-99 Level Archmage

Chapter 11. Dragon God General 

‘Easter Egg…!’

Looking at the message that appeared, Park Chan-woo shuddered slightly.

‘Easter Egg’ was one of the few key phrases that penetrated Abyss.

An unattainable, impossible mystery, something that existed outside all theories and common sense.

‘Easter Eggs are the keys left behind by the god of the Abyss.’

People speculated, If ‘Creators’ crafted their individual Abysses to enjoy themselves and in doing so toyed with humanity, then wouldn’t there be a greater god who created the Abyss that encompasses all those individual Abysses?

In the past, humanity had obtained Easter Eggs only twice. However, even the ‘Creators’ themselves didn’t know what an Easter Egg was. Even the Great Nine Lords, the most powerful beings, were clueless. This led people to believe that this is the answer! The Easter Egg is the key left behind by the god of the Abyss, a key to clearing all of the Abyss!

‘It’s impossible for a Creator to be unaware of what exists in their own Abyss.’

After all, a Creator crafts everything in their Abyss. From the smallest consumables to hidden quests and impossible challenges, there is nothing a Creator does not control. They know everything that exists within their Abyss. But even they were puzzled by the Easter Egg. what it was, why it existed, and why it was inside the Abyss. They had no idea who placed the Easter Egg in their own Abyss.

‘There is a true god who governs the Abyss. The Great Nine Lords are not the real rulers of the Abyss.’

Of course, this was just a theory. The Great Lords called themselves gods and claimed ownership of the Abyss. But in Park Chan-woo’s opinion, they were not true gods. He was convinced that there was a real god who presided over the entire Abyss. A god who enjoyed pranks, leaving traces of itself behind, Just like right now.

Killing a Game Master, something that would be utterly impossible for a newly awakened player on their first day, was what Park Chan-woo had just accomplished. Slaying a High-Rank Demon, Andariel, was even harder than defeating one of the ‘Twelve Divine Generals,’ the final objective of the First Night Abyss!

‘A High-Rank Demon is so strong that even all Twelve Divine Generals combined wouldn’t be able to kill one by themselves.’

But Andariel had only been acting as a Guide, therefore, its abilities had been limited. If it had used its full strength, even approaching it would have instantly suffocated and killed all the newly awakened players.

‘Surpassing the final objective. A reward for killing an enemy that was supposed to be unkillable.’

That was why he had been given the Easter Egg. Park Chan-woo gazed at the floating, white egg before him. A number was written on the egg’s surface, it was ‘001’. Slowly, he reached out and grabbed the Easter Egg. Immediately, a description appeared before his eyes:

Name: Easter Egg (001)

Level: None

Grade: Normal

Description: A mysterious egg of unknown origin. It is said to be a gift given to those who achieve extraordinary feats. Carrying it may bring good fortune?

Equip Slot: None (Passive Effect)

Unique Option (001): While holding this Easter Egg, good fortune will come with every level-up. Each time the holder’s level increases by 20, the Easter Egg’s grade will rise. The higher the grade, the greater the fortune that follows. Upon reaching the final grade, something extraordinary is said to occur.

Current Level Upon Acquisition: -98

(Next grade-up requires reaching Level -78.)

After reading the description, he nodded to himself.

‘A growth-based luck reward, huh.’

As expected, the Easter Egg lived up to its legendary reputation, even its abilities were unique.

‘The final grade must be the ‘Zero’ grade. Since equipment is categorized into eight ranks, this means it’s at a level humanity can never reach.’

However, there was one strange detail. If the grade increases every 20 levels, reaching the final ‘Zero’ grade would require 140 levels. The fourteen realm, even the most powerful ancient dragons had never reached that level. Only the Twelve Lords of the Abyss had a chance.

Above all, humanity’s level cap was 99. No human had ever surpassed that limit.

‘…This really is a god’s prank.’

Even the description itself felt like a joke. An item obtained by overcoming an impossible challenge. Yet, to unlock its final reward, one must step into an unreachable domain. Aside from himself, no one else could ever reach the Easter Egg’s final form.

‘Only I can achieve this.’

…How ironic.

He thought he had been doomed by sacrificing his future and starting at -99 Level. But in reality, returning to -99 Level had turned out to be an enormous advantage. Slaying Andariel, unlocking the Easter Egg, gaining the possibility of reaching its final reward, all of it was possible only because he started at -99 Level.

“…So, what do we do now?”

Lee Hyuk-soo’s voice trembled slightly.

“We should grow stronger.”

Park Chan-woo hadn’t just been standing around with his hands behind his back for no reason. Now, it all made sense, why he had said that if he got involved, things would end too easily. He had summoned Death itself, slaughtering the Game Master as if it were a joke. Eyes steady, unwavering. A demeanor completely devoid of tension. Lee Hyuk-soo had never encountered anyone like him before.

‘I never thought I’d meet someone even less human than myself.’

And that intrigued him. For the first time in his life, since his emotions had dulled after surgery, Lee Hyuk-soo felt overwhelmed by another human. And he wasn’t alone. Everyone present was staring at Park Chan-woo in a dazed silence.

‘W-What did I just witness…?’

‘Is he even human?’

‘Monster. He’s a monster!’

A growing pile of questions. Yet, no one dared voice them aloud. Instead, they simply gazed at him with a mix of fear and reverence.

“What should we do?”

Park Chan-woo turned to look at Lee Hyuk-soo. The young man still gripped his greatsword, waiting for instructions. As expected of a future Sword King, he regained his composure far faster than the others. Park Chan-woo shrugged nonchalantly and replied, “Of course, we keep booking.”

The Game Master was dead. But the “Booking of Death” wasn’t over yet. The one who had created this game was on a whole different level than a mere High-Rank Demon.

The owner of the ‘Moon’ above them. A being who operated on an entirely different planet compared to normal Creators. No matter how much Park Chan-woo struggled, he couldn’t bankrupt the Moon’s Owner. But—

‘I bet it’s going to sting a little.’

Could it really be nothing? On this first night of the Abyss, he must have completely opened his warehouse. Park Chan-woo’s eyes gleamed. Beyond the curtain lay treasures so dazzling they could blind him. They seemed close enough to grasp. Park Chan-woo slowly opened his mouth.

“Made.”

『The 43rd Death Booking has been ‘Made.’』

『With a 20% winning streak bonus applied, you will earn ‘396 (330+66) points’ upon victory.』

『Total Booking Points upon victory: 8,414』

The 4,444 points he obtained by killing Andariel had already been added.

It wasn’t just the winning streak bonus. A 20% discount was also applied to all treasures purchasable with Booking Points. Of course, the Owner of the Moon would never have created such a system. It was made possible by the one who designed this Easter egg. A being so powerful that even the rules set by the “Owner of the Moon” could be broken at will.

‘I will see this through to the end.’

Park Chan-woo made up his mind. Even though he had already accumulated enough points to purchase the Philosopher’s Stone, it still wasn’t enough. Before this night was over—

“Made.”

『The 50th Death Booking has been ‘Made.’』

『Total Booking Points upon victory: 11,512』

He was truly determined to see it through.

“Made.”

『The 55th Death Booking has been ‘Made.’』

『Total Booking Points upon victory: 15,455』

Despite the continuous battles, his smile only grew darker.

“Made.”

『The 60th Death Booking has been ‘Made.’』

『Total Booking Points upon victory: 20,000』

Tonight felt like it was going to be the best night of his life.

* * *

『‘Tiger Divine General’ has died.』

『Of the Twelve Divine Generals, the death of the Eleventh has been confirmed.』

『If the final ‘Dragon Divine General’ is eliminated, the ‘First Night of the Abyss’ will end.』

『A warp to the Dragon Divine General has been created for all challengers.』

『Remaining challengers: 1,848,194』

『Remaining time: 1 hour 17 minutes 19 seconds』

『If the ‘Dragon Divine General’ is not eliminated before time runs out, all challengers ranked below 20,000 in contribution will die.』

The hunt for the Twelve Divine Generals had gone smoothly. Eleven of the twelve had already been defeated.

“Plenty of time, huh?”

“One hour is more than enough.”

“Let’s finish this and get out!”

Excited, the challengers rushed into the warp, flooding into Seoul. Their numbers easily exceeded 100,000. And in the place where the 63 Building once stood. The Dragon Divine General was waiting for them there.

“Is this Korea?”

“But why does that guy look completely fine?”

“Cowardly Koreans, they didn’t even dare challenge him?”

“Heh, those weaklings? What could they possibly do?”

The foreign challengers who had warped into Seoul tilted their heads. The Dragon Divine General looked far too unscathed, as if no one had challenged him at all. Standing at roughly 2 meters tall, with the face of a turquoise dragon, the being stood with its arms crossed. Except for its face, its body closely resembled that of a human.

“Aheta, did you really think you could keep me bound here?”

The Dragon Divine General murmured as he gazed at the moon, showing no concern for the flood of humans surrounding him.

“He’s the last one!”

“Kill him!”

The excited challengers charged at him like madmen. Until now, all the previous Divine Generals had eventually fallen under sheer numbers. This final one would be no different. However—

“I shall cut them down mercilessly.”

The Dragon Divine General unfolded his arms. At the same time, twelve crescent-bladed halberds appeared in his hands.

Swish!

Twelve arms moved so fast they were barely visible. And the dozens of challengers who had recklessly charged at him—

Slash—

Splat!

—were immediately sliced apart.

Their bodies were cleanly severed, like radishes being chopped. It was a scene completely devoid of realism.

Wooosh—

And then, their bodies vanished into nothingness.

“W-what the hell?”

“H-how did they all disappear?”

Hundreds of people had vanished in an instant. The ones following behind froze in terror. At last, they realized the truth.

‘So that’s why he had no injuries…’

‘He’s on a completely different level!’

The reason he had no wounds, and the reason there were no signs of battle, was simple. He was just too powerful. Every single challenger who had come before them had already been slaughtered. But there was no time to process these thoughts.

“I shall cut them down mercilessly—again and again.”

Swish!

None of them could get any closer.

“H-how are we supposed to beat that?!”

“Move! Get out of the way!”

“Please, let me live!”

Even those who had been charging moments ago now turned to flee. There was simply no contest.

Their only remaining option was death.