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CHAPTER 154 – ROUND 10 BEGINS
[Breaking News! IS leader, Al-Baghdadi, uploads suicide video to YouTube…….]
[IS leader suicide? The shocking video has the whole world buzzing.]
[Video claiming to be IS leader spreads like wildfire, but is taken down within 15 minutes…….]
Min Juri’s eyes widened at the sensational headlines, but Ryu Min already knew.
There wasn’t a single lie in it.
“M-Min! Is this real? That IS leader is dead?”
“Who knows.”
“What’s this about a suicide video?”
“I’m curious too, so I’m looking, but it’s not showing up?”
The video Ryu Min had ordered Al-Baghdadi to upload to YouTube had already been deleted and was gone.
But it had been exposed for 15 minutes, and in that short time 10,000 people clicked it, so no one could deny the video’s existence.
“Huh? Look at this. There’s a blog where someone summarized everything.”
Just as Min Juri said, someone really had captured the video and neatly organized the situation.
A post uploaded 30 minutes ago already had over 100 comments.
└Is this real? The IS leader committed suicide?
└How are we supposed to believe he’s even the IS leader in the first place? Isn’t this just fake news?
└LOL did all the reporters collectively get high? Doing fake news this systematically?
└I live in the U.S. and this is real. It got reported on CNM too and it’s a huge mess.
└Doesn’t seem like fake news. If you can easily search foreign articles on Goggle too.
└So it’s legit? The IS leader killed himself?
└Even looking at the video screenshots, I can’t tell.
└Guys, I checked around and got the video—this is real. The old dude says he’s the IS leader, then says there’s proof he’s the leader somewhere in Nigeria, then what was it? Black Scythe? He says Black Scythe killed all his men, so he has no face to show Allah, or something like that, and then he cuts his own throat and kills himself. It’s seriously shocking.
└Is the one above for real?
└Where can I watch the video? Please send it by email. [email protected]
└Me too. My email is [email protected]
└3333333 me too! My email is [email protected]!
└Sitting there writing a novel. Like the IS leader would be crazy enough to commit suicide? Morons.
└For real LOL. This blog is obviously saying “I saw the video” to get views, and that guy up there is an attention seeker pretending he saw it too—yet you’re naïvely believing it.
└Two morons up there. 10,000 people watched the video and articles are popping off in real time worldwide, and you’re still going “fake” and this shit.
└LOL yeah. People really lived their whole lives getting fooled or what—at this scale, believe it a little.
└But is it true the IS leader mentioned Black Scythe before he died?
└The article says Black Scythe wiped out all his underlings and organizations, so he had a reality check and killed himself.
└LOL how many did he kill for a reality check to hit?
└Who even is Black Scythe? Am I the only one who doesn’t know?
└The newly established CPF squad leader. Among players, he’s so strong he’s basically called a monster.
└If this is real, isn’t he a serial killer? That means he killed dozens to hundreds.
└Dog-Korea class, treating someone like a murderer even if he killed terrorists and served justice, tsk tsk
└They’re trash anyway, and with the Player Law, it probably won’t even be treated as murder.
└Still, since it’s a crime committed in Nigeria, it should be judged under their law.
└Nigeria would love it. He exterminated bugs for them on his own LOL
└Funny how you guys are. There isn’t even a single piece of proof that Black Scythe did it, yet you’re sitting here believing it, lol
└If you check whether Black Scythe departed for Nigeria that day, you’d know.
“Black Scythe-nim……?”
Reading the comments, Min Juri thought that if she met Black Scythe in the other world, she should immediately ask him.
Whether this article claiming he exterminated IS was true or not.
‘It’s true, obviously.’
Some people didn’t believe it yet, but as time passed, it would be fully revealed.
‘You can tell just by checking entry and exit records, and there’s plenty of evidence in Nigeria.’
The people Ryu Min had saved that day alone were already in the hundreds.
If even one or two of them proved it to the media, Black Scythe’s fame would gain weight.
‘Interview requests will come in, too.’
He hadn’t checked yet, but it was obvious—like seeing fire—that Lost Yak’s phone would be ringing like crazy.
And sure enough.
While Min Juri went to the bathroom, he casually checked his phone and saw dozens of missed calls and texts.
Just as expected—interview requests from media outlets.
‘Good thing I set it to silent beforehand. Otherwise I almost would’ve been exposed in front of Min Juri.’
Not killing Al-Baghdadi immediately, and instead making him film a suicide video, had been the right move too.
‘There’s no way the FBI and Interpol don’t know Al-Baghdadi’s face. More importantly, if they confirm the evidence he left behind, it’ll be easy to identify him as the second Caliph of IS.’
In the end, proper announcements and articles would be posted by the U.S. and Nigerian governments, which had been pursuing IS.
Soon, the fact that Black Scythe had collapsed IS’s organization would be known around the world.
‘Even if you actually try to verify it, it’ll be hard to find any IS forces. I told Al-Baghdadi to gather all remaining forces and kill them, so there shouldn’t be any bugs left.’
Of course, there could be follow-on supporters, but even so, at this point Ryu Min had done the best he could for world peace.
Though, if you’re being precise, it was more to build Black Scythe’s fame than peace.
“Black Scythe-nim is incredible……. When did he even go abroad and do something like this?”
“Yeah.”
“Min, you didn’t know? You can see the future.”
“I didn’t know. It’s not like I can see the future whenever I want.”
“Ah-ha.”
Min Juri left it at that.
As expected, the Prophet job was really great for making excuses.
Even while the world buzzed over IS’s eradication, time kept moving.
October 1st, midnight.
About 2,700 players gathered in one place.
They were the last players remaining in the Republic of Korea.
‘Once today passes, only 25% of these people will survive.’
It was a hopeless thing, but even Ryu Min couldn’t change the system’s rules.
‘If I can’t save everyone, then I should save only the people who’ll be most useful to me.’
And those useful people walked up to Ryu Min.
Min Juri, Ma Kyung-rok, An Sang-cheol, Seo Arin, Heo Tae-seok, Jo Yong-ho, and Yamtte.
“Black Scythe-nim, ah……?”
The ones who came looking for Black Scythe spotted each other and exchanged wary looks.
-Why are there so many people?
-Did everyone come to talk to Black Scythe-nim?
-Why are they clinging to Black Scythe-nim? Did they come to mooch off some scraps?
They all had negative feelings toward each other, but no one showed it openly.
Because in front of an absolute being like Black Scythe, they couldn’t afford to look pathetic.
“Hello, Black Scythe-nim.”
“Hello.”
“H-hello…….”
They all greeted him over each other, but Ryu Min didn’t respond to any one person.
They were all forces Ryu Min couldn’t discard.
So he asked them all.
“What did you all come to me for?”
“Ah. Who should speak first?”
“Th-they say you exterminated IS.”
Min Juri brought it up first.
“I wanted to confirm whether it’s true.”
“It’s true.”
When he acknowledged it cleanly, without any hemming and hawing, they all stared at him with shocked eyes.
“T-to think you really executed IS…….”
“As expected of Black Scythe-nim…… truly worthy of CPF’s squad leader.”
“To go to another country and even work to cleanse the world—I’m moved!”
Heo Tae-seok, who’d been so shy, suddenly spoke in an over-the-top way.
Reading his thoughts, it was an action meant deliberately to draw attention.
Looks like he had something to say.
“Nopein Noge’i. Do you have something you want to say to me?”
“Ah, y-yes, as expected, Black Scythe-nim. You saw right through my intent.”
“Just answer the question.”
“Ah—well, it’s just that I’m starting a religion this time.”
“A religion?”
“Yes, and the religion is one that serves…….”
Heo Tae-seok slowly spread his arms, then thrust them out powerfully as if presenting someone to be revered.
Toward Ryu Min.
“A religion that worships Black Scythe-nim as a god!”
“I’m not a god.”
“That depends on how people think. In our Reaper Church, Black Scythe-nim is a god!”
“Reaper Church?”
It was a pretty cringe name, but Heo Tae-seok looked proud beyond shameless.
“Yes! Isn’t it cool? Reaper Church! I already gathered six believers. Of course, I’m the cult leader. And this is Cardinal Eom Jun-seok.”
“Kheum…….”
At some point, Eom Jun-seok was standing beside Heo Tae-seok.
Maybe the title “Cardinal” embarrassed him—he couldn’t lift his face.
“If anyone’s interested, please join our Reaper Church. If you love Black Scythe-nim, we welcome anyone with open arms!”
Ryu Min was about to say something to the sudden advertisement, but stopped.
Because some players really did look interested, staring their way.
‘Min Juri, Seo Arin, Yamtte…… and even Jo Yong-ho?’
They weren’t showing it, but they looked like they wanted to join Reaper Church.
It was then.
“Ah! There he is!”
Another group had come looking for Black Scythe.
“Squad Leader-nim!”
They were CPF soldiers he’d seen in reality.
Of course, their customized faces were different, but since he’d memorized each nickname, it wasn’t hard to recognize them.
“You guys.”
“Squad Leader-nim, we’re disappointed! You went to Nigeria alone!”
“If you were going to catch IS bugs, you should’ve taken us too!”
Their tone was playful, but Ryu Min shot back seriously.
“You need to protect Korea. Where do you think you’re going?”
“Please share some of the credit for exterminating IS with us.”
“Hey, do you think they’re pushovers? They said there were hundreds of suspected IS players.”
“Yeah. If you go, you’ll just get in the way. Unless you’re at my level.”
“The hell you saying? You’re worse than me.”
“Hey, even so, I’ve got more criminal takedowns than you.”
“That and that are separate things.”
“Everyone, stop. None of us have the skill to deal with hundreds of IS. It’s impossible unless it’s Squad Leader-nim.”
“That’s true.”
Listening to the unit members nod as if admitting it, Ryu Min secretly let out a sigh.
‘How did it get this noisy?’
Even just the previous run, Ryu Min had survived alone and acted alone, purely for his own benefit.
But before he knew it, so many people had gathered around him.
‘At least I won’t be short on manpower and get erased like before.’
Of course, that was assuming he led everyone properly through hardships and adversity all the way to Round 20.
Just then, a light flashed in the sky, and a winged being spread its wings.
[Hello, humans? I’m Angel Nel, assigned to guide Round 10. I’ll be explaining this round, so everyone pay attention. Unless you want your heads to explode.]
After saying something chilling, the angel smiled brightly at everyone.
[First, congratulations on making it to Round 10. The fact that you’re already half the way there is deeply moving. You’re amazing people! But for today, you’d better throw away your arrogance. This is a difficult round where only one quarter survive.]
“What? One quarter?”
“Huh…….”
Watching the players get scared in advance, Nel snickered.
[Getting scared already. Then shall we take a look at the next round’s information?]