[Hidden Scenario - King's Road]
Category: Hidden
Difficulty: A
Clear Condition: Occupy at least 10 stations within the period.
Time Limit: 10 days
Reward: Awakening of 'King' attribute
Failure: If you fail to occupy at least 1 station per day, you and all your group members will die.
-Swaaaaaah—!!!
-Koo-oong…!!
"I-It's amazing no matter when I see it. Yuhyeon-ssi…."
"Is that so. I find Seo-yeon-ssi, who can cook these monster species, more fascinating."
"E, ehehe…."
Ha Seo-yeon scratched the back of her head as if embarrassed.
I smirked at that sight and handed her a monster species that had become a corpse.
"More than that, please finish the story you were telling earlier."
"The story I was telling earlier…?"
"About the guys who claim to be Prophets."
"Aha…!!"
Before catching the monster species.
Ha Seo-yeon had told me about the people who had come before I arrived at Dongjak Station, the Prophets.
Prophet.
An existence who has read the revelation in which the future of this world is written.
Those who are gathering power to prepare for the future ahead.
She evaluated them like that, saying it was creepy because everything they said sounded like a cult, but my thoughts were different from hers.
I don't know if it's true or false, but knowing the future is quite an important matter.
Because it means knowing the upcoming scenarios in advance.
….
Wait, then was that man who suddenly appeared when crossing the bridge also a Prophet?
"…Hmm, should I look for the King of Prophets first?"
"H, hiiiik…!!!"
"…What's wrong?"
"Ah, th-that…. Y-Your face looks too scaaary…."
"…."
I was more flustered by Ha Seo-yeon, who was surprisingly shocked.
Is my face that menacing?
[The Constellation, 'Demonic Judge of Fire', mocks you, asking if you just realized that.]
[The Constellation, 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband', agrees with the opinion of the Constellation, 'Demonic Judge of Fire'.]
…Damn Constellations.
I wish they would all shut up.
"B-By the way, what is your hobby, Yuhyeon-ssi…?"
"…Suddenly?"
"A-Ahaha…, since you suddenly became silent after your face turned menacing…. I-If it bothered you, I'm sorrryyy…."
"…."
…Isn't she lacking confidence too much?
Why does she trail off every word like that? It's not like anyone is going to eat her.
"My hobby is eating."
"E-Eating…? D-D-D-Don't tell me…!?"
"…Just visiting famous restaurants or finding trendy foods and eating them myself. What on earth are you imagining?"
"A-Ahaha…. That's it, right? Phew…."
….
Should I really smack this person once?
Just once should be fine.
"…Then what is your hobby, Seo-yeon-ssi?"
"M-Me…?"
"Yes."
"U, ummm…. Cooking? I'm not that good, but still, I can make quite a lot! Hamburger steak, and Gambas…."
"…."
A woman whose hobby is cooking.
Suddenly, a post I read on SNS once comes to mind.
Surely, men's ideal type rank 1 was a pretty woman, and rank 2 was a woman who cooks well, wasn't it?
…Why did I recall such a thing all of a sudden, unpleasantly.
"Ah, if we have time sometime, shall I cook for you personally?"
"…If we have time?"
"Yes!"
If we have time. She said….
At those words, I almost let out a scoff of absurdity towards her without realizing it.
The world has perished. If we don't proceed with the scenarios, we die.
And we must prepare every moment for the scenarios in this perished world.
In such a situation, 'if we have time'? It was absurd beyond belief.
"You never know."
"…?"
—Is what I definitely thought.
She smiled faintly and continued speaking.
"The world has perished, and we have to continue with the scenarios. But just as we have time to talk like this now, wouldn't there be time to cook personally and eat that food too?"
"…."
"Uh…, of course, since the world has perished, to make things like Gambas or Hamburger steak, we'd have to find the appropriate ingredients again…, but so what! That also seems like a pretty good process."
"…Is that so?"
"…Haat! I-I'm sorry…. I-I was too presumptuous, right!? I-I didn't mean it like that…."
"…Pfft."
"Aaah…?"
She didn't really need to say the last part.
Come to think of it, not a single word of hers is wrong.
We have to do scenarios endlessly, but as she said, there will surely be time given to rest for a while.
At that time, just as she said, we could cook, or eat that food personally, spending peaceful time like that.
I didn't think of it because I was thinking too negatively.
This…, I should say thank you to her.
"Seo-yeon-ssi."
"…Yes?"
Before that.
"Get down."
"…? Kyaaaaa—!!!!"
-Kwa-a-a-ang—!!!!
I have to kill those miscellaneous things first.
-Whooosh…!!
Something the size of a baseball that suddenly flew towards us.
Destroying it in advance with 'Dismantle' (解) was a precise judgment.
"Who is it? Reveal your identity."
Thick fog where not even an inch ahead can be seen.
Staring coldly at that place, I spoke to those who attacked us.
But what returned was—
-Whishhh—!!
Several strands of arrows.
"Dismantle (解)."
With a seo-geok-! sound, the arrows are sliced into pieces at once.
However, thinking it wouldn't end with just that, I raised my Cursed Energy further.
First of all….
"Starting with you in the front."
-Fwoosh—!!!
'Dismantle' flies, and as the thick smoke clears, the one holding a massive axe is cut.
However, he wasn't cut perfectly. He barely managed to withstand 'Dismantle' using that axe as a shield.
"…Ho-oh. You withstood that?"
While taking over Flags, everything ended at this level, so I thought this guy would be the same.
Did he raise his Physique stats quite a bit with Coins, or is the equipment he's wearing quite good? He wasn't sliced at once.
Well, even so.
"Being able to survive is a separate story though."
"…!!!"
-Seo-geok—!!!
Increasing the output of 'Dismantle' a bit, this time, as I expected, his upper body and lower body were completely separated.
Now, who's next….
-Whirrr—!!!
"…!!"
-Clang!!
"Tch!"
"…What, on earth."
The guy whose upper and lower body were separated threw the axe he was holding straight at me.
Is that even possible? Can a human throw that in that short instant, that one moment right before death?
Something is strange. Clearly strange.
An unknown sense of incongruity. What am I missing? I must find out quickly. What this unknown unpleasantness and incongruity is.
"…Yuhyeon-ssi!!"
"…I, I got it."
-Seo-geok, seo-geok. Seo-geo-geo-geo-geo-geok—!!!!
"Kuh…!!"
"Ugh—!!"
"You guys. Are not human, are you?"
Besides the one holding the axe, I cut down the one who kept firing arrows and the guy rushing at me with a dagger using 'Dismantle'.
Unlike the previous guy, this time, not only separating the upper and lower body, but slicing off all their limbs.
-Thud, thud-thud…!!
The commonality between the three was that they attacked us, they were weak, and one more thing.
That was the fact that they didn't shed a single drop of blood even though their limbs were blown off.
"Who is it? Reveal your identity."
"Ptoo! Do you think we'll tell you who we are just because you do that?"
"Really? Then I have no business with you."
-Pat, pa-bat, pa-ba-ba-bat—!!
The head of the one holding the axe disappears without a trace, chopped up by 'Cleave' (捌).
There are plenty of others to ask. Is what I thought, but.
"Puhaha! Did you think I'd be scared by just that!?"
"Kukuk, kuhu, kuhahaha!!"
"…."
The guys who attacked us seem to have no fear of death, as you can see.
This is trouble. If it's like this, I can't dig for information; what should I do.
"Jujutsu Sorcerer, Kang Yuhyeon! I know who you are!"
"You know, me?"
"Yes! What abilities you possess, and what abilities you will obtain. Past, present, and future, all of it!"
"…."
Knows the future about me, he says.
While pondering what his identity could possibly be, one keyword suddenly flashed through my mind.
"…You, are you a Prophet?"
"Yes! I am a Prophet! And not just an ordinary Prophet, but the King of Prophets!"
The King of those who have read the revelation where the future is written.
If this person is truly their King, he must know much more of the future than others.
If that is the case….
"Kang Yuhyeon. The fact that I know the future, you must know well yourself what that means!"
"…."
"In that sense, I am thinking of making you a proposal!"
"What is it?"
"Kang Yuhyeon, come under me. Then I will take you to the end of this world!"
"…."
An alliance with someone who knows the future.
Certainly, it is a quite appealing proposal.
However.
"I refuse."
"…Ah?"
I have no intention of going under anyone.
If I were to be tempted by such a proposal in the first place, I would have chosen immediately without hesitation when selecting a Sponsor.
"Y-You seem to be misunderstanding something right now, this isn't a proposal but…."
"A threat? Pfft, it's so absurd that laughter comes out."
"…W-What?"
Threat, a threat he says.
Threat is good. But a threat is not a word the weak use against the strong.
It is a word the strong use against the weak.
"King of Prophets. Did you say you know the future? Everything about me too?"
"Y-Yes!"
"Pfft, if you were going to lie, you should have done it properly."
I trampled on another head and lifted the last remaining head to make eye contact with the guy.
The playful, confident face from the beginning was gone, and a faint fear had taken its place.
"King of Prophets. I'll ask one question. If you truly know the future, you'd better answer correctly."
"…?"
"Can I find you right now, or not?"
"W-What does that…!!"
"If you truly received the revelation of the future, can't you easily know about this much?"
The guy's pupils began to shake violently.
His teeth chattered, and cold sweat flowed like crazy from his forehead.
Like that, after about a minute passed.
"…Y-You might be able to find me."
"Ho-oh?"
The guy finally opened his mouth.
"…Every living being has Cursed Energy flowing through them, albeit faintly. Therefore, you could detect the Cursed Energy through this Avatar and find me. Am, am I wrong!?"
"Ho-oh."
Whether he knows well about the characteristics of a Jujutsu Sorcerer, he stammers but continues speaking clearly.
Fine, I admit it. It seems certain that this guy knows about me.
However.
"Dismantle (解)."
The fact that you know the future is wrong.
-Seo-geok—!!!
"…Ah? W-Why…?"
"As you said, living beings possess Cursed Energy. But this thing called an Avatar doesn't possess Cursed Energy, does it? It's probably a case like a Shikigami. So I cannot find you."
"Sh, sh*t…."
"But, look forward to it. Because I will find you and kill you soon, somehow."
-Seo-geok, seo-geo-geo-geo-geo-geok—!!!!
The guy's Avatar disappeared without a trace due to 'Cleave'.
At that sight, I smiled faintly and then began to laugh slowly.
"Kuhup, kuhu. Kuhuhu…. Kuhahaha…!!!"
Because a goal has been set.
A goal to definitely find and kill the guy called the King of Prophets after occupying Seoul Station.