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Seong Jihan recalled the man that Pythia had shown him last time upon hearing the name.
A man with brown curly hair, long beard, and tanned skin.
When he asked if the man was Middle Eastern, she immediately confirmed it.
“So, that Middle Easterner was Gilgamesh?”
“Yes. Do you know about Gilgamesh?”
“I’ve heard of the Epic of Gilgamesh. A character who struggled to escape death but eventually died nonetheless.”
“That’s right. Despite his strenuous efforts, he eats the Herb of Immortality, but a snake steals it away. The story conveys that humans cannot reject death, but…”
“The very same person achieved immortality like Dongbang Sak, becoming a disciple of the Martial God in pursuit of longevity.”
Pythia shook her head at Seong Jihan’s guess.
“No. It’s not because of the lifespan that he became the disciple of the Martial God.”
“Really?”
“Yes. He did eat the Herb of Immortality. I heard it from him directly.”
“The herb from the story? Then why did he become the disciple of the Martial God?”
“I don’t know. He didn’t talk about that.”
Certainly, if he himself is silent, and the Martial God does not speak, there would be no other way to learn the truth.
Seong Jihan put aside his curiosity and asked Pythia,
“But why does he want his authority to be completed first?”
“…He always sleeps when the Martial god is awake. Conversely, when the Martial god is absent, he is active.”
“Gilgamesh?”
“Yes. I’ve… never seen the Martial God and Gilgamesh together.”
And with that, Pythia carefully added more to her statement.
“What I have mistaken for my power… the summoning of hell, the embodiment of the apocalypse. These were taught by the Martial God and fleshed out with the advice of Gilgamesh.”
“Then…”
“I am… suspecting a connection between Gilgamesh and the Martial God. Perhaps, wondering if they could be the same person…”
They don’t act together.
And like the Martial God, gave advice different from his original powers.
Based on just these two facts, one forming a theory that the Martial God and Gilgamesh are the same person seems far-fetched.
“Only insiders would know the details, but isn’t the evidence too scant to make such a claim?”
“……You’re right about that. Nevertheless, a prophet’s intuition has been whispering oddities to me ever since you used the Ice Heaven Sword Rain.”
“Hmm. On top of that, when I was naming the martial art ‘Fundamental Divine Arts’, you predicted that Gilgamesh and the Martial God were fighting.”
When revealing the name of the Nameless Divine Art.
[Martial God… I knew I couldn’t defeat you. The Fundamental Divine Arts, based on the information of mankind… Even I, being human, cannot surpass this.]
Pythia had said this through prophecy.
So, the prediction that she had utterly turned over didn’t seem completely off the mark.
Annoyed by her own prophecy, Pythia smiled bitterly.
“That’s right. That’s how I predicted it. But… something feels suspicious.”
“The evidence is scant, yet you have a hunch?”
“……Yes. Even if they are not the same person, there’s certainly some special connection.”
“Hmm… But what benefit do I have if I finish the fifth technique first?”
“Benefit…… you say?”
Caught by Seong Jihan’s words, Pythia blinked.
“Yes. For me, it seems right to complete the third technique next, in chronological order. The fifth feels far and I barely have a grasp on it.”
“That’s……”
“Regardless of whether the Martial God and Gilgamesh are indeed the same person, Figuring this out needs to be to my benefit. If there’s no guarantee, then it’s better to complete the martial arts in order.”
Pythia had been serious about whether the Martial God and Gilgamesh were the same person.
But from Seong Jihan’s point of view, the sentiment was more like ‘So what?’.
“No… but that is important…!”
“Yes, for you, it might be. However, completing my martial arts is more important than their relationship.”
“……Understood. I will share all the information I’ve gathered.”
“Information, will knowing it make it possible to stand against the Martial God?”
“That’s uncertain…….”
“If that’s the case, I need more in return.”
Seong Jihan calmly extended his hand.
Curious? Offer more payment.
An incredulous Pythia looked at him, then sighed deeply.
“Ha… after all the valuable information about Gilgamesh I gave you… that’s too much.”
“Then consider telling me the third technique as well.”
“That’s enough. I won’t share that with you. And as for the price… All right. Your sister, the Witch of The Void. Let me share her burden.”
“Her burden? What do you mean?”
“The Witch of the void, as time passes, gets buried in nothingness. Especially after managing the apocalypse, maintaining even self consciousness becomes difficult.”
“……Is that so?”
“Yes. At this rate, your sister won’t live long. Although her body might remain, her soul and consciousness will disappear.”
Seong Jihan frowned.
This suggested a time limit for his sister’s life.
He remembered the locks binding Seong Jiah.
An aggressive void power held in five locks.
With such things wrapped around her, it wouldn’t be strange if she got swallowed up anytime.
“This is… a proposal I can’t refuse.”
“Good. Then, when you awaken the fifth technique, I’ll take on the Witch’s burden.”
“How about all of my sister’s burden?”
“Woah, too much. Asking to take it all, you’re too much! We’ll split the burden. If I take more than half, I won’t last either.”
“Hmm… Aren’t you supposed to have lived since the Greek era? That’s about 2000 years, right?”
“What, what?! Saying I lived long enough, so it’s okay if I die now? Is that a way of saying old people should depart?”
Pythia seemed pricked by Seong Jihan’s words and her voice rose sharply.
“No, It’s just that you’ve lived long. I never mentioned anything about old people?”
“Ugh. That’s the nuance you’re giving off…!”
Pythia glared at Seong Jihan sternly and then suddenly, with a serious expression, looked around as if sensing something.
“….Ah”
* * *
“This is… I’ve been here for too long. I have to disperse for today.”
“Got it. Are you going to participate in the competition? As a representative of Japan?”
“Japan? Ah, my avatar, you mean? No, there’s no need for me to fight you. Originally, I wanted to teach you a lesson too, but…”
With a wicked smile, Pythia continued.
“You’ll receive your lesson from Dongbang Sak. ”
“Dongbang Sak. He’s here too?”
“Yes. In Taiwan. He was sorry you weren’t there last time… don’t avoid the next match.”
Seong Jihan recalled the Taiwanese elderly player who had swept the first set against the Korean team in the previous match.
Did he not appear from the second game because of exhaustion?
At the time, it was suspicious that players out of nowhere showed up, turned out it was Dongbang Sak.
“Avoid him? It’s just that I couldn’t play due to my training. I will have to prevail against him too.”
“Ha ha ha! Win? Against Dongbang Sak?”
As if Pythia heard something absurd, dismissing the idea with a wave of her hand.
“He is considered the second closest person to the Martial God, excluding the wandering Martial God. It’s difficult to stand even one minute before his sword.”
“Hmm. Is that so?”
“Want to bet? If you can withstand him for one minute, I’ll give you one prophecy for free. But if you lose, you tell me all your martial art names.”
One minute?
Regardless of Dongbang Sak’s strength, that seemed rather undervalued.
Seong Jihan nodded.
“Sure. I accept the bet.”
“Good! Now, I’ll leave first.”
Whoosh!
As soon as Pythia vanished, the ice chairs and table disappeared too.
And the flames began to fill the place quickly.
With Pythia’s cold gone, the fiery hell returned as before.
“Hmm…”
However, the flames suddenly started to scorch Seong Jihan’s skin unlike before.
Wondering why it was suddenly causing damage, Seong Jihan’s thought process was interrupted.
[Oh, by the way, I felt really uncomfortable being treated like a grandmother. So, come out with all your might in the sanctuary! By the way, I spread the sanctuary earlier, and half of your national team was wiped out~.]
Pythia’s voice faded into his ears.
“Such pettiness at this age.”
[What. What!? Uh, M-Master… I-I’ll go now…]
Interrupted by an outburst and then called by the Martial God, Pythia’s voice fades away.
Seong Jihan, surrounded by the fiery hell, waved his sword casually.
Whoosh!
A single current of sword wind caused the fire to die down momentarily, only for it to rage on fiercely again.
Using various martial arts, Seong Jihan tried to extinguish the flames, but they seemed to die down only to burst forth anew.
‘This isn’t just something brute force will fix…’
Then what about a different approach?
Seong Jihan gazed into the flames and tossed his Eclipse sword high into the sky.
Fundamental Divine Arts: Annihilation God’s Secret, Ice Heaven Sword Rain
Ddddddrip!
The sky instantly froze over.
But instead of the life source being traced by the swords as before,
‘Within Ice Heaven, the water is writhing.’
Having learned the essence of Ice Heaven Sword Rain while conversing with Pythia earlier,
Seong Jihan could now apply it more flexibly than before.
‘I’ll lower the tracking standards of the Sword Rain.’
Rather than chasing only the life source, it’s better to search for the non-extinguishing core of this sanctuary.
So, he adjusted his tracking to a lower level.
Ssssshh…
Instead of a massive sword of water, it began to rain down in sword-shaped droplets.
‘Did I lower the criteria too much?’
The Sword Rain, indiscriminate and falling everywhere, wasn’t fixing on to any one thing,
‘But, there seems to be a converging point here…’
Right before Seong Jihan’s eyes, where the ice table had stood moments before, the rain increasingly focused.
Tddddrrrrrup…!
The downpour, shaped like swords, quenching the fire, cooling the earth.
As the strikes persisted,
[Ahhh….!]
A giant face burst forth from the ground.
Composed of fire, it carried androgynous beauty, making it hard to tell if it was male or female.
Where eyes should have been, there was nothing, hauntingly empty.
‘This is the origin of fire power.’
This sanctuary was called by the name of Apollo, could this face possibly be Apollo himself?
As Seong Jihan harbored that thought,
[Ah… Ahh…]
The face, being relentlessly assaulted by the Sword Rain, slowly extinguished.
And with it,
The sanctuary vanished from the site, revealing the original Southgate map from game one.
50 : 100.
The disadvantage to the Korean team was significant.
‘Need to get to them quickly.’
Once back on the map fully, Seong Jihan drew out both weapons.
Pythia didn’t specifically hinder him, so sweeping away the enemies should be simple.
“Uh…”
“Uncle! You’re here?”
As soon as Seong Jihan returned to the game, Yoon Seah greeted him with a bright smile from behind.
It was a 50:100 game, so Seong Jihan was worried if she might have died in her debut, but it seemed to have worked out somehow.
“You’re alive? Not too late, right?”
Despite seeing her energetic appearance, Seong Jihan couldn’t help but worry.
“No. You’re late.”
“Late?”
“Yes. Look behind you.”
Seong Jihan turned to look.
There were Japanese players collapsed all around. Players who couldn’t even approach and were shot through.
Even the remaining survivors were all looking at Yoon Seah with eyes full of admiration.
“This is…”
“The 1st round MVP… I’ll take it, Uncle.”
Ping!
Yoon Seah flicked her bowstring once more and smiled brightly.
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