LTTH C82

Chapter 82

With no way to know whether his assumption was correct, Hansol nevertheless clung to a small ember of hope.

If this new perception was what he thought it was… perhaps he could finally locate the unseen—perhaps he could find Sehyeon.

For some time, the familiar notifications of “You have gained a small amount of experience” had stopped appearing.

Their disappearance terrified him.

He had always taken them as proof of Sehyeon’s survival.

If they had ceased because the Sanctuary had purged nearby monsters, it would be a relief—but if not…

Please… let him be alive.

That desperate wish in his heart, Hansol swept his gaze around him.

As soon as he focused his will, his vision expanded—first over the clustered survivors and hunters, then outward, the world flattening into clean lines like a drawn map stretching into the distance.

Good heavens…

Just as he was marveling at the vastness of his heightened sight, Hansol’s focus snapped to a point far away—a single dot.

Sehyeon.

Hansol’s chest tightened.

He was alive.

But he didn’t look well.

Hansol could not see the details clearly, yet Sehyeon’s staggered steps made the truth obvious—he was injured.

Hansol glanced at the ground. The area was outside the Sanctuary’s reach.

Where was this?

Collapsed buildings and shattered rubble made it impossible to determine the exact location.

“Hansol.”

“Yes?”

“That—did you do that too?”

Kassie had come close, pointing at the Guardian wrapped in brilliant silver light.

Fighting the colossal monster, the Guardian radiated a clarity and force far beyond what he’d shown before.

“…Probably?”

“At this rate… he really might be able to kill it.”

“I hope so.”

Hansol agreed fervently.

The Guardian moved too quickly for Hansol’s eyes to follow.

The monster, on the other hand, did not.

Its enormous body limited its speed—though each of its slow strikes tore open the ground and sent buildings flying, so speed hardly mattered.

Yeah… if it were fast too, that would be outright cheating.

Perhaps the system still had some sense of balance.

But Hansol barely had time to take comfort in that thought before the situation shifted abruptly.

The monster’s whip-like branches trembled; every leaf fell away in a rain of green. The bare branches looked frail—but that was merely the cost of what came next.

Where the leaves touched the earth, the ground glowed green—and then collapsed, liquefying into a swamp.

Even the part of the Sanctuary touching its territory warped.

A portion of Hansol’s holy ground had been overwritten by the monster’s domain.

Then, the roots supporting the monster shifted.

They struck—coiling around the Guardian and binding him in midair like a snared bird.

Hansol saw the Guardian’s struggling form—and then his vision drowned in blue.

^($%^@ has relinquished its authority.

^($%^@’s authority has been partially transferred.

Adjusting functions to match the inheritor’s class.

Confirming Upgrade Stones as materials. Applying them.

System windows rose and burst like an avalanche—so fast and dense they were nearly unreadable.

Hansol blinked hard.

He could understand the words individually, but the meaning slipped through his grasp.

And “wait safely in a secure location”?

Where?

Danger surrounded them on all sides.

If anything could count as “safe,” it was the Sanctuary beneath his feet.

“Hansol, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“Are you looking for something?”

Kassie and the Tower Master scanned the surroundings with him, reacting to his darting gaze.

He wanted to answer—he truly did—but how could he explain something he barely understood himself?

Before he could form words, the “time-consuming process” mentioned earlier finished far sooner than expected.

^($%^@’s authority transfer has been completed.

The moment the final line appeared, Hansol’s breath hitched.

The world… stopped.

Time halted—the movement, the sounds, the wind.

Then, before him, vivid scenes began to unfold.

Not quite “images”—more like memories experienced firsthand.

The first was desolate wilderness.

Buildings rose, people appeared—still unfamiliar to Hansol.

He recognized nothing until the sky turned blood-red.

England’s Catastrophe.

Monsters flooding the streets; people running and hunters fighting back.

There—Kassie and Isaac.

Their faces the same as now, but younger in aura, less hardened.

Hansol watched them fight—until the younger Kassie’s blue eyes met his.

The scene shifted.

Ah.

It was only a few seconds long, but Hansol instantly understood.

Korea’s Catastrophe.

The day he had survived.

His parents dying.

His brother dying.

Everyone dying while he sat helplessly, crying on the floor.

The view captured from a distant observer—cold, helpless.

Why was he being shown this?

The memories grew chaotic—England and Korea flashing out of order.

Hansol could barely focus until the timeline moved to the moment of his Awakening.

Then it steadied, replaying his life like a biography.

And when it finally reached the moment he met Kassie and Isaac in England, the visions ended.

^($%^@’s memories have been partially transferred.

Time resumed.

The system window looked normal again—but Hansol knew it wasn’t.

At last, he understood.

The entity watching him all this time…

The one that separated England’s timeline from the original…

The one that had been with him since the beginning…

It was the system itself.

Not Korea’s system—this one was different.

Born at the same moment, but separated when England was split from the original timeline.

A twin system—a younger sibling.

And it was giving him its authority.

The inheritor’s class has been reassigned to Candidate for God.

The words were immense—yet Hansol wasn’t surprised.

If he had inherited a system’s authority… this much was only natural.

Instinct surged.

Knowledge blossomed.

He knew what he could do.

The Sanctuary—previously limited to protecting those near him—could be expanded.

Vastly expanded.

Enough to cover Seoul.

No—Korea.

Hansol acted.

The faint golden glow beneath his feet blazed once more.

“What the—?!”

“The ground is glowing—again?!”

Light swallowed the battlefield in a blinding wave—and then faded.

The world looked… normal.

Perfectly normal.

“The Sanctuary… disappeared?”

“Just like that? Then what happens now—?!”

“How can it be gone when the Messiah’s right here?!”

Hunters and civilians alike stared at Hansol, confused and frightened.

The golden radiance marking the holy ground had vanished—but that didn’t mean the Sanctuary was gone.

“Hansol, what did you just do? The monster—it’s gone.”

“And all the nearby Gates—they disappeared as well.”

“What is happening…?”

While the others trembled in confusion, three people reacted differently:

Kassie, the Tower Master, and James.

Their eyes held astonishment—yes—but also joy.

Their faith in him warmed Hansol’s chest, and an involuntary smile rose to his lips.

Having someone who believed in him… was a gift he hadn’t known he needed.

“The Sanctuary… became stronger.”

“So the monster disappeared because of the Sanctuary’s effect. Astonishing.”

“Hansol-nim, the range seems absurdly large… how big is it now?”

“Well…”

Two mages’ sparkling eyes drew closer, closer—so close Hansol had to push them back.

“Both of you—calm down, please!”

“Hansol, this is not something we can stay calm about!”

“Correct. This is not merely an expanded safe zone. Depending on its radius, this could become a strategic base to push back the monsters entirely. We may even be able to drive them out of Korea altogether. The applications are endless. Of course, the time limit is a shame, but even so—”

“W-wait!!”

Had someone flipped a switch?

Hansol cut the Tower Master off before the flood of words resumed.

“If I had to put it simply… Korea won’t have to worry about monsters anymore. And if I really push it, I could expand further, but… why bother?”

“So you’re saying…”

“You mean… the entire territory of Korea is under the Sanctuary?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, Jesus…”

The three fell silent, speechless.

Time limit or no, Korea had instantly become the safest country in the world.

An impossible miracle—and it had unfolded before their eyes.

“This isn’t a dream, right? We’re not trapped in some monster hallucination?”

“Well, maybe James would fall for that, but you and the Tower Master? I doubt it.”

“…Fair.”

James stood behind them, face blank in sheer shock.

If they knew the Sanctuary was actually semi-permanent, they’d probably faint on the spot.

Would they lock him up to “study” him?

Hansol wondered whether he should reveal that part.

“And about the time limit… you don’t need to worry. Probably.”

“……”

No one answered.