The Novel’s Villain

8.Luck (3)

Whoever sealed it had set fantastic conditions.

“This is what a seal should be! How come a seal was released by nothing? Haha.”

In novels and movies, the seal was so sloppy as if it were made to be released. The Demon King was released by happenstance and wreaked havoc. It was rather strange that a seal to contain something so dangerous wouldn’t be thorough.

Jin-woo burst out laughing. Everything he had been through so far seemed to be rewarded.

“If I fill it to 100%, it would be fine for roughly 2,000 years.”

In two thousand years, he would be dead, so he didn’t have to worry about it. There wasn’t even a guarantee that the Earth wouldn’t be destroyed by other factors by then. In any case, the world would truly be at peace as long as he lived. Jin-woo stuffed mana into the transparent sphere in front of the door. The mana control was a little hard, but Jin-woo managed to push it in quickly.

When it reached 100%, the cracked door began to repair itself neatly. He liked how sturdy it looked.

Jin-woo looked at his work with a satisfied smile.

‘I will go on vacation first.’

Jin-woo had never even been to Jeju Island, let alone travel abroad. Now, he had no mental burdens at all, even if he decided to vacation abroad. He was already starting to grow excited. Jin-woo approached the door for the final check.

When he checked with the Magic Eye, he could only read the information that it was perfectly sealed. It said that no impact would unlock the seal. It was a seal that wouldn’t be scratched even if a planet the size of the Earth hit it, or it was sucked into a black hole. Unless something like the Devil appeared, it would remain securely shut.

Jin-woo brought his hand closer to check it.

Startle!

He stopped for fear that something might go wrong with the door. As expected, it was better not to touch it.

“Let’s go back.”

Jin-woo stepped back with a long sigh. It was the moment when Jin-woo’s breath reached the door.

Swooosh! Wheeing-baaaang!

The door looked like styrofoam being blown away by a typhoon. It was lightly ripped apart and blown inward. Jin-woo stared blankly at the door as it crashed loudly into the ground.

“…”

The sturdy door was shattered.

‘Isn’t it a seal that can never be released?’

The Magic Eye of information couldn’t have lied. The door that would remain intact even if it were hit by a planet couldn’t be so easily destroyed. Jin-woo hardened in place.

He was dumbstruck.

“…”

Jin-woo closed his eyes tightly and then opened them. He wondered if he had read it wrong. The door would surely appear when he came to his senses again. He must have been hallucinating.

However, the door was still missing. It wasn’t a dream nor a hallucination. He just couldn’t believe it.

“…That’s crazy.”

After such a long daze, he managed to regain his senses. Why did the door open? The only condition was…

“Unless someone like the Devil…no way…!”

At that moment, a memory passed through Jin-woo’s head. It was the last words left by the author after Lee Jin-woo’s death. The original author wrote that he had set Lee Jin-woo to be the worst garbage in the world.

‘Haha! Hello, readers!

Lee Jin-woo is finally dead.

Lee Jin-woo is even more evil than the Devil. He’s the worst from the very beginning. He was originally going to show up a little more, but he was criticized so much that I sent him off early! Now, instead of any hard feelings, I hope you enjoy more delightful and refreshing ones! Thank you!’

For some reason, each letter of the author’s last words came to his mind.

“Wasn’t it just a joke?’

No, did it mean that the author got rid of him just like that after setting such a huge stage? It was so absurd. In the end, it meant that the door opened because he was worse than the Devil.

“Haa, fuck. This life…”

Jin-woo sighed. This Lee Jin-woo guy didn’t do anything to help, and his existence itself was a nuisance. It was so sad that he was such a nuisance character.

‘So, I was the worst.’

Someone worse than the Devil. It was Lee Jin-woo.

Gwooooooooo!

An ominous wind blew from within. A very murky black airstream crept out like a tentacle, turning the surrounding air stuffy. Even the mana was polluted with ominous energy. It looked like it would smell bad, but it was surprisingly fine. In comparison, it was similar to the smell of a gas station or the smell of chlorine in a swimming pool. It was the kind that might even smell good, depending on your preference.

It had a strangely addictive quality to it. Jin-woo took a deep breath. The door was open so that he couldn’t turn away now.

[SSS+] Seal

The seal is completely released.

As the Magic Eye of Information indicated, the door being opened coincided with the seal releasing. It was clear that the Emperor of Greed would come out even if he didn’t enter. It was dark inside the door like it was surrounded by a black membrane.

‘Rank S Luck what? Damn…’

He couldn’t believe he was lucky. There must be an unfortunate stat beyond the Rank S Luck that still lay hidden. Jin-woo hesitated for a while before entering.

An unpleasant sensation licked at his body. It felt as if he had gone inside some beast’s stomach. If this was inside the original author’s mind, they must have been a pervert. How could someone who wasn’t a pervert even think of this?

Once he got used to it, it was bearable. As he endured the sensation and moved further inside, he found a space surrounded by black rock walls. The faint light emanating from the magic crystals embedded in the rock illuminated a gigantic existence.

Jin-woo was overwhelmed by its grandeur.

‘That’s…the Emperor of Greed.’

It was a huge dragon straight out of a fantasy movie. Just looking at it, as huge as a building, made him lose his will. In the original story, the Emperor of Greed was a lump of black energy, but this seemed to be the whole thing.

That crazy author bastard!

‘Crazy… how can I beat that?’

A balance patch was urgently needed. It seemed difficult even if the original protagonist arrived. No, it even seemed impossible even if the main character’s grandfather came. Even if the Swordmaster or Hyun-kyung’s master from the general story appeared right now, it seemed like they would be trampled.

It was a mythical creature. The huge head slowly lifted and turned towards Jin-woo. Fortunately, its condition didn’t look normal. Its body was cracked like broken glass. Jin-woo could barely see the Emperor of Greed with his Magic Eye.

[SSS+] Calverto the Dark Dragon, Emperor of Greed

One of the 12 Emperors who inherited the power of the Devil. It is so powerful that it had to be sealed in a sanctuary called the center of the world. Its body is broken and weakened after enduring countless years, but it has yet to lose its reason. The greed that devours everything is known to have brought worlds to their end.

Its body is broken and unstable.

Usually, the protagonists of a novel would escape their crisis by acting boldly. However, Jin-woo wasn’t the main character. He couldn’t even move. He was lucky not to pee himself. The huge eyes looked at Jin-woo. He felt as if he was naked under their relentless examination.

‘Should I attack?’

It was suicide. His sword looked like a toothpick. Perhaps it certainly was, as it would be meaningless to stab it a hundred times with a toothpick. Jin-woo barely caught his consciousness as he was about to run away and faced those huge eyes. Its huge pupils dilated. It seems like it was really surprised.

They surprised each other.

[Oh, ooh…! I I-never thought there would be anything eviler! Surely the world is filled with the grace of the Devil! Just looking at you makes the depth of my heart tremble.]

“…What?”

[Right, I see. Keahahaha! This endless wickedness…oh! What an honor! Did you come with the Devil…did the Devil send the incarnation of evil? Are you the successor?]

It was such a loud sound that the dust around it flew away. As the echo came to his mind, Jin-woo understood its meaning. It had a lot to say for something that looked incredibly vicious. It was still scary, but he was glad to see no active hostility coming from the dragon.

As its head bowed and the head the size of a house came before Jin-woo’s face, it reminded him of a scene in Jurassic World. He wouldn’t survive even a single bite of those razor-sharp teeth. Even if his durability had increased, it seemed to be useless.

[It’s beautiful. Beautiful! Although you take the form of an inferior creature, it still has the origins of evil. If you were an inferior being, you would have gone crazy just by looking at me, but rather I think I’m going crazy!]

“…”

[The one who came down here under the guidance of the Devil! The worst existence from the very beginning of existence itself. What is your name?]

Why did he suddenly think of the Swordmaster? Anyway, in the original story, the Emperor of Greed ran wild and smashed everything. Back then, there was no such thing as reasoning with it. Come to think of it, most of the Twelve Emperors seemed to have some screws missing. That was a part where the intelligence of the villains was lowered to make the main character stand out.

As the main character absorbed that powerful force, he leveled up instantly, but side effects such as seizures and rampage also followed. He struggled to balance his power, but he had seizures at every critical moment of crisis. Given that he already felt like a nerd hiding his strength, this only made it even more so.

He resolved himself.

“I am Lee Jin-woo.”

[Gasp!]

When it heard Jin-woo’s name, the Emperor of Greed suddenly vomited blood. A lump of blood shot out beside Jin-woo and smashed into the wall. The Emperor of Greed opened its huge mouth and breathed in. Its body trembled, perhaps in pain. Black energy rose through its broken scales.

Jin-woo had no choice but to stare wide-eyed because he didn’t know what had happened.

[This frail body cannot bear the evil will engraved in your name. Ugh, hehehe! It’s a true name given by the Devil himself!]

It opened its mouth, dripping blood. Every time a drop of blood fell, a puddle formed on the floor.

[I am the Dark Dragon Calverto.]

“Ah yes. Well…it’s nice to meet you.”

[Did the Devil send you? Has the plan to finally come to Earth come true?]

“That’s…”

Jin-woo pondered for a while how to answer. He was afraid that something terrible would happen if he said no.

“It’s something similar. Probably.”

[Have you ever heard the words of the Devil?]

“Ah…yes. By text…”

There was a lot of room for the revival in the future, and he had read what the Devil spoke in the original novel, so it wasn’t entirely a lie. His conscience pricked when he saw the dragon’s dazzling eyes, but he had to live for now. After hearing Jin-woo’s answer, Calverto raised its head and roared once.

‘Did I say something wrong?’

Freaked out, Jin-woo had no choice but to look at it. He didn’t forget to backpedal towards the exit.

[Great! That’s excellent!]

Fortunately, Calverto seemed to be in a very good mood. Jin-woo decided to speak moderately because there was no chance if he turned it into an enemy. After all, Jin-woo survived his work life by being self-conscious.

Would it go back to a dimension other than Earth if he coaxed it well? He originally came from a different dimension, after all. Yeah, just think of it like a boss. No, think of it as a very big manager. Or a very big and fierce CEO.

“Um, well…it must have been quite difficult to get here.”

[Right. The seal at that entrance is difficult to break unless you have reached divine status. I was desperately waiting for a gap. It would be such an honor if the Devil who burnt this body is resurrected!]

“Yes. I will never forget Lord Calverto’s sublime heart when you paint all the universe, all dimensions into darkness.”

[I’m so glad you said that. My thousands of years of waiting have not been in vain. Hahaha! Did the Devil regain his ego?]

“Well…it’s similar.”

[Hmm…]

“He is always watching. After all, darkness is everywhere. He said your faith is the greatest. Believe it.”

[Of course, I believe. I know that all of me comes from the Devil himself.]

Jin-woo broke out in a cold sweat as he spoke. However, the conversation seemed to be going better than expected.