Chapter 5: Open the door! Freedom has come.
10
After running for another 30 minutes, Kim Bingkwon stopped again.
The fog had lightened slightly, revealing a massive black shape within it.
It was a colossal castle.
— Ohhh…
— Holy sht.
— Lol, you’re going in there? For real?
[Sponsored by Mu7ryun! (10 D)]
— Dude, enough already… Let’s turn back…
The viewers started chatting again about 10 minutes after Sugar vanished.
They had already forgotten her.
“What the hell is this…”
Before setting out, Kim Bingkwon had saved a picture of Incheon Airport Terminal 1 on his phone.
This was nothing like it.
The sleek, curved architecture from the image was gone.
Instead, a massive castle of neatly stacked jet-black bricks loomed before him.
An eerie, pale mint-colored aura swirled around it.
Grotesque monster sculptures of unknown forms lined the path to the giant gate.
Huge pillars, defying gravity, jutted haphazardly around the entrance.
— Bingkwon, let’s stop here.
— Yeah, we’ve come far enough.
— You idiot, just getting here is Guinness World Record material…
— For real, wtf.
But Kim Bingkwon had to move forward.
An irresistible message flooded his mind.
Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy…
Different from before.
This time, it wasn’t about play.
But what did other messages matter?
He had to keep going.
He took another step, offering an excuse the viewers might accept.
“You motherfuckers. You wanted me to bring her out, but you bet a ton on the mission. Want me to just ditch it?”
[Mission: Bring the Black Dog Out] – 24,110 D
The viewer count had skyrocketed.
What started as playful bets had grown into a massive sum.
24 million won in Korean currency.
Money Kim Bingkwon would need three or four months of hero work to earn.
— What the hell, that’s a solid excuse.
— Don’t you dare!
— Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun
— People first? Nah, money first!
— Just go, go, go, go!
Even the viewers were tired of trying to stop him.
No matter how much they protested, he wouldn’t listen.
Instead of stopping Kim Bingkwon, they resigned to praying for his soul and watching the thrilling spectacle.
As he approached the door, traces of the old Incheon Airport finally appeared.
A weathered bus stop sign, looking at least a century old.
— Is this really Incheon Airport?
— Who the hell built a castle here?
— This doesn’t feel… good…
— Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! Go! Don’t stop!
Some viewers, who had been treating this like a horror game, started logging off.
No matter how you looked at it, the place screamed “Demon King’s castle.”
Something was definitely inside.
“Whoa… Alright… Let’s go in…”
Whatever it was, Kim Bingkwon had to enter.
“Huh?”
The firmly locked door wouldn’t budge.
No matter how hard he pushed, it didn’t move an inch.
“What the hell. What do we do? The door won’t open.”
— Why you asking us?
— Phobos says ‘80% of superpowered people lose their powers.’
— This guy’s seen his powers wrecked before, hasn’t he?
“Damn…”
BlackHound was definitely inside.
If he could open the door, she’d be waiting somewhere.
But the ancient, locked door didn’t even creak.
Kim Bingkwon agonized for ten seconds before deciding.
“I have no choice. Gotta use that…”
The camera faced forward, so the stream didn’t show it, but the viewers knew what was coming.
— Ice Punch! Ice Punch! Ice Punch! Ice Punch! Ice Punch! Ice Punch! Ice Punch!
— Ice Punch! Ice Punch! Ice Punch!
Four methods of channeling mana, the energy behind abilities, had been identified with current human technology.
The second was the physical manifestation type.
These individuals had a mana core embedded in their heart, their blood vessels reinforced with mana.
They channeled mana through accelerated blood flow to manifest it via limbs, like hands or feet.
This included ordinary fighters like Kim Bingkwon and those wielding various weapons.
Kim Bingkwon took a deep breath, pulling his right hand back.
As he assumed a relaxed punching stance, his heart pounded as if on cue.
Mana-infused blood surged to his fingertips, where ice shards began forming, encasing his entire arm.
Confirming enough ice-attributed mana had gathered, he shouted his incantation.
“The power of the frost giant that threatened even the gods…!”
— Ice Punch!
— Ice Punch!
With a crack, mana exceeding his arm’s capacity burst from his elbow, propelling his fist forward.
A chilling frost spread across the thick iron door with a clang.
As the door froze solid, another burst of mana erupted from his elbow.
— Damn, it’s wild every time I see it.
— How’s that door freezing like that, lol?
— Sht, I gotta change my underwear again… Bing-sht, you bastard!
With a crack, fissures spread from where his fist struck, and the door began to collapse.
Kim Bingkwon quickly freed his stuck fist and stepped back six paces.
In mere seconds, one of the massive double doors shattered into ice fragments.
“Phew… No matter how big the door, one hit from this Ice Punch and it’s… done…”
— That one-liner timing is god-tier.
— You shitty bastard.
“Quit whining, I’m going in.”
Brushing off the remaining ice shards, Kim Bingkwon stepped over the crunching ice into the dark castle.
The chat began filling with worried voices.
— This guy used Ice Punch already. What’s he gonna do if something shows up later? Running out of mana?
— Probably gonna bolt with Light Steps.
— Sounds ridiculous just thinking about it, lol.
His nickname “Afun Man” came not just from his skill’s uniqueness but also from mocking his mana depletion after one big move.
With only about 10% mana left after running with Light Steps and that massive punch, which burned nearly 70% of his mana, Kim Bingkwon pressed on, distracted.
But what could he do?
This was his fate.
11
I jolted awake, sitting up abruptly.
“…What was that?”
It wasn’t just a building tremor.
If it were, the bed would’ve only shaken slightly.
Instead, it felt like someone grabbed my ankle and shook my body violently up and down.
But looking around, there was nothing but white walls.
Listening closely, I heard nothing.
Figuring I’d imagined it, I buried myself back in bed.
To wake up when I was so sleepy—such a strange body.
Closing my eyes, I tried to push back the waves of thoughts.
Falling asleep.
Sinking into sleep.
Into…
…Nope, it’s not happening.
Not sleepy at all.
No idea how long I slept, but my mind was too clear.
The inexplicable itch at my toes was also keeping me from resting.
“Ugh…”
I turned the room’s light back on and sat at the desk.
Maybe a few cigarettes would help me sleep.
Opening an already-torn pack, I pulled out a cigarette, put it to my lips, and inhaled deeply.
The tip glowed naturally.
The sticky, unknown substance cooled my lungs.
“Phew—”
Exhaling forcefully, the complex thoughts left my mouth with the smoke.
My mind cleared.
Father’s black cigarettes were the best.
Now, the only thought in my frontal lobe was to grow stronger, leave this place, and protect L’el.
But the moment I stopped smoking, blasphemous feelings shook my brain again.
Bored. Dull. Tedious.
“Fck, can’t sleep.”
If sleep wasn’t happening, streaming was the only answer.
Since rest was a lost cause, I’d have to play with my slave viewers.
What would be fun today?
Maybe take some donation-funded videos for laughs.
“Hey, what’s up, you bastards?”
[BlackHound / Live – 41 viewers]
— Hello.
— Greetings.
— Hi.
— Good day.
— Yo!
…
After greeting my familiar slaves, just as my thoughts were about to consume me, a fun idea struck.
Setting the cigarette pack on the desk, I muttered,
“Web novel. Pick a fun one.”
The 41 viewers each offered their top picks.
Lathy scanned the list and chose the most intriguing title.
“Reincarnated Cthulhu’s World Conquest? That’s supposed to be fun?”
— Agree.
— Agree.
— Agree.
…
About thirty agreed.
If the majority approved, it was only polite to check it out.
“Transcribe it in order, at a speed I can read.”
If it wasn’t fun, the one who suggested it and everyone who agreed would have to drink the devil’s brew.
Not just the usual mop-water taste, but the infamous ZIKO 2, said to taste like water wrung from a classroom floor mop.
“Ugh, now my ankle’s itching.”
I scratched my ankle absentmindedly.
12
Kim Bingkwon faced a dilemma.
“Huff… huff…”
Panting heavily, he stood on a crumbling staircase, barely a fragment left.
“Fck, why are there so many traps?!”
— Traps are standard here, lol.
— This guy’s never played D&D.
— Lol, it looks straight-up like a Demon King’s castle. You thought there’d be no traps?
— Lucky the Demon King’s army hasn’t shown up, you idiot.
The aboongis were right.
In this massive castle, not a single entity blocked his path.
There were several scorched marks, reeking of burnt leather, but that was it.
“Ugh, sht… Watch this. I’m jumping to that spot in one go.”
— You’re gonna faaaall!
— Kiiiyaaa!
Unfazed by the mockery, Kim Bingkwon aimed for the intact stone staircase in the distance.
But his mana was nearing its limit.
This might be his last leap.
…Pain. …Pain. …Pain. …Pain. …Pain. …Pain.
The message in his head grew stronger.
At the end of this staircase, on the castle’s top floor, BlackHound was there.
For some reason, she’d started expressing pain recently.
Her thoughts were fragmented, hard to decipher, but she was clearly hurting.
He had to go. No question.
Using Light Steps, he could leap across the remaining staircase fragments to reach the end.
“Let’s do this!”
— Gravity acceleration is 9.8m/s².
— Falling means no wings.
“I’m not falling, you bastards!”
His feet hit the protruding stones, propelling him forward.
Finally, the last stepping stone.
But as his foot touched it, the stone tilted with a crack.
Kim Bingkwon’s body veered off course, flying toward the broken staircase’s end.
“Argh!”
His hand barely caught the edge.
— Fck, he made it?!
— Hero of our time.
— Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun Mu7ryun
Pulling himself up with his last strength, his donations pinged repeatedly.
Many were stunned by the rare feat.
“Phew… That’s right. Nothing Ice Punch can’t do.”
— Ice Fist! Ice Fist! Ice Fist! Ice Fist! Ice Fist! Ice Fist!
— A guy risking his life for a manager he might not even know exists?
— If there’s no one there, you’re a legend, lol.
There had to be someone.
Opening the modern-looking door at the end would reveal BlackHound.
…It hurts so bad. …It hurts so bad. …It hurts so bad. …It hurts so bad…
Her suffering could end now.
This life of pain, addicted to Void energy, was over, BlackHound.
Kim Bingkwon shouted to himself as he charged forward.
The door burst open with a bang.
In the eerily white room, a pitch-black woman appeared, slumped over a desk, writhing in agony.
“…It hurts… I’m gonna die… Fck…”
The sound of Kim Bingkwon’s teeth grinding echoed.
Resentment toward her father, who’d locked her up, fueled his body.
“BlackHound!!”
She slowly turned her head, bangs falling unbrushed, tears welling in her wrinkled, pitiful face.
Kim Bingkwon’s heart broke, and he tried to hug her, but—
[(Caution!) SP decreases.]
Instead, BlackHound’s fist struck him, knocking him down.
Having floored Afun Man with one punch, she smirked and muttered,
“What the… Hehe. This idiot… Hehehe, it was so much fun.”
*