Chapter 139

Gor stroked his beard.

His gaze was fixed on the still-sizzling Dimensional Gate.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

A place like Earth was merely a dimension that should have been conquered in an instant.

“Look at this.”

Gor tapped the desk.

“The timing is quite strange. For the Dimensional Gate to close at this very moment.”

“It’s clear that bastard knew beforehand.”

The 3rd in rank, Verno, glared at Peter, seething. Peter just stared at the Dimensional Gate, looking unimpressed.

“Someone must have leaked the information.”

“Are you perhaps suggesting that someone is me?”

At Peter’s words, Verno scoffed.

“If not you, then who?”

“Are you slandering me because I sent your son to the Demon God’s embrace?”

“…What?”

“You should present some evidence before you speak. Isn’t this just a petty scheme from a great family?”

A cold stare was directed at Peter. Peter didn’t flinch. After being beaten by Choi Gi-woong so much, things like this weren’t even scary anymore.

“Enough.”

Gor tapped his staff.

“Peter.”

“Yes.”

“Explain why entry into the dimension was blocked. You should know.”

He looked ready to slice his head off in one stroke if he couldn’t grasp the truth of the matter.

Even then, Peter remained calm.

“That bastard must have made a contract with Lu.”

“A contract.”

“And he must have paid a fitting price. Lu hates getting nothing for free.”

“What kind of price?”

“If I were Lu.”

Peter pointed at Gor.

“I would have told him to capture you, Gor. And as soon as possible.”

“……”

It was a plausible story. Gor gestured with his chin. It was a sign to continue.

Watching Verno’s face contort, Peter continued.

“The surest way is to wait. Time is on our side. The Reincarnator will be desperately searching for you, Gor.”

“Is there a way to eliminate him faster than that?”

“I am aware that there are a few Demon Kings sealed on Earth.”

They were the Demon Kings sent along with Entesto.

From the 6th in rank, Adramelech, to the 4th in rank, Kaldrak.

Although they were currently sealed.

“Let’s set a trap. So that if even one is awakened, they all rise together. That level of manipulation is possible, isn’t it?”

It was possible.

And it was a pretty good plan.

The moment the Reincarnator awakened Adramelech, the scene of three Demon Kings resurrecting at once played out in Gor’s mind.

No matter how powerful the Reincarnator was, he wouldn’t be able to face three Demon Kings at once.

Gor nodded with an interested look on his face.

“Do as you say.”

[…is what I said.]

Peter sent a telepathic message. It was communication that crossed dimensions. It was a good thing I had planted it in him before he became a Demon King.

As I was thinking, his words continued.

[I had no choice.]

“You had no choice, so you’re letting three Demon Kings loose at once?”

[I figured a master like you could handle a challenge of this level.]

Peter said, slickly. If he were in front of me, I would have slapped him across the face. A pity.

[If it wasn’t for that, my head would have been chopped off that day. The way he was looking at me was terrifying.]

I get it.

The timing was, well, suspicious enough.

Still. Three Demon Kings at once…

My head naturally tilted upwards.

I could see the number D-120.

To kill Gor within that time, I had to deal with the three Demon Kings in at least 20 days.

“…Alright, I get it for now. You can spread as much information about me as you want, so try to infiltrate deeper.”

[Loyalty!]

I cut off the connection with Peter and turned away.

I went inside the Association, to its deepest part.

Lee Seok-jae was waiting.

“This way, sir.”

Only after passing through several layers of protective facilities did it come into view.

A large glass window stretched next to a door, sealed tight like a laboratory.

Inside, three sealing devices were carefully enshrined.

Adramelech. Verdele, Kaldrak.

They were the ones discovered in Japan, India, and the United States.

When I first found them, I thought, what a windfall, but my thoughts had changed a bit.

So if I awaken even one of these bastards, the other two will rise as well.

“No one else has seen this, right?”

This wasn’t a matter to be taken on faith. Lee Seok-jae nodded.

“Yes. It’s at security Level 1. Only you, Chairman, can enter the laboratory.”

“Tell them to never touch it.”

It was unlikely to happen, but. If that thing were to go off.

Just thinking about it is horrifying.

I stared at the sealing devices, from which Demonic Energy was puffing out plumply, and fell into thought.

Should I ask the System for help?

No.

That’s a last resort.

I can’t keep receiving the System’s help.

Just as the System was acknowledged by me, I too must prove my usefulness to the System.

Skip the System, then.

What if I moved the Dungeon Ian made over here?

No. That was also made to deal with a single entity.

My worries deepened.

The most certain method is to create a new magic system that surpasses Dragon Language Magic.

But the wall is too thick right now.

At the same time, my head rang.

KABOOM!

For a moment, a tremor ran through me, strong enough to make me lose my balance.

-Level Up!

It was thanks to auto-hunting.

A total of 12 Hunting Grounds had been created so far.

And those 12 Hunting Grounds were running ceaselessly, 24 hours a day.

The number of Hunting Grounds would increase steeply, and no matter how large my pool of Experience Points was, at this point, it was filling up rapidly.

Right. Let’s not be hasty.

There’s still plenty of time.

With that thought, I left the laboratory.

As if they had been waiting, texts poured in from my phone.

They were all work-related. A deep sigh escaped me as soon as I saw them.

I expected it, but this is just too much work.

I ignored them all and turned my steps toward the person I wanted to see most.

“It’s true, I tell you! Wow, Hyung, you should have seen it.”

Kim Soo-gyeom was unusually excited.

“You said you made a team, are you that happy about it?”

“Of course I am. But that’s not the issue, the new team member we just recruited is…”

“Gosh. Oppa. Don’t even start. He’s been jumping around like a drunk monkey since earlier…”

“Noona, you should have seen that guy!”

“That guy?”

When I asked back, Kim Soo-gyeom said urgently.

“His name is Byeon Soo-hyeon. He’s twenty-seven this year. But the footwork of his swordsmanship is different.”

“Looks like you two connected as fellow Swordsmen.”

When I spoke nonchalantly, Kim Soo-gyeom pounded his chest.

“No. It’s not just that! He’s a Civilian, but his talent is immense!”

A Civilian having outstanding talent in swordsmanship was no longer surprising.

With the spread of Skill Books, many talented people had appeared.

I mean, there’s already a non-Awakener in Germany who has reached B-Rank, so that says it all.

This person named Byeon Soo-hyeon is probably one of them.

“Alright. Keep up the good work.”

“Hyung-nim. You should see him when you have time. This is something you really have to see for yourself! For real!”

“Hey. Oppa has so much to do, why should he have to meet your team member?”

“I’m telling you, out of all those things, he must meet him! He might be someone who could redefine Skill Books!”

“Oh, please. Do it first, then talk. Do it first.”

“If I do it, you’ll see him, right?”

I let out a chuckle without realizing it. His hard work was commendable.

“Alright. Try to do it and then we’ll talk. At this point, I’m curious myself.”

That’s what I said, but.

The idea of a talent great enough to revise the Northern Grand Duke’s Swordsmanship,

I don’t quite get it. And a Civilian who just picked up a sword, at that.

Well, if something that truly surpasses the Northern Grand Duke’s Swordsmanship exists.

Then the story would be completely different.

“I’m going crazy.”

Kim Soo-gyeom paced back and forth in the Training Arena like a dog needing to poop.

“It’s because people don’t know your true worth yet, Soo-hyeon-ssi.”

“Uh… is that so?”

Byeon Soo-hyeon said, bewildered.

“Let’s continue what we were talking about. So, according to you, Soo-hyeon-ssi, the beginner swordsmanship Skill Book distributed by the Association is a bit strange, right?”

“…I, I was talking nonsense. I’m sorry.”

“No. It wasn’t nonsense. You definitely said it a while ago. That with a few more revisions, it could become a great swordsmanship.”

“That was just me talking to myself…”

“So, let’s try to make that talking-to-yourself a little more concrete.”

Kim Soo-gyeom grabbed Byeon Soo-hyeon’s shoulders as if he were excited.

The more he did, the more troubled Byeon Soo-hyeon became.

He had just glanced at the Skill Book because he couldn’t understand how the sword felt so natural in his hand, and had just muttered to himself.

He never thought Kim Soo-gyeom would hear him.

“Please, please just listen casually.”

“Yes, yes. I will.”

He said that, but he didn’t seem to mean it. Kim Soo-gyeom’s expression was overly serious.

There was no other choice.

Byeon Soo-hyeon let out a deep sigh and grabbed a wooden sword.

His legs moved with a limp.

It started from then.

The forms of the Mind Sword exploded from Byeon Soo-hyeon’s hands.

Simple forms consisting of thrusts and slashes, based on the Samjae Sword Style.

But the subtlety contained within was anything but simple.

And Kim Soo-gyeom had the eyes to recognize it.

Before he knew it, Kim Soo-gyeom was holding a camera.

The lens obsessively captured every single one of Byeon Soo-hyeon’s movements.

By the time Byeon Soo-hyeon’s movements had ended.

An exclamation of awe automatically burst from Kim Soo-gyeom.

“I’m sure of it. With your swordsmanship, Soo-hyeon-ssi, even the Chairman will come running.”

“The, the Chairman?”

There were two Chairmen Byeon Soo-hyeon knew.

The Korean Association President, Yeo Ju-kyung, and…

He swallowed hard.

Just thinking about the other person made him dizzy.

Because until just a few days ago, he thought he would never encounter him in his entire life.

“Of course, Chairman Choi Gi-woong.”

Byeon Soo-hyeon hiccuped in spite of himself.

“Let’s send it for now. There’s no way the Chairman will just ignore this.”

Kim Soo-gyeom thumped his chest as if to say, just trust me.

He wondered what to do.

Should I tell him I saw it in a dream? The words came out before the thought.

“…Yes. I understand. I’ll give it a try.”

“I’ll record again. Anything is fine, so just try any move.”

Kim Soo-gyeom took out the camera again.

And he began to swing the sword. The feeling in his fingers was extraordinary.

Right now, even his limping leg was not a hindrance.

It was the moment the stance of the Young Cult Leader, Jin Cheon-geuk, which he had seen in his dream, was perfectly reproduced.

Tap. Tap.

I tapped the desk with my fingers.

I didn’t even know when the video had ended.

Even after it did, I stared intently at the screen for a long time.

So they do exist.

People like this. An incredible person who could make the swordsmanship created by the Northern Grand Duke seem like ‘nothing’.

That’s why it was strange.

I picked up the report piled high on the desk again.

It was a report detailing everything from Byeon Soo-hyeon’s family history to past photos, education, and personal life.

But no matter how I looked at it, he was someone who had no connection to the sword.

“He downloaded it to Level 1 half a year ago and still couldn’t Master it?”

“Yes. A private academy even told him he had no talent and should give up.”

“But he’s not an Awakener either.”

“Yes.”

That’s why I’m more curious.

How on earth did a person change so much in half a year?

I think I know why Kim Soo-gyeom was making such a fuss.

This was worth making a fuss about. No, even that reaction was an understatement.

“Where is this person now?”

“He is said to be with Team leader Kim Soo-gyeom.”

Lee Seok-jae said cautiously.

“…Should I bring him here?”

“No. I’ll go see him myself.”