The creature must be a suitable successor to someone.
"What's a Dimension Slash?"
It wasn't just that which was puzzling.
Dimension Slash?
Could it really be cutting through dimensions?
But he shook his head.
Many skill names were grandiose.
Though it was rare to have such a grand name, Dimension Slash...
"Dimension Slash."
Seeing is believing.
Kyaa!
As soon as he finished speaking, the creature swung its scythe.
Then,
Snap!
...the Warp created by 'Will' was cut.
Kyaa kyaa!
Once it tasted the thrill of cutting, the creature began swinging its scythe wildly.
Rumble! Rumble!
[There is no Dungeon Master maintaining the connection.]
[All 'Dimensional Connections' supporting the dungeon have been severed.]
[The dungeon is beginning to collapse.]
The dungeon itself was being buried.
From the end, it was being compressed and devoured by the black space.
It was the Abyss.
Serengeti opened his mouth in a bewildered expression.
"Can't we get out because the Warp was cut?"
"Hmm, I'll have to use the Teleport Book."
He never imagined that Dimension Slash would be a skill that could sever Warp connections.
To think it could even make the dungeon disappear.
Though being stunned by the unprecedented skill was understandable, he couldn't just stand there and be devoured by the Abyss.
Reluctantly, he stopped the spirit and opened the Teleport Book.
Whoosh!
When he opened the Teleport Book and created a Warp, a black flame enveloping the creature's body turned blue.
A sudden change.
Does this creature have something to do with Warps?
"This shouldn't be cut."
Kyaa.
The creature nodded.
*
The Shadows were waiting at the entrance of the dungeon.
A Demigod characteristic dungeon.
If the enemy came out of the dungeon, they planned to attack immediately.
They thought the sudden attack would catch him off guard.
Just then,
Rumble!
'The dungeon is collapsing.'
'Suddenly?'
A dungeon doesn't collapse just because it's cleared.
Especially a characteristic dungeon like this, which is supposed to continue receiving challengers.
Yet, the dungeon was collapsing.
Not just crumbling, but being devoured from the bottom up by the 'Abyss.'
'It's the Abyss!'
'We need to retreat. The boundary is being eroded.'
The Abyss was advancing.
It was like a city collapse phenomenon.
When all the Warps connecting a city break down, the Abyss invades and destroys the city.
The Shadows made a decision.
If the Abyss had started, the entire area, including the dungeon, would be swallowed.
But when they reached the Warp, they were stunned.
"The Warp isn't working!"
"What about the other Warps?!"
"The same!"
"Why did it suddenly stop working...!"
All the Warps were broken.
But why suddenly?
They were working fine just a moment ago.
"Teleport Book! Did you bring a Teleport Book?"
"T-Teleport Book isn't working either."
"What the hell!"
The leader of the Shadows bit his lip.
For the Teleport Book not to work was unprecedented.
If the Warps break down and the area is submerged by the Abyss, there's only one way to survive.
'Kill the ruler of the Abyss.'
To leave, they must kill the Abyss ruler that has devoured the area.
However, Abyss rulers are notoriously strong.
'If it's a relatively weak Abyss ruler, we might survive.'
The Shadows are not weak.
A relatively weak Abyss ruler could be hunted with some sacrifices.
Then, a message appeared before them.
<>
<>
<>
The Shadows' eyes began to tremble wildly.
Of all the Abyss rulers, it had to be the notorious God's Flesh Hybrid!
'Shit...!!!'
Tap, tap.
The Master sat in his chair, tapping his fingers on the desk, frowning.
No contact from the Shadows.
A day had passed with no news.
Silence usually meant something had happened.
"Did they take care of the Shadows?"
Unlikely.
Even if Randolph continued to achieve unusually high accomplishments, there were limits.
At the point of clearing Main Quest 6, he would be at most level 8.
Even with the upgraded reward list from the thrones, the best treasure he could obtain would be of the Ancient level.
'Could it be more?'
The maximum he estimated was that level.
This was already a calculation that exceeded common sense.
The Master was only level 7 when he cleared Main Quest 6.
This was the speed achieved with so-called 'cheating' and all kinds of treasures.
If Gracia wanted to level up for a specific quest, it would take a lot of time.
But Randolph had only been a player for three months.
Frankly, reaching level 8 in three months was a miracle.
Moreover, if he had only leveled up, his stats should be low. It would take too much time to max out his stats while leveling up.
Therefore, it was impossible.
"There must be a collaborator. A very powerful one..."
He changed his thinking.
If Phantom had a collaborator.
If a powerful enough entity helped Phantom to eliminate the Shadows, it was possible.
The Master assumed at least a 2-star Transcender was helping him.
2-star Transcenders were extremely rare among players.
But the Master knew all the 2-star Transcenders.
The remaining ones were Panzenia's NPCs.
'They are said to be in the Empire and the Yan Kingdom. I've never seen them, though.'
Both places were very difficult for players to access.
They were just rumors, and no one had seen them.
Could they be helping Phantom?
It was hard to imagine.
Perhaps the Shadows were just struggling and still alive.
"Master! All the Shadows were found dead...!"
"..."
The Master closed his mouth as the news came in.
Confirmation of death. Even the slightest possibility was gone.
They sent someone to the branch where the Shadows gathered to confirm. If they died during the attack on Randolph, their real bodies would also be dead.
But they were dead.
All of them.
The annihilation of the Shadows. Years of effort went to waste.
Instantly, 20% of the real-world forces evaporated.
If this became known, other factions would seize the opportunity.
"Damn it!"
Bang!
The Master slammed the desk, splitting it in two.
"What the hell!!!"
Even so, his anger didn't subside.
It couldn't subside.
Because the cracks were starting to appear in the empire he had built.
*
The Knight's Garden.
After returning to the city owned by Viscount Wiser, I was 'resting.'
'My mind is very at ease.'
Although I had a decisive advantage in the battle with Will, fighting him was a headache.
So, I'm resting.
Emotional stability is very important.
There were many things to do.
Kyaa!
I watched the creature, which looked like a small reaper and was wandering around curiously.
A celestial spirit.
After severing all the Warps in the Demigod characteristic dungeon, the creature underwent a change.
【Lv.2】
【Celestial Spirit】
【Rightful Heir】
【Dimension Slash (Lv2)】
Its level had increased.
Even though I hadn't been hunting or anything.
The experience gain mechanism seemed very different from ordinary spirits.
'A being that can sever Warps and sink cities.'
Sever Warps and sink cities into the Abyss?
If you only heard the description, you might think it was an absurd existence.
I stroked my chin.
What is a Warp?
It's the only connection between continents.
The floating continents are all the work of the Sky Goddess Pina.
The Earth Goddess Rea, who created the continents, was killed by Destruction and split into 32 stars.
Just as the entire continent was about to be destroyed, Pina lifted the remaining continents into the sky.
But the sky continents were not connected.
What was needed to connect them was 'Warp.'
'If not connected by Warp, the space is devoured by the Abyss.'
Just floating the continents is not enough.
Without Warps, the continents themselves cannot exist.
'Then, is this creature a species born from the Abyss?'
The thought that it was a species born to counter Warps crossed my mind.
From the Abyss's perspective, Warps are annoying barriers that prevent their erosion.
It's possible for a species that destroys those barriers to be born.
The Abyss contains all sorts of things, so who knows what's in there.
Kyaa?
The creature, which had been wandering around like a cat, rubbed its stomach.
"Are you hungry?"
Kyaa!
It seems very hungry.
But what can a skeleton eat?
Spirits feed on the contractor's mana.
I haven't used mana in a long time, as it has been replaced by divine power.
But the creature doesn't seem to want divine power.
['???'] desires honor.
Ah, it eats honor.
After all, when it was born, it consumed all the 'tainted honor.'
If that had been evil karma, it would have been terrifying.
If I had to feed it evil karma regularly.
I would probably become a public enemy and be wanted across the entire continent soon.
Fortunately, it's honor.
"Feed yourself."
Kyaa!
The creature laughed happily and swung its scythe over my head.
Then, with a feeling of something being cut from my head, the creature swallowed the mist that was cut.
['???'] consumes 30 honor.
[Remaining honor: 746]
...30 at once?
30 is a value that would take at least two average honor quests to obtain.
Surely it doesn't eat this every day?
Kyaa kyaa kyaa!
The creature rubbed its face against my cheek and started wandering around again.
It was an amusing creature.
'I should give it a name.'
I can't keep calling it 'creature.'
For the bond with the spirit, giving it a name is essential.
After a moment's thought, I nodded and spoke.
"Hell."
Kyaa?
"Your name is 'Hell.'"
I named it Hell, inspired by Wilhelm's 'Hell.'
Kyaa kyaa kyaa!
...It seems to like it.
It's a positive creature, which is fortunate.
['???']'s name is confirmed as 'Hell.'
['Hell']'s bond increases.
[Tip: A high bond with a spirit allows the spirit to sense the summoner's intentions and act without being told.]
I've given it a name.
Now, there's one thing left.
'Unboxing.'
It's time to receive the rewards.
The 11 reward items that appeared when I cleared Main Quest 6.
[Ultimate Saber], [Radiant Robe of Honor], [Absolute Void], [Tainted King's Armor], [Tainted King's Crown], [Tainted Knights' Round Table], [Star Stepper], [Original Sin Staff], [Shathiros' Terror], [Impure Magic Spear], [End of the Labyrinth]
I examined each one carefully.
None of the names were ordinary.
The Ultimate Saber, a weapon that has seen two stages of its end, and the rest were all items of the highest level.