Entering Apocalypse in Easy-Mode-Chapter 577: The Deal

Mina jumped at the sight of him and immediately raised her two daggers. Her stance was low and aggressive immediately. She angled her blades forward, eyes burning with open hostility.

But Clyde did not move.

He stood still with his spear in hand, its tip resting lightly against the cracked ground. His posture was calm and grounded, his jaw set as he looked straight at the man in white.

There was no fear in his eyes. Only certainty.

He knew exactly what stood in front of him.

The World Masters. He knows about their role, their hierarchy, and their cruelty.

In his previous life, he had already walked into their domain. He had breached their headquarters and turned it into chaos. He had forced beings who ruled over the worlds like a game to acknowledge him with power alone. His name, his existence, and his actions had been recorded.

He was certain of that.

But that was his previous life, when his level had been absurdly high and his strength had reached the threshold of defiance. When he still had the power of the Outer God.

Now, he was weak.

Not helpless, but far from capable of repeating that feat. One wrong move here would mean instant death. So he stayed careful and controlled.

The World Master tilted his head slightly, still smiling.

"You’re interesting," he said lightly. "How do you even dare to call me and make an offer?"

Clyde drew in a slow breath.

"I have my own source of information," he said. "It’s not important right now. What matters is that I want to make a deal."

"HAHAHAHAH!" The World Master laughed.

It was loud and mocking, like he had just heard the most ridiculous joke.

"Hahaha. Alright," he said. "You’re an idiot who thinks he knows what he’s doing. But fine. Let’s hear it. What do you propose?"

Clyde did not hesitate.

"I will become your private product," he said evenly. "I will give you results greater than anything you’ve ever shown. Results that will raise your rank because you have a warrior like me."

The smile on the World Master’s face suddenly vanished.

It disappeared so abruptly that Mina blinked in disbelief. She didn’t think that change was possible.

The World Master’s expression froze for a split second before twisting into sharp and unsettled expression.

"What..." he said slowly. "What did you just say?"

Clyde’s gaze hardened.

"Like I said before," he replied, "I know some important things."

The World Master’s tone shifted instantly. The amusement drained away, replaced by a sharp cutting edge.

"What do you know exactly?" he demanded. "Tell me."

"I’m not going to tell you," Clyde said.

The air changed.

The World Master’s lips curved into a crooked smile as a pressure surged outward from him. Darkness bled into the air behind his back, spreading like black ink poured into water. It twisted and writhed, warping space around him.

"Then I’ll take that truth myself," he said coldly. "Don’t think that killing a few low level monsters makes you special. I can kill you with a flick of my finger."

Mina’s grip tightened. Her instincts screamed at her to move.

Clyde did not flinch.

"I believe you can," he said calmly. "But then you’ll lose the benefit of having me."

The darkness wavered slightly.

"Don’t you want to rise higher?" Clyde continued. "With me, you have that possibility. You’ve already seen what I can do."

The World Master frowned.

He went silent.

For the first time, he truly looked at Clyde instead of through him.

Clyde was stronger than the others. More composed and more deliberate. His actions did not align with panic or desperation like the rest of them. It was as if he already knew how this Selection Stage would unfold.

And now he had said something he should not have been able to say at all.

Something about the World Masters themselves.

If he killed Clyde now, he would lose the chance to uncover that secret. And he would lose an opportunity he had never considered before.

Using this human. Using him well could elevate his own standing.

The World Master remained silent for a full minute, weighing every benefit and risk in his mind.

The city continued to scream in the distance.

"Alright," the World Master said at last. "I will see what you can do. Then I will consider it."

Clyde shook his head once.

"It doesn’t work like that," he said. "A deal requires an exchange. You must give something first."

The World Master let out a short snort. His lips twisted back into that crooked smile, half amused and half offended.

"And what do you want?" he asked.

"I want you to stop making this scenario harder than it should be," Clyde said. His voice was steady. "This isn’t a test anymore. It’s a slaughter."

"Hehehe," the World Master chuckled. "But that’s exactly what makes it interesting."

"Stop it," Clyde said. "Or we end the deal right here. And you won’t get what you want."

The words landed with finality.

There was no hesitation. No attempt to soften the threat. Clyde was not negotiating from desperation. He was drawing a line.

For a moment, the World Master simply stared at him. Confusion flickered across his face. He could not understand where this human’s confidence came from. While at this level and in this position.

Then his eyes narrowed.

"So that’s how you want to play it. Very well."

"Alright," he said slowly. "I’ll play your game. For now."

The air pressure eased slightly.

"But you have to prove that you’re worth the trouble," the World Master continued. "Worth bending the rules for."

"Sure," Clyde said.

The World Master’s smile widened, stretching into a far more sinister smile.

"I will stop the PvP rule," he said. "In exchange, you will undergo my own test."

The way he said it made the word test sound like a sentence rather than a challenge.

"It must be something terrible," Mina muttered under her breath, eyes narrowing.

"Okay," Clyde said.

Only then did he feel it.

A faint tightening in his chest. A quiet unease he refused to show. He knew better than anyone that a World Master’s personal test would not be fair. It would not be survivable by normal standards.

But if enduring that could lessen the suffering inflicted on countless others, then it was a price he was willing to pay.

Mina turned to him sharply.

"I’m coming with you," she said. Her tone left no room for argument.

Clyde looked at her.

"No," he said firmly. "I’ll do this alone. This is too dangerous."

Mina clenched her jaw. Her fingers trembled slightly around the hilts of her daggers.

She bit her lip, hard, forcing herself not to speak.

The World Master watched the exchange with visible amusement.

"How touching," he said. "Very well. Let’s see how far that confidence of yours really goes."

Space began to distort once more.

The distortion intensified. The smooth white portal from before did not return. This time, the air tore open violently as if something poisonous was forcing its way through reality.

A circular rift formed, its edges jagged and unstable. Thick green smoke poured out in heavy waves, crawling along the ground like living fog.

It reeked of decay.

The smoke hissed as it spread, corroding the cracked street beneath it. Where it touched metal, rust bloomed instantly. Where it touched stone, the surface darkened and crumbled.

This was not a passage meant for regular humans or even players.

The World Master gestured toward it lazily, as if pointing out a door.

"Enter," he said. "Now."

Clyde did not hesitate. He turned to Mina.

"I’m going alone from here," he said. "Take care of yourself until I come back."

Mina stared at the portal, then at him. Her chest felt tight.

She knew it. Whatever waited on the other side was not something she could survive. Even if she followed him, she would only slow him down. She hated that truth, but she was aware enough to accept it.

Her fingers tightened around her daggers.

"Alright," she said at last. The word came out rough. "I’ll wait here. Until you come back."

Clyde smiled faintly. Not a confident smile or a brave one. Just a small, honest curve of his lips.

He nodded once.

Then he turned away from her and stepped forward. The green fog swallowed him whole.

The portal closed behind him with a low, suffocating hiss, sealing Clyde away as the World Master’s laughter echoed softly through the ruined city.

—

He emerged into a more dead sky. The ground stretched like dried flesh, cracked and veined, breathing faint green vapor from its wounds.

Gravity felt strange here, it pulled him sideways and down at the same time. Ruined structures floated in slow orbits, chained by glowing symbols.

Distant screams echoed, looping endlessly as if recorded. Light came from somewhere but no sun, only from towering runes carved into the horizon.

Every second drained warmth from his body. The air tasted bitter and metallic.

—