Tomb Raider King : End Line - Chapter 06

========== CHAPTER 6. COCKY BASTARD (1) ==========

Ju-heon was dumbfounded.

Meeting, and it’s Easy, Medium, Hard?

‘What kind of bastard is this?’

But the added explanation was even more ridiculous.

Ju-heon stared at the window for a long time.

Easy is Contract.

Medium is Memory.

Hard is Death.

“All three are bullshit.”

But a countdown started.

[If you do not choose, Easy mode will be automatically selected.]

[10, 9, 8….]

Ju-heon’s eyebrow twitched.

For Ju-heon, who values contracts, an unwanted contract is nonsense. The Medium difficulty, Memory, is also ambiguous.

If it’s a precious memory, it would obviously be about Irene, his colleagues, or his child, and he doesn’t want to lose even a speck of those.

So, he had only one choice.

“The most dangerous one, but from my perspective, the most profitable deal.”

[You have selected Hard mode.]

[Danger warning. Among all past Majesties, 0 individuals have cleared this mode. 0% probability.]

[To be honest, all Majesties who selected Easy mode survived. Even if they became my slaves.]

[Hard mode is the only path to reach the truth, but the end of that path is, without exception, horrific ruin.]

[Even so, will you choose the dangerous Hard mode for the answer of your daughter’s whereabouts?]

Ju-heon slammed his feet onto the desk as if telling it to get lost.

“0%? Don’t give me that bullshit. If I pass, it’s 100% for me. You fucker.”

[……]

“So bring it on, that so-called Hard mode.”

The start of Hard mode was trivial.

The first anomaly detected was that artifacts they had never owned appeared before all of humanity.

“…It looks like a stone, what is this? I never received one.”

“It was in my pocket.”

“Hey! They say if you have this, you hit the jackpot!”

“Isn’t this an artifact that steals other people’s luck?”

“Damn it, the first person to use it becomes rich!”

“The later you are, the more of a sudden pauper you become!”

As people went crazy, a global announcement was issued.

[This is an unidentifiable artifact. As it has not been safely verified, usage is prohibited.]

However, people didn’t listen. Just like the cryptocurrency craze, people who became overnight millionaires and people who lost their money appeared in droves.

That wasn’t all.

“News articles about people dying in the future have appeared!”

“From the news of the President’s death… ‘Majesty Seo Ju-heon dies on September 18th’?!”

Meanwhile, Ju-heon was tapping his face, looking pissed off. Scattering unidentified artifacts in someone else’s world, killing people at will.

He had already realized it.

“So this is that Hard mode thing.”

Panic is good for ruining the world.

And, if they come to meet him via this route, all the Majesties died?

‘Just because of something like this?’

And just then, the whole world turned off simultaneously.

Click.

Click-clack!

Millions of lights went out like dominoes, and vehicles driving on the streets stopped all at once. Screams poured out from elevators in high-rise buildings, and with hospital ventilators cut off, patients teetered on the line between life and death.

“Communication is cut off!”

Government agencies of all countries collapsed simultaneously, and military base security systems were disengaged, opening the armories.

“Why on earth!”

But soon, they found out the reason.

“What? Zeus attacked power plants all over the world?”

Ju-heon raised his eyebrows at the contact from the power plant.

“That bastard, I sealed him in the power plant in his artifact state, so he shouldn’t even be able to come out.”

“There’s no way those artifacts could have autonomous action….”

“…Right. ‘There wasn’t.'”

Zeus.

An ancient being once called the ‘Heavenly Hegemon’.

But now, a being being used by Ju-heon as the number one raw material for global power supply and power plants.

Since a small plot of land wouldn’t suffice to exploit a god of that caliber, he had imprisoned Zeus 1400m underground in the Colorado Plateau and built a power plant.

A.k.a., Core V – Zeus.

In short, a dumping ground for gods and a high-level artifact containment facility.

The problem was that it was fine because he had shoved Zeus in there while sealed.

It would be troublesome if the seal broke and he returned to being a god.

That was why, when they entered the power plant, they couldn’t help but doubt their own eyes.

Crackle!

The operating console melted, and lightning swirled.

[…How dare… I be treated like this….]

The electricity surrounding his entire body growled, and his two eyes burned like lightning as he shouted.

[Majesty! Where are you!]

“Argh! The seal is broken! Run away!”

“It’s already too la… Ack!”

With the sound of thunder, a massive bolt of lightning swirled and pierced the ceiling.

However.

“That’s far enough.”

At the cold voice, Zeus stiffened like a conditioned reflex.

“You look like you’re in good shape even without your balls, Zeus.”

Zeus. Was he the main god artifact that Ju-heon obtained by scamming? It started with negotiating to take him out while he was sealed.

Yes, back then, surely….

“So, what are you going to do, Zeus? Are you going to stay there? Or will you come out and become my slave?”

[Fine. I will accept that pathetic offer.]

“The offer is that if I release you, you, Zeus, become my slave. If you disobey, your sons won’t be safe either.”

[Fine. I’ll bet all my sons.]

They promised to make a contract in exchange for letting Zeus out, but,

[A promise? What meaning would a promise made with a mere human have?]

“What?”

[I’ll go enjoy some freedom, thanks for letting me out! Hahaha!]

“I clearly told you. If you disobey, your sons won’t be safe.”

[My sons aren’t the type to die easily to some human. Well, I don’t care if they die.]

“Well. You don’t just have that son, do you?”

[?]

“Wouldn’t it be a bit dangerous for a main god to lose even that son?”

[?!]

“Shall we try it? If I cut that off like I did to your grandfather or father, I wonder if a second Goddess of Beauty will be born.”

[?!!]

Trying to break the promise, eventually….

An artifact that ended up leaving behind an amazing artifact and was caught by Ju-heon.

Sure enough, Ju-heon, meeting Zeus again, smiled annoyingly.

“I kindly cut your balls off that body. Was that not enough?”

The team members were horrified by Ju-heon’s attitude.

“That guy’s contract with the Captain is broken right now! It’s dangerous!”

However, Ju-heon looked between Zeus’s crotch and snorted in derision.

“Yeah, you were happy to be free? I don’t even know if you can function as a man.”

[Shut up!!]

“Shut up or whatever, how did you release your artifact form and come out on your own?”

[You must have released it!]

Fuck. I’m like this because I didn’t release it.

‘Could that insolent bastard who mentioned Hard mode have broken his seal?’

Breaking the seal of a god-tier artifact, they aren’t an ordinary ability user.

And since a main god-tier artifact has been released, honestly, since the opponent is nature itself, he could die.

No, he will die.

Sure enough, Zeus soon transformed into lightning. The trajectory had enough power to blow away an entire temple.

However, Ju-heon grabbed it with his hand and activated his Dominance.

Boom!

The lightning spear was shattered before it could even hit the ground. Ju-heon smirked.

“You, Zeus. You were lightning back in the day. Now, you’re just my electricity meter.”

Even while saying that, Ju-heon narrowed his brow.

‘Strange, my Dominance isn’t working.’

He had definitely activated his Dominance strongly with the intention of turning him back into a tool state.

‘What is it. Why isn’t it working. Did he revert to before he was subdued?’

Eventually, as Ju-heon tried to bring out his next move, Zeus shouted as if disgusted.

[Stop playing games, take out Odin’s Gungnir or something! Now that I’ve regained my power, Gungnir or whatever-. I’ll show you which side is superior!]

“Huh? Why would I do something that benefits you, you bastard.”

What?

At Ju-heon’s gesture, the ground heaved, and a white chair shot up. The chair flew like lightning and forcibly pushed Zeus.

[W-what? What is this!]

In an instant, pure white ribbons extended from the chair. The ribbons forced Zeus to sit on the chair, bound his limbs, and restrained his entire body.

[…This is nonsense… My power is sealed…?!]

“I know you’re excited about being free, but you should have read the situation before acting up, you bastard.”

At that moment, the name of the artifact, not a window, appeared before Ju-heon’s eyes.

[Ugh… Argh?! This is… Hera’s?!]

“That’s right. It’s a household reformation tool made by the Goddess of Marriage.”

Yes, this is Hera’s artifact, the Throne of Judgment where divine covenants are materialized.

“It has a powerful function that forces even verbal oaths to be fulfilled. Even a swindler with a three-inch tongue cannot resist this.”

Yoo Jae-ha clicked his tongue from behind.

“To think it’s for punishing swindlers… I see why the Captain shoved it in the warehouse….”

Yoo Jae-ha was hit by the flying artifact.

“Especially in cases of betrayal related to ‘marriage’, ‘bondage’, and ‘family’, the binding efficiency is enhanced by 1000%.”

[How dare…! To me…!]

“You dared to betray that goddess, didn’t you?”

Crunch!

Once again, ribbon-like restraints shot out from the pure white chair, sealing Zeus’s mouth and branding the marriage vow onto his chest.

[Ugh, with something like this!]

Ju-heon looked down at Zeus, who was wriggling while tied to the chair.

“This isn’t the end.”

[What?]

“Now, it’s time for your first wife to enter.”

[?!]

Kuaaaaang!

Something struck his jaw.

It was none other than a gauntlet!

“Who did you swallow, Zeus?”

Zeus’s pupils trembled at the gauntlet Ju-heon had brought out.

(To be continued in the next episode)