NOVEL NEXT chapter 353 - Long War
1.
Lee Hae-chan has a connection to Doctor Johan II.
He only realized this after recognizing the nickname of the creator of the Jumbo Giant Elephant meta, which suddenly became popular in Gladiator Training.
As usual, Ha Eung Eung was leisurely floating in the sky, riding clouds.
Swoosh!
A massive water cannon shot from the ground, drenching her cloud and causing it to collapse.
“……”
An elephant, unusually large and with a smile on its face, kept spraying water.
The result? Needless to say, it was destroyed like a dog by the enraged Ha Eung Eung.
While searching through the wreckage, Ha Eung Eung found a marking left by the creator.
[2nd Generation Jumbo Giant Elephant Beast No. 87]
[Creator - Doctor Johan II]
The creator of Mark 2.
The arrogant Awakener who had attempted to blackmail her using her life.
He had been active in Gladiator Training, the very game that had made Ha Eung Eung struggle at first.
[Doctor Johan II is my enemy in reality as well. You, a streamer, have been supported by such an Awakener.]
“Damn, this is bad.”
Lee Hae-chan unknowingly voiced his thoughts.
Sometimes, when people are truly surprised, their real feelings come out without thinking.
“Look, just to be clear, I really didn’t know about this!”
[I know. That's why we're having this peaceful conversation right now.]
“All I need to do is tell you everything I know about Doctor Johan II, right?”
Of course.
As long as Lee Hae-chan confessed freely, there was no intention to harm him.
Not knowing that Ha Eung Eung had already decided to torture him internally, Lee Hae-chan felt relieved.
After all, how could he possibly predict that the graceful woman sitting kneeling before him, resembling the legendary beauty of Gyeonggukjisaek, had already made up her mind to torture him in her heart?
“That man was skilled at making all sorts of things. He wanted to test the possibilities of machines, so he created Armored units and gradually produced more advanced weapons.”
[Did you keep in touch with him even ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ during our battles?]
“Strangely enough, he contacted me first. He wasn’t the type of person to contact anyone unless it was time for an upgrade, so it was unusual.”
[What did you discuss?]
“It wasn’t much. He said he’d help me defeat the Silent Swordsman. That’s all. The mass production of Armored units in a short period was his work too.”
Lee Hae-chan muttered "Ah," as if something dawned on him.
“Armored Taijong. You know it, right? The one you broke. He’s the one who created that machine too, using Dragon Core to upgrade it.”
[In essence, the Great Han Empire was practically built by Doctor Johan II.]
“That’s about right. On the surface, I was the king, but he was the one pulling the strings. It wasn’t as much about losing my kingdom as it was about shaking off the burden.”
Honestly, if he had poured all his wealth into developing technology from scratch to build a kingdom, would he feel this detached?
Coming back from a protest he had witnessed, he would’ve been caught up in fanfare and confusion, banging drums and singing, foaming at the mouth, likely going crazy.
Ha Eung Eung came to a conclusion: Lee Hae-chan was innocent.
He was just an accomplice to Doctor Johan II’s experiments without even realizing it.
‘In the end, Lee Hae-chan gained something from all this.’
Now that she thought about it, when she had seen him before, he was unusually strong for an average person.
He had pure mana, far more than even Lee Da-hye.
No wonder Da-hye always lost to him and became known as the eternal second in swordsmanship competitions.
From a martial artist’s perspective, the secret to victory was as clear as day.
[It looks like he wants to repeat what he did in Gladiator Training in real life.]
“...Against Haenampa? Has he been playing this game for so long that he’s gone crazy?”
She wasn’t sure why the Mecha Elephant was so arrogant, but Doctor Johan II was definitely preparing something serious this time.
At least, unlike the previous encounter, he wouldn’t just rush in expecting to be easily repelled.
[Thank you for coming.]
“You’ve told me all these interesting things, and now you want me to just leave?”
Ha Eung Eung tilted her head.
[Do you want to go kill together?]
“Why are you so casually plotting murder? There are plenty of ways I can help without taking it that far.”
[Such as?]
“I could do something that would piss off Doctor Johan II, and attract his attention.”
[Do you know his weakness?]
For the first time, Lee Hae-chan felt like he could help.
He grew more confident.
“Of course. But in return, how about we do a joint stream later?”
[Sure.]
“Great! It's a promise then?”
[Let me know quickly.]
“His weakness is...”
Lee Hae-chan’s knowledge of Doctor Johan II’s weakness was quite shocking.
“…An animal lover!”
“!”
“Doctor Johan II has a pathological hatred of animal lovers! When they appear, his rage takes over, and he loses his mind.”
[Why? Did an animal lover kidnap his pet when he was a child?]
“I don’t know about that. Anyway, the main reason he helped me destroy the Pony Kingdom, known as the Thousand-Year Kingdom, was his fury against animal lovers.”
Ha Eung Eung had wanted to uncover his weakness, but she didn’t expect this.
‘...How should I use this information?’
Ha Eung Eung, deep in thought, suddenly remembered certain animals.
Specifically, the animal costumes with zippers on their backs that she had seen and even touched before.
A week had passed since the animal-costumed figures and Lee Hae-chan were planning something.
It was the day that Doctor Johan II had warned her to turn on the broadcast.
“Sister Ha Eung Eung. I’ve fixed everything I could. But don’t push yourself.”
Thanks to Eve’s healing, Ha Eung Eung had completely recovered from the aftereffects of death.
For the remaining week, Ha Eung Eung focused on getting herself in top condition.
‘This broadcast will benefit me the longer it drags on.’
Doctor Johan II wanted additional battle data.
For that, as long as she was broadcasting, Mark 2’s safety and memory would likely remain intact.
She had to draw his attention for as long as possible, even if it was just for one more minute.
‘This connection will be a showdown with Doctor Johan II.’
How long could she hold out?
How far would he go to gather information?
If Doctor Johan II didn’t want the data, dragging the broadcast out wouldn’t matter.
But if she risked too much, the damage from Ban-Yo-Gok could become catastrophic.
Doubts were pointless.
‘No way I can’t.’
If she set her mind to it, she would make it happen.
[▶Executing Ban-Yo-Gok.]
It was the most important broadcast yet.
The match was on, with Mark 2’s life and memory on the line.
[Player Mode]
In battle, she had won, but lost her right arm in the process, becoming a wounded Silent Swordsman.
Despite the loss, her momentum didn’t fade—it grew stronger, even frighteningly so.
-Can you really come back this fast?
-Any aftereffects from the death?
-You look like you were itching to massacre, couldn’t hold back.
-Agreed.
-If not for this, I wouldn’t believe it was the same person from half a year ago.
One’s emotions transmit without words.
Even being in the same space, unpleasant feelings can spread like a contagion, while joy can fill the air just from seeing a face.
But the viewers watching the stream had never felt the terrifying chill of fear before.
-??
-?
-Why are my teeth chattering?
-Why do I feel so old?
-The Silent Swordsman’s teeth are fine?
It wasn’t the streamer’s movements linked to their emotions.
It was death.
Fear.
A predator was standing right before them, causing every inch of their bodies to freeze in terror.
The Silent Swordsman now resembled the infamous legend of
“I have sinned!”
The Silent Swordsman’s massive right arm, distorted, was propped against the ground, and the person bowed their head before her.
“My insufficiency has led to irreversible harm to my lord. I cannot repay this sin with my life.”
Rather than opening the path for her master, the mighty right arm had instead trapped her.
Such disgrace was unbearable for one with such overwhelming strength.
“Please, take my head…”
She couldn’t finish her sentence.
It wasn’t a matter of willpower.
It was a matter of capability.
Swoosh!
A wave of murderous intent surpassed the speed of a Kamaitachi’s wind, crashing down upon the entire army and crushing them.
What was the rescue for?
What was the sacrifice for?
Everything was done for the future, for their value, and to willingly sacrifice an arm for it.
Yet the words and actions that carelessly discarded that will turned Silent Swordsman’s mind from profound cultivation to raw, unrestrained bloodlust.
-This is a real human being?
Who could believe this was a person?
Both the viewers and the demons thought the same.