Chapter 61

Chapter 61
## Chapter 61: Rule Breaker

“Wait, where are you going?!”

The entire group stood frozen, staring in disbelief as I sprinted down the slope, leading with my shield.

I ignored their cries.

The bomb bugs smashed into the heavy metal of my shield.

*Boom! CRACK-BOOM! BOOM!*

The moment they touched the surface, a chain reaction of fire and debris erupted.

*Sizzle!*

I felt the burning sensation of their caustic acid eating into my skin as it reached a critical point.

‘Recovery.’

> **《Recovery activated.》**
> **《Available uses: 4》**

I directed the healing light toward myself. Within seconds, my mangled flesh was stitching itself back together, restored to its original state. I only had five charges of this ability, but with its sheer potency, that was plenty for the task at hand.

Before the swarm could finish their ascent, I dove headlong into the thickest part of their formation. The shockwaves from the initial detonations triggered the bugs that had gathered below, causing them to explode one after another.

*BOOM! KABOOM! BOOM!*

The roar of the explosions was so intense it felt like my eardrums would shatter.

‘Recovery.’

> **《Recovery activated.》**
> **《Available uses: 3》**

I didn’t slow down. Though my features were contorted in agony, I maintained my full-tilt charge. My objective was simple: wipe out as many as possible before they could even threaten the top of the hill. To achieve that, I threw myself directly into the inferno.

“…No way.”

“…That man.”

“…”

Isaac, Serengeti, and Isabella, watching from the safety of the ridge, could do nothing but watch in stunned silence at the suicidal, impossible display.

—

After I had decimated nearly ninety-nine percent of the swarm and exhausted every single charge of Recovery, I signaled Serengeti to swap roles.

Serengeti and Isabella moved back to the ridge to hold the chokepoint while Isaac dealt with the few stragglers left behind. Just like that, the trial of this layer was finished—though in a manner that completely ignored the intended mechanics.

I had zero intention of following the script written by the Demigod. I would dismantle every board he laid out using every resource I possessed.

> **《Cleared in record time!》**
> **《Fame has increased by 30.》**
> **《Trial successful.》**
> **《Current Progress: 50%》**
> **《Moving to the next layer.》**

A shimmering portal manifested in front of me. We were at the halfway mark. Our pace was already double the speed of Wilhelm’s previous attempt.

That was when a new notification flickered into view.

> **《The ‘Constellation of the Shining Hero’ applauds your unorthodox methods.》**
> **《The ‘Constellation of the Shining Hero’ offers a special quest.》**
> **《Quest: ‘Rule Breaker’ has been issued.》**
> **《Objective: Defy all regulations and eradicate the dungeon along with the Demigod’s consciousness.》**
> **《Reward: A highly exclusive gift from the ‘Constellation of the Shining Hero’ upon completion.》**
> **《Do you accept?》**

A quest from a Constellation—this was a rare turn of events. I tilted my head, intrigued by the specific goal of wiping out not just the physical dungeon, but the very will that governed it.

‘A highly exclusive reward…’

It likely meant a relic on par with the treasures of Gingoa. This entity had been watching me since I stepped inside. I wondered what kind of history existed between the Shining Hero and this place.

Suddenly, the air grew heavy.

> **《The Demigod’s will attempts to pierce your essence.》**
> **《Detection Failed.》**
> **《The Demigod’s will attempts to pierce your essence.》**
> **… 《Failed.》**

What on earth was going on?

### Rule Breaker

Everything had been meticulously arranged. For eons, the laws of this place remained static and unchallenged. However, the ‘will’ of the dungeon found itself unable to grasp the nature of this ‘aberration’ that had appeared.

*‘Why does he ignore the foundations?’*

From the start, the human had simply deleted one of the four core premises. Then, he had transformed and used a taming skill on a worgen—a feat that made no sense. Now, a mere healer was wielding a heavy shield meant for guardians and charging through a trial designed for slow attrition.

He was a Rule Breaker. He was nothing like the challengers of the past.

*‘If you refuse to play by the rules, I shall discard them as well.’*

The ‘will’ focused its gaze, intending to strip him bare. Nothing was supposed to be hidden from its sight. It sought his flaws, his fears, so it could construct an insurmountable wall that would lead him to death or despair.

*‘I will see through you. Every secret, every vulnerability!’*

Violating its own laws mattered little now; if he was a Rule Breaker, it would be one too. Normal trials wouldn’t stop this anomaly. It prepared to drag his darkest memories into the light to crush his spirit.

*‘…What is this?’*

The ‘will’ faltered. For the first time in its existence, a human caused it to feel true confusion.

*‘I see… nothing?’*

There was nothing. Total, absolute void. Attempting to look into the anomaly revealed only a profound, pitch-black darkness. Something immense was standing in the way.

The Demigod’s will was a transcendental consciousness born of a supreme being. Within this dungeon, its power should have been absolute. To block its gaze required a presence of equal magnitude.

Was this human its equal?

*‘Impossible.’*

It tried again and again, refusing to accept the outcome. After thousands of failed attempts to peer into my soul, the ‘will’ finally shifted its focus.

*‘Fine. If I cannot break you, I will tear apart those who follow you!’*

—

‘Did I ask something I shouldn’t have?’

Isabella walked through the Room of Truth, her hands trembling. The question she had asked earlier—whether he was truly the Star Awakener—continued to haunt her.

Ever since they met in the wasteland, Randolph had been her savior. He had cleansed her curse, led her out of the sands, and opened her eyes to the world. The sight of Arcana, the golden city, was burned into her mind. He had promised that after a year, he would help her find the truth of her lineage.

‘Yet, I still doubted him.’

The Star Awakeners she knew of were seekers of destiny. But Randolph… he felt more like the master of destiny itself. A Star Awakener guided people to the stars; they didn’t own them.

Ultimately, it shouldn’t have mattered. Even if he had lied, his actions were undeniable. She just wanted to be sure. Whether he was the Star Awakener, the successor of the Knight King, or a figure recognized by the White King, it didn’t change what he had done for her. She felt like a hypocrite for needing the validation of a title.

“Ah…”

She watched as Randolph charged the swarm alone, a solitary figure amidst the fire and acid. He performed the work of four people without breaking a sweat, acting as if he required no assistance at all.

‘An unbreakable warrior. A reckless, unstoppable force.’

That was who he was. In every trial they faced, he never stumbled. He only conquered. Sometimes he was a man of honor, other times he was a cold pragmatist, but he was always Randolph.

Could she have done the same? The bomb bugs didn’t just explode; they melted everything they touched. Even as his skin bubbled and peeled, revealing the bone beneath, he never dropped his guard.

‘He is a savior.’

He had rescued her, saved cities, and neutralized the Gatekeeper of Ruin. Isabella bit her lip hard.

‘I have to be useful to him.’

She couldn’t just be a burden. She had sworn to serve, yet all she had provided lately were doubts. She cleared her mind and stepped through the portal.

> **《Recite the ‘Oath of Veracity.’》**

She found herself back in the Room of Truth.

‘Again?’

She was confused. Why repeat a trial they had already passed? Without overthinking it, she took the oath and submitted her inquiry. But when the party gathered, the atmosphere was different.

> **《Isabella’s first inquiry.》**
> **《‘Sonora. Why did you take the life of that innocent child?’》**
> **《‘Was your ambition to be a princess so great that you resorted to murder?’》**

Isabella’s eyes widened, her pupils quivering in terror.

> **《Isaac’s first inquiry.》**
> **《‘You buried an entire mining town in a mass grave, yet you wept with joy, claiming it was for the sake of purity. Do you not feel the weight of your hypocrisy?’》**

Isaac’s face drained of color.

> **《Serengeti’s first inquiry.》**
> **《‘Is Hudson not merely a shield for you to hide from the world? Do you not use him as a tool to escape reality? Was Wilhelm not the one you truly desired?’》**

Serengeti was paralyzed with shock.

The questions were devastating. They looked around in a panic—there was only one person who could possibly know such intimate, dark secrets.

Randolph.

He was the Star Awakener. He was the one who claimed to see everything. No one else could have crafted these accusations. All three turned toward Randolph with eyes full of betrayal and horror.

He didn’t react. He stood there, seemingly indifferent to their pain.

‘They would never choose to speak the truth…’

In a room where lies were forbidden, the truth was a weapon. They felt the weight of each other’s gazes, imagining the judgment and the mockery. It was a psychological nightmare designed to break them from the inside out.

—

I watched the entire spectacle unfold from a distance.

The scenes played out before me like flickering projections. The three of them were in separate chambers, isolated. This was a deviation from the actual Room of Truth; the companions they saw were merely illusions woven by the ‘will.’

The ‘will’ was torturing them with their own pasts and framing me as the inquisitor to destroy their trust in me.

> **《‘The will’ offers to end the trial if you choose to retreat.》**

It was almost comical. The master of the dungeon was begging for a forfeit. Because it couldn’t stop me physically, it was resorting to psychological warfare against my subordinates. It wanted to plant a seed of resentment that would never die.

“How pathetic.”

This entity was more malicious than any demon king. The stories said this dungeon was high-tier, but the only thing ‘trash’ about it was the spirit running it.

> **《There are three questions in total. ‘The will’ warns that enduring them will permanently shatter their faith in you.》**

The danger wasn’t just the answers. It was the lasting damage to their minds. Even if we ‘cleared’ it, they might never look at me the same way again. It might have been smarter to leave and return to another dungeon later.

“I understand.”

I gave a short nod.

> **《‘The will’ chuckles and opens a gateway to the exit.》**

A portal back to the beginning appeared. Good. Now I knew for a fact that it was powerless against me directly. And I had learned something even more valuable.

“Demigod’s will. You’re right here, aren’t you?”

A cold smile crossed my lips. I wasn’t in a trial room. I was in a space close enough to its core for it to communicate with me—its private sanctum.

The ‘will’ was within my reach. If my party managed to survive their trials, it would manifest instantly. It was trying to trick me into leaving before that could happen.

“But this is the final floor. This is where the dungeon—and you—cease to exist.”

I fully intended to end its existence.

> **《‘The will’ scoffs at your arrogance.》**
> **《‘The will’ remains certain.》**
> **《They will never confess the truth.》**
> **《And even if they do, the trial will not end.》**