Makoto’s pupils contracted slightly.
‘The Shibuya Incident from Jujutsu Kaisen?’ The Shibuya Incident centered around a group led by the villain Kenjaku.
They sealed off the streets of Shibuya with Barrier Techniques, then unleashed countless Cursed Spirits and Transfigured Humans inside.
The ordinary people celebrating Halloween in Shibuya became little more than food for those monsters.
Their goal was to seal Gojo Satoru, the strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer in the world, inside the Prison Realm.
The sealing succeeded, but Gojo’s resistance prevented the Prison Realm from being moved.
That forced the villains into a brutal close-quarters battle with the protagonists who came to rescue him.
Throughout the incident, human lives were worth less than grass.
Some were killed by Cursed Spirits, some devoured by Transfigured Humans, while others died simply from being caught in the aftermath of jujutsu battles.
In total, more than ten thousand people died without ever understanding where the danger had even come from.
And now, a group of complete newcomers had been told to survive in that kind of hell?
‘What kind of beginner mission throws players straight into the eighteenth level of hell?’ Makoto actually had the mildest reaction among them.
The other newcomers didn’t understand the significance of Jujutsu Kaisen or the Shibuya Incident, but the words “Hell-rank” alone were enough to send everyone’s nerves into overdrive.
Even Chen Guohao, who had seemed experienced and composed until now, shot to his feet.
His eyes darted around rapidly, as though he was already calculating a way to escape.
“Hey!
What the hell is wrong with this world?
Does Hell-rank mean it’s really difficult or what?
Say something!” The hot-tempered Li Huizhen was the first to lose control.
A second later, however, the dark muzzle of Chen’s revolver was pointed straight at her.
Everyone immediately fell silent.
Chen took several deep breaths before speaking in a low voice.
“All of you, shut up.
Stay quiet until I decide what to do.” “Hell-rank doesn’t mean difficult.
It means certain death.” “I can abandon this mission whenever I want, pay the price, and escape back to the Main God Space.
As for all of you…” “You can stay here and wait to die.” Chen pulled out a black card with the letters SOS printed across its surface.
Unlike an ordinary object, the moment everyone saw it, a system description appeared before their eyes.
[C-rank Emergency Escape Card: Abandon the current mission and immediately leave the Mission World.
Cost: Mission failure penalty is doubled.] Makoto froze for a moment and immediately recalled the mission details.
‘There wasn’t any mission failure penalty listed.’ ‘Is it because this is a survival mission?
Anyone who fails is guaranteed to die anyway, so there’s no point listing another punishment?’ Chen spat to the side.
“Good thing I’ve always been cautious.
I spent practically everything I owned buying an escape card.
Otherwise, I’d be finished this time.” Jack’s voice came out dry and trembling.
“No, Chen.
You can’t just abandon us!
We’re newcomers, but we’re still your teammates!
You’re the only one who can get us through this alive!” Li Huizhen’s earlier arrogance disappeared as well.
Her face turned pale with fear as she spoke carefully.
“Oppa, please take us with you.
Whatever you want in return, we’ll agree to it!” Park Jeong-ho’s knees gave out, and he dropped to the floor, sobbing.
“Our investments collapsed.
We came here because we couldn’t bring ourselves to jump from a building.
If we die now, wouldn’t everything we’ve endured have been for nothing?” Even Yuu started crying.
“Please don’t abandon us, mister.
Please!” Chen stared at the group of sobbing newcomers with obvious irritation.
Eventually, he seemed to soften.
He slowly lowered his revolver and tucked the escape card back into his clothes.
“If I stay and complete this mission with you, I’ll be risking my life.” “So here’s my condition.
If any of you survive until the end, all of your mission rewards belong to me.” “Those who agree can sign a contract with me.
Those who don’t…” Chen’s expression turned vicious as his gaze swept over the group.
“Sorry.
You’re on your own.” His words claimed that anyone who refused could simply fend for themselves.
The revolver in his hand seemed to have a very different opinion.
Everyone fell silent again.
Makoto slowly clenched his fists.
Only moments ago, he’d been secretly celebrating after awakening an SSS-rank Talent.
He had even managed to strengthen himself right under everyone’s noses by hiding the truth inside a lie.
Yet the Main God Space had already bared its first fang at him.
The Hell-rank Mission World was only part of the problem.
The veteran assigned to lead the newcomers had no intention of honestly helping them complete the mission.
Instead, he was already trying to squeeze every last bit of value out of them.
That was probably the true law of survival in the Main God Space.
‘Even if we follow Chen Guohao and somehow survive, what happens in the next world?’ ‘Will we have to keep accepting handouts from stronger people or organizations just to stay alive, piling up debts we’ll never repay until we’re no longer useful and get discarded?’ “You have one minute to decide.” Chen gave the revolver a quick spin, then used his cane to lift the curtain beside the bed and cautiously peered outside.
Neon lights flashed across the distant streets.
People in strange costumes were celebrating Halloween, completely unaware of the danger about to descend upon them.
Makoto’s eyes sharpened.
‘Does this mean the Shibuya Incident hasn’t officially started yet?’ ‘Then maybe we can still get out of Shibuya.’ The instant that thought appeared, Yuu timidly spoke.
“Um…
what’s that in the sky?” Everyone instinctively looked upward.
But the sky appeared completely normal.
The people on the street continued celebrating, though a handful seemed to have noticed that something wasn’t quite right.
Makoto’s heart sank.
‘Damn.
So escaping Shibuya is already impossible.’ Of course it was.
There was no way the Main God Space would let a group of newcomers exploit such an obvious loophole.
Through Yuu’s Spirit Sight, a barrier resembling a vast black curtain was descending from the direction of the moon, spreading across the entirety of Shibuya.
“What did you see?
Tell us!” Chen’s sharp shout made Yuu flinch.
The boy became so frightened that he could barely breathe.
Makoto reached over and gently rubbed his head.
“It’s okay.
No one’s going to abandon you.
We just need your ability so we can understand what’s happening.” Yuu gradually calmed down under Makoto’s reassurance and slowly described what he had just seen.
Everyone’s expression, including Chen’s, turned extremely ugly.
Under the pressure of imminent death, Li Huizhen bit her red lip and walked over to Chen.
She gently grabbed his sleeve and tugged at it.
“Oppa, my boyfriend and I agree.
Whatever price you want, we’ll pay it.” Still kneeling, Park Jeong-ho nodded repeatedly, looking almost like an obedient lapdog.
Jack and Yuu remained silent as well, clearly accepting Chen’s terms by default.
Chen’s gaze passed straight over them.
Instead, he looked directly at Makoto and Sakiko.
“What about you two?” That look made Makoto realize something.
Chen had always regarded him and Sakiko differently from the others.
He was clearly wary of their Talents.
Makoto’s eyes narrowed slightly.
‘Looks like this situation isn’t completely hopeless after all.’ …