Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 231

231. The Trial of the Stars (7)

Kawaro inhaled sharply.

He was already on a quest to capture Kang Hyun-woo. Now, he was given a trial with the same objective, but with an expanded reward.

Seeing this, Kawaro didn’t rejoice; instead, his face contorted.

‘Damn it, how coveted is this guy?’

With such emphasis, he couldn’t imagine the repercussions if he failed to achieve the quest objective.

The Trial of the Starving Star was nothing short of an order to obtain Kang Hyun-woo by any means necessary.

As it was a trial, the penalty for failure would undoubtedly be severe.

In the worst case, he might have to sacrifice his life.

“Kawaro?”

Curie looked at Kawaro, who was staring blankly into space, with a puzzled expression.

Belatedly regaining his senses, Kawaro quickly replied.

“Um, I was just thinking.”

“There’s no time to think. Ivanov is coming.”

Curie took the lead and headed towards the Third Reservoir. The fragments of the star could be felt beyond the dark abyss.

Curie gripped her spear tightly and muttered.

“Kawaro, needless to say, I’ve already lost two comrades.”

Curie fiercely stoked the flames [fueled her determination] and muttered.

“To honor my comrades, I must capture Kang Hyun-woo. You can resent me for changing my stance now. But this is the only way I can commemorate my comrades…”

It was at that moment.

Curie suddenly heard a clattering sound from behind. It was the sound of Kawaro’s bracelets colliding.

A chilling premonition arose.

She hurriedly turned her body and gripped her throwing spear.

But her reaction was a beat too late.

With a crunch, Curie’s legs were horribly mangled.

Curie glared at Kawaro with wide eyes. She saw four of the bracelets on Kawaro’s wrist disappear.

Curie immediately realized what had happened.

Kawaro had amplified the damage of ‘Skill: Bloodsucking’ with ‘Skill: Secret Transaction,’ crushing her legs.

A roar of anger erupted from Curie’s mouth.

“KAWAROOOO!!”

“Damn it.”

Kawaro sweated as he quickly conveyed his will to his subordinates.

“Ignore the Iron Blood Soldiers! Head to the Third Reservoir! Capture Kang Hyun-woo by any means!”

The subordinates, having received his will, twitched for a moment and immediately began running towards the Third Reservoir.

The Iron Blood Soldiers stabbed and slashed at their backs, but they remained indifferent. The monsters surged inward like a wave.

“That damn bastard! The guy who talked about apologizing attacks from behind?”

“Sorry, Curie. But the situation has changed slightly.”

A quest that would have been a mere regret if failed had escalated to a situation where he had to risk his life.

In the end, it was also due to Kawaro’s own greed, but he no longer had the leeway to spare for Curie.

Curie picked up her throwing spear and threw it at Kawaro. But Kawaro, too, no longer needed to block it even as a formality.

Dodging the throwing spear at a hair’s breadth, Kawaro hurriedly disappeared into the depths of the Third Reservoir.

“Iron Blood Soldiers! Chase Kawaro! Immediately!”

Curie roared like fire, ordering the Iron Blood Soldiers.

The Iron Blood Soldiers, having received the order, mixed into the horde of the Starving Star’s subordinates and rushed into the depths of the Third Reservoir.

***

The inside of the Third Reservoir was teeming with the Starving Star’s subordinates.

The gathered monsters filled the space, making it almost bursting. And Kawaro’s mind was just as complicated.

‘Damn it, why…’

Kawaro couldn’t understand himself. He had clearly intended to kill Curie in one fell swoop.

It might have been impossible, but by consuming a few more bracelets, he could have incapacitated her more 확실하게 [certainly] than he did now. But he didn’t.

He wanted to believe it was a spasm of his left hand, which had been acting up since earlier, but he knew that wasn’t the case. He was reluctant to kill Curie.

He didn’t know if it was because of her words pleading not to see the ending, or because of their superficial alliance.

‘No, it’s because of Kang Hyun-woo.’

Kawaro steeled his resolve. He believed that his strange behavior, his mind, was all Kang Hyun-woo’s doing. Therefore, he had to capture and punish Kang Hyun-woo without fail.

The disgusting smell of Kang Hyun-woo permeated everywhere.

‘Damn it, of course it would. Kang Hyun-woo’s blood that had been stagnant here has spilled out…’

This venomous blood was a type of poison Kawaro had never seen before.

And that was very strange, because the Starving Star had collected countless types of poison.

In other words, this venomous blood was a type of poison that had appeared for the first time in this world.

A commotion was occurring inside the Third Reservoir.

It seemed that some of the subordinates were already fighting Kang Hyun-woo, or the Cursed Ones.

As Kawaro tried to head that way, he felt a lukewarm heat from behind.

Swish, thud!

A large two-handed axe narrowly grazed past him. Kawaro turned around with an annoyed expression.

It was the Iron Blood Soldiers who had been chasing him.

“How dare you insignificant things!”

Kawaro grabbed the end of the two-handed axe that was flying towards him again.

He pushed the axe in the opposite direction. The blade of the two-handed axe instantly pierced the Iron Blood Soldier’s head, splitting it in two.

Even without using his abilities, he could defeat an individual subordinate with his bare hands. But as soon as he killed one, two more weapons came flying.

Kawaro made an annoyed expression as he saw the shield wall being erected in an instant.

The annoying thing about the Iron Blood Soldiers was their unity, moving like a single organism.

It would be easy to defeat the thirty or so Iron Blood Soldiers if he didn’t mind the effort, but he didn’t have time for that.

Kawaro grabbed the Iron Blood Soldier whose head was split in two and threw him into the ranks, shouting.

“I don’t have time to play with you guys. I need to catch Kang Hyun-woo first!”

It was then.

A bizarre scream echoed.

No, it was the sound of the subordinates inside groaning and wailing all at once.

Startled by the sudden change, Kawaro was about to rush towards Hyun-woo.

“Ah, finally caught one.”

Numerous faces of Hyun-woo. One of them, the one holding ‘Greed,’ opened his mouth.

That’s the one. Kawaro was certain that he was the real Hyun-woo.

Kawaro felt something ominous as he watched the subordinates around him screaming and writhing.

He heard a clanging sound from behind. Some of the Iron Blood Soldiers were kneeling and groaning.

Whatever it is, Kang Hyun-woo is up to something.

He had to stop it now. Kawaro quickly tried to activate his skill.

“Ah, too late. Too late. The activation phrase has already been told to all my friends.”

Kawaro realized that his injured left hand was trembling.

At that moment, screams erupted throughout the entire Third Reservoir. Hyun-woo grinned and muttered.

“Then let’s begin the trial, fellow apostles.”

***

The Cursed Ones simultaneously mentioned the activation phrase ‘Trial.’

The word itself was nothing special. But the action that went with it was the real activation phrase.

A complex, hypnotic action that could only be followed through what was learned through Battle Helper [a system or skill that provides combat assistance].

The moment they took that action, Hyun-woo’s blood, which had been incubating in their bodies and contaminating their blood, exploded into function all at once.

Contagion, acidity, the blood of the hungry, parasitism, pheromones, all those traits ran wild at once.

“Gyaaaaaa!”

The venomous blood messed up even the brain and hormones inside the body, causing unexpected effects.

The subordinates went mad all at once, biting each other, devouring each other, vomiting, laughing, melting, lusting, and dancing in a frenzy.

It was utter chaos.

The sea seemed to be boiling.

The Iron Blood Soldiers were the same. Nothing else but the venomous blood, which had been experimented on and refined to the extreme on the apostle Al-Hugin, was injected into this bloodbath.

The moment they stepped onto the land already filled with Hyun-woo’s blood, the subordinate minions had no chance to escape.

“Gyaaaaaaaa!”

Once again, a desperate scream.

This time, self-harm began.

The monsters tore their skin and exposed their bones. Apple-sized blisters swelled on each wound.

The moment the monsters bit into the blisters, a new venom sprayed in all directions with a thud.

Bang, boom. Screams, shouts, and groans never ceased.

It was hell itself.

Then, at some point, the noise suddenly stopped. Other than faint groans and the sound of phlegm lightly bubbling, an eerie silence settled in.

[Level Up!]

[Achieved a remarkable feat!]

[You have instantly killed countless enemies exceeding your level with poison.]

[Acquired the title ‘Pandemic’.]

[The effect is increased due to difficulty correction compared to level.]

[The ‘Plague’ trait has been added to the venomous blood.]

[The ‘Blister’ trait has been added to the venomous blood.]

[The toxicity of the venomous blood becomes more potent.]

Amidst that, only Hyun-woo was listening to the alarm sounds ringing loudly.

He gained two traits with a single massacre.

Of course, days of effort, hardship, and sacrifice followed to get to this point, but he finally did it.

Now, there were no subordinates standing in the Third Reservoir.

Only about 10 seconds.

In 10 seconds, Hyun-woo 정리했다 [cleared] the situation in the Third Reservoir, leaving only one problem.

Only Kawaro was still standing amidst the countless piles of corpses, glaring at Kang Hyun-woo.

The Cursed Ones cautiously surrounded Kawaro.

Now that Curie couldn’t move properly, they had to attack Kawaro.

Kawaro’s appearance, covered in venom, was a mess. Perhaps he couldn’t even move.

‘But I have to be careful.’

He even got a skill after all this time.

And in front of him was a more than suitable test subject.

‘Activate the ‘Plague’ trait in the venomous blood.’

Inside Hyun-woo’s body, the venomous blood began to spread in the form of a colorless, odorless gas.

The silent assassin instantly filled the inside of the Third Reservoir.

From there, Hyun-woo activated the ‘Blister’ trait. At that moment, the corpses filling the inside of the Third Reservoir swelled up all at once.

The corpses, swollen like mushrooms on a rainy day, became a forest and surrounded Kawaro.

And before Hyun-woo could do anything, the corpses, swollen to their limit, exploded all at once.

Boom boom boom!

With sounds like explosives going off, bones, flesh, and bodily fluids scattered in all directions.

Some of the Cursed Ones were even caught in it and injured.

Not to mention Kawaro, who was in the middle of the explosion.

“Kkeueueueueue…”

Finally, Kawaro was seen groaning.

Kawaro’s appearance was a sight to behold. His body was twisted in every direction, and his entire skin, which he had cherished so much, was covered in blisters.

The impression of being a handsome man could no longer be found.

He had finally dealt a significant blow to Kawaro.

The Cursed Ones also thought it was an opportunity. They immediately rushed towards Kawaro, aiming for his countless items and star fragments.

But it was at that moment.

Kawaro’s lips twisted abnormally.

It was a smile.

The moment Kawaro raised his hand, the bracelets on his arm rang out with a clanging sound.

Skill: Secret Transaction.

As several bracelets and ornaments hanging on his body disappeared, Kawaro’s body, which had been dying in a squeezed rag, instantly returned to its original form.

The Cursed Ones felt that something was wrong and tried to stop. But those who had rushed in could not avoid Kawaro’s hand.

Kawaro stretched out both hands and lightly flicked his fingers.

Crack.

The two Cursed Ones closest to him were crushed and killed in an instant.

Hyun-woo was speechless at the sight of the Cursed Ones being easily murdered.

He had worked so hard to set a trap and thought he had pushed him to his limit, but he returned in perfect condition without taking even a minor injury.

“Kang Hyun-woo.”

Kawaro looked down at Hyun-woo, who was standing with Greed, with an eerie smile.

“I will charge you dearly for making me use my precious jewels.”

At Kawaro’s words, Hyun-woo could only smile bitterly.

“Is installment payment available?”

***

Curie hurriedly tried to recover her body, but the impact she had taken was enormous.

It was an attack amplified by that Kawaro using Secret Transaction.

It was clear that it would take at least half a day for her legs to regenerate.

“That damn, damn bastard…”

She could tell how determined he was to use the skill.

But Curie couldn’t hide a hint of doubt amidst her rising anger.

With that level of attack power, he could have crushed her head instead of her legs. Nevertheless, she couldn’t understand why Kawaro had only stopped at incapacitating her legs.

‘Did he choose the side that could 확실하게 [certainly] incapacitate her instead of something uncertain?’

Either way, it didn’t matter. She had to chase Kawaro, even if she had to crawl.

“I will capture Kang Hyun-woo. Kawaro!!”

Curie shouted again in anger.

At that moment, something grabbed her as she tried to enter the Third Reservoir, even if she had to crawl.

Something like a thin and strong thread that felt weightless was holding Curie.

The moment she tried to shake off the thread, the thread suddenly tightened around her body.

“What is this again…!”

Curie struggled to break free from the thread in anger. But the thread stretched flexibly, only making her movements annoying.

The friction that occurred scraped off her armor and scratched her skin.

“I’m sorry, but you cannot enter here. Apostle of the Conquering Star.”