Chapter 106: Ego

Eleven mountains had risen in the obsidian zone.

This scattered all the hunters in every direction.

At the peak of each sharply thrusting summit, a spacious arena had been formed.

And then.

Tsutsutsutsutsu—

A black vortex formed opposite the hunters.

What emerged from beyond it was—

Flick—

[Doppelganger]

– Threat Level: Variable  

– Discovery Location: Maslow’s Tower  

A variant lifeform that meticulously replicates a human’s appearance, voice, and traits.

Its threat level is determined by the target it copies, and the doppelganger’s ultimate goal is to kill the copied target and fully assume its identity.

Doppelganger.

A demon beast that mimics humans like a reflection in a mirror.

Not only the appearance, but it copies the specs perfectly too, right?

Doppelgangers weren’t just rated as highly dangerous by hunters—they were flagged that way by the Association as well.

All because of the incident four years ago, when a single doppelganger nearly brought China to its knees.

During a dungeon raid, China’s No. 5 S-rank hunter had been copied by the doppelganger.

The original S-rank No. 5 died on the spot, three other S-ranks suffered severe injuries, eight A-ranks were killed with fourteen more moderately wounded, and countless other hunters died or were injured.

In short, depending on who it copied, a doppelganger could become the ultimate threat.

That’s what it all boiled down to.

At that moment.

[……Now, kill each other.]

Maslow’s voice boomed through the air.

At the same time, the doppelgangers sprang into action.

The sharp clang of metal, the dull thud of flesh being torn, and the chanting of spells.

All those sounds overlapped in a cacophony.

Hunters and their doppelgangers—identical in every way—clashed using the exact same techniques.

Everyone gathered in Maslow’s mental world was an A+ rank powerhouse.

From basic stats like strength, stamina, agility, intelligence, and mental fortitude, to their Awakener skills—everything was copied wholesale.

As a result, a doppelganger’s threat level varied wildly depending on its target.

On the other hand, I looked at my doppelganger and said,

“The one you copied is me. What a shame.”

-Ding-dong!

[Cha Hasang]  

Occupation: Morgue’s Awkward Warehouse Keeper  

Skills  

▶ Open — Rank: ?  

▶ Close — Rank: ?  

『Seven Demon First Strike: Secret Art – Gluttony Slash, Beelzebub』 Rank: S  

Cordyceps — Rank: A+  

▶ 『Oil from Inherited Skin』 — Rank: A  

『Ember』 — Rank: A  

・「Superhuman Strength」 Rank: A  

『Ink Camouflage』 — Rank: A  

<Stats>  

Strength: 200  

Stamina: 200  

Agility: 200  

Intelligence: 200  

Mental Fortitude: 370  

Morgue’s Magical Warehouse Exploration Rate  

Safe : 19.53%  

Observation : 1.27%  

Unrest : (Locked)  

Terror: (Locked)  

Incomprehensible: (Locked)  

Strength, stamina, agility, intelligence.

All the stats that aided in combat were capped at 200.

In a place swarming with A+ ranks, it was specs that wouldn’t even get you in the door.

But right now, that worked to my advantage.

Because my opponent was a doppelganger.

Just then, the doppelganger reached out a hand and said,

[Open.]

……!

But—

[…….]

[…….]

..?

Nothing happened.

No rift splitting open to reveal a subspace.

No blazing hellgate yawning wide.

No cargo manifesting from the warehouse.

Just an awkward silence hanging in the air.

The doppelganger muttered again.

[……Open.]

The warehouse still didn’t open.

At that instant.

-Ding-dong!

<Unique identification code approval denied.>  

<Connection attempt detected from another location.>  

It was like a hacking warning message.

The security(?) system of the Magic Empire Morgue didn’t hand out warehouse usage rights to just anyone.

Looks like even a doppelganger can’t copy the Open skill. In that case…

The doppelganger Cha Hasang could only use the skills I’d acquired as essences.

Right then.

Crunch! Cr-r-runch!

The sound of tearing muscles echoed.

The doppelganger’s arm swelled grotesquely, covered in red muscle fibers.

It had activated the ‘Superhuman Strength’ skill.

“Going for close-quarters combat right off the bat?”

I activated my skill without delay.

-Ding-dong!

<Skill ‘Superhuman Strength’ has been activated!>  

An intense burning sensation surged through my right arm.

Crimson muscle fibers began enveloping it.

Crack— Cr-r-ack— Crack!

Dense fibers intertwined, and the muscle ballooned outward.

And then.

Whoooosh— Bam!

Two massive fists, shrouded in bulging muscle, collided.

Shockwaves rippled outward in all directions.

Exactly the same power. 

Exactly the same speed. 

Exactly the same specs.

The clash of identical skills canceled out all damage.

But the punch was a feint.

“The real one’s this.”

-Ding-dong!

<Skill ‘Oil from Inherited Skin’ has been activated!>  

<Skill ‘Ember’ has been activated!>  

I slammed the skill into the doppelganger’s face.

Feathers from the fire crow, fused with oily mucus.

The moment they touched the doppelganger—

Boom boom boom boom— Kaboom!

A ferocious explosion engulfed its body in flames.

But it didn’t last.

Shoooooo—

The scarlet blaze died down in an instant.

Jet-black feathers sprouting across the doppelganger’s body were sucking in the flames.

Of course it’d pull something like that.

The doppelganger had absorbed the flames as energy using the fire crow’s Ember skill.

Close-quarters combat and skills.

Evenly matched. 

Mutual destruction.

At this rate, it’d just drag into a pointless war of attrition.

Assuming we stuck to using only skills, that is.

I looked at the doppelganger and said,

“You don’t have any of these at home, do you?”

Then I opened my inventory.

[Inventory]  

– Gauntlet ‘Thunderclap’  

– Titan Pursuer  

– Erysichthon’s Guts  

・Medusa’s Mirror  

– Abyssal Scarf  

– Gerumund’s Veil  

・Cursed Fang  

– Katsura’s Scale Hand  

– Chronos Hourglass  

– Eternal Salt  

My inventory brimmed with items.

Artifacts I’d acquired so far—specifically, the high-grade ones with real utility value.

Someone once said it: Life’s all about item RNG.

I pulled out the Twisted Witch’s Finger.

“……Alright, then. Shall we get started?”

Whoosh— Boom boom!

Two fireballs detonated in midair.

Flames spread, painting the surroundings red.

Shin Sodam quickly put distance between them.

At the same moment.

Whoooosh—

A fire arrow pierced through the crimson blaze, hurtling toward her.

“Urk!”

Shin Sodam hurriedly swung her arm.

A wall of flames erupted, devouring the fire arrow.

“Hah…… Hah…… Hah…… Hah…….”

Shin Sodam panted raggedly.

Sweat poured down like rain.

Her face, arms, legs, and even her sides were charred black.

She ground her teeth.

“Damn it…… Using someone else’s skills like they’re your own.”

As the flame wall faded, the doppelganger came into view.

Tousled red hair. 

Refined features and a confident expression.

From head to toe, it was Shin Sodam herself.

Finally, Shin Sodam dropped to one knee.

Thud—

The Fire Wall she’d just cast had drained every last drop of her mana.

The moment she’d synced attacks with Han Seoha, she’d been on the verge of passing out.

And now, to be thrown into back-to-back combat in that state.

This is the worst.

To top it off, her opponent was a doppelganger that had perfectly copied her.

Stats, skills—everything was identical.

But that wasn’t the only problem.

Flawless skill casting without waste. 

Perfect understanding of when to deploy each skill.

The doppelganger fought more efficiently than Shin Sodam herself.

Like a computer AI outperforming a human in specialized tasks.

Finally, the doppelganger started walking toward her.

Step step step— Step—

Shin Sodam glanced around.

Through her hazy vision, she could make out the A+ rank hunters.

Lee Geuk, HardboiledPC, Cheok Junseong, Han Seoha, Yun Yeobaek, Jo Taekyung, Ma Seokdong…….

All of them were locked in struggle with doppelgangers that mirrored them.

Of course, the battle favored the A+ ranks only slightly.

They’d all burned through a ton of stamina just reaching the boss room.

Right then.

Roar—!

A massive fireball hurtled toward Shin Sodam.

“……Ah..”

The blistering heat.

The tips of her hair crumbled to black ash, and her skin prickled with stinging pain.

Shin Sodam felt time slow to a crawl.

Is this what they call a life flashing before your eyes?

The day she’d become an Awakener.

The day she’d first cleared an A+ rank dungeon.

The day the Crimson Mage Tower Guild became Korea’s top guild.

And the time she’d nearly died before Death Road.

Finally……

[A room you can’t leave without OO-ing]

Maslow’s Tower, Lust Section.

The plaque from that place flickered in her mind.

Why the hell was that popping up in her final moments?

“Goddamn it, for real.”

Red mana began erupting from Shin Sodam’s body.

At the same time, six crimson mana rings rose around her.

Humm— Humm— Humm— Humm—

She didn’t have the time or mana to block the fireball.

Even so, Shin Sodam focused every ounce of mana in her body.

Mutual destruction.

If she was going down, she’d take the fake that copied her along for the ride.

But in that instant.

Whoooosh—

A black line streaked past.

That’s how it looked to Shin Sodam.

Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom!

The fireball vanished amid a ferocious gale.

“What…… the…… hell……?”

Shin Sodam blinked in a daze.

Soon after, a pitch-black arrow came flying.

Whoooosh— Thunk!

The black arrow pierced the doppelganger’s forehead dead-center.

The doppelganger crumbled into dust and scattered.

Finally, Shin Sodam looked in the direction the arrow had come from.

A distant obsidian peak.

There, a being forged of dark magic stood tall.

Shin Sodam let out a wry chuckle.

“No way…… Is that for real?”

Anyone who’d gone through Korea’s school curriculum would know that figure.

The name that appeared without fail in every history textbook.

The founding king of Joseon.

[To summon Us at the climax of such a delightful banquet. How disappointing, Warehouse Keeper!]

Taejo Yi Seonggye exuded an air of majestic dignity.