Chapter 109

Chapter 109
## Chapter: 109

### Chapter Title: The Reaper’s Judgment

—

‘Who exactly are you?’

The question echoed in my mind. Who could this person be?

Was it merely someone who had successfully navigated the depths of the labyrinth and gained the favor of the Five Lords?

No, that couldn’t be the full story. There were layers to this man that remained buried.

And then there was the physical evidence.

‘The fact that he produced such an object proves he has a specific goal in mind.’

That level of self-assurance was staggering.

He had brazenly displayed a unique-grade relic for the entire room to witness.

The Throne of Light—the legendary seat of the Sun God himself.

Regardless of whether he had retrieved it from the labyrinth or held it in his private collection, revealing it was a terrifyingly confident move.

To do so in the very core of the Empire, on ground that was not his own, was a statement.

He stood there before a sea of high-ranking aristocrats.

This wasn’t some hollow performance, nor was it a simple ploy to rake in hundreds of billions in gold.

It was an open provocation: *Match this level of grandeur, if you possess the courage.*

It was as if he were mocking them, asking if this meager showing was truly the best they could manage. How pathetic.

Fine. This was turning into quite the entertainment.

Since he had raised the stakes to such a height, I felt compelled to respond with an artifact that would demand his undivided attention.

What should I bring forth?

What treasure would be enough to unsettle him?

“Ah. We have someone who has just been identified as a ‘sinner.’ How shall we proceed?”

The Lord of Darcan tossed the question out.

With a dismissive air, as if the answer were too obvious to even voice, the individual occupying seat #1 gave his reply.

“The fate of all ‘sinners’ is death. That is the established decree.”

Sinners. Players.

They were all marked for execution. That was the unwavering law.

—

By the arrival of the third day, the caliber of the items being auctioned underwent a radical transformation.

Equipment of the legend grade began to appear in rapid succession, falling like heavy rain.

Even myth-grade artifacts were surfacing with startling regularity.

The onlookers watched with bulging eyes as these treasures were paraded out, their expressions fixed in a state of perpetual shock.

I was caught up in the fervor as well.

Then, one item in particular appeared.

“Our next offering is the ‘Baal Armor’! It is believed to have a direct link to the ‘Four Evils Baal,’ the entity responsible for the recent downfall of Delphian! Observe its malevolent silhouette, saturated in a multitude of ancient hexes! Truly a terrifying sight!”

……The Baal Armor was actually being put up for bid.

I recalled from the Sword Sage’s Diary that this armor was located somewhere within the Empire’s borders.

However, it was certainly not supposed to be here, within the Darcan province.

Something that had never been part of the local inventory had suddenly materialized.

Someone had brought it here specifically for this event.

And that person was clearly……

‘#1.’

He was the one relentlessly flooding the floor with items that were legend-grade at a minimum.

Barring a successful heist of the imperial vaults, only #1 possessed the resources to produce such rarities for public sale.

‘He took the bait of the Throne of Light.’

Yet, it was unlikely he would just start dumping high-tier gear without a reason.

Flaunting wealth that no one could afford would only make people more suspicious and guarded.

He had started his move only after witnessing the Throne of Light I presented the previous day.

He had been interested in bidding but was barred by the specific ‘regulations’ of the house. Was this his way of forcing me to be a spectator?

‘He is fishing to see which item triggers a reaction from me.’

With artifacts of this quality, it was impossible for me to remain indifferent to all of them.

The Baal Armor was a prime example—it was the vital piece needed to finish the ‘Baal Set.’ I absolutely required it.

Whether I wanted to show my hand or not, I was backed into a corner.

“Esteemed guests! The ‘Baal Armor’ is far more than a mere cursed trinket. Our specialists have classified it as ‘Ultimate Myth’ grade! It stands as the crown jewel of today’s selection, tied to the mythic ‘Four Evils Baal’ who obliterated the mountains of the cultivators and leveled Delphian. Its scarcity is beyond measure!”

Ultimate Myth.

A piece of protection tied to the Four Evils Baal!

To see an item of this magnitude at an auction, regardless of how oppressive its aura felt, was a once-in-a-lifetime event.

“Ultimate Myth is essentially the same as unique-grade, isn’t it?”

“Those Four Evils were instrumental in the collapse of the ancient Queendom……”

“Incredible. A relic belonging to the Four Evils themselves.”

Even the jaded imperial nobility couldn’t suppress their gasps of wonder.

The physical manifestation of the Baal Armor was far from a standard suit of plate.

Eerie black vapor rolled off its surface in a continuous, shimmering haze.

It had appeared terrifying at first glance, but following the auctioneer’s praise, that same darkness now looked like a mark of prestige.

“The opening bid stands at 500 million gold! We will accept raises in increments of 100 million! This is a treasure that brings no regret. Only a chosen soul can possess it!”

Starting at 500 million gold.

Inevitably, the field of potential buyers was narrowed to a tiny circle.

*Snap!*

The sound of a fan unfurling cut through the air.

“Honored guest #3! Your eye for quality is truly without equal!”

The Lady of Dersian was throwing herself back into the competition.

For two consecutive days, I had been anchored in seat #2, while she occupied #3.

It wasn’t a calculated choice.

I had simply been aggressive, snatching up every valuable item that hit the floor, which naturally placed me in the #2 spot.

‘Even as these treasures are sold, #1 just sits there. He doesn’t care who walks away with them.’

Throughout the earlier sessions, #1 had remained motionless.

He seemed entirely detached, as if the identity of the winners was irrelevant to him.

“Are there no other challengers? The Baal Armor is easily worth over a billion gold. Furthermore, our historical texts suggest the armaments of the ‘Four Evils’ are tied to their very origin. Do you not crave that knowledge? Do you not wish to uncover the truth?”

I certainly did. I was burning with curiosity.

But 600 million gold was a staggering sum even for the wealthiest nobles.

How many people had actually brought that much liquid capital to an auction?

Perhaps five, at the most.

……And I was among that small group.

“Aaah……!!!”

The silence was shattered.

A man suddenly leaped to his feet, his eyes wide with a primal terror as he stared at nothingness.

He was deathly pale, looking as though he’d been struck by a sudden plague, and he was drenched in the sweat of a madman.

He was one of the guests invited from outside the inner circle, originally seated on the right.

Completely ignoring the hundreds of eyes fixed on him, he began to scream.

“R-Reaper! I beg you, spare me! I’ll confess! I’ll tell you everything you want, just let me live!”

What was this sudden insanity?

………A Reaper?

The man then lunged his finger toward another seated guest.

“#53, that man! He’s a ‘player’ as well! He thinks he’s hidden behind that mask, but I know the truth! So please……!”

*Thud!*

*Roll.*

In a heartbeat, the man’s head was severed and hit the floorboards.

I felt a surge of unease.

I hadn’t seen the weapon. I couldn’t even tell what had done the cutting.

There had been no omen, no killing intent, no warning.

No one in the room had even made a movement to strike.

The cut was surgical and clean, as if a spectral Reaper had swept its blade through the air.

“W-What happened?”

“What is this madness?”

The crowd descended into a panic.

The ‘invited guests’ were especially shaken.

In stark contrast, the imperial elites and the auctioneer acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.

A man had just been executed, and they didn’t even grant his corpse a passing glance.

He was treated like a piece of filth that needed to be discarded.

And then I saw it.

‘……They’re laughing?’

………They were hiding their smirks behind their hands.

It looked like a scene they had witnessed many times before.

They looked as if they were eagerly awaiting the next act of the show.

*Ding!*

*Diiing!*

Within moments, figures clad in black robes stormed into the room.

Their hoods were pulled low, and they wore ‘matching fox masks.’

Black bells were tethered to their waists.

These were the exact same ornaments worn by the ‘Silver Fox Mask Swordsman’ I had encountered within the Abyssal Labyrinth.

They formed a circle around the body, raised their black bells, and pressed their palms together in a silent prayer.

*Diiing! Diiiing!*

The bells rang out incessantly as they scattered a mysterious white powder over the remains.

Simultaneously.

“Look……!”

“H-His face is changing!”

……The features of the headless man began to warp.

His face, his physique, and even the clothes he wore began to shift.

He was transforming into a completely different individual.

“…….”

I was stunned into silence.

There was no other possible reaction.

Hudson was equally paralyzed.

The form lying on the floor was unmistakably that of someone from Earth.

A blond-haired man from the West.

He was wearing a white T-shirt that had the phrase ‘I’m Champion’ printed in English across the chest, accompanied by a picture of his own face.

The very image of a self-centered Earthling.

And now he was dead, his life ended by a decapitation.

It was a grisly, brutal sight.

“‘Sinner.’”

“‘Sinner.’”

“‘Sinner.’”

The robed figures spoke the word in a haunting, rhythmic unison.

Then.

*Ding!*

A new figure emerged, this one wearing a silver fox mask.

He reached out toward the remains.

In that instant.

*Crackle! Crrrackle!*

Violet lightning erupted from his palm, taking the shape of a monstrous beast’s jaw that unhinged and swallowed the body whole.

Having effectively ‘cleansed’ the corpse, the group retreated from the auction hall.

“……The proceedings will be temporarily suspended.”

“Hold on, you owe us a full explanation. If you don’t explain this, I’m walking out!”

“That will not be permitted, sir.”

When one of the guests tried to protest, the auctioneer gave a chillingly cold look and shook his head.

“Not permitted?”

“‘Sinners’ have been detected within this territory. Protocol dictates that no one leaves until the disinfection process is finalized. Once every guest has been verified as ‘normal,’ you will be free to go.”

“I am no sinner.”

“I’m sure. However, these are the ‘rules.’ We ask for your cooperation.”

“This is insanity! I’ve never heard of such a rule!”

“You are welcome to refuse. But be aware, all warp gates in this territory have been ‘deactivated.’”

“……What?”

A total warp shutdown?

That was an extreme measure only taken by those willing to risk everything.

They were willing to lock down an entire region just to purge sinners and ‘disinfect’ the area before letting the survivors go.

Naturally, every eye in the room drifted toward one person.

The dying man’s final accusation.

A player—another sinner hidden in the crowd.

#53.

………The Master.

The auctioneer spoke up again.

“Until we are ready to resume, we request that all guests relocate to the banquet hall.”

—

Inside the banquet hall, the crowd treated #53 like a leper.

It was logical.

Standing near someone flagged as a sinner was an invitation for a death sentence.

The Master was paralyzed with fear.

He had confirmed the report: every warp gate was offline.

There was nowhere to run.

Even as a 2-star transcendent, he was trapped in Darcan lands, surrounded by monsters like the Guardian Knight Pamela and other elites.

‘Black robes with fox masks. Black bells—this is undoubtedly the Reaper Church.’

But at this moment, my focus wasn’t even on the Master.

I had too many other variables to process.

The Reaper Church had just staged a violent intervention in the middle of an auction.

And every single one of them was a transcendent.

‘Transcendent beings marked with the Clover (♣).’

The berserker accompanying the Lady of Dersian bore a Spade (♠) mark.

They were all transcendents, yet they carried different symbols.

It appeared to follow the hierarchy of a deck of cards.

Clover (♣), Heart (♥), Diamond (◆), Spade (♠)—a ranking system for their power?

‘Do all the fox-masked transcendents with trump marks wear these identical masks?’

There had to be a specific set of rules governing those masks.

And then there was the other anomaly.

‘The silver fox mask who appeared at the end.’

The one who had ‘incinerated’ the body.

A 2-star transcendent.

He was just like the one I had met in the Abyssal Labyrinth.

But he was a different person.

‘A transcendent possessing both a star and a spade mark.’

This was something I had never encountered before.

【Lv.★♠】

A star-level transcendent who had achieved a second layer of transcendence through the spade mark.

The Empire had clearly unlocked a method to push beyond the limits of the stars.

But a thought was gnawing at the back of my mind.

Something I had seen.

That ‘lightning technique’ used during the disposal of the body.

‘That skill is unmistakably……’

No, it seemed impossible—but I couldn’t be wrong about a ‘unique skill.’

That specific, one-of-a-kind unique ability—the Lightning Archmage who had transcended and finally mastered ‘Thunder Lion’!

‘Thunder Lion is the signature unique skill of Lightning Descent.’

……My own alternate character, Lightning Descent.

A transcended master of the arcane who commanded lightning at will.

But how was this possible?

A 1-star transcendent had evolved into a 2-star.

Combined with a non-star transcendence mark, he was now serving as an enforcer for the Reaper Church.

That fact alone pointed to someone else, but ‘unique skills’ were, by definition, not supposed to have duplicates.

They were unique because only one existed in the entire world.

If one person held it, it was unavailable to everyone else.

“Listen! I was merely an invited guest!”

“If I had known this was the situation, I never would have come!”

“This is nothing short of imperial oppression!”

The guests were venting their fury.

This auction had been tainted from the very beginning.

It was possible they had invited people specifically because they were suspected of being ‘players.’

If that was the case, Hudson was now a target of suspicion as well.

“If you claim you aren’t a ‘sinner,’ then prove it.”

“Being in the same room as these filthy sinners makes me sick.”

the imperial nobility kept their distance within the banquet hall.

Their faces were twisted in revulsion.

But how could one prove it?

How do you prove a negative—that you aren’t a player?

If we did nothing, they would simply pass judgment based on their own whims.

We had no idea what their metrics for ‘confirmation’ were.

So.

*Step.*

-……Where do you think you’re going?

Ignoring Hudson’s look of frantic questioning, I stepped out into the center of the hall.

“Do not come any closer.”

“A ‘suspect’ is trying to crawl toward us!”

The closer I moved, the more the aristocrats’ faces wrinkled in disgust.

I ignored them entirely.

I was focused on only one individual.

-Oh? Why try to reconnect a bond you so brazenly cut?

The man in seat #1.

I approached him directly and re-established the ‘Golden Rule line.’ He watched me with a look of genuine curiosity.

In front of him, I produced ‘that’ item.

-An imperial token? Is that your move? You’re going to show me a common imperial token?

The token I had obtained from the silver fox mask in the Abyssal Labyrinth.

He began to mock me, asking what I thought I could possibly achieve with it.

But this was no ordinary token.

As if to confirm my suspicion, #1’s eyes widened and began to flicker as he took a closer look at it.

-Hm? Wait a moment. This mark…… this is definitely……!