Mirror World: Destined Return

“Budiono and his family... were burned to death?” The short El Chapo with a goatee expressed rage in a large hotel room.

“Yes, boss.”

“I believe I told you to help Budiono, but not to fight his battles.”

“You did, boss.”

“AND YOU TOOK THAT AS ME TELLING YOU TO DO NOTHING BUT WATCH AS HE WAS KILLED?! YOU SHOULD HAVE AT LEAST KILLED THE MOTHERFUCKER, CHEON SEONG-HWI!” El Chapo screamed as he pulled out a pistol and pointed it at the man on one knee.

He was an ordinary-looking Mexican man in jeans and a white shirt.

El Chapo continued, “EXPLAIN YOURSELF, SICARIO!”

The man was Sicario, a Hard Drug clansman and ninety-sixth in the human ranking. He had been loyal to El Chapo since his days on Earth in the Honorable Cartel.

The contract killer was so devoted to El Chapo that people silently acknowledged whatever he did as El Chapo’s will. Hence, El Chapo had put Sicario on Budiono because he trusted Sicario to eliminate Cheon Seong-Hwi even if Budiono failed.

“I... had a bad feeling,” Sicario answered.

“What?”

“I was about to take action once Budiono was killed, but... I sensed bloodlust.” Sicario frowned as he remembered the chilling bloodlust. “It found me while I was still in hiding. That bloodlust... did not even seem human. It was thick, terrifying, and—”

El Chapo fired his pistol. The bullet spun as it flew toward Sicario’s head. However, the bullet failed to penetrate Sicario’s head because he grabbed it with his teeth. The empty cartridge hitting the floor echoed throughout the room.

El Chapo said, “Keep your mouth shut, just like that. I don’t raise mutts who are all bark and no bite. Fuck off!”

Sicario slowly stood up, still biting the bullet, and left the hotel room. El Chapo gritted his teeth once the door closed.

“Cheon Seong-Hwi... Cheon Seong-Hwi! I would’ve killed him already if I could leave this place!”

He was staying in a suite room on the fourth floor of the Cecil Hotel, unable to leave for various reasons.

He vented his rage, pulled out a cigar, and mumbled, “Esmeralda is occupied, so... Yes, it’s time for them to repay me for all I’ve fed them.”

He lit the cigar, its light reflecting in his eyes.

“It’s time I pressured the spec force.”

***

“Wow! What are all these, unnie?” Jurie asked.

“Oh, those are the body parts of other races I preserved in embalming fluid. Cool, right?” Lina answered.

“What about these?”

“Those are the samples of the flora I gathered from the first zone.”

They were at the Chalisi store on the Hong Kong street of North Earth. Jurie looked around the shop with fascination. Lina, who had gotten close to Jurie, explained the results of her research to her.

Vivienne Information Center, near the entrance of South Earth, was closed because the Union’s investigation team restricted entry. Because of this, Jurie, Gerard, and Seong-Hwi were forced to stay at Lina’s place for the time being.

Seong-Hwi sat on the couch and thought about what he gained through his battle against Budiono.

I’m a Double-A human. This would put me near the eight-hundreds, but since I have intermediate caliber stats, I’d be around the five-hundreds on a good day.

However, he couldn’t use the battle alone to assess his ranking range. Not only were his stats amplified when he operated the Wings of Evolution, but he could deal immense burst damage using the secondary force conversion.

Add the Tarot Deck of Destiny’s doping skills to that.

Seong-Hwi felt he could even aim for the two-hundreds, or even the hundreds. However, there was a clear issue with that.

Doping is doping; it doesn’t reflect my true power. If I misunderstand it as such and push myself... I’d die a dog’s death.

He was getting stronger exponentially. Even though it was the ranking of an inferior race, a human normally couldn’t enter the ranking in only five months. However, such exponential growth had drawbacks; the difference between his normal and burst damage was far too big. Such an imbalance wasn’t good unless he wanted to become a nuker.

The solution is boringly simple. Slowly and gradually boost my stats and heighten their caliber.

The standard method was the safest. Those who chose shortcuts always paid the corresponding price.

Despite knowing that, I have no choice but to take such shortcuts.

Seong-Hwi stared at a slightly melted steel box in his hand. It was the drug kit he had taken from Budiono’s scorched corpse. He opened it and was surprised to see that most of the drugs inside were intact. They seemed to have been made from heat-resistant materials. He rummaged through the drug kit, hoping to find what he was looking for.

I couldn’t find even one while I raided the workshops... Oh!

Seong-Hwi found two capsules, pink on one side and white on the other. The pink side had the letter A written on it, while the white side had the letter Y. The capsules held a suspicious liquid.

[Ayahuasca (Consumable Item)

Rank: B

Description: Ingestion absorbs DMT (Dimethyltryptamine) into one’s system and forcibly applies Debuff: Time Prison for three seconds, time ratio of 1:100,000.]

This was the drug Seong-Hwi had been searching for. It was a consumable item that introduced DMT to one’s system. The substance existed naturally in the human brain, specifically the pineal gland, in small amounts. It was released when dreaming, but mostly at the moments before death. It slowed one’s perception of time, which was why the phenomenon of one’s life flashing before their eyes was possible.

On top of that, it’s B-rank. The time ratio is one to a hundred thousand, huh?

In other words, three seconds would feel like three hundred thousand seconds, which was eighty-two hours and twenty minutes, or three days, eleven hours, and twenty minutes. Ayahuasca was normally used by those in the ultra-ranged attacker position, known as raumdeuter.

It was also used for torture purposes because although only one second passed physically, it would feel like a hundred thousand seconds in one’s mind. Making the torture subject ingest the ayahuasca and torturing them would make them feel immense pain for days, allowing the torturer to save time.

However, Seong-Hwi was planning on using the ayahuasca differently.

Three days is more than enough time to go to the memory palace and return.

A trip to the memory palace was mandatory to borrow new destinies. Borrowing Destiny was Seong-Hwi’s masterpiece, but like any skill, it had drawbacks. He needed to borrow destinies in advance because he had no time to do so during combat. However, it was difficult to predict which destinies he would need, and borrowing them in bulk randomly would corrupt his psyche.

The ayahuasca was to resolve Borrowing Destiny’s drawback. The debuff Time Prison was like an express ticket to the memory palace.

Now, I can use Borrowing Destiny even in combat!

Seong-Hwi carefully placed the two ayahuasca capsules in his pocket.

“Have you delved into drugs as well, cunning brat?” Gerard, who had been observing Seong-Hwi, said exasperatedly.

Seong-Hwi smirked and answered, “Young man to brat, and now it’s cunning brat? Why do the ways you address me keep falling?”

“Did you think I wouldn’t know you lured the small fry to the information center on purpose?”

“Oh no, you figured it out,” Seong-Hwi replied shamelessly.

Gerard shook his head and continued, “I don’t know how you know my identity, but... this is the last time. I will let it slide in exchange for you keeping your mouth shut about me. But if you do something like this again—”

“I know. I’m not all out of shame. Besides, I doubt I’d need your help next time.”

Gerard stared intently at Seong-Hwi and thought, He’s an interesting man.

Hard Drug was not some run-of-the-mill black clan, and El Chapo was a careful and tenacious Ranker. He would never have trusted Budiono, a Semi Ranker in the nine-hundreds, to handle everything. As proof of that, someone had been on Budiono’s tail. Gerard exuded bloodlust before he had realized it once the stealthy assassin was about to attack Seong-Hwi.

Why did I do that? There’s not a single thing I like about him. I’m sure I unconsciously protected him because Lady Jurie values him, Gerard said inwardly.

He decided to think that way as he rejected his inner self, screaming at him that Seong-Hwi might be able to reach that stage.

Seong-Hwi interrupted Jurie and Lina’s chatter and said, “Can I use the Network, Jurie?”

“Hmph! I’m not a nonprofit, sir. Not only that, but you made my store go out of business!” Jurie said as she turned away from Seong-Hwi.

Gerard nodded, satisfied with her attitude.

“Oh, come to think of it, today’s the day,” Seong-Hwi remarked, knowing exactly what Jurie was thinking.

Jurie, her head still turned away, asked, “What day?”

“The day I do a tarot card reading for my only benefactor and regular subscriber.”

Jurie immediately turned back to Seong-Hwi, smiling brightly. “Your points are full, sir! What would you like to know?”

Gerard sighed as Jurie summoned her smartphone D Weapon, ready to find any information Seong-Hwi wanted.

“My lady...” he trailed off.

***

The birth of a new Ranker!

Near the entrance of South Earth, the super rookie Cheon Seong-Hwi at last clashed against the Hard Drug Semi Ranker Budiono!

Surprisingly, the winner was Cheon Seong-Hwi. Budiono and his subordinates attacked him simultaneously, but they were reduced to ashes before Cheon Seong-Hwi’s powerful fire skill.

According to eyewitnesses...

...

Who is Cheon Seong-Hwi?

He is a super rookie—no, he is now a Semi Ranker, 945th in the human ranking. Where has he been all this time? Is he a Dark Human? What is his relationship with the Union? Which clan is he from? Such questions will be inferred based on information about him that has been revealed up to this point.

First...

...

A warning from the Union’s Spec Force!

The Union, which had been quiet about the war between Hard Drug and Cheon Seong-Hwi until now, has finally made a statement.

First, they revealed Cheon Seong-Hwi to be a Dark Human who brutally murdered Roman Duris, the leader of the spec force’s Suppression Team 8, as well as a clansman of Wandering Knights. They also expressed their dissatisfaction with Cheon Seong-Hwi’s slaughtering sprees on South Earth.

Although Cheon Seong-Hwi rescued his fellow humans from Clan Trophy, it cannot excuse his appalling crimes. The Union demanded that if he wishes to avoid being tried for his crimes, he must visit Union headquarters and defend himself for...

The Network was a sea of information. One could earn points by posting information to the Network, and use those points to access information posted by others. There was all kinds of information in the Network because even the most trivial of information provided one with points.

The hottest information right now was that of the new Semi Ranker Cheon Seong-Hwi. He had been stirring up the Capital due to his war against Hard Drug, but now, he was part of the human ranking. Various clans wished to recruit him, people wanted to know about his skills and D Weapon, and even Dark Hunters wished to defeat him to take his place as a Ranker.

There were many sources of information, and interviews of humans who witnessed the battle on South Earth and those rescued from Clan Trophy filled the Network.

“Congratulations, Semi Ranker Cheon Seong-Hwi. You’re famous now.” Jurie smiled as she scrolled through her smartphone.

Since she had known Seong-Hwi since his days as a newbie, she felt she had witnessed his growth firsthand.

“Is that the only kind of information there is?” Seong-Hwi asked.

“They’re all more or less like these. Oh, did something happen between you and Kim Seo-Gyeong?”

“Kim Seo-Gyeong?”

“He’s a Semi Ranker, 145th in the human ranking. He’s the leader of Clan Earthly Branches as well as the leader of the spec force’s Extermination Team 1. That terrifying human stated he’ll capture you no matter what for hurting his little sister.”

Seong-Hwi smirked and shook his head. “I have no idea who he is. Forget that, any scouting offers?”

“Countless! Most clans have given you offers. Why do you ask? Are you planning on joining a clan? Good idea.” Jurie nodded and continued, “You’re in an ambiguous position, especially because of your relationship with the Union. If you don’t want to be branded a Dark Human, you should join a renowned clan.”

Jurie’s advice was valid. The Union was not just one group, but a coalition of several clans. There were bound to be different interests of various factions in the Union. Seong-Hwi would be protected by several walls if he entered a renowned clan affiliated with the Union.

However, Seong-Hwi shook his head. He had no intention of entering a clan, much less one that struggled in the Capital.

“Any black clans?” he asked.

“Black clans?” Jurie frowned as she stared at Seong-Hwi. She continued, “There are. Offers from Loaners, Pure Ladies and Gentlemen, Black Market, and—”

“Wait. Did you say I got an offer from Black Market?” Seong-Hwi asked, his eyes shining.

He had been creating a fuss all this time to grab the interest of Black Merchant Kabuka, the leader of Clan Black Market.

“See for yourself,” Jurie said as she showed the interested Seong-Hwi her smartphone.

Offer to Cheon Seong-Hwi.

We are impressed with your memorable feats and have judged that you would be a great fit for a job that Black Market is currently working on. We wish to hire you for the wing position. If you are interested, contact the ID: Massacre.

It was concise, but it contained what Seong-Hwi wanted.

He did not take his eyes off the offer as he said, “Contact them, Jurie.”

“Black Market? This clan is way shadier than Hard Drug!” Jurie shouted, trying to persuade Seong-Hwi against it.

There were countless bad rumors about Black Market. Leaving aside the fact that their leader, Kabuka, was sixth in the human ranking and a Dark Human, there was a much worse rumor.

“Haven’t you heard Kabuka is a demon worshiper?” Jurie asked.

“I have.”

“Yet you want me to contact them?”

“You heard me. Oh, and could you contact someone else, too?”

Jurie dissatisfyingly asked, “Who?”

“The second-in-command of the pioneering faction, and the sworn brother of the World Ranker Lee Kang-San. Number 23 in the human ranking, Maestro, Remy Martin.”

Jurie’s expression hardened once Seong-Hwi mentioned her father.