Chapter 18
CHAPTER 18
The Majesty of Madness (1)
Even the air itself was eating away at one's sanity.
Just as expected, Majesty Yu Jae-ha raised his wrist.
[Sanity Gauge: 88] → [86]
Neon lights flashed as the city glowed with the frenzy of an endless festival.
Holograms of overflowing wine goblets floated above every skyscraper.
The citizens laughed hysterically and danced while raising relic goblets into the air.
But Ju-Heon had a serious problem.
"See? Just breathing in this city gets you drunk."
Sure enough, Ju-Heon's Sanity Gauge was plummeting.
[Sanity Gauge: 50] → [30]
[Sanity Gauge -2]
"...It has begun."
Once his Sanity Gauge reached zero, he'd become an NPC without any chance to resist.
Ju-Heon glared at Majesty Yu Jae-ha in irritation.
"What the hell? Why's mine dropping faster than his?"
[Because you were already a lunatic?]
A vein twitched on Ju-Heon's temple.
He immediately moved to dunk Cup Noodles Yu Jae-ha into one of the city's wine fountains.
"You'll end up becoming one."
"A Majester NPC? That'd actually be pretty rare. Bet it'd fetch a good price at auction."
"You're talking about selling people?"
"There are worlds where NPCs are bought and sold all the time."
[Aaaagh! I'm sorry! I said I'm sorry!!]
Ju-Heon was dumbfounded.
Cup Noodles Yu Jae-ha trembled so hard that the lid rattled as he cried pitifully.
"Are all Majesties complete pieces of trash?"
[If you're going to cook me anyway... at least use proper boiling water!]
[Look who's talking~]
Ju-Heon sighed.
He prepared to throw Cup Noodles Yu Jae-ha back into the wine fountain.
"At this rate, my Sanity Gauge will hit zero and I'll become an NPC in this world."
[I said I'm sorry! Seriously!!]
"...What?"
"Anyway, that's not the issue right now. Make me a relic."
"A relic?"
"One that'll get rid of this filthy Majesty's stench of alcohol."
"Why should I take orders from you—"
"Hey, Majesties around here! This bastard's the one who created the Rulebook of Calamity—"
Yu Jae-ha desperately covered Ju-Heon's mouth.
Watching him panic, Ju-Heon spoke calmly.
"You don't wash away wine... with more wine."
"...?"
"You wash it away with the tears that fell from heaven."
"..."
"The rain that fell from Noah's Ark. The deluge that washed away sin and drowned the world. Bring forth that legend."
"...Fine! I'll make it! Just tell me exactly what you want!"
Majesty Yu Jae-ha's face twisted.
Ju-Heon snorted.
"Yu Jae-ha, your imagination's even worse than mine."
"...You always choose the most ridiculous things. You're seriously insane."
Yu Jae-ha wore a doubtful expression.
"A rainstorm covering an entire continent would require at least a Divine-grade relic. Even I can't create something like that."
"...But..."
"A single city... that might be possible."
"That's enough. We only need to wash this drunken city clean."
"The forty days and forty nights of rain."
"The judgment that swallowed humanity's sins without discrimination."
"And upon those waters floated the Ark, opening the way to a new world."
The moment Ju-Heon finished speaking, the drawings Yu Jae-ha had sketched on the ground with chalk—a crude ark and falling rain—began glowing gold.
The drawings materialized.
What emerged...
...was a portable umbrella.
Yu Jae-ha nodded and began drawing more symbols on the ground with his finger.
After a brief pause—
"...Done. I made it on the spot, so the rank isn't very high."
"You know the legend of Noah's Ark accurately? The more detailed the legend, the higher the success rate."
Ju-Heon clicked his tongue.
"Honestly... you're hopelessly ignorant."
Yu Jae-ha opened the black umbrella emblazoned with his drawing.
Whoosh.
A golden aura spread outward in a 500-meter radius.
Dark clouds gathered overhead.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!!
Rain poured from the heavens.
This wasn't ordinary rain.
It forcibly washed away the scent of alcohol.
It cleansed the very air itself.
The eyes of the citizens gradually regained their original clarity.
The overpowering smell of wine that filled the streets disappeared beneath the rain.
But that was where the real problem began.
Ju-Heon looked up through the downpour.
At that moment...
Several people within the crowd suddenly opened their eyes.
They were people whose sanity had returned once the relic's influence weakened.
Yet every one of them still held a relic in their hands.
Then, all at once—
They let out bloodcurdling screams.
Like addicts suffering violent withdrawal.
[New Relic Created: (A Rank)]
[Effect: Within the rainfall area, Madness Gauge -20 / Sanity Gauge +20]
[Effect: Purifies the surrounding air for a limited time.]
"Damn it! I was having fun!"
"Protect the wine!!"
"...Now I can finally breathe."
The object in his hand wasn't a wine bottle.
It was a relic dagger forged from intertwined bones and jewels.
The instant he swung it...
Several citizens' eyes turned crimson as madness overtook them once again.
"Enemy!"
"Kill him!!"
"He's trying to steal the Cup!!"
In other words...
My Majesty Rank is lower than the Majesty ruling this place.
In an instant...
The first massacre of the City of Madness was about to begin.
No...
More importantly, fighting without being able to use combat relics is a huge disadvantage.
Yu Jae-ha immediately tried to create a disposable weapon for him.
But—
"Only relics can oppose relics."
Crack!
Ju-Heon attempted to summon one of his relics to stop them.
Instead—
[There is a difference in Majesty Rank.]
[You cannot summon relics from another dimension.]
"What?"
A difference in rank?
Ju-Heon's knee drove squarely into one attacker's solar plexus.
"Gah...!"
The man collapsed with a scream that sounded as though his breath had been cut off.
The other two charged from either side simultaneously.
One wielded a club.
The other, a dagger.
Ju-Heon stabbed the one with the dagger first—
Then immediately drove his elbow into the other.
"...Is he a Majesty..."
"...or just a gangster?"
Ju-Heon casually flicked the blood from the back of his hand.
Another man charged at him from behind.
With a twist of Ju-Heon's wrist, the dagger flew from the attacker's hand and clattered onto the ground.
A club came swinging straight for his head.
Ju-Heon caught it with one hand, yanked its owner forward, and drove his knee into the man's face hard enough to cave it in.
"Protect the Cup!!"
Ju-Heon burst into laughter.
Crunch!
"If you're drunk, sober up first, you idiots!"
"Hah! Is this even a sword fight? It looks more like a drunken bar brawl."
Watching the chaos unfold, Yu Jae-ha looked utterly appalled.
Ju-Heon's palm slammed into another attacker's jaw.
At the same time, the Rope of Binding shot out and tied several others up like mummies.
Then a group of men in suits appeared, cutting through the confusion.
Each one carried a sword-type relic.
"Huh. Never seen your faces around this district."
"What are these punks doing causing trouble in our territory?"
"Heh."
"Rope!"
At a glance, they were nothing more than gangsters.
At Ju-Heon's call, the Rope of Binding shot forward like lightning.
The longsword relic aimed at him was instantly reeled into Ju-Heon's hand.
"We'd better teach them a lesson—"
"...Huh?"
But the moment Ju-Heon saw the sword, his eyes lit up.
"Oh! A weapon! Finally!"
"...?"
The owner of the stolen relic laughed in disbelief.
What the hell is this guy doing?
"Pretty confident, aren't you?"
The words had barely left his mouth before Ju-Heon answered with a vicious knee strike straight to his face.
The others frowned.
"You can't even use it anyway. Hand it over. We'll spare your life."
"I can't use it?"
Ju-Heon swung the longsword casually.
The ones most shocked weren't the gangsters.
It was the other relic users.
[Muramasa's Sword (A Rank)]
"T-That's..."
"An A-rank relic...!"
"What?"
"Don't tell me he's handling something like that so easily?"
"Who exactly can't use it?"
Ju-Heon lazily swung the blade.
A crimson flash erupted.
BOOOOM!!
One of the buildings beside the road was sliced clean in half before collapsing.
Flames and clouds of dust scattered into the air.
The relic users' expressions froze.
Anyone capable of wielding a relic like that should already have been famous.
Every relic user in the city was officially registered.
"...Who is that bastard?"
"I've never seen him before."
"There shouldn't be anyone that strong in this district."
"Hahaha! Long time no see, Muramasa!"
"...!!"
An unfamiliar face.
Unknown strength.
Meanwhile, Ju-Heon simply found the whole thing ridiculous.
They're making this much fuss over an A-rank relic?
A wicked grin slowly spread across his face.
Step by step...
He walked toward the enormous fountain where wine cascaded down like a waterfall.
The relic users exchanged uneasy glances.
[Activatable: Cup of Dionysus]
The next instant—
The current of the fountain suddenly reversed.
The wine that had been flowing upward abruptly changed direction.
BOOOOOOM!!
"Why's the fountain...?!"
"That's a relic installed by His Majesty...!"
The crimson torrent poured down upon the gathered relic users like bloody rain.
But it was already too late.
Ju-Heon casually rested one hand against the center of the massive wine fountain.
"W-What is this?!"
"No way...! The wine!"
BOOM!!
[Madness Gauge: 99]
[Divine-grade Relic Synchronization Requirements Met.]
In an instant...
Their clothes.
Their skin.
Their hair.
Everything was soaked in wine.
It felt as though the alcohol seeped straight into their bones.
Their eyes began to shake.
[Opponent's Sanity Gauge -20]
[Opponent's Sanity Gauge -30]
Ju-Heon swung Muramasa.
Wine sprayed through the air.
Bathed in crimson droplets that resembled splattering blood, he laughed maniacally.
"Hahahahaha!! That's it! Get even drunker, you bastards!!"
"Damn it! No!"
"At this rate we'll become NPCs!"
"Get a hold of yourselves! This is the Cup of Dionysus's effect—!"
Too late.
Already intoxicated by madness, they staggered before collapsing to their knees.
Muttered incantations slipped from between their lips.
Sword light flashed.
As bodies fell one after another...
A relic slipped from one of their hands.
Ju-Heon casually kicked it into the air with the tip of his foot before catching it.
"You think I can't use something that's supposed to be for Majesties only?"
"Protect... the Cup..."
"Enemy... He's trying to steal the wine..."
Pointing the tip of his sword at their throats, Ju-Heon smiled cruelly.
"Leave your relics behind."
"I'll spare your lives."
"Y-You lunatic!"
"Look at his eyes! He's completely insane!"
The gangsters turned and fled.
Ju-Heon burst into loud laughter as he chased after them like a ghost.
"I told you to leave the relics behind, you bastards!!"
Watching from behind, Majester Yu Jae-ha could only stare in horror.
"He's a real lunatic."
"A genuine, certifiable madman."