Episode 1 Escape (1)
“Kanghu, are you okay?”
At the sound of his colleague’s voice, Kang-hu looked at the rusty mirror, the only one in the camp where he could examine himself.
There is also a lot of rust along the edge, along with blood stains whose origins are unknown.
“hmm······. “It seems like working during the week was a bit difficult.”
It might be surprising to see his face turn pale, but Kang-hu wiped his face expressionlessly.
This is due to congenital mana hypersensitivity.
It happened so often that it wasn’t a big deal, so I wasn’t particularly impressed.
A disease that has its pros and cons.
Although he has an overwhelming advantage over others in his ability to feel, interact with, and attract mana.
If you use more mana than your body can bear, you will exhaust yourself and collapse.
In other words, it consumes a lot of physical strength.
Therefore, ironically, recovering stamina was more important in order to actively use mana.
However, in a camp where inmates were viewed only as slaves digging for magic stones, physical recovery was a dream.
“Can you hold on?”
“Nothing will change just because you care.”
“If it’s hard, just say it’s hard.”
“······.”
The colleague, who knew what Kanghu’s silence meant, soon returned to his iron bed.
Among the 61 workers in building 18 of the camp, everyone except Kang-hu is fast asleep.
3 o’clock in the morning.
It’s the perfect midpoint between midnight, my bedtime, and 6 a.m. wake-up time, so I just can’t wake up.
However, Kang-hu’s mind was extremely clear as he had no intention of sleeping on the old bed anymore.
‘Life is so true.’
Kang Hu smiled bitterly.
The reason he doesn’t feel awkward about all of this is because he is possessed by the novel he wrote.
A white paper on the life of a villain who became a savior.
Although it was popular, it received a lot of criticism because of the bad ending that was released at the last minute in exchange for variables.
The worst ending is that the main character in the novel was actually a collaborator of the Demon King, and the world eventually fell into the Demon King’s hands.
‘Even though it was criticized, it was cheap content. ‘I put too much effort into differentiating myself.’
No matter how many times I think about it.
It was such a miserable ending that I wondered what kind of stubbornness had driven me crazy.
What if you were possessed by ‘Jang Si-hwan’, the protagonist of the story – who becomes the villain in the ending?
In the ending, 5 years ago, he would be revered as a hero in the world.
Unfortunately, he ended up possessing the body of Shin Kang-hoo, the ill-fated villain who was created as Jang Si-hwan’s opponent.
He was designed as a cynical character, and the positive elements were eliminated by giving him congenital mana hypersensitivity…
It wasn’t difficult to be trapped with a devastated mind.
Moreover, mental synchronization has been completely completed in the past few days.
Thanks to this, I can’t even remember who I was before I was possessed.
Of course, the memory of the original is clear.
‘The longer you delay escaping, the more you miss the golden time to save the world. ‘There’s no time to waste.’
In the story, Shin Kang-hoo starts off as a villain, but in the end, his essence is that of a savior.
The real villain is the one who helps the Demon King descend and hands over this entire world into the Demon King’s hands.
The thirteen hunters who are revered as heroes, including the protagonist Jang Si-hwan, are the ‘Thirteen Stars’.
‘It won’t be easy to find a loophole in this world that is well-organized to suit their tastes.’
Shin Kang-hoo’s unique pessimism eats away at his emotions, but he looks further into the future.
The only people who can save their lives at the end of the story, which is destined to end with the devil anyway, are the collaborators.
If you don’t change the future, you will die one way or another.
If you have no particular desire to live.
In fact, you can just slit your throat and die now without much thought.
But that cannot be because even in the midst of extreme pessimism, there is a glimmer of hope.
That is the only light that made Shin Kang-hu go out into the world in the original work that wriggled in his heart.
Ganghu wanted to bring that time forward. As of today.
The reason was clear.
This is because it is the most exhausting day for the guards, who have had to spend the day hectic as new inmates arrive.
【Xin Kang-hu should have made up his mind to escape from the Cheongmyeong camp that day. The hesitation of that day left him with three years of hell as a gift.】
Memories of the original work that flicker like a fantasy.
Ganghu shook his head and brushed away the memory.
Then, biting my lip, I stood up from where I was looking in the mirror.
‘I will definitely go out today.’
Short-term goals were set.
A huge place of human exploitation managed by the criminal organization Eclipse.
Escape from Cheongmyeong concentration camp.
Just because you are outside the camp doesn’t mean that the reality of the turn-of-the-century Republic of Korea will feel like paradise.
At least you will be able to enjoy the freedom of your body.
That was enough for now.
* * *
After a while.
“It’s one minute. If it goes beyond that, your life will be cut off even if your poop isn’t cut off.”
“yes.”
Kang-hu entered the portable toilet located right next to the camp under the guard’s watch.
As soon as I entered, I was struck by the peculiar odor of a bathroom, along with the smell of a rotting corpse.
Originally, there were toilets in the camp.
However, as the number of inmates who committed suicide by hanging themselves in the bathroom increased so much, they had to come up with a desperate solution.
This camp, located in a human rights blind spot, was virtually a living hell.
This bathroom was also one of the anecdotes that showed that aspect.
Kang-hu entered the bathroom and looked around.
As I remember, the exterior was dented, as if someone had kicked it from the outside, and a sharp point was visible inside.
The sharpness and length are perfect for cutting and wounding flesh.
Sigh!
Kanghu drew his palm without hesitation. Then, fresh blood poured out and soaked the floor.
50 seconds remaining.
Using blood as ink and his opposite finger as a brush, Kanghu drew a pentagram on the narrow bathroom floor.
It is a summoning ritual.
A ritual to summon the constellation ‘Dimension Stealer’.
The reason why the current Ganghu needed this constellation was simple.
This is because all of the constellation characteristics that a Dimension Stealer can grant are ones that explode one’s potential.
There are many difficulties in escaping the camp with only the ugly body of a level 10 hunter.
The guard waiting outside the door with a long sword is level 45.
This means that at least one year has passed since I gained experience as a hunter.
In other words, it is difficult to fight head-on, and securing the power to turn the situation around at once is more urgent than anything else.
“Aren’t you cumming, bastard?”
The sharp-edged voice of the jailer could be heard clearly. As well as the sound of metal scraping the floor.
40 seconds.
The pentagram sparkled and a unique dark red vitality bloomed.
Of course, this is just the beginning.
Kanghu raised his palm as if it was almost going to touch Omangseong and spoke out the thoughts that were only in his head.
‘I know that I am observing my fate. And your enthusiasm for the tragedy or sorrow of the contractor.’
······.
I can’t hear the answer.
The contract with the Holy See is never a one-way street. It requires communication and awareness of the words coming and going.
Dimension Stealers are not small-minded beings who would be offended by the informal language of ‘insignificant’ humans.
Rather, I feel interested.
‘I am the one who can best utilize your abilities.’
Also no response.
Kang-hoo returned exactly what the dimension stealer said to Shin Kang-hoo, who was pessimistic and denying the future in the original work.
‘The more you hesitate for a day, the more the hope that will come to this world becomes tens of times more distant.’
Life in the future will never be easy.
The world has been possessed by a villain who will point out that he is the devil.
We must also hit head-on the propaganda framework of propaganda skillfully designed by the devil’s collaborators.
It may be difficult, though.
However, I did not want to die like a meaningless expendable in a world that has now become a vivid reality.
Right then.
【Bold guy. I will give you a very short time to experience the power of the noble constellation. Prove it.】
‘That’s enough.’
Ganghu laughed.
When he designates a contractor as a constellation, he grants three characteristics.
First, maintain the proficiency level of all skills learned or to be learned at the maximum level.
Second, you gain the ability to steal boss skills as your own.
Third, if you kill another Hunter, you can rob him of the contract with the Constellation he served.
These are all characteristics that inevitably make the contractor stronger.
And what Kanghu can enjoy now is the first skill proficiency.
【Shinganghu Lv. 10】
【Class: Assassin】
【Class skills: Short-distance jump (level 1 acquired) / Lateral movement (level 10 acquired)】 【
Other skills: None】
【Unique talent: Fairly good main power / Very good moving vision】
Although skill There were only two things, but there seemed to be no problem with the requested proof.
This is because the proof he is talking about means showing that you are not afraid of getting blood on your hands.
In other words, it means to kill the prison guard outside the door.
20 seconds.
“······.”
Kanghu held his breath.
In the meantime, Ganghu’s two skills that were temporarily given special characteristics were in completely different forms.
Skill proficiency starts at level 1 and reaches its maximum level only at level 20.
Skilled work requires a long period of time and consistency, and no matter how quickly you do it, the minimum was 5 years.
Of course, reaching the maximum is meaningful. It had to be that way.
This is because all coefficients, including distance and destructive power, increase rapidly starting from the skill’s maintenance period.
It has changed so much even now.
The short-distance jumping skill, which would have been a blessing if you could jump 1m, has become a de facto spatial movement skill that narrows the distance of 12m in an instant.
The lateral movement skill, which is at the level of slightly evading to the side, now moves behind the target’s back while in stealth mode.
Who would think that the former and the latter are the same skill?
This is the synergy between the character Shin Kang-hoo and the constellation Dimension Stealer. The word fraud comes out.
5 seconds.
“This bastard…!”
Squeak!
The guard opened the door, feeling embarrassed by Kang-hu, who didn’t even show any signs of coming out but didn’t even say sorry.
There is no problem if one inmate dies anyway.
After all, Seoul is the only place where ‘the law’ can function.
Other than that, it is a world governed by warlords and criminal mercenaries.
Force is law.
Even murder is not a crime in the face of strong power.
At that moment, the guard caught a glimpse of Ganghu, albeit only briefly.
Because our eyes met precisely.
However, as if the person had become invisible, he suddenly disappeared before my eyes.
It doesn’t make sense.
Only level 10!
There was no way he would miss an inmate with mediocre skills who was 35 levels lower than him.
however.
Pooh wow!
“Gagging!”
Something cold and metallic penetrated the carotid artery and pierced right through the center of my neck.
It was a completely fatal wound that left no room for further screams.
What Kanghu stuck next to the guard’s neck was a pair of chopsticks.
A weapon that he decided to use to cleanly cut off his own life when he no longer had any regrets about life.
However, the will to live changed the direction of the chopsticks from towards oneself to the enemy.
and.
【The contract has been concluded.】
The noble constellation responded to the call of a level 10, unsightly, shabby hunter.
Considering that the majority of hunters cannot even dream of signing a contract with a high-level constellation such as a dimension stealer, even if they exceed level 100.
It was truly a catastrophe.