Chapter 69 – The Variable (１)

“Even Beache has fallen.”

The 4th General, Kremton.

His face twisted into a troubled expression.

Three generals had already been taken down by the Seeker.

Sure, two generals still remained.

And these two generals wield Strength far greater than the previous three.

Yet even so, the current situation is grim.

“The Monarch is furious.”

The steward of the general before him spoke.

As he said, the First Monarch of the Underworld was now in a towering rage.

He hadn’t even fully reclaimed his own power yet—and already three generals had fallen.

“That’s not all. Hamal. She too has begun to recover her strength.”

Hamal, the Monarch of the Land, whom the other Monarchs had sealed away in this Underworld.

She was beginning to regain her power.

And that made it hard for the generals to press the Seeker easily.

The stronger Hamal grew, the stronger her plains warriors became as well.

As if that weren’t enough.

Once inside Hamal’s territory, the power of the Demon Beasts led by the generals also plummeted.

“Goddammit.”

If things kept going like this, they might truly find themselves in a perilous position.

Then, suddenly.

A swirling hiss filled the air.

A circular sphere materialized before his eyes.

“…Hm?”

He tilted his head.

That orb of darkness was a communication sphere—the Dark Orb.

And there was only one being who would contact him through it right now.

[It’s me. Isabel.]

The name that echoed from within was Isabel.

She was the 5th General.

“…What is it?”

Kremton answered brusquely, as if annoyed.

Probably about to nag him again, he figured.

He could already feel irritation rising at the scolding he expected from Isabel.

But that wasn’t it.

[I think the two of us should join forces.]

“…What?”

Kremton’s eyes bulged at the unexpected reply.

[Did you not hear? It’s a situation serious enough that you and I need to combine our strength right now.]

“…Hah.”

Kremton let out a hollow laugh.

That arrogant, prideful Isabel would actually be the one to propose an alliance first.

“Are you serious?”

Kremton couldn’t believe it and asked again.

[Of course. It’s mortifying for me too, working with someone like you—but this isn’t the time for pride. Before His Majesty grows even angrier, wouldn’t it be better to wipe out the pests obstructing his recovery of power first?]

“…”

The corner of Kremton’s mouth twisted.

‘Of course.’

Still, her words weren’t wrong.

No, this might be the only way to break the deadlock.

“Let’s do it.”

[Good. I’ll come to you soon, so wait for me.]

“Got it.”

With that, Kremton ended the communication.

‘…If it plays out like this, things change.’

A solution he never expected had materialized.

He never thought he’d join forces with Isabel.

But if he combined strength with her…

‘However fiercely that Hamal woman resists, that Seeker bastard will be easy prey to swallow whole.’

The battle to capture the Seeker would be one they simply couldn’t lose.

‘No matter how troublesome the kid is, there’s no way he can face us both at once.’

“Heh, heheh…”

Laughter spilled from his lips.

*

[So you really met that one.]

“Yes.”

Hamal seemed surprised as she watched Gijun return from Tubaku.

[I’ve heard he’s no easy figure. Convincing him despite that must be a remarkable achievement.]

“Actually, I didn’t do much.”

Hamal shook her head at Gijun’s honest answer.

[If it were that simple, so many wouldn’t have been spurned in his presence. He must have seen some light within you. But anyway…]

Then Hamal’s gaze shifted.

Toward Hera.

[Who are you?]

“My name is Hera. I’m a comrade aiding Master Jun in achieving his great undertaking.”

[…Hoh.]

Hamal studied Hera with interest.

[You’re strong. Very much so.]

“Something like that.”

Hera answered as if it were obvious, without a moment’s hesitation.

But no one refuted her words.

Because Hera really was that strong.

[Good. As it happens, it seems the remaining two generals are joining forces.]

“···!”

Gijun’s eyes widened.

[This was intel relayed by my sons scouring the area. It says Kremton and Isabel—the last two generals—are showing signs of uniting.]

“I see.”

Gijun nodded, his face hardening.

Truth be told, it wouldn’t be strange if the two generals joined forces.

After all, they’d already crushed three generals one by one.

From their side, the situation was ripe for alliance.

‘But—’

The timing was good.

Right now, Gijun had Hera as reinforcement.

‘Someone on Hera’s level could easily handle one general.’

It was true.

Given the combat power she’d shown, she could certainly hold her own against a single general.

Of course, the generals themselves had grown stronger, boosted by the Lord’s power.

‘Libre said it.’

Libre had told him.

After witnessing Hera’s strength, she said that she had more than enough power to take on a general.

[First, eliminate those two remaining generals, then ascend back to the Upper Realm.]

Hamal spoke.

[Only by awakening the power of the Sain-geom you carry can you begin the battle against the Lord.]

“You’re right.”

Gijun replied.

As Hamal said, he could only fight the Lord by completing the Sain-geom.

What’s more, he couldn’t borrow Hera’s strength in the fight against the Lord.

Because Gijun alone could strike the Lord.

Wasn’t it said that none without the Sain-geom could even attack the Lord?

‘Anyway—’

Once the generals were dealt with, he’d gain the third heart too.

Completing the Sain-geom would make Gijun even stronger.

If things went that way, he figured the battle against the Lord would be worth attempting.

It wouldn’t be easy, of course, but he had no intention of giving up.

Beside him, Hera tilted her head.

That was only natural.

Because she couldn’t follow the flow of this conversation.

“I’ll explain again later.”

“Yes, please.”

[Well then, I entrust the rest to you. My sons have also grown far stronger than before, so they’ll be of great help.]

*

A short while later.

“Understood.”

After receiving a rough explanation of the current situation from Gijun, Hera nodded.

“Then I’ll take on one of the generals.”

She said.

Even before Gijun could ask anything, she’d grasped what she needed to do.

“From the sound of it, these so-called generals are immensely powerful.”

“Yes. Each of the three generals we fought was no pushover. Amalta and I had to fight together. And of course, the remaining generals will be even stronger.”

“I look forward to it.”

Still, Hera was smiling.

At her expression, Woo Jimin’s words flickered through his mind.

“I want to fight too, but guild management leaves me no time for battle.” That’s what she’d said.

And now, he sensed that same feeling in Hera.

A flutter of excitement, as if her hands itched to jump into a fight right this instant.

“Hoo. It’s truly freeing. Before coming here, I always felt like the whole world was watching me. But here, no one pays me any attention…”

Fair enough.

Hera was, in fact, an enormous celebrity.

Not just in the game, but in reality too.

She had a popularity that rivaled that of most Hollywood actors.

Hera was the kind of person who didn’t even have a private life.

“Anyway, I’m counting on you.”

“That’s my line. It’s a thrill I haven’t felt in a long time.”

Then, at that moment…

The Compass of the Underworld began to spin wildly.

Whirling frantically, as if it had lost all sense of direction.

A compass that couldn’t seem to settle on a heading, confused.

That could only mean one thing…

“It looks like they’re swarming in from all sides.”

That was all.

So many enemies were approaching from every direction that even pinpointing a target was impossible.

It meant foes were closing in from every side.

But even now, Hera remained unruffled.

“In that case… it’d be best to split up first.”

“Yes.”

Hera readily agreed to Jun’s suggestion.

“Well then… I’m in your care.”

Hera flashed him a thumbs-up and then moved toward one direction.

The moment Hera moved,

“We’ll move too.”

the warriors of the Plains said.

“Yes, I’m counting on you.”

With those words, the warriors of the Plains also began to advance.

Around that time, a thunderous roar that shook the very earth could be heard from far in the distance.

“What a fucking lot of them.”

By the time the demon beasts began pouring out, filling the horizon as far as the naked eye could see…

“Let’s go too.”

“Got it.”

Jun and Amalta began to move as well.

*

“Hmm-hmm.”

Someone was humming a tune.

It was the 5th General, Isabel.

She was currently lying on the back of Grant, the demon beast of the Underworld.

Grant was a colossal demon beast, tens of meters in size.

From up there, she could see the whole world in one glance.

That was why she loved lying on Grant’s back.

‘How cute.’

And now, she was watching the group gathered in one place.

The warriors of the Plains, huddled far off in the distance.

The warriors of the Plains were numerous.

And their individual strength was nothing to scoff at, either.

But if you asked if that made them a threat, the answer was no.

‘They need to put up at least that much of a fight.’

On the contrary, it was just the right level of stimulation.

She’d gone to the trouble of rousing herself and moving; if this was all they had to offer, wouldn’t that be disappointing?

‘After this body mustered the courage to extend a hand to Kremton first.’

Surely, if she and Kremton had each acted alone, no one could have guaranteed the outcome of this battle.

At first he had dismissed them, but now the Seeker and the Flame Monarch had already produced results that could no longer be ignored.

But with two of them, the equation changed.

No matter how much you bastards thrash about, you won’t find an answer.

Wasn’t that the truth?

Even taking down a single general was no easy feat anymore.

To say nothing of the power gap between Beache and Kremton.

Isabel herself possessed strength on an entirely different tier from the other four generals.

And now she had been granted the Lord’s own power on top of that.

Even if she yielded a thousand—no, ten thousand times—and entertained the worst-case scenario where some miracle allowed them to defeat Kremton and herself…

The probability of the Seeker surviving a joint attack from both Kremton and Isabel was less than one in ten thousand.

“Heh-heh…”

All that remained now was to eliminate that troublesome Seeker and wait for the day the Lord would rule this world.

And then—

BOOM!

A battle erupted ahead.

The Demon Beasts that had been encircling Hamal’s territory from all sides began crashing against the Prairie Warriors.

True to her expectations, the Prairie Warriors were formidable.

Even as Demon Beasts poured in from every direction, the Prairie Warriors held their ground.

No—they were overwhelming the beasts, rapidly thinning their numbers.

But the sheer quantity of Demon Beasts was staggering.

Though the Prairie Warriors fought fiercely and whittled down the horde, the beasts behind filled the gaps faster than they could be cut down.

And then—

WHOOOOSH-BOOM!

A torrent of flames erupted from one side.

“Oh…”

Isabel’s eyes widened.

That blaze had to be the Seeker’s flames.

I see…

Powerful.

Even from this distance, she could feel the searing heat—too formidable to brush aside lightly.

Incredible.

The moment that fire roared to life, the Demon Beasts’ numbers began plummeting.

Maybe… I really was in danger?

The thought struck her with genuine weight.

It was monstrous firepower, plain and simple.

Flames terrifying enough to illuminate this dark Tartaros surged unceasingly in every direction.

Alright, then…

She stroked Grant’s back.

“Turn around.”

The Seeker was moving in the opposite direction from where she stood.

She intended to go greet the bastard in person.

But just then—

FWOOSH!

“…Hm?”

Isabel’s eyes narrowed.

She snapped her gaze to the side.

In that instant—

FLASH!

A blinding flare of light erupted from one corner.

A brilliant golden wave swept across the land.

And then—

KABOOOOM!

In an instant, the radiant light vaporized every Demon Beast within a radius of several dozen meters.