Chapter 270 - Carelessness And Counterattack

# Enhanced Translation

Under the dark sky stood a massive tower, rising heavily.

At the moment day turned to night, a building was suddenly enveloped in black smoke and appeared in an instant.

The headquarters of the Moonlight Cult. The so-called Tower of Moonlight—that's where we were.

Eun-wol, Stardus, and I were flying together toward the top of that place.

We knew the Moonlight Cult leader would be up there.

Actually, I was mixing in teleportation as I flew, but anyway.

Of course, the Moonlight Cult seemed to know we were coming and sent all kinds of interference our way... but Stardus and Eun-wol blocked everything. With the daughter of the Star God on one side and the daughter of the Moon God on the other. Reassuring, very reassuring.

By the way, all of this was being broadcast.

I wasn't looking at the chat in preparation for the upcoming battle... but judging by the chaos, the viewer count was incredibly high. No, it would be fair to say it was the highest viewership ever. It seemed that even some people abroad with working internet were watching. Maybe the broadcast title about going to kill the cult leader who started this disaster drew them in.

Anyway, as we cut through the night air.

We finally arrived at the top of the tower.

"Haah...."

The rooftop of the massive tower.

A flat space without any railings, like a sports field covered in black.

There, I was finally able to see his face for the first time.

"Child... so you've come."

The villain standing at the top of this world, who always competed for first or second place among the most influential villains in the original work.

The leader of the Moonlight Cult, a master of magic, and a fanatical follower of the Moon God.

The Celestial Moon Emperor.

His appearance.

-Tap.

At the far end of the rooftop where we had just landed, surrounded by disciples in white robes. An old man connected to dozens of massive magic circles behind him.

Seeing him in person after only seeing him in pictures made his extraordinary presence even more palpable.

With Stardus and Eun-wol standing behind me.

I smiled slightly and said to him.

"Nice to meet you for the first time, Cult Leader. I'm Egostic. Everyone, this is the Moonlight Cult Leader. The mastermind behind all this chaos and the head of a cult. If you say something like 'the Moon God sucks,' he'll probably try to capture and kill you."

I spoke while looking at the camera midway through. I could feel his agitation.

"You bastard, how dare you speak to the exalted one like that!"

"...Enough."

Of course, the disciples beside him flared up and tried to rush at us with magic, creating the strange scene of the cult leader raising his hand to stop them.

"...You lot."

"It's okay, Stardus."

...I also had to stop Stardus, who was grinding her teeth at the sight of them.

Fortunately, she listened to me and stopped for now.

Wait. This is being broadcast worldwide, but is it okay to show a hero backing down at a villain's word?

...Right. Who would care about that in an emergency? Let's focus on the enemy in front of us.

Thinking that, I whispered to Stardus as she backed away.

"...Please be patient a little longer, Stardus."

Soon, there will be a moment when you need to step forward. When only you can step forward.

Perhaps thanks to my earlier explanation, Stardus backed away.

I turned back to the Moonlight Cult Leader and said:

"So, Cult Leader... no, Celestial Moon Emperor. Are you happy now that you've turned the world into a mess?"

"You... Hah, I see. You must have heard from the traitor beside you. Happy? Child. How could I not be fulfilled after purifying the world according to the Moon God's will?"

The Celestial Moon Emperor smiled distortedly for the first time as he spoke.

And then as the magic circles behind him glowed brighter.

He looked directly at me and proclaimed:

"Let me state clearly once more."

"No matter what you do here, you can never stop these moon gates."

"The dimensional wall has long been breached, and the Moon's creations... what you call monsters. They will continue to cross into this world forever."

"Tell me, Baek Eunwol standing beside you. You know the meaning of my words."

"This calamity, this apocalypse. It cannot be stopped. Until the day you all die."

"That is the truth."

With intense eyes and a twisted smile.

He declared this to me and to the world watching this broadcast.

And I knew too. That his words were true. That we couldn't stop those monsters from crossing into this world.

However.

That doesn't mean there's no way to stop it.

As his words lingered in the cold wind that swept across the black rooftop.

Pretending to know nothing, I asked Eun-wol who had been quietly standing beside me:

"Moon Priestess... Baek Eunwol. Is what the old man says true?"

"...Yes. It's true."

She answered quietly, with her head bowed.

Hearing this, the Moonlight Cult Leader smiled even more distortedly and continued:

"Yes... even the traitor knows. You have no way to survive."

"Just despair, and despair again. Forever... fall into suffering... in the afterlife!"

And as the cult leader was speaking.

Suddenly, as he moved his arm.

Wheeeeee-

"...Wait!"

Just as Stardus shouted something from behind.

He instantly moved his arm and deployed magic circles to launch magical bullets at us.

Bububububububu.

After the black rooftop was filled with smoke from the sudden attack.

When the smoke cleared, what was revealed was:

"...."

Eun-wol quietly gritting her teeth, protecting us with a magic barrier from the front.

"Haa, haa. Are you okay?"

".....Oh, yes."

And Stardus, who had rushed to embrace me from behind and fallen with me, apparently startled.

Suddenly finding myself in Stardus's embrace.

...Well, Eun-wol was already going to block it with magic, but it seemed Stardus didn't know that and rushed to protect me out of surprise. Makes me feel a bit sorry...

Anyway, as if he knew we would block that much, the cult leader looked down at us indifferently.

And spoke mockingly to Eun-wol standing at the front:

"Yes... yes. Baek Eunwol. Baek Eunwol who was once the priestess of our Moonlight Cult. Even in the arms of betrayal, your magic skills haven't rusted. But it's all for nothing."

"....Celestial Moon Emperor."

Ignoring the cult leader's words completely with her head bowed.

For the first time, Eun-wol addressed him by name with a slightly trembling voice:

"Huh... Being with that guy has made you unable to recognize even your own father?"

As the Celestial Moon Emperor spoke as if in disbelief.

Eun-wol, with her small hands tightly clenched and her black hair flowing behind her.

Finally raised her head and met the cult leader's gaze with her red eyes.

No longer trembling, she looked him in the eye and said:

"You are not my father. You... you... piece of garbage!"

She shouted with her eyes tightly closed at the end.

...Our Eun-wol has grown so much. Finally overcoming her trauma and even cursing at the source of that trauma.

As I lay there still embraced by Stardus and sniffling, the Moonlight Cult Leader's expression was quite a sight to behold.

Anyway, more importantly.

'He really is underestimating us.'

I thought as I watched from behind.

Just look at this. Even though we're so defenseless, rather than starting the battle right away, he's entertaining all our talk.

Maybe he's trying to keep us tied up, but even considering that, he's too unguarded.

Absolute confidence that we can't hurt him. And confidence that we can never stop this calamity.

...Right.

And now, it's time to shatter that confidence.

To the one who dismissed Eun-wol, a creation of the Moon God, just because she couldn't handle magic well.

It's time to show him what true magic is.

As I was thinking this.

Eun-wol spread her hands.

Glaring at him, she declared:

"You... end here!"

And simultaneously, Eun-wol moved her hands.

Along with that. Dozens, hundreds of magic circles instantly appeared behind her.

Up to that point, the cult leader just smirked.

He would think that wouldn't even scratch him.

However.

"....Wait, what?"

When the numerous magic circles floating behind him suddenly began to flash red and shake.

For the first time, he showed signs of panic.

And then.

Buooooooom.

As almost all the magic circles behind him shattered.

As the numerous magic circles behind Eun-wol glowed blue.

"Haah-!"

She crossed her hands, shaking the Cult Leader's magic circles. Stealing their power. After avoiding the cult leader's hasty attack, she struck the ground.

Kwaaaaaaang-

For a moment, the sky.

Turned blue, deeply blue.

And.

Doong-.

Some of the gates floating in the air suddenly disappeared.

Contrary to his claim that gates could never be eliminated.

"....What! Cough."

The Moonlight Cult Leader, surprised by this sight, looked up and coughed blood due to the overload from Eun-wol's magic circle hacking.

And Eun-wol, who had used up all her strength for this feat, collapsed backward.

I, who had somehow moved behind her, supported her.

And smiled at the cult leader, saying:

"It's simple."

"We reversed the gates or whatever you created."

There was no need for a long explanation.

For the viewers watching this, I just briefly summarized what Eun-wol had done against these mindlessly attacking enemies.

The conclusion is that now many of the gates around the city have disappeared, and they will only appear in places where there are no people.

We didn't completely block the gates.

But at least, we've stopped the immediate disaster.

Additionally.

"You bastards..."

Because the Cult Leader's body was connected to the gates through magic, he was also damaged.

"Master...!"

The disciples behind him were in chaos.

In the end, his arrogance brought about his downfall. No, he should have attacked us as soon as he saw us, why did he give us time? Of course, we had plans for that case too...

Well. It's only fair that villains who are overpowered show some human weakness like this.

Even in this situation, the cult leader was smiling with blood at the corners of his mouth.

"...Haha. Kuhahaha. With just this, did you think you could stop me? Just this much! I can block it again in a few days..."

After muttering like a madman.

He looked at us and laughed even more, then suddenly formed a magic circle and said:

"...Right. To make me use this power already, I'll give you that much credit."

"But you are now finished."

"Along with this land!"

As he shouted and completed all his magic circles.

Gugugugugugugu-

The earth shook.

His body was enveloped in black slime and sank into shadows, then the magic circle glowed and disappeared.

The disciples who had their energy drained for his final magic all collapsed like Eun-wol.

In an instant, on the rooftop.

Only I and Stardus remained.

Rururururururu-

The sky rumbled, and purple lightning struck above the clouds. Clearly an ominous situation.

Looking up at the sky, Stardus clenched her fist.

"...Egostic. Is this the final stage you told me about?"

"Yes. That's right, Stardus. If we overcome this crisis, we can finally end this calamity."

She seemed to instinctively feel the end approaching.

As thunder roared and the cold wind blew even stronger.

I said to Stardus:

"Stardus. I'm counting on you. Now show us your power."

The reason I've been training Stardus so intensely.

It was all for this moment today.

"...Yeah. Got it."

As my cape fluttered in the wind and I met her blue eyes with golden hair blowing to the side.

KWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

With the loudest sound I'd ever heard, like the sky was collapsing.

Large enough to block the horizon.

Reaching from the ground to the edge of the clouds.

Casting a shadow over the entire city.

Many times larger than the tall tower we were standing on, both sideways and upwards.

A massive.

Truly enormous, whirlpool-like gate.

GUOOOOOOOOO-

In front of the tower, overshadowing us all.

It revealed itself with an overwhelming size.

Yes.

Finally, it was the last phase of the calamity.