On a deserted island off the coast of Sokcho.
Min Soyul, the chairwoman of Cheonil Church, frowned.
"Damn."
She had scattered tempting bait in every direction.
The internal security was also perfect.
No one should know about this place, so what was that ship doing here?
"Go check it out."
She hoped it was just a passing vessel, but the odds were low.
This location had been carefully chosen after painstaking effort.
During the preparation for the descent, not even a single fishing boat had passed by, yet now a ship appeared at this timing.
Something was wrong.
"Tch... Nothing ever goes smoothly."
She didn't know why Yoo Jinhyuk's face suddenly came to mind, but looking back, things had started going wrong ever since he appeared.
"Everyone, prepare for battle. We must protect this place no matter what. This will soon become a sanctuary."
She gazed at the dozens of holy relics lined up in the center of the island.
Relics forged by the god Nekiel by sacrificing tens of thousands of believers in the Tower of Despair.
Min Soyul and Cheonil Church had also endured three years of hellish hardship searching for a vessel to contain them.
The fruits of all that effort were about to ripen.
Whoever was on that ship didn't matter.
Even if she had to sink dozens or hundreds of ships, she had to complete the descent.
"Get the rest of the sacrifices ready quickly. I'll finish off those—"
"Let's not finish them off."
"!?"
She turned toward the voice that suddenly spoke.
How long had he been there?
An American wearing sunglasses stood behind Min Soyul.
Dozens of gun barrels and sword tips were aimed at him.
"If I had intended to attack, I would have cut your throat the moment I arrived."
He held up a sharp wire, and Min Soyul's nose wrinkled.
He was right.
"Stand down."
"But..."
"It's fine."
As the weapons were lowered, the man smiled.
"Nice. Good. But as expected, you're no ordinary religion. Gathering this much military power as mercenaries."
He wasn't joking.
If Korea had been a dictatorship, this would have been suspected as a rebellion.
"Who are you?"
"Drake, from the U.S. Player Hunter Bureau. My main duties are enemy infiltration and target assassination, but—"
Drake put away the wire.
"Today, I came as a messenger. It would be troublesome if a battle broke out before the ship even arrived. What I'm requesting is simple. Don't attack that incoming ship. Our team's decision-maker is on board. The captain wants to talk with you."
"You want me to allow a ship I've never seen to dock? What reason do I have to trust you? As someone who's carried out such missions, you should know well. Firing now is more advantageous from a defensive standpoint."
"Of course. But let me give you one piece of advice."
Drake shrugged.
"There are about a dozen more like me on that ship. So even if the ship gets blown up, as long as we somehow reach the island—"
He made a clicking sound with his tongue and drew a line across his throat.
Min Soyul's face twisted.
A threat disguised as a request.
Normally, she would have refused out of sheer irritation, but this was the most crucial moment for Cheonil Church.
She couldn't risk unnecessary danger.
"Fine."
Drake bowed politely and gave a signal.
The ship slowly accelerated and docked.
Min Soyul's eyes widened at the people stepping off.
Even if she didn't recognize the others, she had seen that woman before.
She was the director of the U.S. Transition Investigation Headquarters, frequently appearing in the media.
Step by step.
Karen approached Min Soyul and extended her hand.
"I'm Karen Whittaker."
"I'm Min Soyul."
She grasped the hand with a tense face.
Drake hadn't been exaggerating.
If that woman had brought the forces she had, the island would have fallen immediately.
The mercenaries hired by Cheonil Church wouldn't have stood a chance.
"To be upfront as an uninvited guest, only the United States knows about this place. And I'm requesting this conversation to let you know we have no intention of interfering with Cheonil Church."
"What do you want?"
"Simple. The interests of the United States of America."
She pointed at the holy relics and the sky with her finger.
"I'm curious about the method of summoning a transition from the Tower of Despair and what you hope to gain through it."
"And what do I get?"
Karen smirked inwardly.
'So she's just an unavoidable cultist after all.'
Min Soyul was more concerned about what she herself would gain, not Cheonil Church.
She had emphasized unconditional faith, but in the end, it was all about personal benefit.
Well, that was actually better.
People like this were easy to handle.
"Even if you somehow manage the descent, won't you be in trouble? Korea has already caught wind of your name and Cheonil Church. Why don't you quietly come to the United States? Along with the being you're about to summon."
Karen finished speaking and stared at Min Soyul.
Min Soyul met her gaze with an ambiguous expression.
'This greedy Yankee bitch.'
Her lips threatened to curl up, but she held it back desperately.
What would be summoned from the Tower of Despair through this ritual was Cheonil Church's god.
Whether it was Korea or the United States, what did that matter?
'I'll tear you apart the moment the descent is complete.'
But for now, she would play along.
Acting as if she had no leverage, no choice.
"Please take care of me. I'll hand over the information you mentioned once the ritual is complete."
"Perfect. Let's work well together."
Karen Whittaker lightly shook their joined hands up and down.
In her mind, she thought of Yoon Sewon, the head of Korea's External Cooperation Bureau.
'Sorry, Sewon. Think of this as a small revenge for that last snub.'
She took a deep breath and looked around the remote island.
She was starting to feel excited.
What astonishing spectacle would unfold on this small island from now on?
---
Somewhere between the 92nd and 100th floors of the Tower of Despair.
The apostle Radiana, having kicked off the ground, glared at Jinhyuk in front of her.
In all her existence since birth, she had never encountered anything like this.
A being she wanted to kill and destroy from the very first moment they met, without a single exception, up to now.
It was almost miraculous at this point.
How could something be so consistently infuriating without ever getting old?
'Kill him. I'll kill him. I'll definitely kill him!'
As a god's apostle, she had resigned herself to death in an unwinnable battle.
And that sacred, sublime moment had been ruined by this trash.
Her head wasn't just hot—it was boiling over.
"Die!!!"
She gathered all her remaining strength.
And thrust it toward Jinhyuk, who was right in front of her.
He was so focused on cracking the rift that he wasn't even looking her way.
She was certain.
Maybe it had been different before, but this time she could pierce him—?!
In that instant, a question mark formed on Radiana's face.
Whose hand was that?
Covering her vision now.
CRASH!!!
Her head was grabbed and slammed into the ground.
The impact was so strong that the entire area shook.
A black knight with blood-red eyes entered Radiana's view.
The cold-faced knight spoke.
"Do not approach any further. He is my master."
'Master?'
She wondered what that meant, but there was no time to find an answer.
Grit!
She bit her molars and desperately tried to rise.
BOOM!!!
This time, someone's foot pressed down on her forehead.
Radiana's head was slammed back into the ground under immense weight.
"I said don't approach. Are you deaf?"
At the words of the demon Renya, Radiana's eyes trembled.
What the hell was this?
Where were these beings with such auras coming from, one after another?
CRACKLE!!
She tried to gather radiant light, but it was useless.
Her body, pinned to the ground, wouldn't budge an inch.
"I've been waiting."
A voice, so gentle and relaxed, reached Radiana's ears.
Just hearing it made her rage surge.
But waiting? What nonsense was that?
"My friend told me. If there's something with the same energy, you can create a key."
A key? Amid the confusion of incomprehensible words, a shadow fell over her head.
"Don't misunderstand, okay? I don't usually transmute living things."
"Don't lie, Grandma Elia. We all know there's a truckload of chimeras in the Star Workshop."
"Satan, don't talk to me and just go into that black slime over there. It suits you."
Taking advantage of the weakened corruption from the Host's seed, her friends had manifested.
"Then shall we start right away? There are many friends waiting."
Elia looked around.
The Blue Knights, who didn't attack Radiana because they were with them.
Judging by their fierce aura, they would turn her into a sieve the moment she stepped aside.
Elia, wearing the Star Gauntlet firmly, reached her hand toward the sky.
A transmutation circle was drawn at incredible speed.
CHOMP!
Biting her thumb with her molars, Elia dripped a few drops of blood onto Radiana.
"Be grateful. It's the blood of the first alchemist and the Star Sage."
Whether Radiana made a horrified face or not, Elia, with her lips stretched wide, performed alchemy.
CRACKLE!!!
The rift in the sky and Radiana's body connected by red sparks.
"KYAAAAAAH!!!"
As her body began to scatter, a scream burst from Radiana's mouth.
As the enveloping light dissipated, the true core inside was revealed.
"KEEEYAAAAAAH!!!"
The scream became even more horrifying.
The core, which had tried to endure somehow, seemed to have reached its limit.
Shattered into pieces, Radiana was slowly sucked into the transmutation circle.
And whether it was a misperception or not, as the screams intensified, Elia's lips stretched longer.
It wasn't just a smile—it was a face savoring this ecstasy.
"Ugh."
As Kancho stepped back hesitantly, he spoke.
"Captain. That's not good. Grandma Elia is done for. She's a mad psychopath."
He probably meant to say mad scientist, but Kancho set that aside.
He didn't have time to worry about that with the incredible sight before him.
RUMBLE!!!
The transmutation circle on the other side vibrated violently.
At the same time.
DING!
[Error detected! This is an inaccessible space on this floor! Invalid access!]
The system flooded with warnings and error messages.
Messages that filled not just his vision but spread throughout the entire space.
At the moment he thought the system might intervene.
BOOOOM!!!
Sensing something, the knights began rushing toward Elia's transmutation circle.
They recklessly thrust their spears and swords, trying to force their way in.
DING!
[Not an entity of the Tower! Uncontrollable error!]
[Unable to control!]
[Unable to control!]
[Unable to control!]
The message of impossibility appeared for a while.
DING!
[Undefined floor number, 'Lumend's Sanctuary' forcibly opened!]
The awaited news had arrived.
----------
T/N:
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