Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 220

When the Star Casts a Shadow (5)

220. When the Star Casts a Shadow (5)

“……What is that? Did a member of another star already arrive?”

“No, no.”

Hyeonmu shook his head. Hahyeon could tell that Hyeonmu’s face was as pale as it could be.

It was hard to believe he was the same person who had been breathing so heavily just moments ago.

“I just received a curse, and I wanted to check what kind of curse it is. It would be troublesome if something suddenly happened while fighting.”

“……A curse? What curse?”

“A very nasty curse.”

Hyeonmu muttered with a bitter smile.

“It seems like some bastard is trying to make sure I win, but I don’t like the method they’re using.”

“Some bastard? Did Whispering Star contact you again?”

Hyeonmu wiped the sweat from his forehead with a spiderweb cloth that Hahyeon quickly spun. Hyeonmu replied with a reluctant expression.

“Shattering Star.”

Hyeonmu patted her shoulder with his fist at Hahyeon’s surprised expression.

“Ah, don’t worry. It won’t be a problem for you guys. You might even like it since there’s no need to worry about losing.”

Hyeonmu looked down at the blood soaking his hand.

Curse: Division.

The curse that Shattering Star, Gaul, had given him was a very unpleasant kind of curse.

***

10 minutes ago.

Hyeonmu was deep in thought. He had received a curse, but he couldn’t feel any immediate changes.

[Each time your blood touches the ground, a cursed one will appear from that spot.]

The fact that the curse was triggered by ‘blood’ made Hyeonmu uneasy.

Due to the nature of his fighting style, he often shed blood, and he even needed to shed blood to use his poison blood.

But if the curse activated every time he shed blood, he couldn’t predict what variables it would introduce to the battle.

There was only one way to find out what kind of variables it would introduce to the battle.

To shed blood in advance and sprinkle it on the ground.

But the curse didn’t end with just one line.

[If the cursed ones kill you, they will permanently replace you.]

The phrase ‘cursed ones’ implied that multiple beings, not just one, could appear.

He couldn’t even imagine what they would be like, but what if those guys turned out to be unexpectedly strong? Hyeonmu would be mass-producing unpredictable enemies.

Enemies who might try to take his place.

“Lenians, what do you think about the curse of division?”

“What? The butler’s curse?”

“Are we finally setting up a buffet?”

The Lenians seemed to know about the curse Hyeonmu had received as if it were obvious. But they didn’t seem to have any helpful opinions to offer.

“Just try it once. We’ll make a decision once we see the results!”

He didn’t know what they were going to decide, but he agreed that he needed to test it out. He didn’t want to experience the curse without knowing anything about it.

Especially since there was no way he wouldn’t shed blood while fighting the apostles.

Hyeonmu steeled his resolve and prepared. Then, he carefully clenched his fist and dropped a single drop of blood onto the floor.

A drop of blood was planted on the floor like a seed.

Hyeonmu immediately stepped back and drew Tam [his sword].

He didn’t have to wait long. As soon as the blood touched the floor, something swelled up as if a plant was growing. And at the same time, Hyeonmu felt his mana rapidly draining away.

It was about the same amount of mana he would use when creating a legendary-grade item.

“Cough, cough.”

Before he could even panic, something that had sprung up from the blood suddenly coughed violently.

The thing coughed up blood as if it had been rescued from drowning in blood.

“It’s a red butler.”

“Let’s call him Reddie Butler.”

The Lenians whispered as they looked at the figure lying on the ground.

It was only after hearing those words that Hyeonmu realized that the figure looked almost exactly like him.

He hadn’t noticed because it was completely red from head to toe, but from its size to its hairstyle, it was completely identical.

It even had the arm corrupted by the Restrainer Yul.

It just didn’t have Tam.

‘Could this…… also replicate items?’

It might just be the appearance, but Hyeonmu secretly hoped it would.

Then, the figure raised its head and their eyes met. Hyeonmu felt the blood drain from his body in an instant.

And he immediately realized that the figure was the ‘cursed one.’

“What are you?”

The cursed one looked at Hyeonmu with a bewildered expression, then wiped its face as if it couldn’t believe what it was seeing.

What he had thought was originally red skin was being wiped away by his hand.

The red color was just blood that had been smeared all over him.

In other words, the ‘cursed one’ had the exact same appearance as Hyeonmu when he wiped away the blood, to the point where it was impossible to tell them apart.

“You…… were you born from that blood?”

“You…… were you born from that blood?”

Hyeonmu and the cursed one spoke at the same time.

Hyeonmu felt his fingertips turn cold as he heard his own voice.

The thing wasn’t imitating his voice. It really thought it was Hyeonmu.

“Are you the cursed one?”

“Are you the cursed one?”

There was no need to say anything more. The other party clearly thought so too.

The thing discovered Tam in Hyeonmu’s hand. And the Lenians attached to Hyeonmu’s shoulder.

At that moment, the judgment the thing made was clear.

“Give it to me.”

The speed at which Hyeonmu swung Tam was a beat late. The murderous intent, rage, and desire that the cursed one harbored were greater than Hyeonmu’s.

The moment the cursed one realized that he wasn’t the real one, he chose to seize instead of give up.

“Kugh!”

The Tam that Hyeonmu swung was blocked by the Restrainer Yul that the thing held.

In an instant, Hyeonmu lost his grip on Tam due to the violent shaking motion.

Skillful and quick movements.

Hyeonmu immediately realized the situation when he saw the black smoke starting to envelop the thing’s hand.

The thing was using a Battle Helper [a skill or item that enhances combat abilities].

“You son of a bitch!”

At the same time, Hyeonmu felt mana draining from his body.

When the cursed one used a skill, mana drained from Hyeonmu’s body.

The thing was like a parasitic plant that had suddenly sprouted from the same root tree.

Bang! The cursed one struck Hyeonmu’s face first.

Hyeonmu staggered and barely managed to catch the nosebleed that was about to spill.

A chill ran down his spine.

If more cursed ones were born in this situation, it was obvious that they would also target Hyeonmu.

And the last line of the curse.

[If the cursed ones kill you, they will permanently replace you.]

“Ha, hahaha!”

Hyeonmu burst out laughing. The cursed one shared the same roots as Hyeonmu anyway.

The words ‘permanently replace’ probably meant that the main branch, Hyeonmu, would be cut off, and the cursed one would become the main line.

He would have memories, abilities, everything.

It would be impossible to distinguish him from the real one. It was literally like another real one appearing.

“Gaul, you son of a bitch!”

Hyeonmu roared and punched the cursed one’s jaw. The thing’s blood splattered on the floor, but fortunately, the curse seemed to only affect Hyeonmu.

The cursed one charged fiercely even after being hit a few more times.

Hyeonmu thought that he would have acted the same way if he were in the thing’s position.

There would be no reason to be picky since he was about to lose everything.

But that didn’t mean he felt sympathy.

Just as much as the cursed one had a reason to attack him, Hyeonmu also had a reason to fight the thing.

“Die, you bastard!”

***

The moment the cursed one died, everything, including the items, turned into blood and disappeared. It seemed that item replication was impossible.

The reason why Shattering Star, Gaul, gave him this curse was clear.

It meant that it didn’t matter who won, as long as he won.

The more Hyeonmu’s blood splattered, the harder it would be for the other stars to catch Hyeonmu.

Because there would be countless guys blindly rushing to kill Hyeonmu.

And when a new Hyeonmu appeared, another bloodbath would unfold to kill that Hyeonmu.

‘No, if you were going to make me win, how much would it have cost to give me something a little more moderate like Monstriel…….’

Hyeonmu sighed.

Self-awareness probably wasn’t an important factor to the stars.

In the end, whoever ultimately took over Hyeonmu’s body, others wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.

Compared to that, how moderate was Monstriel, who didn’t spare her body and mind to take him over.

Hyeonmu’s favorability towards Monstriel has increased.

Hyeonmu created such an alert sound in his mind.

“Hyeonmu?”

“……Yeah.”

“There’s no time to be spacing out. The Conquering Star has begun to enter, and the Gluttonous Star is already descending. We’ll be encountering our members soon.”

“Ah, there’s no need to worry about that. They won’t be coming that quickly.”

“What? Why?”

“Because they’ll be moving cautiously on their own accord.”

Hyeonmu shone a light on the map hanging on the wall of the room.

It was a map of a vast underground labyrinth consisting of a total of 4 floors.

It was densely filled with complex designs and predicted movement paths. The signatures of Yumin and Dowonkyung were written in the corner.

“The design of our dungeon borrowed the minds of the best scholars of the time. I doubt they ever imagined it would be a dungeon designed against monsters.”

But to be clear, this wasn’t just Hyeonmu’s idea.

The dungeon built under the gymnasium.

It was inspired by the human refuge created inside the dungeon to escape the outside world.

And now that idea was blossoming into a dungeon for Hyeonmu.

***

Itewallo dragged her large, flexible body and nonchalantly roamed through the underground labyrinth.

Her body was too large compared to the passages of the underground labyrinth, but her body bent and twisted at bizarre angles as she squeezed through.

She had human limbs, but her bizarre movements were reminiscent of a snake.

Several ghouls were crushed to death by her massive body in the narrow passages.

“Where is it, where is the toy?”

Itewallo muttered as she rummaged around, like a girl looking for treasure.

But it was hard to find their traces. She could only see a few cumbersome ghouls or gasts.

Nevertheless, Itewallo was descending into the underground faster than anyone else.

It was then. A familiar scent was detected at the tip of her nose.

The scent of monsters.

Still alive.

And the scent of those weak and lowly beings that permeated throughout this underground labyrinth.

The scent of toys.

Itewallo quickly tracked down the scent.

Before long, she saw a few goblins in front of her. Itewallo wore a simple smile of joy.

“Found them, toys!”

The goblins screamed and began to run away the moment they faced that smile.

Itewallo reached out without hesitation and instantly grabbed the ankle of one of the goblins.

It was a blink of an eye before her long, slender hand tore the goblin apart.

“Now, let’s play. Everyone. Let’s play.”

Itewallo leisurely gave them time to escape, even though she could have immediately grabbed and killed the next goblins.

She had a tendency to be obsessed with playing, but she wasn’t stupid.

She knew that she could catch other guys if she tracked the direction the goblins were running.

She immediately grabbed the foot of the one lagging behind when she thought the goblins’ steps were slowing down. Then, she made them scream for a long time.

The goblins hurriedly ran without rest, as if whipped by the screams of their comrades from behind.

As Itewallo chased after the goblins, she suddenly felt something strange.

It was hard to grasp the direction because it was underground, but the guys were circling around instead of going down. As if they were luring her.

‘Do goblins have the guts to do that?’

Maybe they were doing it in the hopes that she would be killed in an instant if they angered her.

But Itewallo was a child who knew how to play with toys for a long time.

As she was wondering how to play with the remaining goblins, she noticed a strange energy and stopped abruptly.

The goblins were hurriedly entering a large space. It was a space like a subway station.

The moment suspicion settled in Itewallo’s eyes, something crouching in the center of the abandoned station raised its head.

It was an undead, a lich, sitting in a posture as if reverently supporting something.

Itewallo, who was also an apostle of the Gluttonous Star, immediately noticed the opponent.

“……The Wailing Star already?”

Hoarding In Hell [EN]

Hoarding In Hell [EN]

지옥에서 독식
Status: Completed Author: Native Language: Korean
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[English Translation] Kang Hyunmoo's hunter dreams were shattered by poverty. But fate takes a twisted turn when a chilling message appears: [Difficulty: Hell. You are entering the Star of Apocalypse.] Thrust into a monster-ridden future Earth, Hyunmoo faces impossible odds. But he's not just surviving; he's monopolizing! Witness his rise as he claims the most coveted items and skills in a world teetering on the brink. Will he become the savior, or will the allure of power corrupt him in this apocalyptic landscape?

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