SFRW-Chapter 259

Ch. 259 Sword God From The Ruined World

BANG—  

The door was nearly torn off its hinges as it swung open violently, and Allekuhi, boasting a massive frame, stepped inside.  

“Vampica is dead?! What the hell are you talking about?!”  

The other members of the Six Seats, who had already gathered, all stiffened their expressions at his outburst.  

“Sit down first,” Luam said.  

Allekuhi looked like he was about to shout something else but instead let out a heavy sigh and took a seat.  

“Was it him?”  

At Allekuhi’s question, spoken as calmly as he could manage, Luam nodded.  

“It has to be. There’s no other explanation.”  

“Vampica… There’s no way he could’ve been taken down so easily…”  

Allekuhi, who knew Vampica’s strength better than anyone, couldn’t believe the news of his death.  

“It just means the opponent was stronger,” Luam replied nonchalantly, though even he was shocked by Vampica’s death.  

No matter how strong the enemy was—even if they had killed the Himaid siblings—Vampica’s death was on a completely different level.  

“Could that bastard have gotten his hands on an Iostem relic too?”  

At Allekuhi’s question, Luam’s eyes flashed with a sharp, icy light.  

This was a secret known only to a select few, and he hadn’t expected Allekuhi to bring it up so casually.  

Sure enough—  

“An Iostem relic? What’s that?”  

“I’m curious too. If it’s an Iostem relic, I thought Vampica was the only one who had obtained one… What exactly are you talking about, Allekuhi?”  

Ratio and Gettis voiced their confusion, clearly unfamiliar with the topic.  

Allekuhi crossed his arms and leaned back, as if to say Luam would be better at explaining.  

Luam was irritated by his attitude, but since Ratio and Gettis were now curious, he couldn’t just brush it off.  

Reluctantly, Luam began calmly explaining everything he knew.  

Once Luam finished, Gettis and Ratio frowned.  

“So… you’re saying Vampica didn’t just obtain one relic of the Fallen Angel?”  

“Now I get it. That’s why Vampica kept saying he had something to do in Iostem and never left. He was after another relic, wasn’t he?”  

Gettis and Ratio expressed a sense of betrayal, as if wondering why this information had been kept from them.  

At the very least, as fellow members of the Six Seats, they should’ve been privy to such details.  

“Secrets. Don’t you have your own?” Luam shot back, making Gettis and Ratio grimace.  

As the atmosphere grew tense, Allekuhi slammed the table with a loud BANG and spoke up.  

“That’s not the important part! As we all know, Vampica was on the verge of becoming a Transcendent when he obtained the relic’s power and rose to become one of the Six Seats! The fact that he was still killed by that bastard is what matters!”  

“And on top of that, there’s a chance that bastard has already obtained a relic or is searching Iostem for one right now,” Gettis added.  

Ratio nodded, deciding to drop the unnecessary emotional conflict.  

“How many relics of the Fallen Angel are there?”  

Luam answered immediately.  

“As far as I know, two. Maybe more, but if there were, Vampica wouldn’t have only gotten one in all those years.”  

At Luam’s words—that even if there were more, there couldn’t be more than three—Ratio replied,  

“If the Transcendent who killed Vampica really did obtain a relic… that means he’s grown stronger than we could’ve imagined… Are we really okay with this?”  

With just one relic, Vampica had become a Transcendent and risen to the level of the Six Seats.  

But if the opponent was already a Transcendent and then obtained a relic’s power on top of that, it was impossible to gauge just how strong he had become.  

Luam shook his head at Ratio’s concern.  

“I don’t think that’s likely. The Iostem relics are nearly impossible for outsiders to find, and even Vampica couldn’t locate them. That bastard was probably just stronger than Vampica from the start. And even if he’s searching Iostem for relics, it’s impossible to find one in a short time.”  

His reasoning was the most rational under the circumstances, so the others couldn’t argue.  

“So, even without a relic’s power, he’s a Transcendent strong enough to kill Vampica… Hmm. We’ll have to be even more cautious than we thought.”  

At Gettis’ words, Ratio also agreed that Vampica’s death should be taken much more seriously.  

“The fact that he’s strong enough to kill Vampica means he’s beyond our initial expectations, but even so, if we all work together, he shouldn’t be unbeatable.”  

That was true.  

No matter how strong Vampica was, everyone gathered here was at least his equal—if not stronger.  

If they all joined forces, it would be no different from a death sentence for their enemy.  

They just needed to be a little more careful.  

“The real question is—when will we get to face him?”  

Everyone present had already resolved to kill Seo Do-jun and his group.  

But with Seo Do-jun’s party moving unpredictably between planets, they had no way to pursue them immediately, which was why they couldn’t intervene in Vampica’s death.  

If it had happened on a single planet, they could’ve chased them down, but right now, there was no way to predict where Seo Do-jun’s group would appear next, leaving Luam and the others frustrated.  

“If only Vipiens were here right now, tracking them down would’ve been nothing! Still no contact?”  

At Allekuhi’s question, Luam shook his head.  

“How many planetary pathways have been connected so far?”  

“Six so far.”  

“Six… If those bastards leave Iostem and step into one of the connected pathways, then we can make our move.”  

Gettis’ words earned a nod from Luam.  

Since they couldn’t chase Seo Do-jun’s group, the best course of action was to lure them into their own territory.  

After Seo Do-jun began liberating the Guardian Planets, Barhaut blocked two-way travel to protect the remaining Guardian Planets.  

He had locked down the dimensional pathways so tightly that only an Administrator could open them.  

But with Seo Do-jun’s group freely crossing between Guardian Planets, Luam no longer saw Barhaut’s measures as meaningful.  

Barhaut, accepting Luam’s stance, was now working to enable two-way travel between all Guardian Planets while also setting up alerts for any intruders via connected pathways.  

The only problem was that the number of connected planets was still too small compared to the remaining Guardian Planets.  

Linking planetary dimensional pathways was no easy task, so no one present blamed Luam.  

In fact, without Luam, none of this would’ve been possible in the first place, so they couldn’t even think to complain.  

“So, all we can do is sit and wait,” Allekuhi muttered.  

Luam assured them he’d work as fast as possible to connect more Guardian Planets.  

“Since we don’t know when or how that bastard will appear, everyone should stay on high alert and ready to move at a moment’s notice.”  

Under normal circumstances, someone might’ve grumbled, but the weight of Vampica’s death silenced any complaints.  

***

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you. Thanks to you, we’ve put out the most urgent fires. Once again, I sincerely thank you.”  

As Jung In-joo bowed deeply, Hyun Joo-yeon and Gloria waved their hands, saying there was no need for such formal gratitude.  

Next, Na Tae-hwang, the World Hero Association Chairman, also bowed in thanks.  

“Without your efforts, we would’ve suffered even greater losses—both in lives and in economic and environmental damage. On behalf of everyone, as the Chairman of the World Hero Association, I thank you.”  

“We only did what we had to. And as you know, we’re still technically members of the Caesarian Guild,” Hyun Joo-yeon replied, downplaying the thanks. Gloria nodded beside her.  

Meanwhile, Kusak and the others acted as if such gratitude was no big deal, remaining indifferent.  

Though Hyun Joo-yeon and Gloria found their attitude slightly annoying, Jung In-joo and Chairman Na Tae-hwang didn’t mind at all.  

These six had appeared in Earth’s darkest hour, and calling them saviors wouldn’t be an exaggeration.  

Of course, since no more monsters were emerging from the rift zones, humanity could’ve eventually overcome the crisis on its own—but the losses would’ve been unimaginable.  

‘The casualties—both human and material—would’ve been catastrophic, and who knows how long it would’ve taken.’  

Beyond that, Chairman Na Tae-hwang knew that without these six, the world would still be trembling in fear.  

However, the battle wasn’t completely over yet.  

As Jung In-joo had said, they’d only put out the most ‘urgent fires’.  

There were still countless monsters outside the rift zones scattered across the planet.  

Major global cities, national capitals, and critical facilities that couldn’t afford to fall under monster control—these six had prioritized hunting monsters in the most urgent areas first.  

True peace—a return to the era before the rifts—would still take time.  

Even so, Chairman Na Tae-hwang, Jung In-joo, and world leaders were confident that Earth was no longer in immediate danger.  

“But are you sure it’s really okay? Even without the rift zones, Seo Do-jun, Shinjo, and Choi Kang-soo can still return without any problems, right?” Jung In-joo asked, double-checking.  

That’s right.  

All the rift zones on Earth had vanished.  

Not long after Hyun Joo-yeon and the others emerged, the rifts had disappeared without a trace—as if they’d never existed in the first place.  

The world rejoiced.  

It felt like the end of the Rift Era.  

Peace had finally returned to Earth.  

“They can return even without the rift zones, so don’t worry,” Hyun Joo-yeon assured.  

Jung In-joo and Chairman Na Tae-hwang nodded in relief.  

Gloria, however, bit her lip as she looked at Hyun Joo-yeon.  

What Hyun Joo-yeon said wasn’t a lie—but it wasn’t going to be easy, either.  

With the rift zones gone, the direct dimensional pathways to Earth had vanished.  

Even if Rahf could create dimensional pathways…  

“They can return. The problem is—when? How many attempts? Dozens? Hundreds? Maybe even more? I can’t even predict how many pathways they’ll have to open and traverse.”  

Without a direct link to Earth, Rahf would have to rely entirely on luck to create a pathway to a planet he’d never visited before.  

‘They’ll make it back.’  

‘Right?’  

Hyun Joo-yeon and Gloria could only trust in Rahf—and in Seo Do-jun.  

“But are you really capable of taking on Heavy Mountain?” Chairman Na Tae-hwang asked, looking at Kusak and the others.  

Heavy Mountain, currently entrenched in Hokkaido, Japan, was an overwhelming force.  

Fortunately, it hadn’t crossed the sea, remaining confined to Hokkaido—but in doing so, it had turned the entire region into a monster-infested island.  

The reason they hadn’t hunted Heavy Mountain yet was not only the uncertainty of victory but also the fact that there were far more critical areas to secure than a monster-dominated Hokkaido.  

“Are the Japanese still insisting on it?” Jung In-joo asked.  

Chairman Na Tae-hwang gave a wry smile, as if to say, You know how they are.  

“For Japan, Hokkaido is non-negotiable. They have to reclaim it.”  

Even if restoring it would cost an astronomical amount of money and resources, Japan couldn’t afford to abandon Hokkaido.  

“I can take down Heavy Mountain by myself,” Veronica declared.  

Chairman Na Tae-hwang and Jung In-joo both looked at Hyun Joo-yeon for confirmation.  

“It’s possible.”  

Having absorbed the power of the Water God, Veronica alone was more than capable of hunting Heavy Mountain.  

Hyun Joo-yeon and Gloria could also defeat it if they worked together.  

The only question was how long it would take.  

But right now, Hokkaido wasn’t just home to Heavy Mountain—it was densely packed with countless other monsters.  

Leaving the task of reclaiming Hokkaido to Veronica alone was too much to ask.  

“We can’t just sit back and let the monsters in Hokkaido keep multiplying. We’ll all head there soon,” Hyun Joo-yeon said.  

Veronica grumbled that she could handle it alone, but Hyun Joo-yeon reasoned that teamwork would make it easier.  

“Japan’s been waiting desperately for this news. I should inform them immediately,” Chairman Na Tae-hwang said, looking relieved as he left the room.  

“Since it’s almost lunch, why don’t we grab a good meal and discuss Hokkaido further?” Jung In-joo suggested.  

Before she could even finish—  

“Spicy braised ribs.”  

Veronica had already decided on her favorite dish.  

“Perfect. I was craving something spicy too. There’s an amazing place nearby—shall we go?”  

Veronica’s face lit up with a bright smile.  

“I knew I liked you, new Guild Master!”  

Just as they were leaving the guild building—  

“Guild Master!”  

A guild member rushed up to Jung In-joo in a panic.  

“What’s wrong?”  

“There’s reports of a strange person appearing in the skies over France!”  

“A strange person? And in the sky?”  

As Jung In-joo frowned, the guild member quickly explained.  

“A powerful spark appeared out of nowhere in the sky, then the space itself tore open, and a young man stepped out! He doesn’t speak any known language, and his clothing is unlike anything from this era!”  

Jung In-joo glanced at Hyun Joo-yeon and the others.  

“If the sky split open like that… he must’ve crossed dimensions,” Kusak said.  

Veronica’s face twisted in anger as she cursed.  

“Damn it!”  

It seemed their plans for a leisurely spicy rib lunch would have to wait.