Countless questions without answers (3)

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[Main Scenario #9 – 73rd Demon King]

Category: Main

Difficulty level: SS

Clear Conditions: You are eligible to participate in the last scenario of Dark Castle. Gather four rankers to go up to the third floor of Dark Castle and enter the final scenario.

Time Limit: 30 days

Compensation: 100,000 coin

Failure: ― Death

* Your current Dark Castle ranking is 3rd place.

* Only incarnations within the top 10 of the rankings can challenge the final scenario with you.

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[Some constellations doubt your probability.]

[Some constellations ask for a probability check.]

Zhou Mingrui was too strong. In the scenarios, he could easily defeat whatever came his way.

He frowned. These probability checks were annoying.

However, this time, something surprising happened.

It wasn't a probability storm but something even worse.

There was a fierce sound like the sky was being ripped apart, and a vortex appeared in the sky. A portal was opening at the centre of the vortex.

[The Great Hall.]

The excessive probability had summoned a being who would destroy everything.

Sharron instinctively closed her eyes.

Fortunately, she wasn't in the doll, or she would have been unable to protect her eyes and ears in time.

However, Zhou Mingrui didn't blink and stared at it.

Ordinary incarnations would collapse just from seeing such an existence, but Zhou Mingrui wasn't an ordinary incarnation.

'…An Outer God'

Zhou Mingrui frowned.

Still, as a pillar, he should be stronger than ordinary outer gods, but in this place his power had weakened.

At least, this Outer God seemed on the weak side.

He checked that Sharron had her eyes closed and released his mythical creature form.

This wasn't going to be an easy fight.

Thunder fell from the crack in the sky while the distorted time and space screamed painfully.

[Some constellations are astonished by the coming of the Outer God!]

The diameter of the Outer God's body alone was at least one kilometre. Each of the 12 legs attached to the body had a diametre of several dozens of metres.

However, not even one-fifth of it had passed through the summoning gate yet.

Zhou Mingrui pulled out the Star Cane and protected Sharron with a layer of secret authority before gazing at the Outer God with cold eyes.

A powerful force came from Zhou Mingrui's voice.

[Go away.]

The Outer God paused, feeling the power of a higher existence than itself. Then, the summoning speed accelerated.

By this seeing the Outer God, information entered Zhou Mingrui's mind. This Outer God was called the 'Eater of Dreams'.

Now, almost one-third of his body was summoned. The summoned tentacles started to riot and the landscape hundreds of metres around them was completely devastated. Some incarnations screamed as they were hit by the tentacles.

The Eater of Dreams was weaker than a Great Old One but it was still a god from the cosmos.

Zhou Mingrui parasitized the Outer God's body and destroyed it from the inside.

[Ahhhhhh!]

A roarcame out of his mouth with strength powerful enough to kill the incarnations that heard it. However, Zhou Mingrui didn't budge.

He fooled time and fate, continuously stole his lifespan and repeatedly teleported to evade his tentacles.

The Outer God tried to go back into the gate, but the Pillar of the universe prevented him from doing so and also began to control his spiritual lines.

As he struggled, the Outer God's thoughts gradually slowed down and he finally stopped moving after a few minutes, lifeless.

[You have earned a 'semi-myth' rated story.]

[The story 'One Who Killed an Outer God' has been acquired!]

[Due to the achievement of the story, some outer gods show hostility towards you.]

[Due to the achievement of the story, some outer gods are curious about you.]

[Due to the achievement of the story, some great old ones are watching you.]

[Your current Dark Castle ranking is 2nd place.]

"…I didn't know an Outer God was so easy to kill."

That must because the latter didn't have any special abilities except for his huge size and his status. It was far easier than expected.

Well, after all, Adam could easily stop three gods as a Great Old One back then, and this Outer God's strength was closer to a god or a dual pathway true god than a Great Old One.

Zhou Mingrui released the secret on Sharron while the constellations let out shocked exclamations.

Sharron opened her eyes and dazedly stared at the dead body of the Outer God.

She remained rooted to her spot, unmoving.

Zhou Mingrui, who was about to continue advancing, turned toward her.

"Let's go."

However, Sharron didn't budge.

She lifted her gaze, then looked around the corpses of the nearby incarnations who had bled to death from their eyes and ears, and turned her head to Zhou Mingrui.

Sharron stared into his eyes, fixedly, and stayed that way for a long time.

Zhou Mingrui didn't know what she was thinking.

"…Miss Sharron?"

He felt that something bad was about to happen.

Sharron opened her mouth then closed it again, as if she wanted to say something. She repeated this action many times before simply continuing to stare at him.

Zhou Mingrui knew it too. Until now, he had been far too suspicious. However, he had thought that Sharron would just gloss over it, as always.

Sharron pursed her lips into a thin line.

She looked into his eyes in silence.

There were too many questions she wanted to ask.

Until now, she had held back because her pathway advocated temperance, but she couldn't bear it anymore.

Why did the gold coin that Sherlock gave her bring her to this world?

She recalled their encounter with the constellation Yamata no Orochi.

How did he kill a god of this world so easily?

There were also the angel of the Apprentice Pathway and the other members of the Tarot Club addressing him with honorifics.

Why did they talk to him so respectfully?

He was first in the rankings as well.

Moreover, he was able to kill that tentacled monster so easily. He could murder a god in a mere few minutes.

She had kept all these questions silent until now.

How was he so familiar with the environment here?

It was suspicious, far too suspicious.

Separately, she could have ignored it. However, when all these factors were brought together, there had to be something wrong.

Weren't they friends?

Couldn't she have the right to at least know something about it?

Zhou Mingrui became uncomfortable because of Sharron's gaze on him. He wanted her to say something.

Sharron looked at Sherlock.

In truth, it was still fine if he didn't tell her anything.

But…

Why was his name written to be 'Zhou Mingrui' in this world?

It was a very strange name. However, it's true that 'Sherlock' was also a strange name.

Now that she thought about it, she didn't really now anything about him to begin with.

Was Sherlock really his true name?

Does she even know his true appearance?

Then what was his true name? As a Faceless, was Sherlock's appearance really his true appearance?

He was said to believe in a secret existence when he acted as Gehrman Sparrow, and that he was part of a secret organization.

Which organization was it? What existence did he believe in?

She had thought that she was a little closer to Sherlock after spending so much time by his side and becoming his friend, but was it really the case?

Sharron realized that she didn't know anything about Zhou Mingrui.

Where was he from? What did he like to eat? What was his relationship with the Angel of the Apprentice Pathway and the others?

Who was that girl who died on the roof?

What was his current sequence? And what was his pathway?

Did he really belong to the Seer Pathway when he was able to use so many other Beyonder abilities in this unfamiliar world?

She had so many questions to ask, so many things to say, however, she kept silent.

In the end, were they really 'friends'?

Staring at Sherlock, or 'Zhou Mingrui', Sharron finally opened her mouth.

Despite having to much to say, she only asked one question.

"…Who are you?"

Zhou Mingrui's heart sank.

It was like his heart had been pierced by a needle.

'Who are you?'

Sharron had guessed right, she didn't even know who he was. However, he couldn't tell her.

Seeing him silent, Sharron turned her gaze away. She didn't say anything more and returned into the doll.

Zhou Mingrui stayed in place for a few seconds because finally continuing to go forward with complicated feelings in his heart.

He didn't know how Sharron was feeling right now.

It was like a big gap had appeared between them.

As a Great Old One, he could never have been equal to a Sequence 3. He should've known it

Even though they were both human beings, merely knowing his true strength could kill her.

From the beginning, he had always been a fake. He had kept a smile on his face when he had felt lonely and pretended to be Klein while wishing to go back to his hometown. That may be why he had always been so lonely.

Now, he might have finally come back to his hometown—to the era of phones, skyscrapers and Internet, but he was still acting.

With a heavy heart, Zhou Mingrui continued to walk in silence.

He may have missed the only opportunity he had to explain himself.