Chapter 667 – Complete Collapse

There were no signs.

“Have you seen the newly appeared dungeon?”
“The rewards there are seriously insane.”
“By any chance, did you pick up a quest in the village? Would you like to go together?”

Arcana Continent was extremely peaceful.

Before Raymon Sean’s return, the Empire had already been regaining its former glory. The Empire had been recapturing both large and small cities centered around the capital, Antonium.

“Literally, the quests never stop, right, Schreig?”
“Right. It’s so lively.”
“Let’s finally try to climb the guild ranking this time!”

In the southern Empire, Hesias.

Second Sun was carrying out the Empire’s quest from the farthest point from Antonium. Being far from Antonium meant that it was also one of the most dangerous places outside the Empire’s borders.

Schreig clenched his fists.

‘This much is easy, I’ll be able to follow along.’

The footsteps of the Supreme Commander.

‘No, would it be rude to call him that now?’

The reason was unknown, but Hoyeol had given up all his titles. Naturally, Schreig wanted to stop Hoyeol’s decision. That day, when London was enveloped in a thick fog,

I realized your true worth.
But now, hearing that trying to stop your decision would be against my pride, I can’t help but respect it.

‘I will definitely follow you, Hoyeol-nim.’

What Schreig could do was grow.

“I don’t know about you, Schreig, but I’m not giving up easily, just to get back at Hisagi, that snake-eyed bastard! I can’t stand those eyes every time they meet mine!”
“Is there any point in having a rivalry within the same Holy War Alliance?”
“Oh, rivalry? It’s just healthy competition.”

Aspinal, the executive of Second Sun, responded with a sly tone.

“You chose Hesias for that reason, didn’t you? To catch up with the Great Alliance that’s far ahead. By the way, doesn’t it seem a bit sneaky? Those guys are officially siding with each other now.”

Schreig shrugged as if the point hit home.

“To be honest, I agree. Seriously, if it weren’t for the Great Alliance, I think we could’ve held a significant position in the Holy War Alliance ourselves.”

But even so, one must speak properly, right?

“But do they really have such a tight bond behind the scenes? Even now, Gaon, Inazuma, and Berserker are all working separately. Especially when you think about the three guild masters’ behavior in the Holy War Alliance meetings…”

Schreig shuddered, and the guild members asked curiously.

“What, what’s the deal with those three?”
“All three of them are pretty great, aren’t they?”
“They’re great, indeed. In many ways…”

Gossip, for whatever reason, goes against one’s pride.
Schreig trailed off, but the guild members’ eyes were shining with curiosity.

“What is it? What’s going on? Could it be…!!”
“What could it be?”
“No, I’m not imagining it! I saw a video uploaded by some net tuber, and it looks like the three guild masters might be in a love triangle…”

What?
This is insane!
Schreig recoiled, shaking his head.

“Don’t say that stuff anywhere else.”
“Why? Could it really be true?!”
“No, if you don’t want to get beaten by those three, don’t say it.”

Nam Taemin, Hisagi, and Leonie.
The trio, in every way, was out of their minds.
Even though they were part of the guild,
Schreig had no confidence in protecting them.
Let’s put aside the ridiculous chatter for a moment.

“Is that it? That presence…”

Second Sun had arrived at a place called [Behemoth’s Maw], which was known as the passage to the Demon World. Of course, Behemoth’s Maw no longer existed. It had been destroyed even before the connection to the Demon World was fully severed.

“There’s just debris left, but it still feels eerie here.”
“I feel like I’ve seen something like this before.”
“Doesn’t it kind of look like a sinkhole?”
“Yeah, exactly like that!”

Schreig dampened the guild members’ excitement.

“It’s too large to be called a sinkhole.”

The size of the hole was so vast it couldn’t be taken in at a glance. As it was Behemoth’s Maw, which was said to have devoured worlds, the width and the immense depth were beyond comprehension.

[Quest: Entrance to the Demon World]

“Remember. The quest’s objective is to protect Hesias.”

Indeed, it was a sight not to be taken lightly in the nearby city of Hesias. The analyst of Second Sun, who had been cross-checking several documents, conveyed the information to Schreig.

“It’s not just Hesias, Schreig-nim. The other cities that were completely destroyed by the cataclysm are the same, but the recovery in the cities and villages near Behemoth’s Maw has been particularly slow.”

That was why this quest had been chosen.

‘The more things to worry about, the more the Empire’s contribution increases.’

Someone would ask,
Isn’t it too dangerous?
In reality, yes, it was.

“Wow, that’s the Dwarven Fortress. It really looks impressive!”

The Supreme Commander…

“No, I keep making mistakes because I’m so used to saying it.”

Hoyeol had been concerned about this, which was why he had placed the dwarves, who were experts in the craft, in that position. The craftsmanship of the dwarves had exceeded all expectations since the first time Schreig had seen Iron Castle Ship.

“Ah, you’re here.”
“It’s been a while, Wallswail-nim.”
“Let’s not exchange greetings now. We’re still finishing up the work.”

Clang!

The continuous sound of hammering proved that the dwarves had already built dozens of fortresses to monitor the destroyed entrance to the Demon World. For a moment, Schreig was amazed at the speed of their work, but someone spoke up.

“Is all this really necessary?”

They were probably questioning if it was an over-investment.
As mentioned, the dwarves were highly skilled.
If they had spent this time crafting weapons instead,
perhaps the power of the Arcana continent would have increased by tens of percent.
Schreig nodded.

“I would’ve thought the same as you.”

If he had only known the ‘evil’ in the past.
After joining the Holy War Alliance, Schreig had witnessed how evil manifested.

“But remember, what you see isn’t all there is.”

Above all, this was a command Hoyeol had left for the dwarves when he was the Supreme Commander of the Holy War Alliance. It wasn’t just Schreig’s belief. Wallswail, the head of the dwarves, wiped away his sweat.

“With just one word, you made me work so hard, huh?”

The proud dwarven blacksmith leader wasn’t pleased.
But Wallswail continued hammering without further complaint,
because he remembered Hoyeol, who had spoken to him in a different tone.

-“We need a fortress that will never fall, Wallswail.”

The deep and dark pupils were unlike usual.

‘…It was as if he was looking into the future.’

Wallswail was confident.

More than any fortress on the Arcana continent, the one he had built with his own hands would be the strongest. But simply being indestructible meant nothing. It had to repel the incoming enemies to prove its worth.

Clank.

Wallswail installed the final cog.

“Alright, feel free to look around now.”

Just as he was about to continue hammering again, the voices of the adventurers were heard.

“What’s that?!”

In an instant, Wallswail didn’t hesitate. He quickly moved, climbing the ladder to the top of the fortress.

And then he saw it.
Squirming.
Unidentified silhouettes wriggling beyond the deep pit.

“The distribution hasn’t been off by even an inch.”

A sly grin appeared on Wallswail’s face.
He didn’t hesitate.
He shouted to the dwarves who were working on the fortresses.

“Prepare everything!”

…Prepare?

“What do you mean, Wallswail-nim?”

Hearing those words, Schreig and the Second Sun guild members, who had been preparing for battle, froze. They wondered if there were cannons in the fortress, but that would have greatly underestimated the dwarves’ technology.

Clank.

The gears inside the fortress began turning in sync.
Yes.
Compared to the past, the dwarves had also advanced.

“Let’s see. How should I explain this?”

Wallswail raised his lips with confidence.

“Alright! Adventurers, can you understand if I say ‘Quernberg Fortress?”

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“The complete collapse of the Demon World? Senior…!!”

Sung Hyunjoon continued, as if he had expected this.

“I knew it, Raymon Sean. That guy, I thought he was too obedient. I knew something absurd like this would happen! He definitely knew about it! Otherwise, how could he—!!”

Even though the media was already buzzing about it.

• Behemoth’s Maw was destroyed? What’s this???

• Don’t the demons ever get tired? ㅡㅡ

• I was enjoying the content but now it’s demons again? Damn it.

• Did anyone really believe Raymon Sean? Hahaha

• Sweet and salty updates, honestly;;;

The updated emergency news.

To summarize the details, the Demon World had finally collapsed completely. The resulting consequences would unfold gradually, but there was one thing that would remain unchanged.

Sung Hyunjoon stammered, unknowingly.

“…Senior, can you imagine how many worlds the Demon World has swallowed? As far as I know, if the Demon World collapses completely, wouldn’t the worlds it swallowed be released as well?”

“That would be the case.”

“If by any chance there are worlds and survivors that managed to survive inside the Demon World…! Do you think Arcana Continent and the land of Anomaly, Seoul can handle them?”

Surviving in Arcana during the age of Arcana Chronicles meant being strong. But Sung Hyunjoon asked, still hoping deep down.

‘We survived too, right?’

Moreover, Arcana Continent and reality were not swallowed by the Demon World. Even if they were pushed to the edge, they had managed to hold on.
So even if they were to clash…!

Just then, Yoon Soogyeom interrupted.

“If it were only one or two, I wouldn’t be worried.”
“…What?”
“As you said, how many worlds have been swallowed?”

And still, there was another emergency update.

Most players had been focusing on hunting monsters and completing quests, momentarily forgetting about the existence of demons, just like in the Arcana Chronicles era.

There was one more fact that couldn’t be overlooked.

“Moreover, we don’t have the Supreme Commander with us anymore.”

It was because Hoyeol had stepped down from all his positions.
Of course, Sung Hyunjoon didn’t believe that Hoyeol had completely abandoned his responsibilities.
If that were the case…

‘He wouldn’t have even made contact with Raymon Sean.’

In that sense, it was natural for doubts to arise.

‘I know the emergency update cannot be interfered with.’

But, wouldn’t he have known at least the signs of the update? If he knew and still left, could this be his will? It was the moment Yoon Soogyeom was lost in thought.

Sung Hyunjoon frantically spoke up.

“Se-Senior! There’s an additional update!”
“…What?”
“There’s an additional update with a developer comment?!”

A developer comment?

It was a word that immediately reminded them of the Arcana Chronicles era. After all, during that time, not every update had been kind and considerate.

The developer comments were hints added to help players more easily understand the intent behind the update. Sung Hyunjoon made a face as if he didn’t understand.

“Did he really redeem himselves? What’s going on?”

But that question didn’t last long. As soon as he saw the developer comment, he could tell. At least, this time, there was no malice from Raymon Sean in the emergency update.

Sung Hyunjoon’s face brightened.

“Senior, doesn’t this mean we can actually try something?!”

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──────
Do not fear, adventurers.
The Demon Hunter Akshan of Hell is descending upon Arcana Continent.
From now on, their final hunt begins.
──────