Thumbs Up, Level Up

Chapter 155

Ji-Cheok walked into the dark, listening to Ji-Han’s footsteps. He couldn’t see anything even if he increased his eyesight with his Qi. However, as he walked, a section with light soon appeared. The patterns drawn on the walls illuminated the surroundings with a faint light. And Ji-Han was walking through the section.

?We are going downward, Master.?

‘Yeah, I think we’re heading underground…’

He walked for a while with that in mind. Soon, a huge underground space appeared. It was wide enough to accommodate a five-story building, and there was an altar in the middle. There was a long groove dug under the altar with dark red marks that had to be for discarding blood.

‘I hope it’s an altar to kill a chicken or sheep and offer it as a sacrifice. I really hope it’s not for sacrificing humans.’

?We may never know, Master. This place does not feel like it belongs to the Earth.?

‘Yeah, I know that. And [Despair] showed me those bizarre, grotesque beings that were clearly eating humans.’

They were eating humans as if they were guests invited to communion, enjoying the moment. Ji-Cheok could not unsee what he had witnessed before. He was about to be taken in by madness once more, but he suppressed it just in time.

On the altar, a man was sitting and smirking at them.

“Ji-Haaan!! Being underground is too much!! I thought I was going to die of boredom. I’ve already killed a few people because of that!”

It was a bright, cheerful voice, but Ji-Cheok could smell the blood. When Ji-Han snapped his finger, the surroundings brightened and the man’s face was then revealed.

‘Dark.’

It was difficult for Ji-Cheok to express anything beyond that. The man had black hair, as well as black fingernails and toenails. His skin was pale, without any trace of pigment, and his clothes were plain black. Normally, even black fabric had to reflect some?amount of light, but his clothes were so black that they looked like the fabric swallowed the light altogether.

He was a pure black-and-white humanoid being.

“Did you catch and eat some criminals again?” Ji-Han asked.

The man’s eyes were red. They were the only part of him that was not achromatic. His pupils were snake-like vertical slits, so anyone could tell that he was not a human.

“Well~ You gave me permission to that extent, didn’t you? You can't blame me for doing that when you’re the one who keeps me here to guard this place. You’re the one who made this place impossible for a sane person to enter here anyway,” the man said.

Ji-Han pressed his forehead as if he was starting to get a headache. Suddenly, Ji-Cheok saw a circle drawn under the altar where the man was standing.

“First of all, the fool in front of us is not a human. He is an extremely dangerous extra-dimensional being. For convenience’s sake, you can compare him to the Fragment of the Abyss.”

“HAHAHA!! That’s one way to describe me. Do kids like that kind of stuff these days?”

‘Shut your emo ass up. You’re trying to tell me you’re not emo with that black nail polish?’

?First of all, he is not a human, Master.?

‘I know… No one in the world will think that is a human being.’

“Hello~ My name is Reable. Lovely Reable~”

It sounded like a member of some kind of cute K-pop idol group. He was even making finger hearts like those idols.

“He is lying. Usually these beings hide their true names, so don’t be fooled,” Ji-Han said.

“Wow, that’s not nice, Ji-Han~ Is this how you treat other people?” Reable said.

He crouched down in a crying-child pose. It was pretty weird seeing a grown man in that position.

“Anyway, I ate enough people to meet my human sacrifice needs~ Thanks for that,” Reable said with twinkling eyes.

With an expressionless face, Ji-Han replied, “You did that on your own.”

“What~ Who was the person who unlocked my cell phone for me? They say there are many things you can do with your phone in this dimension~ Instead of casting a large-scale seduction spell, you could just get the phone number of a drug trafficking cartel to get humans to come here.”

‘I guess the Internet works here too. Wait, before that… What the hell is going on with this dude?’

“As expected, humans are very kind. I got some of those Bitecoins too!”

“...I don’t even want to know what you did to get them,” Ji-Han said.

‘Could the Bitecoins belong to one of those dead bodies? I wouldn’t know.’

What was certain was that the man in front of him was difficult to judge with human wisdom.

“We’re here to sign a contract,” Ji-Han said while shaking his head.

He looked at Ji-Cheok.

‘Wait, wait, wait! Contract? Right now? Without any information?’

“Wait a minute, I don’t know what’s going on,” Ji-Cheok said.

The man who identified himself as Reable looked at both Ji-Cheok and Ji-Han with a smirk.

“First, this Fragment of the Abyss called Reable—”

“It’s Lovely Reable~★”

‘You crazy bastard, stop that! Stop doing finger hearts with dead bodies beside you!’

“Um… What happens when you sign a contract with this person named Reable?” Ji-Cheok asked.

Ji-Cheok was worried what might happen to him if he signed a contract with an unidentified incomprehensible being from another dimension.

“Oh wow. You’re asking a question and not accepting to sign the contract immediately? Most people desire to sign the contract to the point where they’re offering their parents’ or their kids’ hearts! The Incas and the Mayans sacrificed countless people’s heads and hearts to obtain my power,” Reable said.

‘Wow… That’s really creepy. Damn it.’

“As you might have guessed, he is very dangerous. His essence is a demonic spirit that is difficult for humans to comprehend, and the moment he crossed over to our world and became helpless, he had been imprisoned here due to the laws of causality,” Ji-Han said.

Ji-Cheok thought back on their previous conversation. The man ate those people and even called them ‘human sacrifices’. He felt that the word ‘dangerous’ was selling Reable’s cruelty rather short.

Ji-Han pressed his forehead with his hand.

“If you sign the contract, you will be able to use that power for the sake of the world. It will definitely help. But I cannot guarantee it, because it’s my ‘first’ time doing it,” Ji-Han said.

“Of course. Who would sign a contract with this being twice?”

“....Indeed.”

‘So when he said he was going to save the world at any cost, he was being serious.’

“What if I decide not to sign the contract?”

“I will dispose of him. I believe that there is no way for anyone else except you to make use of this person, Mr. Um.”

While Ji-Han spoke calmly, Reable stared at Ji-Cheok. Reable definitely knew what it meant to be disposed of, but there was no fear on his face.

“Hm…”

His eyes were the color of blood.

“It looks like you’re thinking of making me sign that unfair blood contract.”

Reable spoke of Ji-Han’s true intentions.

“Aren’t you a fragment of another dimension anyway? Sending in a fragment of yourself should be the only way for you to come to a world where the Tutorial hasn’t even finished, right?” Ji-Han said.

Reable’s black, silky hair covered his face. He seemed to be around one hundred and ninety centimeters tall. It was hard to guess, because it was dark, but just from the silhouette of his body, Ji-Cheok felt as if Reable could overwhelm anyone with his size. He was rather muscular, but the reason why he felt so overwhelming lay in the bizarre madness he radiated rather than his physique.

He looked Ji-Cheok up and down.

“Oh, what a rare soul. He is loved by many people, so he has enough strength in his relationships, and he’s so handsome! His purity is preserved well for his age and it’s strong. A person like this is quite precious. Where did you find him?” Reable asked.

As he reached out to touch Ji-Cheok, he was blocked by the circular barrier. Then, he gestured to Ji-Cheok as if he was calling over a cat.

“Do you want to come in for a second?” Reable asked.

“If I go in, will I end up like those corpses?”

“No, you won’t die. No worries, the Demon never lies. Just come in for a second,” Reable responded to his blunt question.

‘The Demon never lies…But Ji-Han said earlier to be careful of his lies. Who am I supposed to believe?’

He asked his [Minor Intuition], but for some reason, only vague sensations came back. He decided to feel Reable out first.

“Then, is the name Reable related to the word ‘lovely’?”

“Yes, I am the Lovely Reable. But it also has another meaning. In the old games, the RGB black, 0:0:0, is also called ‘Real Black’. My name is an abbreviation for that.”

‘Wow, talk about lazy naming.’

“Even with a blood contract, there is no problem for you. I know you don’t have that many restrictions anyway. You probably just have to follow an emergency order or something,” Ji-Han said to Reable.

“You’re right. So basically, you’re trying to control the atomic bomb by inserting a few safety pins into it. I hope that works out~ From this Abyss’s point of view, I’m not so sure~”

When Ji-Cheok heard the term ‘atomic bomb,’ he looked at Ji-Han.

“Even though his power is sealed, he can quite literally reproduce the firepower of a small atomic bomb by himself,” Ji-Han said to Ji-Cheok.

‘That’s why he said that this is the first quest. If I can control that level of power, it will definitely help me in the future.’

“Do you eat people?” Ji-Cheok asked Reable.

“Yes, I do. And I enjoy doing it.”

He smiled like a pure child.

“Can we come to a compromise of you eating only the criminals? People like weapon dealers who kill a lot of people.”

“...If you want.”

Ji-Cheok walked toward the barrier. Ji-Han tried to stop him but Ji-Cheok had already made up his mind. Seeing him willingly enter his territory, Reable burst into laughter.

“This is so interesting! You don’t go insane when you see me, and you come near me willingly even after you see the corpses.”

[You have received 1 Like.]

‘Wow, I never knew Demons could give me a Like.’

“Why did you come to this world? And why is your power sealed?” Ji-Cheok asked.

“Because there is something I want to find.”

“What is that?”

“The Demon never lies.”

“I guess that means you don’t want to answer.”

“Yes.”

Suddenly, Ji-Cheok saw the white handle of a knife stuck in the back of Reable’s left hand. The blade pierced his hand and came out through his palm.

“What is this?” Ji-Cheok asked.

“This is the sealing device. If you break this, the contract will be signed and we will become friends for a limited time. How about it? Do you want to become temporary friends?”

‘So this man killed this many criminals with just his right hand? There had to be some Awakened criminals too. And he can’t even get out of this barrier!’

Ji-Cheok whispered to Reable.

“You don’t kill your friends, right?”

Reable shook his head.

“No, I don't.”

“Then, can you help your friend reach his goal?”

“Since Ji-Han brought you here, you must be the ‘Singularity.’”

‘Singularity? What does that mean?’

Ji-Cheok looked back at Ji-Han. Ji-Han shook his head while pointing to his ring finger. It meant that this was also part of the ‘restriction’. Ji-Cheok pulled out the knife stuck in Reable’s hand with all his might.

“Kyahahahah!!”

The Demon laughed frivolously.

It looked quite out of place for a small atomic bomb to laugh like this.

“Okay, Um Ji-Cheok. As your temporary friend, I will grant your wishes without killing or betraying you. What I get in return is the right to leave this circle and walk into this world. Should I breach the contract, I will lose my real name.”

Woong.

At that moment, the circular barrier that surrounded them began to vibrate.

“So tell me, what is your wish?”

1. His name in Korean is basically Lovely spelled backwards.