Chapter 10
Easter Egg
“Cough…!”
The whites of Andariel’s eyes showed as his pupils trembledâhe was beyond the point of accepting reality.
“Wow, how many times have they won in a row already?”
“But isn’t it strange? Why do only skeleton soldiers keep appearing?”
“Exactly… isn’t this discrimination?”
The other participants in the âDeath Bookingâ felt the same bewilderment.
While Park Chan-woo and Lee Hyuk-sooâs party continued an unbroken winning streak, their booking opponents were consistently just ‘skeleton soldiers’.
In contrast, other participants faced increasingly stronger foes with each victoryâzombies, ghouls, even three-headed man-eating dogs.
Naturally, accusations of unfairness and favoritism arose, especially since they all saw Park Chan-woo tipping the game master.
“Hey, Andariel! Isn’t there a problem with fairness?”
Manager Kim Byung-han shouted, veins bulging in his neck. After experiencing the Abyss during lunchtime and confronting man-eating demons, he realized the world had turned into something straight out of a fantasy novel.
He also understood that to rise to the top in this new world, he needed to act faster than anyone else.
âPark Chan-woo. That bastard, just wait. He dared to call me a pig?â
Indeed, the main reason he ended up participating in the First Night’s Abyss was because of Park Chan-woo.
He couldn’t forget the contemptuous look in that punkâs eyes, the way he arrogantly looked down on him, calling him a pig and âpiss-pantsâ.
To him, Park Chan-woo was nothing more than a pushover sucker.
So he looked up at the moon. He entered the Abyss without delay, began farming, and gathered strong-looking individuals to join him.
Manager Kim Byung-han and his party had been together even before arriving at the âGreat Water Nightclubâ, which meant their teamwork was better than any other partyâthey had achieved three consecutive victories without passing once.
“Hey, Demon Manager!”
“…Silence, human.”
“…Hiccup!”
Startled, Manager Kim hiccuped and immediately covered his mouth with both hands.
Andariel’s demeanor had changed.
The once seemingly friendly Demon Manager or waiter was nowhere to be seen. He, too, couldn’t comprehend the current situation.
‘…This must be stopped.’
The winning streak. Park Chan-woo and Lee Hyuk-soo were rampaging endlessly.
ăYou have accumulated 2,990 points so far.ă
A 41-win streak already. This was beyond Andariel’s calculations. In fact, no one could have imagined such a scenarioânot even the âMaster of the Moonâ who created the Abyss or the other Creators.
The problem was that Andariel himself was the game master here.
‘Letting them in was a mistake…!’
He had allowed Park Chan-woo to enter despite a party not being properly formed. If blame were assigned, it would naturally fall on Andariel.
Abusing his authority as a game master, overstepping his bounds, and even accepting the bribe of ‘coins’ left no room for excuses.
‘If I don’t stop them immediately… I’ll be doomed.’
His role was to appropriately arm the humans, to show them hope, and to create a ‘show’ that the Creators could enjoyâthat was the primary function of a game master.
The problem was that Park Chan-woo and Lee Hyuk-soo had far exceeded that boundary.
The treasures purchasable with booking points?
No matter how hard humans tried, they could never accumulate more than 500 points.
It was designed that way. These items were merely there to tease, to give false hope, suggesting that with enough effort, they could be obtained.
If you fail to hunt the Twelve Divine Generals, that’s entirely because you humans weren’t desperate enough. So, accept your death quietly!
Or something along those lines.
To savor that overwhelming despair, the ‘Master of the Moon’ had even opened his vault. After all, humans wouldn’t be able to buy anything.
ăYou have accumulated 3,300 points so far.ă
As the winning streak continued, the points gained only grew.
In just 42 wins, the duo had each accumulated 3,300 points.
The biggest problem was that, having already entered the game, Andariel had no authority to stop them.
“You’ve already surpassed 3,000 points.”
“…”
Park Chan-woo remarked, looking at Lee Hyuk-soo.
With 3,000 points, one could purchase an ‘Elixir’âthe time had come to realize the sole dream he had been yearning for.
After the battle, items could be bought with points, without interference, based solely on one’s will.
“Don’t you want to buy the Elixir right away?”
“…You told me to do as you say.”
Hearing Lee Hyuk-soo’s response, Park Chan-woo smiled.
He hadn’t instructed him to buy the Elixir, so he wouldn’t.
Had Lee Hyuk-soo acted on his own or shown hesitation, Park Chan-woo would have been disappointed.
But Lee Hyuk-soo was diligently following his guidance, instinctively understanding that by leveraging the current situation, they could aim even higher.
Moreover, he recognized that all these opportunities stemmed from Park Chan-woo.
“Purchase the ‘Death King’s Greatsword’.”
“Understood.”
Lee Hyuk-soo used all of his booking points without hesitation.
Soon, the âDeath King’s Greatswordâ was in his hands.
A weapon of the Ancient grade that, despite having no level restriction, would significantly increase his strength.
It had additional effects against the undead and the deceased, which was particularly relevant since all the monsters in this âDeath Bookingâ were classified as âdeceasedâ.
“Lee Hyuk-soo, is your level still 1?”
“âŠYes, itâs still 1.”
As expected, the hunting in this place didnât grant experience points.
But just by holding that greatsword, Lee Hyuk-soo now had the attack power of at least a Level 10 Awakened.
With his genius talent for swordsmanship, his actual combat performance could be even higher.
âThe booking opponent is determined by the average level of the party. My level combined with Lee Hyuk-soo’s averages out to -48.5, so we can probably win another ten rounds without any issues.â
After 40 consecutive victories, the points they gained began to rise steeply.
And if Park Chan-wooâs calculations were correct, the next opponent would be around level -5.
How far could they go?
âThe Philosopherâs Stone requires 5,000 points to purchase.â
That purchase was inevitable.
But Park Chan-woo wanted more.
To achieve that⊠Lee Hyuk-sooâs sacrifice would be necessary.
If he abandoned the idea of buying the Elixir, they could probably win another 20 rounds.
“…Would you please stop now?”
It was then that Demon Manager Andariel, his face full of anger, approached.
“Iâve let it go this far, but if you continue to exploit this bug for unfair gains, I wonât stand by as the game master.”
Hearing Andarielâs words, Park Chan-woo smirked.
“Youâre accusing me of exploiting a bug? Is the Abyss such an easy place that something like that would be possible?”
“Youâve manipulated it so that only skeleton soldiers appear, havenât you?”
“Manipulated? If youâre so confident, how about swearing on the Abyss? We can find out through a covenant whether Iâve manipulated the system to make only skeleton soldiers appear.”
“⊔
Andariel fell silent.
He didnât know how this human was aware of an Abyssal Covenant, but no matter how much he thought about it, this had to be a bug.
It didnât make sense for only skeleton soldiers to appear more than 40 times. That human must have used some kind of trick.
He must have done something similar to bankrupt a Creator and obtain a coin.
The talk of a covenant was a bluff, no doubt intended to throw him off balance.
âTrying to play games with me?â
Andariel was the game master.
He was a superior demon who stood above humans.
Naturally, he understood humans well. It was actually a relief that his opponent had come on strongâit gave Andariel certainty.
“âŠVery well. I will swear on the Abyss that you used some kind of trick in this game.”
He referred to something broader, not just bugs or manipulation, but any kind of deceit.
If the human refused, he would push forward with accusing him of exploiting bugs, leading to his inevitable downfall.
âHe wonât accept it.â
Finally, a confident smile appeared on Andarielâs face.
It had taken him over 40 rounds to gain confidence, but if this human was found guilty, everything would be nullified.
âGotcha.â
Inwardly, Park Chan-woo smiled.
The big fish had finally taken the bait.
“I also swear on the Abyss that I used no tricks in this game.”
“âŠ?”
Andariel couldnât help but tilt his head in confusion.
Did this human not understand what swearing on the Abyss meant?
It meant putting your heart, soul, and entire being on the lineâa demonic ritual that brought suffering beyond death.
ShaaaaaâŠ
In an instant, before themâŠ
GaspâŠ!
“A⊠A Grim Reaper!”
A Grim Reaper holding scales appearedâthe Grim Reaper of Covenants who governed the Abyss.
One of the most powerful reapers, tasked with determining whose oath was true and bringing ultimate pain and annihilation to the loser.
The Reaper would make an objective judgment, free from bias.
Soon.
CreakâŠ
âŠThe scales began to move.
Thump! Thump!
Before long, the hearts of both Park Chan-woo and Andariel were placed on the scales.
The needle swung back and forth between them, then suddenly and decisively tilted towards Park Chan-woo.
Andarielâs face turned white.
“âŠWait.”
âŠThe needle swung again, and again, until it locked 100% in favor of Park Chan-woo.
This meant one thing.
“I used no tricks, Andariel.”
It meant Park Chan-wooâs oath was true.
âNo!â
Andarielâs pupils dilated in shock.
Not a bug? No tricks? Then how had only skeleton soldiers appeared over 40 times? But his mouth wouldnât open. The conclusion had already been reached.
âStopâŠ!!â
Slash!
The heart on the scales was cut.
Along with it, Andarielâs body was sliced into hundreds, thousands of pieces.
After about three seconds, Andariel completely disintegrated and disappeared.
Ting. TingtingtingâŠ
Park Chan-woo picked up the coin that had fallen to the groundâthe one he had given as a tip.
At the same time:
ăYou have gained 4,444 Booking Points.ă
ăThe âEaster Eggâ has been activated!ă
ăYou have gained a 20% increase in Booking Party victory points, 20% discount on all treasures, and four Lucky Dice that can reduce the level of a booking opponent by 1 to 6.ă
ăThe title âEaster Eggâ (All additional stats +2) has been added.ă
ăYou have acquired âEaster Egg (001).ă
