Global Disaster: I Will Slay Gods In This Second Chance!-Chapter 34: Actor’s Mask

An old, worn sedan eased along the road, its engine humming softly.

Inside the sedan, a middle-aged man drove the car while a young man sat in the back.

Although the two of them seemed decades apart in age, their expressions were equally dead and cold.

As the music played softly, it was hard to believe that just minutes ago they had been at each other’s throats.

In the driver’s seat, Namita took out a cigarette from his pocket and rolled down the car windows.

Swish...

He lit up his cigarette, taking a slow drag.

The smoke wafted outside the car, vanishing with the cool wind.

"..."

Namita silently glanced at the interior mirror, lost in thought.

Zold had said that the two of them were alike, but he disagreed.

In his entire career as a detective, Namita had developed an unusual sense for the darkness in others.

When he looked at people, he could instinctively feel their evil and their emptiness as a human.

Ordinary people only gave him a faint sensation, negligible at most.

Serial killers and criminals were like walking chaotic shadows, as though a fragment of the world’s horrors.

As for himself, when he looked in the mirror, Namita saw himself as a walking empty void.

An empty shell whose entire purpose was to cleanse evil from the world.

Namita had always thought of himself as a deeply broken person, perhaps the most broken of all.

But that changed now, knowing Zold exists.

’...It’s like the entire abyss revolves around him.’

After a brief pause, Namita broke the silence.

"My talent is called [Actor’s Mask]."

Zold shifted his gaze but didn’t speak.

"... It only has one skill called [Roleplay]," Namita continued in a low tone. "[Roleplay] allows me to design a character. In the process of character design, I can specify the personality traits, abilities, and background the character should have."

He paused, then continued.

"However, I must set at least two requirements or restrictions to be able to roleplay the character, otherwise it cannot be created. The stricter the requirements I set for the character, the stronger and more authentic the character would become."

"If I fulfill all the requirements, I can materialize a mask that represents that character. Wearing that mask, I’ll become the character I designed—obtaining their personality, strength, and abilities."

"But depending on the character’s strength, I could only become that character for a period of time."

Namita added, "If I were to assess my talent using the Association’s criteria, I should rank as A."

Zold wasn’t surprised as he had already guessed so.

Namita’s talent was indeed qualified to be A-rank. Low restrictions, high potential, and can impact society to a large degree if used correctly—those were the defining hallmarks of an A-rank talent.

Instead, he was thinking about something else.

If Namita had an A-rank talent, then it was impossible for him to die early in his previous life.

But he couldn’t remember anyone by his name or appearance.

’He might’ve disguised himself using the mask...’

Zold thought, finding the possibility likely.

’Then, who was he disguised as?’

He searched his memory, narrowing it down to those who had similar personalities to Namita.

Face, skills, and talent could be faked, but a person like Namita can never hide their true colors.

’Wait!’

Zold’s eyes suddenly narrowed, a name appearing in his mind.

’Could it be him!?’

In his past life, a cult that worshipped the Nine Apostles had once rampaged throughout the world.

But one person, shrouded in mystery, made it his life mission to eradicate the cult and the Nine Apostles.

With his unrivaled strength and ruthlessness, that person left a sea of cultists’ blood on his trail, earning the title [Heretic]!

Unfortunately, the Heretic had suddenly vanished after he eradicated the cult.

His admirers attempted to find him, but it was as if his entire existence was erased, leaving no traces or clues.

Zold raised his eyes, staring at Namita.

Recalling Namita’s speech about the Nine Apostles, he increasingly felt the possibility to be more and more likely.

’Namita... truly interesting.’

Zold glanced at Namita with a slight smile. Was this the benefit of his Luck stat?

Namita furrowed his brows, but didn’t speak.

After a while, Zold brushed aside his thoughts. He nodded slightly, then asked. "Which character were you earlier?"

"A serial killer."

Namita answered calmly.

’Ah, that explains his deranged attitude...’

Zold thoughtfully asked. "Why?"

"It’s the only one I could think of in that situation," Namita explained. "Your arrival was beyond my expectations. I didn’t expect them to invite the Grand Awakener of the Association just for Bolard. Because of that, I wasn’t able to prepare beforehand."

He put the cigarette to his lips, taking another slow drag.

"I only had two characters that suited the situation: Punisher or Serial Killer. I used a Punisher character design when I killed Fredrich Bolard. But one of the requirements for that character is to prove that the target is evil, but I couldn’t prove with certainty that you were evil."

"I could adjust the requirements, but it wouldn’t be as strong, and I didn’t want to risk it knowing you were the Grand Awakener."

"So left with no choice, I just designed a Serial Killer.

"As a Serial Killer, I designed five rules: 1) I must have killed other people before.

"2) I must have an extreme ideology.

"3) I must lead my victim to a place where I have killed others before.

"4) I must be immersed in my emotions.

"And lastly, 5) I must not weaken in my resolve to kill you, no matter what."

Namita exhaled a puff of smoke. The Serial Killer was even stronger than the Punisher, but using that character put his mind under extreme strain.

Zold pondered. "What happens if you break one of the requirements during the roleplay?"

"Breaking one of those requirements would weaken me and remove some of my abilities," Namita answered his question concisely.

"What abilities did you gain?" Zold asked.

Namita paused for a moment, then spoke.

"As a Serial Killer, I obtained four skills: [Hand of Evil], which lets me turn any item I hold into a lethal weapon.

[Master of Hand-to-Hand Combat], which granted me knowledge in martial arts.

[Extreme Speed], which made me incredibly fast.

[Lethal Pain], which allows all my attacks to deal double the pain."

Zold nodded, finally having a good grasp of Namita’s ability.

’Perfect. He’ll be useful when the Second Era Ending Calamity starts... I need to take a trip to Nileth and Nihono by that time.’

He thought, closing his eyes.

Seeing that Zold was satisfied, Namita suddenly spoke in a low tone.

"Zold. I don’t mind following you, but... I’ll say this now. If you order me to do anything evil, forget our agreement. I’ll kill myself before you can kill me."

However, Zold remained silent, leaving Namita to guess his thoughts.