Chapter 280: Earth (3)

When Alisha opened her eyes, she was in a place full of strange people.

People in white coats, others in weird suits like frog outfits. But when she saw the dimensional portal behind her, she understood what she had to do.

Arden Style, First Sword.

— Domain Slash.

Alisha Arden, the Demonic Sword, the swordswoman who devoured her nemesis and completed the Heavenly Sword, cut the dimensional portal in two in an instant—an instant that hundreds of people couldn’t even perceive.

‘This is going to get annoying. I should leave now.’

She simultaneously escaped inside her Domain. Inside the Domain, the prodigious genius capable of even surpassing Corin Loch appeared and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

“W-what? What just happened?”

“The dimensional portal was destroyed. H-how is that possible?”

“A moment ago, a woman came out of the portal…”

While watching people fall into panic, Alisha left the place and jumped into the sky.

The world called “Earth,” where Corin was born, was so immense that even for her, climbing skyscrapers barefoot—this jungle of buildings—was a little exhausting.

— Kyaa! There was someone in the window!

— Miko-san, wake up already.

— I’m telling you it’s true!

Apologizing mentally to the startled Miko, Alisha reached the rooftop of a skyscraper.

“Wooow… it’s so big.”

Chiyoda District, Tokyo, East Asia. Buildings like matchboxes crowded the streets, signs of every color lit up the city, and an endless crowd moved intertwined like bean sprouts.

It was an incredible sight. Alisha thought about what she should do.

“I already destroyed the portal… and I don’t really understand the language here… huh?”

Just a moment ago… did I understand what they said?

Alisha tilted her head and sharpened her hearing.

— Ah~ what should we eat for lunch?

— Idiot! You can’t do anything right!

— I believe in you, and you believe in the me who believes in you.

She hears it. She understands it. The language of this world—a different language—was starting to become understandable to her.

“How strange…”

If you think about it, it was strange.

In reality, humans on Earth do not know the language of the world of Legend of the Hero Arhan.

However, there people use that language naturally and even take school exams in it every semester.

Why couldn’t the opposite also happen?

The silent will of the world is kinder to visitors from other worlds than one might imagine.

Kind enough even to send home those who caused the world to be destroyed.

— You bastard, do you want to die!?

— Try it, asshole! Today I’ll kill you for real!

Surprised that she understood the language, Alisha suddenly heard aggressive voices.

Someone was fighting. And quite violently.

Alisha, though not as much as Corin, had a kind personality. She wasn’t indifferent enough to ignore something that could lead to someone dying.

“Let’s go.”

Alisha jumped off the skyscraper, zigzagging between buildings, and arrived in an instant at the group that was arguing.

“Bakayaro! I’m going to kill you!”

“Try it, kusoyaro!”

Two bald men were fighting. Alisha felt a small fright at their fierce faces.

It wasn’t just those two. Even for Alisha, who came from another world, these men wearing leopard-print clothes or yankee-style clothes were waving knives less than 40 cm long and shouting at each other.

This was going to turn into a group fight with serious injuries. Alisha decided to intervene.

“E-excuse me…”

“Haaah?”

“What’s with this brat? Go to school.”

Alisha raised her hand with a smile.

“Please don’t fight. Get along, okay?”

“What is she saying?”

“Is she crazy?”

“What is this? This chick has a sword!”

“Is she from kendo?”

“Wahahahaha!”

One of the men—Wakayama Genjiro, who fancied himself quite good at kendo—found the girl in front of him adorable.

But a fight between the Heisei gang and the Jonan gang was about to break out. She shouldn’t get involved.

“Hey, miss. You better leav—”

Genjiro stepped back without realizing it.

Her stance was strange. Or rather, too perfect.

Twenty years of yakuza life, constant fights, and the girl in front of him emanated the bloodthirsty aura of someone who had survived hundreds of duels.

‘Am I imagining things?’

Genjiro was about to gesture for her to back off when—

— Swoosh!

“Huh?”

— Clang!

It was so fast. Genjiro instinctively looked at his knife. It was intact. As if he didn’t even realize it had been cut.

— Clatter!

The sashimi knife fell to the ground. When Genjiro was about to ask what happened—

────!!

In a time no one could perceive, Alisha was already among them.

— Clang!

— Clang!

— Clatter!

1.3 seconds.

That was the time it took for more than 20 sashimi knives to be cut through the handle and fall like rain.

When they finally understood the girl had done all of that, she simply scolded them with a serious face.

“You can’t fight with such dangerous weapons. These don’t kill well and will only end up hurting you.”

“M-monster…”

One pulled out a gun. A Chinese copy of a Russian pistol.

One of the men pointed it at the Demonic Sword and pulled the trigger. The bullet entered Alisha Arden’s sensory domain.

‘So slow. Is this what Corin-ssi called a firearm?’

A ball of lead metal flew from the barrel wrapped in fire.

Alisha was about to split it in two, but if the divided lead injured someone behind her, that would be a problem.

She sheathed the sword.

She decided to catch it with her fingers.

— Tap!

“…”

“…”

“Hah?”

The trigger was pulled, but no one was hurt.

The yakuzas were stunned—Alisha was holding the intact bullet between her fingers.

Could she be… Park Sihoo?

Only a “returnee” from the videogame could do that. Everyone thought of the same name.

Then—

— Clap! Clap! Clap!

With applause, a man jumped down from the roof of a five-story building.

“Incredible, Alisha Arden. You’re quite strong.”

He was a man with sunglasses and a sword at his waist. Early thirties. A handsome man with a gentle temperament, known by everyone in Japan.

“S-Swordsman Sudo Kenichi!”

“It’s the real Sudo Kenichi!”

The pride of Japan. The Yamato Samurai. Japan’s number one swordsman, a returnee from the alternate world.

One of the heroes who managed to survive the infamous Hwaran arc in the real version of Legend of the Hero Arhan.

Ranker 26, Park Sihoo, a powerful warrior, was in front of Alisha.

“Alisha Arden. You will have to come with me.”

***

21st century, Earth.

The end of the Cold War.

The appearance of smartphones.

Global warming.

Many things changed and continued changing people’s lives, but if you asked what the turning point was—the one that changed the history of humanity and the planet Earth in the 21st century—most people would point without hesitation to “that incident.”

The Park Sihoo Incident.

At some point, starting from one specific moment, superhumans began appearing all over the world, suddenly and inexplicably.

Some used magic—an ability that had previously been considered mere technology or fantasy—while others possessed physical strength capable of toying with a world champion boxer using just one finger.

Knights.

Or mages.

Ninety-nine individuals wielding such fantasy-like powers appeared in the world.

And they all had one thing in common.

Every one of these “Park Sihoo” had played a game called Arhan Heroic Legend.

Although it wasn’t the full group of 99 players, everyone who appeared showed one undeniable fact.

They had all been in the world of Arhan Heroic Legend.

It was impossible to believe, but superhumans now existed—superhumans using knight techniques and magic.

Governments around the world tried running tests, searching for and attempting to operate Arhan Heroic Legend, but the game no longer existed anywhere.

Even on the computers of players who swore they had played it, the game had vanished as if it had never existed at all.

After that, countries began searching for and securing every Park Sihoo they could find.

More precisely, every player who—like Park Sihoo—had lived a “second life” inside the game, died, and returned to the moment of their death.

The country with the most Park Sihoo was Korea.

Since the game had been released disguised as a title from an unknown Korean company, it was natural that more players appeared in Korea.

But Park Sihoo appeared also in China, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and other countries—changing world history.

***

Examples of “returned” players.

Real name: Kim Taewon.

Progressed to middle of the Fermac Damanjeon episode.

Level 70 fire mage.

The flames he spread had the destructive power of an artillery battery.

Real name: Isaac Hamsterd.

Progressed to the festival at the start of the game.

Level 55 druid.

With just a snap of his fingers, any plant would grow to adulthood and form small forests.

Real name: Sudo Kenichi.

Progressed to the Bicheon Yacha Hwaran episode.

Level 67 swordsman.

His iaido could slice buildings with a single strike.

The players’ strength varied.

Most died early—against Marie Dunaleff or during the Mountain King battle.

But even they were superhumans far beyond normal humans.

Those who advanced farther, especially after the Bicheon Yacha Hwaran episode—which eliminated 70% of all survivors—were true monsters.

The most famous.

Vladimir Horowitz, Russia.

Died against Tates Valtazar.

Level 88 axe warrior.

Left a permanent mark on a mountain with a single swing; with that same power he split the head of Russian president Vladimir Putin and became the first Tsar of the new Russia.

Norman Stansfield, USA.

Died against Tates Valtazar.

Level 93 lightning sorcerer.

Could call down lightning from the clear skies of Afghanistan by simply pointing a finger.

Maha Kali, India.

Died against Tates Valtazar.

Level 91 ice mage.

After a three-day ritual, froze Chinese troops fighting in Kashmir in a single night.

Players who surpassed the Hwaran episode were all monsters equivalent to entire armies.

In addition, some progressed to the final stages.

The Lord of the Golden Tower, the Endless Serpent Miriam, the god of beauty Ohad Breas, etc.

Nearly twenty reached the end, but only ten survived long afterward.

Three in Korea, two in China, one in France, one in the United Kingdom, etc.

These ten were called The Ten Strongest in the World.

It took them less than three years to earn that title.

And they abused their privileges without restraint.

Except for Norman, who believed in democracy, all of them tried to become kings of their regions.

***

But that balance ended.

The Ten soon dwindled—because an absolute being appeared and crushed them as if they were children.

The only player who reached the final battle against Tates Valtazar.

Level 99.

She could do everything.

She could not be measured.

An absolute force.

The Demon God, Park Sirin.

A Korean university student who had stayed hidden for three years without showing herself to the world.

Then she suddenly descended upon North Korea, obliterated the North Korean leadership, and hung Kim Jong-un and Kim Yo-jong from missiles like fireworks.

She became the sole leader of North Korea.

Promoted unification with South Korea.

Ran for president.

Restored entire mountains with magic and multiplied agricultural output.

Korea saw her as a savior.

China, underestimating Park Sirin, mobilized its own Park Sihoo under a mutual defense pact.

And then the world understood.

There existed a “god” capable of annihilating a million soldiers alone.

Nuclear missile bases were ripped into the sky.

Armored divisions melted under infernal flames.

Chinese aircraft carrier groups were lifted into the air and torn apart by magical tornadoes.

Hundreds of fighter jets were suspended in midair like decorations.

Even on Earth, she was called the Demon God.

Park Sirin destroyed China, seized all of Manchuria, and became president of the Unified Kingdom of Korea.

Two years later, she declared the founding of the Magical Empire of Korea.

Political parties attempted to impeach her.

The other high-level Park Sihoo united against her.

Result.

The three Korean members of the Ten Strongest were turned into living mana batteries.

Congress members were turned into zombie laborers working 24 hours a day.

Thus began the era of the Great Leader of the Magical Empire, Park Sirin.

15 years later.

She succeeded in developing dimensional portals connected to Arhan Heroic Legend.

After crossing one, she disappeared.

During the following year and a half, countries began developing their own portals, dreaming of conquering alternate worlds.

That was the world situation in 2036.

***

“…Shit, what the hell did I just watch?”

Corin Loch, after reviewing the last 16 years of world history, stared blankly at his smartphone.

In the middle of the Siberian steppe.

With the portal destroyed and the Russian army torn to pieces.

Corin sighed again and again.