Ooooon… Ooooon…
“Hell Gate…”
Though it stood behind me, I could make out the colossal, sinister gate through my half-open eyes. Then it hit me. That unmistakable scent.
Strangely nostalgic…
The same overwhelming odor filled my nostrils, instantly bringing back memories of my battle with the Rakshasa.
“…Thank goodness…”
“…Looks like… I managed to activate it…”
To be honest, I barely remembered what had happened the moment it activated. I vaguely recalled unleashing it at almost the exact same instant as the Hero’s ultimate technique…
But beyond that? I had no idea.
I couldn’t explain what had happened—
Or why things had ended up like this.
| > Hell Gate’s here! > Old man! You still alive?! > Still as massive and terrifying as ever. > Ugh… it looks like it smells awful… > Ooooon… ooooon… Kekeke. > This series really mixes comedy and life-or-death drama like nothing else. > Heal yourself! > Don’t forget you’re on the verge of dying! > Item Box! > No, check where the Hero is first! > Where’d the Hero go?! > The camera’s only showing the gate—we can’t tell what’s happening! > Camera! Get around to the front already! |
Just as the viewers had pointed out, I was currently trapped between the wall of the forty-eighth floor and the newly summoned Hell Gate. From where I stood, I couldn’t see what was happening on the other side at all. The gate stretched all the way to the ceiling of the dungeon, so climbing over it to get a look was out of the question.
Just like during my battle against the Rakshasa…
If I wanted to see what lay beyond the gate, I’d have to carefully peek around the side without exposing myself.
| > Nice! Good camera work! > There he is! The Hero! > He looks completely wiped out! > He’s down on one knee, gasping for air. > Guess that last ultimate attack drained him dry. > Seriously, this camera is insanely good. > It survived all those lightning attacks. > Even the old man’s on the verge of death! > At this point, the camera might be the strongest character in the story. |
Nice one, camera!
Thanks to the stream switching to the front view—while still leaving the chat visible—I finally had a rough idea of what was happening on the other side. It looked like the Hero had burned through an incredible amount of stamina with that last attack.
“Item Box!”
Healing came first. I pulled a recovery potion from the box.
Gulp… gulp…
“Phew…”
Alright. My HP and MP should both be completely restored now. Everything was finally in place. The time had come to put an end to this pointless, infuriating battle. After being hollowed out by the deathly wind of Hell Gate…
I’d finish him off with the most devastating Cremation he’d ever seen!
“Ooooon… Ooooon…”
Rumble…
WHOOOOOOOSH…!
Oh. It looked like the asterisk-shaped bloom had opened across the surface of Hell Gate.
The sound reminded me of an air conditioner blasting icy air through a room that had been scorching hot only moments before.
And the fragrance—
No, the concentration of that glorious stench—
Had become even richer.
All the evidence I needed.
“Now then… let’s see what became of the Hero…”
With my wounds healed and my confidence restored, I walked over to the edge of the rear side of Hell Gate and cautiously leaned my head around the corner for a peek.
By now… the Hero should’ve been nothing more than a corpse.
“Let’s have a look…”
…
“Hm?”
| > Huh…? > Wait, what?! > Oh, come on… > Doesn’t he… look healthier? > Did it fail? > No way, that thing definitely reeks! > The air’s literally turned yellow! > You’re kidding me… > Hell Gate’s death wind doesn’t work on the Hero?! > He’s actually… recovering…? |
“…”
W-Wait… that’s possible?!
“HAHAHAHAHA!!”
The Hero threw back his head and roared with laughter.
“That’s one hell of a fart wind you’ve got there, you damn Priest!”
He rose back to his feet. The aura surrounding him erupted once more, crackling around his body like the wrath of a thunder god, making the very air tremble.
“I DON’T HATE THIS STENCH AT ALL!!!”
As he bellowed those words, the aura only grew stronger.
Hold on…
Hold on a second!
At this point, it’s not that Hell Gate isn’t affecting him…
It’s practically recharging him!
Stop!
Somebody stop the fart!!
“TURN THE FART OFF!!!”
“Too bad, you damn Priest!”
The Hero grinned from ear to ear.
“The tables have turned!”
T-this is really, really bad…!
If he fired that lightning attack now, empowered by the Nether King’s own energy…
…I’d be blown to atoms!
No, no, no…!
He’s already charging up for a counterattack!
The electricity exploding off him was absolutely insane!
| > Yeah… we’re cooked. > Thanks for everything, old man. > We’ll never forget you… > It’s been a fun ride. > We’ll hold a memorial service for you… > We’ll crowdfund your grave. |
The viewers had already given up on me!!
No… For real?…
This is really it?
There was no way I could deal with that…
『…Shout.』
“…Huh?”
『From the bottom of your soul… shout!』
Nether King Gramps….
But, shout what?
What exactly was I supposed to shout?
Was he telling me to beg for my life?
As if the Hero would spare me just because I pleaded!
『The true essence of Hell Gate… is not in opening it.』
“…What?”
『Though I’d rather not draw in a soul like his…』
…Had the old man finally gone senile?
I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about.
『Enough! There’s no time! Simply shout exactly what I tell you!』
“Alright, alright!”
This might end up being my last words…
But I didn’t exactly have anything else to rely on.
I’d already made up my mind. If screaming at the top of my lungs was my only option…
Then all that was left was for the old man to tell me what to scream.
『Reverse the rectum!』
“REVERSE THE RECTUM!!”
『Reverse Hell Gate!』
“REVERSE HELL GATE!!”
『THE HADES OF FART!!!』
“THE HADES OF FART!!!”
The instant I shouted the Nether King’s bizarre incantation with every ounce of strength I had…
The death wind pouring from Hell Gate stopped. Instantly.
“So you’ve stopped now? Too late! DIE, YOU DAMN PRIEST—”
“…Huh?”
“W-what?!”
By then, the Hero’s aura had already reached its absolute peak.
If his previous attack had been on the tera scale… this one had probably entered the realm of peta.
But then—
“I-It’s… absorbing it…”
“NOOOOO!! MY LIGHTNING!! MY LIGHTNING!!!”
The crackling thunder aura surrounding the Hero was violently sucked toward the center of the giant asterisk engraved upon the Hell Gate.
His immense aura vanished before my eyes.
“N-No…! You’re not taking just my power—YOU’RE TAKING ME TOO!!!”
His clothes and hair whipped wildly as if a hurricane were blowing from behind him.
But that wasn’t it.
The wind is coming from Hell Gate itself. The gate had reversed its flow. Instead of expelling its deadly wind… It is generating an overwhelming vacuum.
It isn’t just draining away his aura. It is trying to swallow the Hero whole.
“Y-you bastard…!! Aaaaaah!”
He went in face first.
Pop!
Schluurp!
“…”
Yep.
The whole thing fit.
| > Uh… > Ah… > Yeah… > LMAO, it’s over. > 🤣🤣🤣 > That’s brutal… |
“…It’s over…?”
『Do not underestimate my Hell Gate, young lad.』
The Nether King’s voice echoed in my mind.
『The real show begins now.』
【Genetic profile analysis complete. Linking to the Seat of the Soul.】
“…”
T-the Hell Gate…
It’s talking?!
“Wha—?! Huh? Where am I? Wait… no… this can’t be…!”
Without warning, a skinny man in a business suit appeared where the Hero had been standing just moments earlier. He wore glasses. He looked more like an intellectual office worker than a legendary champion. A tablet was even clutched tightly in his hand.
『That appears to be the true body. 』
“The true body…?”
That’s the Hero?
He didn’t look like a Hero at all. If anything, he looked like some elite corporate employee.
“W-Wait…! Wait just a second! No! NOOOOOOO!!!”
Pop!
“…Ahhhhhhh!”
Schluurp!
The real Hero had appeared out of nowhere… Only to let out a single scream before being sucked straight into Hell Gate.
Just like that. Before I could even process what I’d witnessed… it seemed the final battle against the Hero was over.
| > What the heck was that? > Pretty sure that was just an elaborate gag… |
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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