Chapter 235. The Archangel’s Proposal
“Um, Angel-nim? Angel-nim?”
Simple Mukbang asked over and over in his head, but there was no answer from the angel.
“Can’t she hear me?”
It seemed she wasn’t reading his thoughts—only transmitting her own will.
“What business could she possibly have with me?”
Mukbang, following after the angel, stopped and turned around.
At some point, he’d come so far that the people on the grassland looked like ants.
“What on earth are you trying to do by bringing me all the way out here to avoid everyone’s eyes…? Don’t tell me?”
A smile spread across Mukbang’s face.
“She’s going to give me a hidden reward, secretly?”
Could it be that the angels had acknowledged the desperate effort he’d put into surviving all this time?
So they were calling him separately to reward him, where no one else would see.
That hopeful thought lasted until the angel descended from the sky.
[What are you grinning like that for, human?]
“N-no, it’s nothing. Hehe. Um, anyway… what did you mean, you had business with me…?”
[The one who has business isn’t me. It’s the archangel.]
“An archangel?”
[I don’t know why, but the archangel wants to meet you. Consider it an honor.]
Mukbang cheered internally again and again.
“Of course! Of course it’s a hidden reward!”
He wanted to shout and jump around like an idiot, but since it was in front of an angel, he forced himself to endure.
Even so, he couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from rising.
[Why do you keep smiling?]
“Haha—n-no, it’s nothing. I just feel good, thinking I’ll be meeting an archangel.”
[So you do know a thing or two. Shall we go meet the archangel, then?]
“Yes!”
[Hold my hand for ten seconds. We’ll move to the heavenly realm.]
“Ah.”
The angel’s hand—his first time holding one—was soft.
Her gentle smile felt like warm sunlight on a spring day.
“Ahh, Angel-nim… I think I’m falling in lo—”
The moment the ten seconds—long as eternity—passed, Mukbang couldn’t finish the thought.
It wasn’t only because a brilliant world worthy of being called the heavenly realm unfolded before his eyes.
It was because an incomprehensible message, in red letters, spilled down in a long line.
[You have left the location while the Round is in progress.]
[If you do not return to the location within 1 hour, your Player qualification will be revoked.]
[Time remaining until revocation: 00:59:59]
“Huh? W-what is this? Revocation? Angel-nim, something weird just popp—”
The moment Mukbang saw the angel’s face, he couldn’t continue.
The warm-spring-day face was gone, replaced by a wicked smile.
[Kikik, you idiot. You actually came just because I told you to?]
“A-Angel… nim?”
[What ‘Angel-nim,’ you worm of a human. Don’t look at me with those unlucky eyes, got it?]
Even the angel’s tone—she who had always spoken politely—had changed.
As if there was no reason to use honorifics in the heavenly realm.
Leaving the shocked Mukbang behind, the angel muttered toward empty air.
[Yes, yes. I brought him just now. Ah—yes. I’ll be waiting.]
As if he’d finally grasped the situation, Mukbang’s face twisted.
“Y-you tricked me! This wasn’t about giving me a reward!”
[Are you insane? When did I ever say I was giving you a reward? And I didn’t even lie. The archangel wants to meet you—that part is true.]
“What?”
At that moment, a radiance flared before his eyes.
He blinked reflexively—and an angel he’d never seen before was standing there.
A handsome male angel with wings and dignity that couldn’t even be compared to the guide.
[This lowly one greets the august archangel.]
[Stand up, Millen.]
[Hah?! Y-you even know my name…! I-it’s an honor!]
Watching the angel who’d been snarling just moments ago suddenly wear the expression of a bashful girl, Mukbang came to his senses in a cold, empty way.
Because she looked exactly like him, from a moment earlier, when he’d thought he was in love.
[Now go back and proceed with the Round. If you stay away too long, you may be suspected.]
[Understood. It was an honor to meet you. Then, I’ll take my leave……]
When Millen vanished, only the male angel and Mukbang remained atop the clouds.
[I am one of the seven archangels… no, I suppose I should say three now. I am Gabriel, second in rank among the three archangels. Your nickname is “Simple Mukbang,” yes?]
“Y-yes, that’s right.”
Mukbang answered in honorifics without meaning to.
It felt like he had to.
The dignity, the pressure—this was on an entirely different level from any angel he’d seen before.
[You saw the message, so you know. In one hour, your Player qualification will be revoked. Simply because you came to the heavenly realm.]
“……”
[Of course, there is no way for you to return from here. Only angels can travel between the heavenly realm and the other world.]
“W-why are you doing this to me? P-please, let me go back.”
[You want to go back? Wouldn’t it be better if your qualification is revoked? Then you won’t have to participate in the survival game anymore.]
“Huh?”
When he heard it like that, it was true.
Having your Player qualification revoked meant being removed from the game.
No more fighting to survive.
[In exchange, you will lose the power of a Player and return to being a civilian—but for someone like you, that would be a better life. Better than risking being erased at any moment, like you are now. Isn’t that right?]
“Y-yes.”
He’d talked big about clearing to Round 20 and making a wish, but he wasn’t confident.
There was no telling how hard the quests ahead might be.
“If I can… I want to go back. To my old life.”
Revenge, whatever—he didn’t need Player power.
He just wanted to live.
That thought shook Mukbang’s heart.
“T-then if I just wait here for an hour, I can go back to being an ordinary civilian?”
[Yes. But I won’t allow that. Before your qualification is revoked, I will send you back to the other world—if you refuse my proposal.]
“A proposal?”
[You know who Black Scythe is, don’t you?]
At the sudden nickname, Mukbang’s eyes sank coldly.
“I do……”
[You bear a grudge against him, don’t you?]
“……”
[You needn’t say it. I already know. I investigated everything. You want revenge on Black Scythe. That is why I brought trash like you here.]
“W-what… what do you want me to do?”
Seeing Mukbang immediately grasp the context, Gabriel looked mildly surprised.
[Hm. You’re not as stupid as I thought. Then, before I get to the main point……]
Something flashed in Gabriel’s hand, and an object appeared.
It was an old-looking book with a large purple orb embedded in it.
[Take this first.]
Mukbang received the book and, without thinking, stared into the orb—then flinched in shock.
“What was that? It looked like something moved inside the orb……”
When he looked again, nothing was there.
It must have been his imagination.
“W-what is this? This creepy book?”
[It is a kind of warp device. If you press it to a Player’s body and speak the activation phrase, you can bring them to the heavenly realm.]
“The heavenly realm?”
Gabriel nodded and delivered the main point.
[Press it to Black Scythe’s body and speak the activation phrase. Then you can forcibly move him to the heavenly realm. In other words, you can revoke his Player qualification, just like yours.]
“Ah……”
[So? If you do as I say and bring Black Scythe here, you can remove that victory favorite from the Round. You’re not hoping he reaches Round 20 and gets the wish he wants, are you?]
Mukbang nodded silently.
At this rate, just as the archangel said, Black Scythe would win.
No matter what, he didn’t want to watch that bastard succeed.
“But why do you specifically want me to bring Black Scythe?”
[Because he committed a very, very great sin that disrupts the order of the heavenly realm. Therefore he must come here and receive punishment.]
“If it’s punishment, what kind of—”
[You do not need to know the details. Just know this: it will be painful enough to make him want to die. So do not worry. I will enact your revenge for you. You only need to warp him to the heavenly realm.]
“If I do that, you’ll also keep your promise and remove me from the survival game, right?”
[Of course. After punishing Black Scythe, I will bring you to the heavenly realm as well and revoke your Player qualification. You will be able to live as a civilian, without being dragged into the survival game anymore.]
“I’m not going to have to live in the other world with some customized body, am I?”
[Of course not. The moment your qualification is revoked, your avatar will vanish and only your soul will remain. And because you cooperated in capturing a sinner, I will use my power to ensure your soul can return to Earth. If you wish, I can even help you live in the heavenly realm with angels.]
Mukbang, in his heart, wanted to live in heaven with pretty angels, having bunny-like children……
But—
“There’s no way angels would like me……”
Maybe because the angel who’d treated him like a bug earlier flashed through his mind, Mukbang wanted to go home.
“I’ll return to Earth and live a normal life.”
[Is that so? If you want it, I will grant it. As long as you complete what I told you properly.]
“I’ll do it. I’ll definitely do it.”
For Mukbang, this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.
A chance to escape the survival game—and a chance to get revenge on Black Scythe.
There was no downside, so he couldn’t refuse.
“So all I have to do is press the book to his body and speak the activation phrase, and it’ll revoke his qualification?”
No matter how strong Black Scythe was, if he was warped to the heavenly realm, there would be nothing he could do.
Gabriel said only angels had a way to cross between realms.
“He’ll probably get his qualification revoked without being able to do anything, then get dragged away by angels. Heh heh heh.”
Since Gabriel said the punishment would be painful enough to make him want to die, it was perfect revenge.
But thinking calmly, there was a problem.
“Um……”
[What is it?]
“Can I even press this to Black Scythe’s body? If I get close, he’ll notice because of Presence Detection……”
[So what? You only need a brief moment. Press it and speak the activation phrase, and it will activate immediately.]
“That’s true, but… it’s him, so I’m a little worried……”
Hesitating, Mukbang finally said what he really meant.
“Can you give me some kind of item? Something good, if possible. If he notices before I even press it, that’ll be a problem.”
“You damn human bastard……”
For a split second, Gabriel’s brow twitched—but only for a split second.
[Don’t worry. Black Scythe will be busy progressing the Round and won’t even pay attention to you. If you’re truly uneasy, then act during the final tenth wave.]
“The tenth wave?”
[By then, people will be in considerable chaos. It’s the timing that will be easiest for you to aim for.]
“Ah, then it’ll be best to move then.”
[Good. The activation phrase is “La Grasi Betaom.” Memorize it, and use it.]
“That’s a strange activation phrase. Okay. I’ll try it.”
The moment the Round was about to begin—
Simple Mukbang returned to the grassland.
Because the archangel warped him back to the other world.
“I’m back. That wasn’t a dream, was it?”
It wasn’t a dream, or anything like one.
The book the angel gave him was sitting boldly in his inventory.
[?Ǹ??? ??Ȱ??]
-Category: Consumable
-Grade: God
-Effect: ?Ǹ? ????? ???? ????
-Use Restriction: Master grade or higher
-Description: ?ݰ? 10m?? ???????? ??ƸԾ? ?Ǹ? ????? ?????? ?ҷ??? ?? ?ִ? ??????. ?ٸ? ?????? ?????? ??ü?? 100???? 1?? ???ϴ?.
“I can’t understand a single word of what it says.”
Is it because it’s an object from the heavenly realm?
In the system, some of the letters were broken.
All he could tell was that it was a consumable, and it was God grade.
“God grade is my first time seeing it… is that a high grade?”
Either way, he had to press it to Black Scythe’s body and speak the activation phrase.
He’d memorized it again and again, so there was no chance he’d forget.
The only problem was whether he could really warp Black Scythe.
“I’ll do it. But if I get caught, I might die… huh? Come to think of it, aren’t we party members?”
Party members couldn’t kill each other.
Realizing that, Mukbang’s lips curled upward.
At least he wouldn’t die.
“If that’s the case, I just have to get close… that’s easy?”
Turns out, it was easier than he’d thought.
“Still, should I hang on until the tenth wave?”
With a greasy smile, Simple Mukbang slipped into the crowd.
Making up his mind to carry out the plan during the confusion when the tenth wave arrived.