Chapter 192
For the first time...
Suhyeok was visibly shaken by the unbelievable situation unfolding before him.
So much so that the confusion showed clearly on the face he normally kept carefully controlled.
His gaze returned to Schunau's corpse sprawled across the floor.
He'd been killed instantly.
Even if Ruzian had ambushed him from behind and pierced his heart...
An existence possessing Rank on Schunau's level shouldn't have gone down that easily.
Ruzian had probably prepared for this in advance.
He would've gone to great lengths to make Schunau lower his guard for this exact moment.
And Schunau hadn't been the only one he'd deceived.
Suhyeok himself had been included.
"Hahaha."
"This is quite a rare sight."
Ruzian smiled with his usual relaxed expression as he wiped the blood from his hand with a handkerchief.
"To think someone as cautious as you would actually make that kind of face when surprised."
He kept trying to suppress his laughter...
But eventually lowered his head and snickered.
Then he gave up entirely.
He laughed openly.
After laughing so hard that tears formed in his eyes...
Ruzian wiped them away and apologized.
"Ah, my apologies."
"Sometimes my emotions get a little difficult to control."
His laughter gradually faded.
The corners of his mouth...
Which had stretched almost unnaturally high...
Slowly returned to normal.
His crescent-shaped eyes turned toward Suhyeok.
"This may sound sudden..."
"But whenever I watched you, I often wondered whether you were truly human."
"Even now."
"You always stayed cold and rational..."
"And produced results that should've been impossible."
As he spoke...
Ruzian slowly walked toward Suhyeok.
Then gently rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Truthfully..."
"I never expected a situation like this to happen."
"Over millions of years..."
"No one ever climbed this Tower all the way to 100."
"No one ever returned to challenge the 100th floor again."
"And no one became a Constellation during that process."
Suhyeok's gaze shifted toward him.
"This was only possible because you existed outside the range of my expectations."
"If not for that..."
"I never would've had the chance to carry out a plan like this."
Ruzian smiled softly.
"I'm glad."
"...!"
For a moment...
Suhyeok was genuinely surprised.
Because this smile was different.
It wasn't the artificial smile Ruzian always wore.
It wasn't filled with deception or calculation.
This was...
His real smile.
Silence passed between them.
Then Suhyeok finally asked,
"...What exactly are you planning?"
Ruzian tilted his head.
"What do you mean?"
"Isn't this what we originally agreed on?"
"Or am I remembering our promise incorrectly?"
"Hmm."
He pretended to think for a moment.
Then seemed to realize what Suhyeok meant.
A grin returned to his face.
"Ah."
"That."
"You mean..."
"Our alliance was supposed to last until System was eliminated."
"So you're wondering why I've suddenly betrayed you now."
"Is that it?"
Ruzian didn't wait for an answer.
"Hmm."
"I can see why you're confused."
"But as you know..."
"We even signed a contract."
"And I'm sure you understand better than anyone what happens if that contract is violated."
That was true.
Ruzian clearly hadn't broken the contract.
If he had...
He should've been extinguished according to its terms.
And Suhyeok knew exactly how powerful a Mythic contract was.
Before the regression...
He had seen countless people suffer the consequences of breaking contracts.
The penalty differed depending on the quality of the contract...
But most possessed powerful binding force.
A Mythic contract, however...
Was absolute.
The instant the agreement was violated...
The offender was extinguished.
It didn't matter even if the target possessed the Rank of a Constellation.
The same applied to the contract between System and the Outer Gods.
If System violated its agreement with them...
Even System itself couldn't avoid extinction.
Then how...?
The question only deepened.
There shouldn't have been any item or ability capable of nullifying it.
Once again...
Even Constellations couldn't escape a contract once bound by it.
Ruzian studied Suhyeok's expression.
Then removed his hand from his shoulder.
He slowly began circling him.
"Your thoughts look rather complicated."
"I imagine you're wondering..."
"How I managed to violate our contract and remain perfectly fine."
"..."
Suhyeok remained silent.
Because that was exactly what he was thinking.
How had Ruzian escaped the contract?
Ruzian eventually stopped walking.
He looked toward System.
Then asked Suhyeok a question.
"Then let me ask you something."
"Where exactly is this being called ‘System’?"
Silence followed.
Naturally...
Suhyeok's gaze moved toward the figure standing behind them.
Ruzian smiled as though he'd expected that reaction.
"Wrong."
"The ‘System’ that you and I defined in our contract..."
"Doesn't exist here."
"The incomplete, half-finished existence once called System has disappeared."
"Now..."
"Only the complete Tower remains."
"That's why the contract hasn't affected me."
"Does that make sense?"
Only then...
Did Suhyeok understand.
System had already absorbed all of the Tower's authority and power.
That meant it could no longer be defined simply as System.
And indeed...
Just look at its current appearance.
Previously...
Its entire body had resembled a white paper doll.
Now...
It looked like a completely ordinary child.
There was no visible sense of disharmony at all.
The energies inside its body had completely fused together.
It finished absorbing the Tower before I even arrived....
Grind.
Suhyeok clenched his teeth.
He'd let his guard down.
He had never expected Ruzian to betray him at this point.
Even if he had considered betrayal possible...
That didn't change the fact that he'd still been careless.
Then...
Ding!
[Trait Plunder is available against crackle──]
A Trait Plunder message appeared.
But suddenly...
The space containing the message distorted as though an error had occurred.
Crackle.
Hiss.
Then...
[Administrator Authority activates.]
[Target completely resists Trait Plunder.]
And at that instant...
[Warning!]
[Target possesses Rank from a higher dimensional level than your own.]
[Administrator Rank invades your mental world.]
[‘No.21 Ring of Mental Immunity’ is disabled by Administrator Authority.]
BZZZZZZT!
