Pick Me Up!

Pria stumbled back.

“D-Did something like this happen?”

[Yes, you’ve sold them out.]

Tel chuckled and raised his left hand.

From her left hand, a thick shadow began to unravel.

[You who have forsaken the challenge have no right to be heroes. Become a sacrifice for the true heroes.]

“What… are you saying!”

[The game needs an enemy. Be the experience points.]

Tel spread her hand.

The shadow quickly expanded, engulfing person after person in the room.

There was no time to scream. The semi-transparent shadow swallowed everything, whether it was a human or a beast, and squirmed.

Except for Pria.

[You have been chosen as the protagonist of Townia. You can be proud.]

“No, I…”

[There are hardly any viable hero candidates left. This world is screwed anyway. It’s so tiresome.]

“Cough! Choke! Gasp!”

Those swallowed by the shadow vomited copious amounts of blood.

Tar-like black blood. Dark red veins sprouted on their skin.

‘Is this contamination?’

Gurgling.

The jelly-like shadow spread toward me.

The shadow began climbing up from beneath my feet.

[Danger!]

[‘Han(★★★)’ is beginning to be contaminated!]

I sneered and stomped the shadow with my sheath.

Crack. Black blood burst, and the shadow retreated on its own.

‘Contaminated state.’

It seems the true heroes handle it this way.

The cause of the enhancement failure. I felt disgusted. I grimaced and looked ahead. The two were still talking.

[If you’re a hero, you should be able to throw everything aside for your goals, right, Priasis?]

“No… no! Don’t lie!”

Pria cried out, shaking her head.

Her neat and clean face was a mess with tear marks.

[Admit it. You sold them out.]

“Lies! Lies!”

[It’s not a lie.]

Tel grinned innocently and approached Pria, whispering in her ear.

[You said so in your dreams.]

“Wait, that… that’s…”

[Hehehehehe……..]

Pria sat down in despair.

[You formed a contract based on words in a dream?]

Crack!

I stomped on the creeping shadow again.

It seems this place is also falling apart. A portal shaped like an ellipse was flickering in the distance.

[Let’s see.]

Tel sat down next to the seated Pria and pulled out a ledger.

[Townia. There is only one 5-star and three 4-star candidates for high-ranking heroes, pretty lame. Some hybrid bastard stirred up trouble. It’s doomed here too.]

Tel flipped through the ledger expressionlessly, recording something while her gaze drifted somewhere.

The young man being consumed by the shadow glared at Tel, half-kneeling.

[You should have accepted it. If you had made a contract with me, the potential would have been much higher than with this moron.]

Tel kicked the fallen Pria.

The young man opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Tel smirked.

[Do you resent me?]

“…”

[Then become strong. Fight against the heroes. Become the greatest enemy and swallow the world. There might be a chance then.]

It seems like the limit has been reached.

The shadows were gathering in droves.

I walked towards the direction of the portal.

Crunch.

The palace was collapsing.

The debris of a broken pillar blocked the way.

I lightly jumped over and walked towards the portal.

‘…Well.’

There’s still much that’s unknown.

What I’ve seen here is just part of the truth.

But…

‘There’s more than one or two filthy things.’

Enough to make me feel nauseous.

I continued walking towards the portal.

The surrounding scenery became blurry and started to twist. Tel and Pria, and those swallowed by the shadow, disappeared one by one. It was the end of this world.

Whoooosh.

A blood-red sandstorm brushed against my cheeks.

I narrowed my eyes. The surroundings had transformed into a desert.

A dark desert. Red mist swirled around.

[Floor 80.]

Beyond the horizon of the desert.

Someone was standing.

The figure, clad in a pitch-black cape, glared at me.

Hidden behind the mist, blood-red eyes sparkled.

[Black Prince]

[Praios Al Ragnar]

The sparkling blond hair was now covered in a sticky black substance.

A glimpse of skin under the cape was tightly wrapped in blood-red bandages, like a mummy.

The golden irises had lost their radiance long ago. A sinister aura hovered in the dim gaze.

‘Are you the boss?’

The 80th floor of Townia.

We’ll meet soon.

Slowly, a level appeared below the name tag.

[Lv.354]

A bitter smile slipped out.

The estimated level range was in the mid-300s.

Comparable to 7-star heroes.

The 80th floor.

Where real hell begins.

If the difficulty is similar to Niflheimr, I had anticipated this much.

I continued walking through the blood-red mist.

‘…Sorry, but.’

I won’t consider your circumstances.

If anyone stands in my way, they’re just obstacles to be crushed.

[Waiting… waiting…]

A ghost-like voice flowed from his bandage-wrapped mouth.

I looked back at him.

“Yes, wait. I’ll make it easy for you soon.”

In front of me, the portal swayed.

I glanced back at him, then stepped through the portal.

A chilly sensation ran through my body.

[Ba-dum!]

[Congratulations, Master!]

[The forgotten memories of the hero awaken.]

[‘Han(★★★★)’, promotion completed! You have become a 4-star.]

[Illustration is updated.]

[Level and skill limits have increased.]

[The hero’s first engraving is unlocked.]

[Tips/What is an engraving?]

[It’s a special ability that heroes can acquire through the Descent Dungeon.]

[A must for becoming a superior hero! A well-crafted engraving is nothing to scoff at compared to ten skills. Don’t forget to grant your hero an engraving!]

When I opened my eyes.

The red magic circle of the promotion place entered my view.

A slight headache echoed in my head.

I gripped my forehead and walked out to the square.

“Ah, Oppa. Congratulations!”

Jenna ran up to me.

It seemed she had been waiting since I entered the promotion place.

“Now you’re a 4-star too. No one can look down on you. Anyway, anyone who messes with you is going down in one hit.”

“…”

“Oppa?”

Jenna blinked and looked at me.

“What’s wrong? You look scary. Like you could kill someone.”

“Kill? What kind of thing is that to say?”

I smirked and walked towards the stairs.

Jenna followed me in a trot.

“Next it’s your turn. Get ready.”

“From an experienced person! Is there something to prepare for a 4-star promotion? I heard you could fail.”

“That’s…”

Bang!

I punched the wall.

Jenna jumped back, startled.

“Oppa?!”

“There was a bug.”

I continued up the stairs.

From where I punched, a hologram window flickered.

[※Caution – GM exclusive line]

[Unread chat messages available.]

‘There’s nothing to negotiate with you.’

I'm currently Translating the following novels: Pick Me Up! | A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War! | The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player. If you want to support me and read more chapters please subscribe to my Patreon!