The plaza was chaos.
Screams split the air, metal clanged against chitin, and the stone underfoot was slick with black ichor and red blood.
The Lesser Void Centipede at Jinhyuk's feet twitched once, then went still.
[You have slain a Lesser Void Centipede.]
[You have gained 300 coins.]
The system message vanished, only to be replaced by a cascade of golden motes drifting into existence.
[The Pillar Who Bore the Sky is impressed by your decisive strike.]
[You have gained 100 coins.]
[The One-Eyed Wanderer chuckles at your clever use of terrain.]
[You have gained 50 coins.]
[Warning: Several Constellations are attempting to bookmark you. Being bookmarked by a Constellation means they have shown interest in your growth.]
Jinhyuk's lips twitched. Trying to hold back the smirk that was forming
Good. Let them watch.
The boy, Jaehyun, still clung to the wall, shaking so hard the air vent behind him rattled. His eyes were glued to the dead centipede, its mandibles still snapping reflexively.
"D- did you kill it?"
Jinhyuk didn't answer. He was already scanning the plaza. Two more centipedes scuttled in a zigzag pattern, their glossy bodies slipping between fleeing survivors. One of them lunged onto a man's back, sinking its fangs deep into his neck.
Blood sprayed. The man's scream turned wet before fading to nothing.
The air shimmered above the carnage. Nocturne stood atop the central fountain, one hand on his cane, silver eyes glinting with pure amusement.
"Oh, my precious little darlings, you do move fast~"
His voice was velvet wrapped in steel.
"Already killing, already dying. My Constellations are feasting~"
[The Weaver of Unseen Wars requests you show more strategic maneuvers.]
[The Turtle Ship Admiral nods approvingly at your choice to protect the young one.]
[You have gained 75 coins.]
'That's good... The more attention I get, The more Coins and Sponsorship Offers I receive.'
Jinhyuk tightened his grip on the blood-slick pipe. He had to make sure the right ones stayed interested.
A centipede rounded the corner toward the alley, mandibles clicking.
Perfect.
He stepped forward, baiting it into lunging.
The moment it committed, Jinhyuk swung the pipe upward, jamming it into the soft spot under the head.
The creature thrashed violently, but the confined space made it easy to pin.
He shoved harder until the ichor poured freely, and the legs went limp.
[You have slain a Lesser Void Centipede.]
[You have gained 300 coins.]
[The Arrow That Never Misses applauds your precision.]
[You have gained 100 coins.]
"H- How do you know where to hit them?"
Jaehyun asked.
"That's because I wrote it.. I wrote your hell... So do your best not to get attached to me..."
Jinhyuk muttered under his breath.
The boy blinked.
"What...?"
A shadow swept over them.
Jinhyuk looked up just in time to see something drop from the fountain. a centipede, but bulkier, its mandibles serrated.
'That's… too early... Damn it... I might die here...'
It was an Elite Lesser Void Centiped.
The kind that didn't appear until the last three minutes of the phase in his manuscript.
Jinhyuk looked up, He saw Nocturne's amused drawl drifted from above.
"Oh, don't mind me~ I thought I'd… spice things up. My audience adores unpredictability~"
[The King Who Sought the Horizon laughs in anticipation of your death.]
[You have gained 30 coins.]
[The Demon-like Maiden of Flames watches in silence.]
The Elite lunged. Jinhyuk shoved Jaehyun aside and rolled.
The mandibles slammed into the wall where his head had been, cracking the stone.
No time for hesitation. He gripped the pipe in both hands and aimed for the joint.
But the Elite twisted mid-attack, sweeping him with its body. Jinhyuk hit the ground hard, pipe skittering away.
Pain flared along his ribs.
[Warning: Your HP has dropped below 80%]
The Elite reared up again.
Then-...
A flash of glass.
Jaehyun, face pale but eyes blazing with determination, had thrown his insect terrarium at the centipede's head.
The glass shattered, scattering the remaining beetles, crickets, and one very angry stag beetle onto the Elite's face.
It screeched, thrashing.
Jinhyuk didn't waste this opening.
He scrambled to his pipe, lunged forward, and drove it deep into the exposed neck joint.
The screech turned into a choking gurgle before silence claimed it.
[You have slain an Elite Lesser Void Centipede.]
[You have gained 500 coins.]
[The Turtle Ship Admiral sends you a Bronze Ranked Support Item: Dented Iron Bracer.]
[Would you like to accept?]
Jinhyuk didn't hesitate.
"Accept."
A faint shimmer, and a worn iron bracer appeared in his hand. He strapped it to his left arm, feeling the faint hum of defensive reinforcement.
"Nice throw!" Jinhyuk told Jaehyun.
The boy smiled shakily.
"Y- You said to run from anything bigger than my hand…"
"And yet you didn't."
"Y- You were gonna die...!"
Jinhyuk didn't respond. He could only mumble
"F- Fair enough.."
Above them, Nocturne tilted his head, cane resting against his shoulder.
"Mmm~My Constellations are quite taken with you, stranger. Keep this up, and they may just… invest."
[The Weaver of Unseen Wars has bookmarked you.]
[The Arrow That Never Misses has bookmarked you.]
[The Demon-like Maiden of Flames has bookmarked you.]
The remaining centipedes were thinning. Either killed or chasing prey into side streets. The system timer ticked down in the corner of Jinhyuk's vision.
[Main Scenario 1 - Second Phase]
[Remaining Time: 01:12 Remaining.]
Jaehyun tugged at his sleeve.
"We… we might make it."
Jinhyuk glanced at the boy. Then at the plaza, where the survivors were down to less than half.
'Making it is one thing. Surviving what comes after… that's the real game.'
The final seconds drained away. The surviving centipedes stopped mid-lunge, their bodies disintegrating into black dust that drifted upward and vanished.
The plaza fell into an uneasy, blood-scented silence.
[You have survived Main Scenario 1 - Second Phase.]
[You have earned 500 coins for survival.]
[Bonus: Additional 245 coins for exceeding average kill count.]
[Total Coins: 3,100]
Nocturne clapped once, the sound sharp enough to make everyone flinch.
"Bravo, my precious little pests~ You've lived through my opening act. But don't grow too comfortable. The real show has just begun~!"
Golden motes swirled above him again.
[The Pillar Who Bore the Sky anticipates your performance in the next act.]
[The King Who Sought the Horizon hopes you'll break sooner rather than later.]
Jinhyuk exhaled slowly. His ribs ached, his shirt was sticky with blood... most of it not his. And Jaehyun was still shaking.
But for now, they'd survived.
For now. At least.