Chapter 211
“...!”
The Extermination Squad gasped.
Their reaction came about three seconds after Paimon was consumed by fire and disappeared. While only seconds elapsed, it was a considerably slow reaction considering they were still in combat.
Paimon's actions had been so bewildering.
After tormenting the Extermination Squad so cunningly, she made such a cool exit when it was time to leave. Of course, it was good for the Extermination Squad, but they couldn't help but feel a bit dazed.
And on the other hand, there was also a sense of relief.
*It's a good thing we came to exterminate it quickly...*
Paimon had only retreated willingly because he had reached his limit. If he had been in a more stable condition, he might have escaped through Basin.
A Demon who could freely use such power and even traverse Space.
It was a disaster too terrible to imagine.
Anyway, with one Demon down, only one remained.
We looked towards Basin with tense expressions.
But as he had said earlier, he had no intention of fighting.
He was already preparing to open a dimension and escape.
“Well, the Boss fight is over.”
He said, stepping into a rift that had appeared in the Void.
“Then I'll be taking my leave. Please continue to enjoy our services.”
*Swoosh.*
With that, he vanished into the rift. He teleported somewhere.
No one tried to stop him. Everyone was too exhausted for that.
“...”
“...”
As the Demons all disappeared, silence briefly settled over the remaining area.
The Extermination was over. The sunset was already painting the sky.
Even though the target Demon had been exterminated, the Extermination Squad remained quiet.
It was the quietest victory of any battle they had ever fought.
*
The atmosphere was a little chaotic, but they had, at least, managed to secure a difficult victory.
After a moment of silence, everyone started to show normal reactions.
“Wow, wow! We won! We really won, right?”
“We won, but... wow, it's kinda creepy.”
“If I upload the video, the reactions are gonna be insane.”
Although their reactions were a bit awkward.
The Otherworlders didn't seem to take Basin's words too seriously yet.
He had suddenly mentioned being a GM and all, but they seemed to think it was just another game cutscene.
Honestly, I didn't understand half of what he said either, so I could understand why the Otherworlders were so nonchalant.
“Everyone, stand still in a single line!”
The battle was over, but that didn't mean all their work was done.
They still had to re-tie and take the prisoners and tend to the wounded.
Fortunately, because they had prepared thoroughly, there weren't many wounded.
Paimon's abilities were more about utility, so his raw destructive power was manageable.
Of course, there were a few deceased, but in a battle like this, casualties were inevitable.
With a new Demon having appeared, there would be a lot to do back home, so I couldn't afford to get too emotional about it.
“Hehe, I guess it's overtime again when we get back? I love overtime. Overtime makes me so happy.”
As we were cleaning up, Odelia chuckled and spouted crazy talk.
Startled, I looked at her for a moment.
I saw her, half-enlightened, with the soul drained from her eyes.
It seemed the consecutive appearance of Demons had completely shattered her mental state.
*Oh dear...*
Her state was a little pitiful, but it was their job, so I decided to pretend not to notice. I figured I'd done my part just by participating in the battle.
*Still, this feels really gross.*
After helping with the cleanup for a bit, I frowned at the sensation on my body.
Basin's words were unsettling, but the dampness of my body bothered me more.
That damn Paimon.
Many of his commands involved water-related attacks.
Like releasing large amounts of water to hinder entry, or scattering hot water droplets everywhere to completely block access.
It seemed he had been under Focused Targeting because Nikki, who could freely control fire, was here.
Thanks to that, the people nearby were inevitably caught in it.
My clothes were completely soaked. They were heavy, like waterlogged cotton.
“Ugh, when are we going back?”
“Yeah. Getting out of this Labyrinth is going to be a chore, too.”
“Should I just Logout and edit the video? The sooner I upload it, the better.”
*Squish-squish-*
I noticed that everyone else, not just me, was wringing out their clothes, as if doing laundry.
Flashes of bare skin here and there were quite stimulating.
*Ah, whatever.*
Seeing that, I decided to wring out the water from my clothes too. It was uncomfortable to walk in this state anyway.
I lifted my top for a moment and squeezed out the absorbed water.
*Drip-drip-drip*, water fell like rain. No wonder it felt heavy; I was completely drenched.
“...”
“...Hmm?”
As I was busy hand-washing, I noticed that the surroundings had become quiet.
Feeling a sense of unease, I looked up. And there they were, all staring in my direction with blank faces.
Feeling unnecessarily embarrassed, I glared at them and said,
“What? What is it?”
“...”
“...Ahem, ahem.”
Only then did the People clear their throats and turn their heads away.
After finishing the cleanup, we returned to the Empire.
*
Paimon has been exterminated!
The news spread rapidly through the User Community as soon as the battle ended.
The Demon that appeared this time was exceptionally powerful..., and the participating Otherworlders immediately uploaded Combat Videos.
[?? Yu Chae-rin, what's the length of her video lol]
[2 hours omg]
[Tonight's dinner is a heaping bowl of rice haha]
And it was an unedited full video, starting from the moment they encountered Paimon.
They must have decided that there were no scenes to cut from this battle.
Indeed, it felt that way.
Paimon's Intuitive Pattern commands, diverse Attack methods, and truly Overwhelming Physique!
Even at the end, a Demon named Basin suddenly appeared, presenting a new cutscene.
For Otherworlders who couldn't participate in the battle, it was nothing short of delicious content.
+
[I watched the whole video]
Wow, it was really packed lol
The battle was amazing, but what was that demon at the end?
He said something to the users at the end, and it gave me real-time goosebumps.
+
[For real lol]
[What was that thing Yor wrapped around his spear in the middle?]
[ㄴ It's Sword Aura, you idiot?]
[ㄴ No, you f*cker, it's clearly different. This guy doesn't know anything but acts like he does.]
[ㄴ Sorry, calm down;;]
[ㄴ Wow, but his Attack power was no joke.]
[ㄴ For real, he seems to get stronger every time I see him.]
[ㄴ Strong Man... Normal Libido...]
[But if you upload the battle first, how are you going to edit the part where you were lost in the Labyrinth lol?]
Thanks to this, related posts quickly flooded the User Community.
Not just Yu Chae-rin, but all the other Streamers who participated in the Extermination uploaded videos.
Anyone who enjoyed Demon's Saga and watched YouTube couldn't help but encounter them.
+
[Yor's *super hot* points today *fya fya*]
+
+
[What about Nikki and that Branch Leader? Do we not have to catch them?]
+
To exaggerate a little, the entire Community was talking about that Extermination.
And among them, the most frequently mentioned topic was, without a doubt, Basin's words.
+
[Seriously, what is this Basin guy???]
Who is he to suddenly call himself a GM?
What were those things he said?
I was enjoying an action movie, but when he appeared, it felt like it turned into a thriller.
+
[For real lol, watching it felt like he was talking directly to me lol. It suddenly felt super real and gave me goosebumps.]
[He talked about the Dimensional Veil and stuff, but honestly, I half-ignored it.]
[There were some old games where characters messed with people outside the game, but it's been a while since I've seen that.]
[ㄴ These Game Company bastards always neglect us, but it seems they put some effort into the cutscene this time.]
[Soon Monsters will invade Reality. Everyone, build bunkers and prepare.]
[ㄴ Shut up, don't overdo it.]
Of course, no one had paid close attention to Basin's words.
Basin hadn't explained everything, and what he said was quite abstruse.
And frankly, even if he said, “Thanks to all of you, the Dimensional Veil has thinned.”
Wouldn't it be crazy to believe that game life forms would suddenly appear in reality?
They just thought it was preparation for a new event... and left it at that.
+
[By the way, isn't this Basin guy kinda hot...?]
A Narrow-eyed Suit-wearing Male Character, how can I resist this?
His face is handsome, and his body is slender and nice.
I really want to have a drink with Sir Basin at a bar and have a deep, physical conversation...
+
[Sir]
[For real lol]
[Honestly, he's kind of hot lol]
In the end, it just devolved into how hot Basin was.
*Click.*
“...Hmm.”
Having finished her web surfing, Yu Chae-rin leaned back in her chair.
The users on the internet seemed to think it was just a new event, but Chae-rin, honestly, took Basin's words more seriously.
She often felt that Demon's Saga was particularly real when she played it.
Even if it looked like game addiction, she couldn't help it.
Each and every NPC moved individually, like real living people, making it impossible not to feel their vitality.
She often felt that way, especially when she met Yor, the NPC she interacted with most frequently.
*...What a strange person.*
She wasn't just talking about his appearance or anything like that.
For example, his personality was poles apart when he was close to someone versus when he was a complete stranger.
When she first met him, he was incredibly fierce.
Saying one wrong word felt like a knife would fly. He'd swear casually, and his face was quite sharp. Honestly, there were many times she almost peed herself despite his being an NPC.
However, if you pushed through that and built some trust, his personality would change 180 degrees... well, maybe 150 degrees.
Even if he was sometimes prickly, he often smiled and took care of others.
Simply put, he had a warm heart.
Just seeing him risk danger to save Manifestors or Branch Leaders showed that he was more tender-hearted than one might think.
Of course, he was merciless to his enemies.
With an NPC showing so many different sides, it was impossible not to grow fond of him.
Because it was such a vibrant game, Basin's words made her wonder, “What if?”
“...Nah.”
*Pfft.*
Of course, it remained just a thought, and she quickly snapped out of her reverie.
After all, she was a person living in Reality, not a child to dwell on absurd thoughts for too long.
So, she turned on the TV in her room, intending to find a drama to watch for the first time in a while.
And on the news channel that came on, she heard interesting news.
[Breaking news... Reports have come in that a Strange Creature has appeared near Saratov, Russia, and has attacked people──]