Chapter 390: The Time He Waited, The Time He Walked (3)
The great slashes embroidered the world four times in total.
With the third slash, [Humans] were finally born. People named the moment of this third slash the ‘Day of the Sword.’
The fourth slash saw [Humans], who were once a singular entity, diversify into countless [Races], [Nations], [Cities], [Villages], [Tribes], and [Families], eventually giving rise to [Individuals]. This moment of the fourth slash was named the ‘Era of the Sword.’
And time marched on.
To distinguish from the Year of the Sword, the Year of the Axe, the Year of the Spear, the Year of the Bow, and more were established.
Similarly, to differentiate from the Month of the Sword, the Month of the Armor, the Month of the Shield, the Month of the Bracelet, and others were created.
Likewise, countless Days and Eras were established to differentiate from the Day of the Sword and the Era of the Sword, further dividing time into countless Minutes and Seconds.
Some called this meticulous naming of time the fifth slash, but it didn’t gain unanimous support. Regardless, the fragmented moments began their own cycles.
Finally, the moment arrived when the Year of the Sword, the Month of the Sword, the Day of the Sword, the Era of the Sword, the Minute of the Sword, and the Second of the Sword interlocked perfectly like gears.
It was also the moment he was forged.
Temples are usually the sanctums where gods, defining the providence of their world, reside. Or they become refuge for ousted gods seeking shelter from other more domineering deities.
However, this temple was neither.
This temple was the husk of that god.
Clank!
Ruins.
In the flow of endlessly turning gears, throughout a time so vast it became meaningless to count, the temple, amidst an eternal winter that eventually arrived, was nothing more than a festering scab on the skin, impossible to shed.
Clank
Clank
Clank
Within that husk, the sound of two hard entities colliding echoed.
Clank!
One of them was a small fist.
A fist clenched as if gripping the world, striking down with matching force.
Clank…!
Each time, a shockwave that seemed to cleave the heavens and shake the earth reverberated.
Clank!
The other was a metallic fiend.
At a glance, the metal ingot seemed to be ablaze. It was that red. But upon closer inspection, it wasn’t sparks that fell with each punch, but rust. The ingot appeared so vividly red because it was entirely corroded from end to end.
Clank!
The girl wielding the fist had golden hair.
It wasn’t the sticky hue of dense honey, rather, her hair was so wispy that if coated with glue and flung into the air, it seemed it would scatter like dandelion seeds.
Clank……!
Between the swaying golden wheat, reminiscent of a scarecrow left after a storm, stood two broken things.
They were broken horns.
The girl was not human.
She was one of the oldest Dragon Emperors and held one of the broadest territories in the heavens as one of the Constellations.
“Ruin-Harvesting Cow, right?”
Someone called out the girl’s divine name.
The girl’s fist, which had been pummeling the metal ingot, paused momentarily.
She glanced sideward, letting only her gaze drift. The rustling hair allowed an easy view through the fringes covering her eyes, making it effortless for her to see who had called her.
Her lips twitched slightly.
“Viper?”
“Yeah, you might not know who I am but— Eh!? How’d you know?!”
The man with grey hair, who had been leaning against a temple pillar watching the girl, was taken aback.
Clank!
The Ruin-Harvesting Cow, Mutia, resumed hammering the metal ingot, replying nonchalantly.
“What do you think is required of a god?”
“Uh… Diligence?”
Caught off-guard by the sudden question, Viper responded reflexively.
Mutia paused her punching momentarily, then nodded.
“You know well. It’s evidence you’ve properly played your part as a god.”
“Ah, I’ve had my fair share of struggles… No, that’s not the point…”
“A god is essentially a servant.”
Clank!
Mutia struck the metal ingot again.
“Thus, a good god is, in essence, a good servant.”
“Uh…”
“So, the Tower Master would be considered the best god to everyone.”
Clank!
Amidst the metallic sounds, Viper fell silent. The subject of the Tower Master was still something he couldn’t grasp.
Mutia continued.
“I might not be as much as the Tower Master, but I am a good god too. And the virtue of a servant is diligence.”
Clank!
“In a brief moment of negligence, due to that diligence lapsing, I lost my horns.”
Clank!
“Someone from the same world as the one who cut off my horns, and even got hit by him, is you. It’s only natural to remember and be prepared.”
“Hmm… It’s an honor, but at the same time, it’s kind of infuriating.”
Viper scratched his head, then murmured, “Well, I guess I should accept the role of a rival,” and looked at Mutia.
“Aren’t you going to ask why I came?”
“You’ll explain it anyway, either through words or actions.”
“Well, yes, but… you could’ve also gone, [You came here for this reason, didn’t you?] like you guessed my name.”
“Why should I show my hand?”
“Even for a good servant…?”
“I said the virtue of a servant is diligence, not some foolish swagger.”
Viper clamped his mouth shut. With Mutia also silent, for a while, only the sound of the god’s fist striking the metal ingot filled the husk of the god.
Viper hesitated, then spoke.
“Do you know about hammers? They could make this easier…”
As he spoke, Viper thought.
[A hammer? What’s that?]
[Ah, this is called a ‘hammer’… It makes it easier to strike metal.]
[Amazing, Viper…! How could the World of the Lone Child have such overwhelming techniques and dedication even for something as simple as hammering metal…!]
“Viper. Listening to that is too unpleasant even for me; can you stop?”
“I didn’t say anything!?”
“You were thinking it.”
“Well… Even if thoughts are my own, you can’t just invade privacy like that, even if you’re a renowned Constellation… Anyway, there are hammers…”
“This…”
Clank!
“Is my horn.”
Clank!
“To forge my horn, it had to be with my fist. Every other metal was too soft.”
“Indeed.”
Having once lived among people as a god and worked as a blacksmith, Viper rested his chin in his hand.
“Hmm… So that’s why it’s rusted…”
“My horn can only be rusted by time. Every flame is too cold.”
“Indeed.”
Viper sighed.
“Time is your domain. So, only you can melt and break your own body.”
“That’s right.”
“It makes sense, but that’s all it does.”
Viper crossed his arms.
“The one who cut off your horns was Kim Gong-Ja.”
Clang……!
With a sharp sound, the metal struck by the fist let out a massive scream.
It was the death throes, and at the same time, a baby’s first cry.
[Congratulations!]
In a tone more vibrant than usual, the tower’s proclamation echoed.
[An item of unmeasurable grade!]
[You have created the 13th World-class Artifact!]
This announcement was heard by Mutia, and by Viper as well.
Viper tensed up. Unperturbed, Mutia stood up.
After swinging the newly forged sword a couple of times, she displayed it with a snap, making a sound.
+
[Harvester of Returnees]
Rarity: World-class
Creator: Ruin-Harvesting Cow
Description: A sword of obsession forged from her own horn by the Harvester of Ruins. It is what you might call a ‘time-traveling homing missile.’ In other words, a ‘Returnee-Killing Missile’… Terrifying, right? Anyone killed by this sword and who returns (time-travels back) brings the sword along with them. So, what does that mean? They die again as soon as they return… And if they return again? They die again immediately. All hope is lost for anyone killed by this sword… That’s what it signifies.
+
Viper swallowed dryly.
“The reason I came here is because of a certain prophecy.”
Mutia kept her gaze on the sword, silent.
Viper continued.
“Not a fake prophet, but a real prophet has appeared in our tower.”
“…….”
“The prophecy said, Mutia, that you would become a formidable enemy of Kim Gong-Ja.”
While speaking, Viper activated his skill.
“Unrivaled Under the Heavens is activated.”
His SS-grade skill, [Unrivaled Under the Heavens], shows the opponent’s expected moves, allowing him to anticipate and counter their next actions.
Simple but powerful. It’s like knowing what your opponent will play in rock-paper-scissors and then making your move.
Of course, even the simplest fight is more complex than rock-paper-scissors, almost like adding rock-paper-scissors to a subtract-one rule. However, or rather for that very reason, if wielded by someone who knows how to use it, the true value of this skill is immeasurable.
And of course, Viper was one who knew how to wield it well.
That’s when it happened.
“Shut up…”
Mutia muttered disdainfully.
Taking those words to be directed at him, Viper bit his lip and prepared to adopt a full battle stance.
It was a misunderstanding. Mutia’s words were not aimed at Viper.
Her eyes weren’t even on Viper.
“Speak only what needs to be said, like a salvation consultant.”
“Hmm…?”
Viper looked puzzled, but Mutia didn’t respond.
Her attention was fixed on the item description.
Shortly after, the item description squirmed and changed.
+
Description: But that’s too stiff, isn’t it? As the person in charge of item messages, I dream, along with my sister who handles skill messages, of being more human-like, more approachable representatives. (Strong sense of duty) To become a more proactive tower, I’ll do my best!!! (Sincere ambition)
+
Mutia pressed her forehead.
“Crazy, really. As if they weren’t already from the line of the Maiden.”
“Eh? Maiden? If you’re talking about the Mirage Maiden, that’s my line…”
Viper puffed out his chest as he spoke.
Only then did Mutia glance at Viper, sighed in a manner similar to before, raised her hand, and swung it down.
Crash……!
With a loud bang, the sword [Harvester of Returnees] that Mutia had just forged split in two.
“What in the madness!?”
The tower’s item manager was astonished.
“You’ve just destroyed a world-class item of immeasurable grade…!?”
Viper too looked dumbfounded.
“What are you doing……”
“That wasn’t what I intended to make in the first place.”
Brushing off her hands, Mutia continued.
“Your mention of him mixed in malicious thoughts. That’s what created it.”
“…….”
“Something that has already been made. Using it as it is made might be amusing, but I am the representative of time. I cannot accept coincidences caused by me.”
Thus, Mutia began to reforge her own horn, now reverted to an ingot, once again.
Clang, clang! The sound resounded starkly within the temple.
Viper watched in silence for a while.
“What were you trying to make?”
“Not a weapon.”
Clang!
“Something not meant to be swung at the living.”
Clang!
“Something you were boasting about being unaware of.”
Clang!
“A blacksmith’s hammer is what I am making.”
Viper was silent for a moment before asking,
“What will it be used for?”
“Anything.”
Clang!
“To create a tool for someone to use, not to use someone as a tool, just for once.”
Clang!
“That way, at least, it will be closer to him who broke my horn than that trash item from before—”
Clang!
Viper took note of her answer and pondered deeply.
[Unrivaled Under the Heavens has been deactivated.]
Then, Viper asked,
“Need help?”
“Hmm?”
“Yeah. I’ve done some blacksmithing… You said only your fist works, but just in case, right?”
Viper rolled up his sleeves and grinned.
“After all, this fist almost pierced through his heart.”
Mutia frowned.
It wasn’t for long. She snorted, turned away, and said,
“……Do as you like.”
So Viper did just that.
Clang!
Clang!
As different sounds filled the air, time passed.
Crash……!
A shockwave burst forth.
Like a crack forming in an egg, fissures appeared, and from within, a sharp, clear luminescence exploded.
And then.
[Congratulations!]
The temple began to crumble.
As if a husk long shed was only now accepting its fate to collapse.
[An item of unmeasurable grade!]
Crack.
Crack!
The roof caved in, and the pillars supporting the temple buckled. Initially, the pillars swelled as if suffering from indigestion, and then, with a rumble, they crumbled, spewing dust.
The shockwave had brought down the temple from the inside.
[You are the first to create something beyond a World-class Artifact—]
That day, at that moment, it is said that everyone who set foot in the tower heard that proclamation.
[Key manifestation complete.]
But.
[The Constellations linked to you have changed their way of life because of you, and as a result, they can no longer exist in the same way as before.]
The fact that another proclamation of the tower, audible only to one, also resounded, was not known.
[The 93rd floor stage has been cleared!]
The one who heard the tower’s proclamation looked down upon the ruins, at the man with an eyepatch joyfully holding up a blacksmith’s hammer and the girl with broken horns.
Then, turning around, they began to walk slowly.
[You are entering the 94th floor.]
