The Mythical Hunter has Returned - Chapter 169



Only Noblemtl

Episode 169

A core containing the memories of the Abyss.

To be exact, it is a place filled with desire.

“The Lords wanted to use the monsters and gods of the Abyss, the beings of that world, to become transcendent beings free from faith.”

I put into words the memories I saw there.

“In mythology, the gods, fearing being forgotten, summoned the Abyss to ensure their eternal life and acted as if they were their saviors.”

Everyone on site began to murmur at the mention that the cause of the threat to the current human race, starting with the Abyss, was the gods they believed to be their saviors.

One reporter raised his hand.

“So, are you saying that all the Abyss and monsters that are happening now are disasters caused by the gods?”

The questions came to me, but I was not the one to answer them.

“Yes.”

As Prometheus nodded in response, the murmur grew louder.

It might be because of the image he has.

In mythology, a prophet who gave fire to mankind.

In today’s world, there is a whistleblower who lost his place as God while trying to expose God’s corruption and was permanently expelled.

A god who held a grudge against God, but at the same time cared more for humans than anyone else.

The persuasive power of his words was much stronger than usual.

The reporters began to stir at Prometheus’ appealing words.

“But wouldn’t the mana stones mined from the Abyss definitely be helpful to humanity?”

“It may seem that way, but in reality, the benefits of the Mana Stones are not as great as the damage the Abyss inflicts. Also, the Mana Stones are a device that spreads substances containing mana to create an environment similar to the Abyss on Earth.”

The son-in-law became quiet at Prometheus’ words.

Everyone kept their mouths shut.

The fingers of the reporters who had gathered to write the article stopped.

The face looked puzzled as to how to interpret this statement.

Can I just use this as an article?

Wouldn’t this cause too much confusion?

But this press conference was already being broadcast live around the world.

“Is there any evidence?”

“This is the core of the Abyss of Desire, which is currently managed by both Zeus and Odin.”

Prometheus said, pointing to the black core in my hand.

“Isn’t the Abyss of Desire already conquered and distributed as a place for producing mana stones? The core there? How can there be a core in a conquered dungeon?”

“Isn’t this to restrain the production of the Abyss of Desire?”

Prometheus shook his head.

“The Abyss was not conquered. It just remained as a new Abyss filled with the desires of the gods.”

“… … .”

I used the silence as a springboard to give strength to Prometheus’ words.

“I will show you. If this is the real core of the Abyss, the Abyss of Desire will close as soon as this core is destroyed.”

Another commotion.

“If that happens, wouldn’t the Abyss of Desire, the largest producer of Mana Stones, disappear?”

“We need to understand the essence. The fact that there is a core with such ominous power remaining means that the power of the Abyss is still intact. I’m sure you know that, reporter.”

The Abyss’ core exists in various ways.

Sometimes in the form of a god, sometimes as a symbol, and sometimes in the form of a sphere like the Abyss of Desire.

And it continued to emit an ominous force that anyone could see.

“Can the Abyss Core, which was subjugated and lost its god and fell into sleep, have such great power?”

“… … .”

Everyone kept their mouths shut.

If this really was the core of the Abyss of Desire, that alone would be a huge issue.

-God lied to mankind.

This was not a problem that could be simply passed over.

Because the God we thought was absolutely good could be a being who could lie to humanity at any time, or was lying to them.

Doubts arise.

Strong doubts about a firm belief.

“Now is the time to do it.”

It was when Prometheus’ face turned towards me.

“That’s sophistry.”

The door to the press conference room opened and a man came in.

It was Lee Hyeon, the hero of humanity.

“Mr. Kim Do-jin is now speaking nonsense.”

“… … .”

“You’re saying that mining mana stones is to create an environment identical to the Abyss? That’s ridiculous. The mana stones we’ve mined from countless Abysses have been the power that has protected this world up until now. Isn’t that right?”

The sudden appearance of Lee Hyeon.

As Lee Hyeon, who was praised as a hero of humanity, began to side with God, the atmosphere gradually began to change.

Even those who thought that it was possible to do so after hearing what I said once again shouted that they would check the truth of what I said.

“The gods have protected this world until now. We have also exerted our strength, but it was only with the help of the gods that we were able to endure this far. How dare you doubt such companions.”

There was a strong will in Lee Hyun’s eyes as he looked at me.

‘It’s acting.’

The moment I met his eyes, I felt it.

Now Lee Hyun is lying to me.

The fact that he, who was praised as a hero of mankind, suddenly turned to the side of God.

‘There was intervention by the Creator.’

I recalled the last appearance of Lee Hyeon, who led the conquest of the Abyss.

Lee Hyeon, who gave his body to the creator god and ended up losing his ego like the apostles of other gods.

It was a similar look in his eyes as back then.

Blind fanaticism.

I could tell because I saw it once.

The shaking seen between the perfect masks of Lee Hyun.

“So, Mr. Lee Hyun, are you saying that you won’t believe me even if I say that I’ve destroyed this Abyss Core?”

“It must have been tampered with beforehand. It would be easy for you, who has the power to kill a god.”

“…Is that so?”

The guy was trying to frame me as a traitor who hindered the advancement of humanity by destroying the core of the largest production site of mana stones.

Don’t you know?

What is contained in this Abyss Core?

‘You should know that just making a claim doesn’t mean you can hide it.’

Lee Hyun may not know.

but….

‘Zeus and Odin could not have not known.’

They are the ones who made the Abyss like that.

But you don’t know?

but.

I couldn’t back out after coming this far.

There was already too much at stake in this press conference.

“Whew, I understand. I’ll show you. I’ll prove it.”

I strengthened my core.

Phagec!

“Whoohoo!”

“What, what is it?”

As the core broke, black smoke spread out, and soon began to appear as images to the people.

The despair of the gods I have seen.

And their desires.

That I will never forget.

That the beings of the Abyss were connected to this world due to the twisted desires of the gods.

And that they too have a desire to become such a twisted god.

That memory and desire spread to everyone present.

People watching on TV will also start seeing similar images.

“Huh, huh?”

They witnessed the ultimate dream and desire of the gods and began to scream with shocked eyes.

“Oh, no.”

“Hey, don’t do that!”

“Eww!”

Just like I saw in my previous life, people and apostles are becoming monsters of the Abyss.

It came equally to those who did not believe in God.

The disasters that God sent down were equal for everyone.

And even the appearance of gods breaking free from the shackles of faith.

As the power of the black core disappeared, the illusion also disappeared.

“… … .”

Even after the illusion disappeared, silence settled over the room.

No one opened their mouth.

They were just staring into space as if they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

“…Are you trying to deceive people with false illusions?”

“Are you serious? That this is a lie? You, as a hunter, should know that this is true?”

The general public may think it is false.

To those who cannot sense mana, it would just seem like a normal illusion.

However, the awakened beings who felt mana and the gods were different.

You will know the truth of the mana contained within it, and that there is no trickery involved.

Lee Hyun’s words were not directed at the Awakened or the lower-level gods.

I shouted it out so that the general public could hear it.

As if they had been waiting for it.

‘I knew it. I knew this existed.’

They are trying to start a public opinion war to make me out to be a liar and a fraud.

For ordinary humans, not the Awakened.

Because once evidence is used and disappears, it will never come out again.

The core is broken, the Abyss of Desire is gone, but the general public is unaware of the causal relationship.

They believe that the same evidence will never come out again, and that if they drag it out, they will eventually win.

‘From the beginning, what we were aiming for was different.’

I chose to target the other gods and the awakened ones who did not know the true purpose of the gods, and Lee Hyeon chose to target the non-awakened ones.

‘But you know what? You made the wrong choice.’

He should have prevented me from ever breaking this core.

Yeah, that’s right.

‘Because all the awakened ones are blessed by God.’

If the blessed ones turn away, the unawakened ones will also turn their backs on the gods.

Isn’t there a saying like this?

It’s scary when a die-hard fan turns around.

It is a word used among fans in the entertainment industry and in sports.

Because I loved and cared about the other person, I knew both their strengths and weaknesses.

Those who have betrayed their faith will become daggers aimed at the most deadly of the gods.

And the other gods will have to make a choice.

Will you be hostile to humans and transcend the gods in the false peace created by the gods, or will you stand with humanity to end the real war?

“We must close all the Abysses that are mining Mana Stones as soon as possible, and close all Abysses. If we do that, we can completely escape the Abyss that threatens humanity.”

Desire, despair, laziness and countless abysses.

The Abysses I have destroyed and closed so far will lend credence to these words.

‘The enemy and the allies will be clearly distinguished.’

I’m done talking.

No further words were needed.

“I will continue to conquer the Abyss as I have done so far. That is how I will prove that what I say is true.”

“… … .”

Lee Hyeon kept his mouth shut.

There should be no public opinion war.

Because of what I’ve done so far.

No further action was taken.

That would have been the best option.

Because words alone cannot negate what the gods have already done.

‘Are you going to take out the Halo?’

I felt it from the moment he came in here.

That the power of the Creator was infused into Lee Hyeon.

If he wanted to, he could make a Halo in a heartbeat.

A halo made in this way will be filled with holy power.

But that was the worst thing that could happen to him.

That he was not a hero of humanity, but rather a being blessed by God like the other guild members.

Because it was an act that revealed that he too was a servant of God.

Hyun-do Lee knew that, so he hid his power.

“Then I will conclude the press conference.”

I bowed my head and left the scene.

I was bombarded with questions, but I had no answers.

It’s better to show it with actions rather than words.

* * *

On the way back after finishing the press conference.

Prometheus tapped me on the shoulder.

“Well done. Now chaos will come. The false peace that has been forcibly maintained will end. We need to minimize that somehow.”

“I know. So we need to attack the other Abysses as quickly as possible.”

“Do you think the gods will support you?”

“… I don’t know how much will come to me. Rather, all the gods may try to kill me. There must be many gods who think that the shackles of faith are a burden.”

“I don’t think so.”

“yes?”

“There are not as many gods who think like you do.”

I saw Prometheus.

“There would be no god who would want to become a monster without even having his own will.”

“What does that mean?”

“Didn’t you know that? That means gods below intermediate level will become monsters.”

Become a monster?

“Haven’t you seen it? The Abysses ruled by monsters, not gods.”

“… … .”

“So there will be many gods who will be on our side. Don’t worry.”

And Prometheus’ words were soon proven true.