Translator: Dreamscribe

An overwhelming enemy appeared to block the Legion of Vengeance!

A being that wore melted armor and split the canyon with a massive two-handed sword.

The Heroes began calling the being the ‘Knight of Erosion’. No one knew what it really was, whether it was a monster made of armor or something entirely different. Nothing had been revealed.

Even FS Games remained silent.

The Arsilan Worlds still had the Empress of Vengeance theme, and nothing at all had been posted about the Knight of Erosion. But that didn’t mean the Heroes could complain to FS Games or the Creator God. It would hurt their pride.

From the moment of its shocking debut, it blocked the advance of the Legion of Vengeance and the Heroes heading toward the key points of the northern and southern regions.

Total annihilation.

The moment the Knight of Erosion appeared, they either got wiped out or suffered near-total losses. The damage was so severe that the Empress halted her advance to gather strength. She focused on reviving her troops at the main base using the power of darkness.

The advance toward the Empire had no choice but to be suspended.

Title: Can’t Even Get Close.

Forget attacking, we couldn’t even get near it.

Seriously, it’s too strong.

With the area attacks wiping everyone out, numbers seem meaningless now?

I think this is the first boss I have no idea how to tackle.

Feels like there has to be some method.

Do we need to find some kind of weakness?

Anonymous1 (KR): All front lines collapsed. It appears ignoring distance. Looks like it uses something like teleportation magic?

BabyRogue: I heard named Heroes are gathering to try raiding it.

└Anonymous2 (KR): Really? That might be for the best.

└BabyRogue: Apparently they’re streaming it too, so let’s go.

Anonymous3 (JP): But it looks insanely cool. This is what a real boss is.

Watching the Heroes’ reactions was truly satisfying. Ever since the appearance of Mary, Princess of Erosion, the reactions in the Arsilan Worlds had been delicious.

“Mysterious boss monster appears!”

“Hardest Difficulty Ever! When Will It Be Cleared?”

“But as always, it can be overcome. Because that’s what a Hero does.”

But the reactions still hadn’t reached what he wanted. For now, people only considered it a boss monster to be overcome.

They needed more pain.

A truly deep wound had to be inflicted!

“Perfect.”

Now was the perfect timing.

Jinwoo looked at Tiris, who was dwelling inside Mary’s body. She was out of her armor.

What she had shown to the Heroes so far was only Phase 1. And there was an amazing gimmick related to that armor. Her true form would be revealed in Phase 3, and from there, the real beginning would unfold.

“Can you handle it?”

“It’s not as bad as I thought.”

Tiris nodded while checking the reactions posted in the Arsilan Worlds. It seemed she was quite entertained by the reactions from the Heroes.

Tiris had also been waiting for the day when she could showcase the body of Mary she had carefully crafted.

“Start getting ready.”

“Yes.”

Tiris walked toward the armor that was standing ahead. Inside the large armor was a cockpit, where various snacks and drinks were arranged. It had even been magically expanded for comfort.

When Jinwoo looked inside the armor and showed his surprise, Tiris looked at him with eyes full of pride.

“Not only does it have temperature control, but I also installed a bathroom where you can shower.”

“Hm….”

“Hot water comes out well, so you can even eat cup noodles. You can also view various information on a large screen.”

“It must have been tough to make something like this. Impressive.”

At Jinwoo’s praise, Tiris’s ears turned red.

It really was impressive.

Jinwoo had made the armor, but it was Tiris who had designed and furnished the interior. But there was a problem.

“But, that thing’s going to be destroyed anyway.”

“Ah.”

The armor was going to be destroyed.

Tiris froze for a moment at Jinwoo’s words.

One of her flaws was getting so focused that she ignored everything else. Maybe that was something they had in common.

“…I’ll get ready.”

“Alright.”

“I should blow off some steam.”

“Huh?”

Tiris’s eyes turned ominous as she entered the armor.

Wasn’t that true method acting?

Jinwoo assumed the appearance of Comfortable and headed to the Northern Domain.

Numerous named Heroes had gathered at the Northern Domain to form a subjugation squad. Romance Heroes and Hunters, as well as the Helby Lovers Group, were also present.

Northern Grand Duke was level 99 and ranked number one among the Heroes, and all the Heroes gathered here were over level 92. There were nearly five thousand such Heroes. It was no exaggeration to say only the most famous advance teams had been assembled.

“Bishop Comfortable!”

“Over here!”

Jinwoo approached the area where Haebyul and the Romance Heroes were. For this subjugation operation, it had been decided that Northern Grand Duke and LifeHunter would lead two separate teams.

Northern Grand Duke gave a briefing on the operation.

“We’ve received contact from the Helby Lovers Group’s airship, which has been patrolling the southern region. They said they discovered a fairly large city on the path to the Imperial capital. After using the Hero’s Flower to move, we’ll advance into the city.”

“Since it’s deep within the southern region, that thing will probably show up.”

At LifeHunter’s response, she nodded.

That’s how it had always been. The central region was blocked by deep rivers and mountain ranges, making it hard to advance. The only way to the Imperial capital was through the north and south, but each time they tried to enter that path, that unidentified boss monster appeared, as if to say it would allow no further passage.

“Forget about clearing it this time. Our goal is to observe patterns and get used to it as much as possible.”

The goal of this subjugation team wasn’t victory. It was to gather as much information as possible and figure out a strategy.

The Helby Lovers Group was leisurely fighting while deliberately dragging mobs near the city. Since Hero’s Flower would activate during combat, they could teleport straight there. It wasn’t a bug but a permitted trick.

‘Not a bad strategy.’

Even if they failed, they could revive every hour and try again. But would it go as smoothly as that?

They were probably in for a surprise this time.

Many Heroes were watching this raid. Every time an advance team went in, many Heroes watched, but this time was even more special. They had experienced that overwhelming power firsthand.

Jinwoo (Comfortable): On the move now.

Tiris (Mary): ㅇㅇ (TL: yes yes)

Jinwoo (Comfortable): ㅇㅋ (TL: okay)

Jinwoo chuckled slightly and used the Hero’s Flower with the Heroes to teleport to the southern region.

It was an area notable for its endlessly stretching wheat fields. Following the guidance of the airship floating in the sky, they passed through the wheat fields and saw a massive city. Once they got past that city, they could enter the southern key zone. That would allow them to reach the Imperial capital quickly.

[Hm? Something’s strange. Doesn’t seem like enemy forces….]

A message came from the airship.

The Heroes continued advancing without stopping.

“Hm? Slaves.”

“Looks like slaves?”

Haebyul and UruBear spotted the slaves.

-What is this?

-They’re outside?

-This is kind of scary all of a sudden.

Outside the city walls were countless slaves.

With their eyes covered in black cloth, their limbs bound, they knelt in place. There were at least more than ten thousand of them. The Heroes slowly approached the city.

“Huh? The city gate is opening. Someone’s coming out.”

As Haebyul said, the city gate opened, and robed figures in ashen-gray cloaks stepped forward. The Heroes had no choice but to stop in their tracks. The atmosphere was unusual.

“They look like nobles.”

“Are they trying to summon troops?”

From their bodies, which had grown obese to the point of being barely human, it was obvious they were nobles. A robe couldn’t hide bodies like that.

The Heroes had already executed many nobles so far.

They had all been arrogant. Claiming to be chosen by the gods, they squirmed in ugliness. But this wasn’t like that. Now, they seemed solemn.

When Northern Grand Duke raised her hand, all the Heroes stayed on alert and watched carefully.

Thud!

The trembling nobles dropped to their knees and raised both hands to the sky.

“O noble one, blessed by Erosion’s baptism!”

“O beautiful wail born from the womb of greed!”

“We offer fifteen thousand slaves as sacrifice, so please, deliver us salvation!”

The countless slaves surrounding the nobles began to sing praises to someone. The song began like a hymn, but then distorted as if corrupted by Erosion and turned into a scream.

“Oh, it’s coming!”

“They are coming!”

“Despair! Fall into pain!”

As the voices of the euphoric nobles mixed with the terrible song, the ground began to ripple as if melting. From far away, in the underground labyrinth of the southern region, a massive current of Erosion surged out and split the ground open.

Countless hands rising from the ashen swamp dragged down all the slaves surrounding the nobles. It looked like a desperate struggle fueled by jealousy, as if saying, “I can’t be the only one in pain.”

“Hahaha!”

“Hrhrhrhr!”

“Greet her with screams! The Daughter of Greed! The Princess of Erosion!”

The nobles’ cries rang sharply in the Heroes’ ears. As the slaves were all devoured by the ashen swamp, the overwhelming figure that had previously stood alone against the Heroes, Mary, rose from the swamp.

The nobles bowed their heads, trembling all over.

“O Daughter of Greed! O Wailing Pain!”

“Accept our offering and strike them down!”

“Make those traitors and barbarians the feast of Erosion!”

Mary looked at the nobles. Just from that, their skin began to melt, and their limbs twisted.

[It is not enough.]

The offering was insufficient.

“W-Why…”

“S-Spare me…”

“Gyaaaah! N-No!”

And so, the nobles became the offering. Countless hands bursting from the ashen swamp tore the nobles apart and devoured them.

Standing above the ashen swamp, the Princess of Erosion looked upon the Heroes.

“The Daughter of Greed…”

“Did they say daughter?”

“The Princess of Erosion?”

-Daughter of Greed…

-They sacrificed slaves to summon her.

-So it was a summoning ritual.

Princess of Erosion, Daughter of Greed.

For the first time, a term that hinted at Mary’s identity had emerged. But the Heroes still didn’t seem to grasp it fully. Because of the melted armor Mary wore, it was hard to even tell her gender.

“She’s coming! Dodge and survive as long as you can!”

“Don’t attack, focus on evading! Spread out!”

At the command of Northern Grand Duke and LifeHunter, all the Heroes spread out. The Helby Lovers Group closely observed and recorded Mary’s movements from the airship.

-Damn!

-Ugh! This is tense!

-Now it begins!

The first boss attempt had begun.

When Jinwoo gave the signal via message, Mary began to move. She raised her head and looked to the sky. Displeased by the airship floating above, she stretched out her hand.

Kwagagaga!

A massive thorn of Erosion erupted and pierced through the airship. The airship turned ashen and crashed toward Mary. Since the crash couldn’t be prevented, they seemed to be aiming to self-destruct at least. But just as it reached Mary, it disintegrated meaninglessly and vanished.

The Heroes scattered in all directions, keeping their eyes fixed on Mary.

Mary looked at the scattered Heroes for a moment, then drove her two-handed sword into the ground. The ground turned into an ashen swamp, and the sword slowly sank into it.

As if the sword wasn’t even worth using, Mary walked toward the Heroes barehanded.

“That bastard…”

“Since they said daughter, shouldn’t it be bitch?”

“Ah! That bitch…”

The Heroes’ pride was wounded. But they didn’t strike recklessly and focused on not losing sight of Mary’s movements. And then.

Swish!

What just happened?

Mary disappeared from her spot, and dozens, hundreds of afterimages appeared in front of the Heroes.

Pupupupuk!

At the same time, the Heroes’ bodies began exploding one by one at rapid speed. Mary moved so fast it looked like she was using a shadow clone technique.

-What the…

-Crazy…

-So damn fast!

LifeHunter tried to restrain her with shadows, but as soon as he got close, he disintegrated and vanished.

Swish!

Mary appeared in front of LifeHunter and grabbed him by the neck, lifting him up.

Pusuk!

She extended her hand and pierced through LifeHunter’s chest. As his body turned into particles and disappeared, the other Hunters flinched.

“Hyung!”

“You bitch!”

The Hunters launched attacks, but they were also disintegrated. They couldn’t pierce through the Erosion Barrier surrounding Mary.

[So pitiful, like insects.]

Crunch!

When Mary reached out her hand, the Hunters’ bodies were ripped apart.

Northern Grand Duke realized something.

In this state, even trying to understand the attack patterns was meaningless.

“Retreat! All survivors, fall back! Regroup at the Domain!”

At Northern Grand Duke’s shout, the Heroes used the Hero’s Flower. Fortunately, since the Erosion energy hadn’t spread too much yet, although it took a bit of time, they were able to activate it.

“It’s taking time because of the Erosion!”

“10 seconds left!”

They had to wait a whole 10 seconds.

The Heroes’ bodies slowly began to be wrapped in light.

“I’ll buy us some time!”

Jinwoo stepped forward, pretending to unleash his sacred techniques at full power. Mary easily pierced through the sacred technique and approached Jinwoo.

It was time for Comfortable to exit the stage.

Comfortable’s body split in half and disappeared. It had been an illusion magic. Jinwoo used stealth magic to hide himself and watched Mary’s performance.

From here on out, Mary would show a different side from any other boss monster.

“It’s ready!”

“Whew, returning to the Domain!”

Haebyul and UruBear finally breathed a sigh of relief.

As the Hero’s Flower fully activated, UruBear grinned and looked at Mary.

“What if you’re strong? What can you do? I’m leaving! See you later! Good luck! Hahaha!”

-ㅋㅋㅋ What can you do if we run like this?

-We’ll be back in an hour anyway!

-As long as we push through, the Heroes will win in the end!

-Yeah. We only need to win once.

Even the observing Heroes mocked Mary through chat.

The Hero’s life was infinite, while the boss only had one. After countless tries, all they had to do was win once for a successful clear.

Just as UruBear’s body began turning into light through the Hero’s Flower.

“Huh?”

Mary appeared in front of UruBear.

Her hand gripped UruBear’s neck as his body was turning into light and disappearing.

“Ugh?!”

Thick Erosion energy flowed out from Mary’s body, turning into a sharp thorn that pierced through UruBear.

“Gyaaaaah!”

At that moment, UruBear’s body finally fully transformed into light and was transferred to the Domain.

“Damn, I almost died.”

Arriving at the Romance Domain, UruBear collapsed to the ground in relief. Haebyul and the Romance Heroes, who had also successfully escaped, rushed over to UruBear.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. That was close. Thought I’d die just for taunting her.”

-ㅋㅋㅋ Screaming in panic was hilarious

-Still, at least half of us made it out alive

-So, we’re regrouping at Northern Grand Duke’s Domain?

-Comfortable-nim sacrificed himself again

-Great Comfortable!

Haebyul and the Romance Heroes planned to return to Northern Grand Duke’s Domain to regroup and talk. Comfortable would come too once he revived.

Everyone thought that.

Until.

“Huh?”

Haebyul flinched and stared at UruBear’s wound. It was the spot Mary’s tentacle had pierced.

Heroes normally didn’t care about wounds, no matter how severe. With a healing sacred technique or a bit of rest, recovery was fast.

Squirm, squirm!

But this time was different. Something squirmed in UruBear’s wound.

“W-What is that?”

“Huh? What?”

At Haebyul’s question, UruBear looked down at his wound. It was turning ashen.

“Wh-What?! What the hell is this?!”

Fingers squirmed out from the hole in the wound.

They wriggled like maggots, expanding the wound.

UruBear gasped in horror and desperately shook his body. Fingers spilled out of the wound and dropped to the ground.

-Ugh…

-Fuck! What is that!

-That’s disgusting!

-I hate this so much!

The fingers squirmed like larvae, then merged together into a butterfly with ashen wings. The butterfly scattered ashes as it rose into the air.

“A butterfly?”

“The fingers turned into a butterfly.”

“What is this?”

Haebyul and the Heroes stared at the butterfly. Thinking they shouldn’t leave it be, they attacked. A blade sliced through the butterfly, splitting it in two. But the two halves fell to the ground, each sprouting new bodies, becoming two butterflies.

The butterflies couldn’t be killed.

When burned with magic, they resurrected from the ashes as multiple butterflies. The more they were attacked, the more they multiplied, and in an instant, there were dozens of them. As if mocking the Heroes, they fluttered about and then began heading somewhere.

The Heroes followed the swarm. The butterflies were heading toward the Hero’s Flower in front of the Labyrinth. The swarm settled on the Hero’s Flower. From their bodies, long tentacles emerged and stabbed into the Hero’s Flower.

Squirm! Squirm!

They weren’t sucking the nectar. Rather, the butterflies’ tentacles were injecting Erosion into the Hero’s Flower. The Hero’s Flower lost its light, and its petals turned ashen. Thorns sprouted from the stem, and the once-blue leaves withered as if rusted.

“The Hero’s Flower….”

“What… what just happened?”

All of the Hero’s Flowers blooming in front of the underground labyrinth turned to ash-gray.

From the ashen Hero’s Flowers, Erosion began to leak out, forming an ashen swamp on the ground.

And then.

Swoosh!

The being known as the Daughter of Greed and the Princess of Erosion.

Mary slowly rose from the ashen swamp.

“F-Fuck!”

“Crazy!”

“I-It’s an invasion!”

Haebyul and the Heroes gasped in shock and raised their weapons. The Hero’s Flower had now become the Eroded Flower, tainted with ash.

Mary looked around, then lightly swung her two-handed sword.

Kwagagaga!

The slash wave burst forth, slicing through the buildings of the Romance Domain.

“Kyaaah! Th-The buildings! The oasis…!”

Haebyul screamed.

The beautiful buildings of the Romance Domain began disintegrating from the Erosion, and the oasis that had served as a sanctuary for the Heroes quickly evaporated, replaced by an expanding ashen swamp.

Kwaaang!

The lord’s manor split in half and collapsed. And it didn’t end there. Mary turned her gaze to the many ships floating on the sea.

“N-No!”

“P-Please, not those…!”

The Heroes who had brought their ships to the Romance Domain shouted at Mary. She looked at them once, then reached her hand toward the ships.

The ships on the sea slowly lifted into the air, following Mary’s hand. Floating high into the sky, the ships were moved above the Romance Domain.

“No way….”

Before Haebyul could even finish speaking, Mary dropped the ships down on the Romance Domain. The falling vessels crashed into the buildings and ground, utterly demolishing everything.

Good! That’s it!

Go on! Mary, destroy the Romance Domain!

Jinwoo, observing the situation while under stealth, nodded.

“You goddamn bitch!”

“Fuck!”

“What about the Arsilan people?!”

The Heroes were trying to evacuate the Arsilan citizens from the Romance Domain. The moment Mary looked toward that area, Haebyul and the Heroes turned pale. Mary raised her two-handed sword, preparing to erase the Arsilan people.

“No!”

“Block it with your bodies!”

“That crazy bitch…!”

All the nearby Heroes desperately tried to stop her, but it was already too late. The two-handed sword came crashing down. Just as Haebyul closed her eyes, unable to bear witnessing the hopeless scene.

A black flower bloomed on the ground.

It was the Flower of Vengeance.

Tang!

A scythe tore through space and blocked the two-handed sword. The moment Mary laid eyes on the black scythe, a dark current surged, and the Empress of Vengeance appeared.

“I-I knew you’d come!”

“Uwaaah! Empress-nim!”

“Thank god! Ngh…!”

-This is it!

-Wow, that was close.

-Kya!

The Empress glared at Mary.

Arsilan was once again under threat from Erosion.

“Erosion is threatening Arsilan… again…”

All the Empress’s fury was directed at the Princess of Erosion, Mary.

This was the first time the Empress and Mary stood face to face, crossing the past filled with nothing but despair and pain.

This reunion was a tragedy like before, and the beginning of an even greater sorrow.

*****

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