Subscriber of the Gods Chapter 373 - The Final Trial

Boom-! Boom-! Boom!

Massive iron plates sprang up from all directions around Ethan, swallowing him whole.

Thud-.

He fell, not onto the corridor where he had been moments ago, but onto a vast prairie.

Swish-.

The ground was covered in green, but nothing could be seen beyond the horizon.

It was a space devoid of even the most common forests, gentle hills, or anything else.

It was truly a place that could be described as an expansive prairie.

Ethan, who had been gazing far into the horizon, looked around once more.

-The 3rd gate is different from the previous two. It was designed directly by the tower master.

The tower master who created this tower wanted to create a hero who could stand against the Primordial Evil existing in the underworld.

‘I guess they knew everything.’

They must have known all about the Primordial Evil’s plans and realized that a perfect hero was needed to stop those plans.

‘They said they died suddenly, right? That means they were likely affected by the miasma emitted by the Primordial Evil.’

The First Guardian said that the tower master created this Hero’s Tower with those he trusted.

If so, this third gate was likely designed by the tower master who had experienced the Primordial Evil, even if just a little, to prepare a way to counter it.

-The reason I urged those who passed the 1st and 2nd gates to give up the challenge is because this 3rd gate is designed to be impassable, especially for those who have shown great strength so far.

The Third Guardian said.

-The name of this 3rd gate is ‘The Beginning’.

Whoosh-.

Suddenly, everything Ethan possessed began to disappear.

The mana he had painstakingly accumulated.

The sword he had obtained after great hardship.

Everything else as well.

All that remained was his body alone.

Of course, Extinction remained, but everything else vanished without a trace.

-The more one possesses, the more accustomed to it one becomes. The tower master said that to become a hero, one must rely solely on oneself.

Countless strong individuals have tried to ascend this Hero’s Tower. But they all fell, frustrated at this final gate.

Ironically, the reason was that they were all strong enough to pass the previous two gates.

-Can you act as you did before, even after losing everything you possessed?

The 3rd gate had begun.

‘Now I understand.’

Ethan realized the intention of the tower master who personally created this 3rd gate.

-There’s no limit to the number of attempts. You can keep challenging as many times as you wish.

As soon as the Third Guardian finished speaking, a massive silhouette appeared beyond the horizon.

An enormous body.

It was truly a giant.

“Now I see why the Third Guardian is a giant.”

That could be seen as the Primordial Evil as envisioned by the tower master.

‘I’m a hero candidate with nothing.’

The test of the 3rd gate was to defeat that giant in this state of having nothing.

“Infinite attempts. No time limit.”

This 3rd gate didn’t have the penalties experienced in the 1st and 2nd gates.

‘But that’s not necessarily a good thing.’

***

The Third Guardian watched Ethan with folded arms.

This 3rd gate was certainly a trial that contrasted with the 1st and 2nd gates.

Unlimited attempts and no time limit.

At first glance, the conditions might seem favorable, but the reality was the opposite.

Being able to keep challenging until giving up on one’s own meant having to make the decision to abandon this trial when hitting one’s limits.

And since giving up in this gate meant death, choosing to give up was equivalent to choosing death.

In short, the infinite number of attempts was not a benefit, but rather a great despair.

For someone who had accumulated so much to lose everything and endlessly challenge, only to fail to overcome the trial and despair in the end.

Sadly, until now, many had lost their minds at this gate and chosen death.

-How many times will he be able to endure

After how many attempts will his spirit break and he give up?

While the Third Guardian watched Ethan, the guardians in charge of the 1st and 2nd gates gathered at the 3rd gate.

-It has begun.

-As expected, he made it to the 3rd gate.

The First Guardian spoke as if he had anticipated this.

But at the same time, he wore a regretful expression.

He, too, knew well what kind of gate the 3rd gate was.

Similarly, the Second Guardian looked at Ethan with a sorrowful expression.

-It’s truly a cruel gate.

-We all know. If this power is taken from us, nothing remains.

-Was that man, Ethan Whiskers, alright?

-He was amazing. He broke through the absolute defense in just three attempts.

At the First Guardian’s words, the Second and Third Guardians wore surprised expressions.

-In three attempts?

-He broke through that absolute defense in three attempts? Huh, that’s impossible……

Hearing this, the Second Guardian clicked her tongue.

-In the 2nd gate, he nullified the magic with an ingenious method. And he didn’t even use much time.

The Second Guardian explained how Ethan had broken through the 2nd gate.

Hearing this story, the First and Third Guardians thought that Ethan was the closest to being a hero among all those who had entered the tower so far.

-Overwhelming indeed

That’s why.

They became even more certain that he wouldn’t be able to pass this 3rd gate.

-What was the previous record?

-66 times. After that, their spirit broke and they couldn’t fight properly.

-He probably realized around the 30th attempt. That hero candidate was exceptionally smart. He must have realized that the unlimited attempts were not a blessing, but a trap.

No time limit.

No limit on the number of attempts.

These two factors were not considerations for the hero candidate.

Rather, they were elements designed to break the hero candidate’s spirit.

This trial inevitably leads to repeated failures.

The candidate realizes their limits as they continue to challenge the trial.

But even after realizing their limits, they can’t stop challenging.

Stopping the challenge means giving up, and giving up in this tower means death.

It’s no different from taking one’s own life.

Therefore, they have no choice but to keep challenging even after hitting their limits, and eventually, their spirit breaks.

It’s not that they can challenge infinitely.

It’s a mechanism designed to make them fail infinitely.

Boom-! Boom-! Boom!

The giant walked towards Ethan. Ethan watched the giant for a moment.

-Why is he just standing there?

-Surely he hasn’t given up right at the start?

The three guardians focused on Ethan’s movements.

While the Third Guardian had given up hope, the First and Second Guardians were secretly expecting Ethan’s next move.

Even though they thought he would certainly fail, they felt that Ethan might show something different.

Crash-!

The giant’s fist crushed Ethan completely.

Whoosh-.

Ethan, crushed by the giant’s fist, revived in perfect condition a short distance away.

“So this is how it feels. To have no limit on the number of attempts.”

Ethan grinned, cracking his neck and stretching his body.

There was something the guardians of the gate didn’t know.

This state of having nothing.

This state was actually very basic for Ethan.

This state was very familiar to Ethan.

When Ethan first started MePan, he had no notable items or abilities.

Similarly, when he came to this world as Ethan Whiskers, he was on the brink of death.

“I had nothing from the start. This is actually much more familiar to me.”

For Ethan, who had climbed up from the bottom, having nothing was the norm.

“I’ve always been challenging.”

Ethan had never been in an advantageous position.

He was always the challenger.

“You think my spirit will break because the number of attempts is infinite? Well, there’s no time for my spirit to break.”

Having infinite attempts means being able to challenge infinitely.

“Challenging is what I do best.”

And he immediately charged towards the giant.

***

-How can he do that?

Because they were strong, they knew.

They knew best the sense of helplessness that Ethan, who had lost everything, would feel.

That’s why they were surprised.

They were genuinely surprised at how Ethan could do that, how he could continue to challenge without his spirit breaking.

-It’s the limit. He’s already reached his limit. He’s long passed 30 attempts.

The number of times Ethan had died to the giant had already well exceeded 30.

He should have hit his limit long ago.

It should be impossible to hunt the giant with nothing.

Moreover, this wasn’t an ordinary giant. It was a powerful giant created from a soul fragment of someone once called a great holy warrior.

-And yet… his spirit doesn’t break.

He should have given up everything due to helplessness, but instead, Ethan kept challenging and finding ways.

-……

Ethan was just looking at the goal in front of him.

The goal was to defeat that giant and reach the top of the tower.

If you’ve made a plan, there’s no need to look back. You just focus on the goal in front of you.

Needless to say, he doesn’t think about failure.

As long as you don’t give up, this plan is infinitely close to success.

Crack-!

Ethan broke off the giant’s toenail to use as a weapon.

He moved upwards, using the toenail as a sword, as if he were mountain climbing.

Although he had lost everything, his experiences and senses remained intact.

Scrape!

“Here it is.”

Even without the Monsters’ Calamity skill, Ethan’s eyes were tracking the giant’s weak points.

All abilities had disappeared. But as those abilities vanished, Ethan’s sharpened senses began to fill the void one by one.

Stab-! Stab-!

Ethan aimed for the giant’s weak points and stabbed with the toenail.

His whole body was filled with tension.

Whoosh-!

He narrowly avoided the giant’s swinging arm. He should have felt fear, but Ethan was rather feeling ecstasy.

He dodged it.

He dodged it perfectly even without any abilities.

Ugh-!

He was hit by the follow-up attack and fell back to the starting point, but it didn’t matter.

“One step forward.”

That was what mattered.

Ethan kept repeating this process. He learned the giant’s unreasonable patterns and imprinted its attacks in his eyes.

And he advanced one step at a time.

He cut the giant’s arm.

He cut the giant’s abdomen.

He cut the giant’s chest.

Dying and reviving again and again.

Even after being revived so many times that counting seemed meaningless, Ethan’s eyes still sparkled as brightly as when he first challenged.

Crack-!

Once again, he pulled out the giant’s toenail and confronted it.

The guardians were quietly following Ethan’s movements without a word.

The flow was changing into a form different from what they had seen so far.

You can’t break a rock with an egg.

But Ethan wasn’t an egg.

He was an endlessly flowing water.

Dripping, dripping, and dripping again at one point to drill a hole.

Crack-!

After hundreds of attempts, Ethan was able to reach the giant’s neck.

Screech-!

The giant’s toenail pierced right through the giant’s neck.

At the same time, Ethan fell down and landed on the giant’s back.

Groan-.

The giant, who let out a short roar, fell backwards like a massive tree toppling over.

Boom-!

For a moment, the guardians held their breath.

Ethan was breathing.

Though in pain, Ethan stood up, steadied himself, and roared. As if he had become the giant himself.

Ding-!

-You have broken through the 3rd gate!

-You have won against the great holy warrior Majesty Manor!

-You have been granted the qualification of a hero!

-You have received the Hero’s Key.

-The path to the top of the Hero’s Tower has been unlocked!