appeared around Luslec. They were the shadows of the players that had been fighting in the trial. Each shadow was the same as the players themselves. All of them were Luselc’s puppets. It was clearly different from the way of Necroelementists, who borrowed the power of the soul.

<<What do I have to do?>> Su-hyeun thought.

His eyes sparkled. What he had to do; he had to pass this trial as usual and keep going on.

Rumble—

Su-hyeun began to spread his magic out of his body as well. The summoned players surrounded Su-hyeun. Luslec backed away.

“This is the last trial I’ll give you. You’ve defeated all the players already, but I’ve been watching…” Luslec said, grinning. “How many players will you able to defeat this time?”

It was the moment that the theme of the trial was revealed.

***

Heroes. They were beings with high power and wisdom that appeared in myths, legends, and other stories. Unusually, the players in this trial had the names of the heroes of legend. Su-hyeun didn’t recognize all the names, though. There were players, like Chun Ha-jin, that Su-hyeun never heard of in his life. All of the hundreds of players were on the stage right at the moment. And Su-hyeun began to fight with those hundreds of heroes.

Clang—!

Su-hyeun’s sword and Hercules’ club hit each other. At first, they just looked like dark shadows, but after Su-hyeun realized who they were, they appeared more clearly. This one wore the skin of a lion, had a bow on his back, and wielded a club. The black figure in front of Su-hyeun was clearly Hercules.

<<Of course.>>

Su-hyeun put more strength in his arm facing Hercules’ club. It was a moment where his Strength stat of 97 shined. It wasn’t as good as Hercules’ Strength, but Su-hyeun had better concentration and control of his magic.

Swish, swish—

Slash—

Su-hyeun shed the club and cut Hercules’ body. The skin of the lion was too hard, so he couldn’t cut deeply, but he was able to cut a few large tendons.

<<He’s weaker than I expected.>>

Hercules was a famous hero in the Tower of Trials because there were many items related to him. And, through such popular items, Su-hyeun assumed that Hercules’ combat power would be at the same level as his past life.

<<Maybe this is Hercules before his heyday.>>

It wasn’t difficult to grasp their common feature. All heroes here were before their heyday.

Swish, swish—

Whoosh, whoosh—

Su-hyeun jumped up high with his Leap skill. He took out the spears from his back. It was one of the three spears that he had taken from Kim Da-ho in a hurry.

[Dragon Slaying Spear.]

[Wave Spear- Explosion Style.]

[Flame.]

The Dragon Slaying Spear was made for long-range attacks against multiple enemies. Moreover, Su-hyeun mixed Wave Spear skill and Flame. When the spear left Su-hyeun’s hand, the tip of the spear began to scatter and swept the whole stage.

Clink, clank—

Rattle—!

Crack, crack—!

The heroes summoned by Luslec used their defensive skills to protect their bodies. Hercules wrapped his whole body with the skin of the lion. Chun Ha-jin spun his sword quickly and made a sword-shield. But, of course, not everyone did that.

Wham, wham—

Crack—!

Some heroes with low levels, or who reacted late, or who had lower defensive skills couldn’t avoid the Dragon Slaying Spear. The spear penetrated their bodies.

<<Damage is lower than I expected,>> Su-hyeun thought.

It was an attack that strong heroes could block easily enough. But, even so, Su-hyeun thought he would deal some damage to them. But it turned out not many of them took damage. Only about one in ten were wounded.

<<I guess they’re heroes, for sure.>>

Su-hyeun used the Leap skill once more and looked down Luslec, who was standing in the middle of the heroes, arms folded.

<<I don’t have to adjust my pace. I’ll go at once.>>

[Activate the Trait ‘Hero-Immortality’.]

[The condition has not been met.]

[Vitality and Health are not recovered.]

[Physical ability increases rapidly.]

Bluish magic swayed around Su-hyeun’s body.

<<I’ll go through.>>