Author: Xerenity

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245. Mithrael

Min-Cheol traveled to a location not far from Mithrael’s castle.

Only 24 hours remained.

For the past few days, Barub did not make a single move, staying quiet as a mouse.

There was a bit of a change since Min-Cheol properly slotted in the Flame Dragon’s Talisman into the armor that Dump had made.

Min-Cheol was now able to sense an energy signature that he wasn’t able to before.

No Awakened, demonic beasts, Protectors, or even the gods of the celestial plane emanated energy like this.

The source of where the energy was coming from was Mithrael’s castle.

A great amount of power was emanating from there.

Min-Cheol was positive that the talisman slotted in the armor was reacting to a dragon’s energy signature.

Min-Cheol hadn’t changed at all in the last few days.

The amount of power he has, the skills he possessed, and even the artifacts he owned.

If there was one thing that did change, it was that he had put the Flame Drake’s Talisman on correctly.

There was no way to know what that small change would bring in the future.

Min-Cheol was more desperate than anyone right now, but he was also more confident than anyone else.

Covering the distance in a single leap to Mithrael’s castle that was far off, Min-Cheol was met with a giant castle door.

Opening this door, the castellan would be inside.

However, wasn’t it strange?

Even if the counts and marquises were killed, the soldiers guarding the castellan would’ve survived.

Barub also did not bother with those without much power.

Because Barub could be done in from loitering near the castellan, the obvious choice was avoidance.

This was the residence of the strongest person in the entire country, a person that could be considered a king.

However, Min-Cheol could not sense a single living being near the castle.

With suspicion in his heart, Min-Cheol opened the door to the castle.

The lobby that came first into Min-Cheol’s view was quite dirty.

And as if time had stopped, there were signs of people being here some time ago.

There had been a commotion in the middle of the banquet before.

It had been caused by Barub going wild and butchering both slaves and the knights.

The castle’s banquet hall looked exactly the same since then.

Except now, not a single person remained, leaving only stillness and silence behind.

Passing the lobby, Min-Cheol stood before another door.

The energy signature that Min-Cheol had sensed was flowing out with greater intensity from beyond that door.

Like a predator that senses the smell of blood from afar, Min-Cheol continued walking forward to follow that energy signature.

With the door opened, Min-Cheol’s expression turned into that of a frown.

“…”

A completely white space.

The white expanse continued so far that it was hard to tell how far it went on.

And it was difficult to tell where the pillars and walls were.

Min-Cheol’s eyes rested on the bright blue glowing at the far end.

It was because he was sure that it was the light that he had seen back when he had lost consciousness.

There was no reason for Min-Cheol to move closer to the light, as the light was slowly approaching him.

And the person to arrive close to him was Mithrael.

“Looks like you’ve recovered far less than I thought. Did I overestimate you?”

“You’ve really left an amusing wound. I almost wasn’t able to stand back up.”

“But why are you alone?”

“Hm? If you’re talking about my clones, then they will come out in a bit.”

“I was referring to Demon. I expected you two to come together.”

“I think you’ve got the wrong idea. I’m not on Demon’s side. Is that the reason why you didn’t kill me and let me live instead?”

“It seems that my excitement has been extinguished in an instant.”

“I’ll amuse you aplenty, so don’t worry about it.”

“Did you forget already? I could kill you without lifting a finger.”

“…”

“I had thought that you would amuse me together with Demon, but I cannot put into words my disappointment.”

It seemed that Mithrael did not feel anything for the nobles that made up a large portion of his kingdom.

He was only focused on the amount of force that could be mustered up through a joint attack with Barub and Min-Cheol.

Not killing him and letting him live, and the castellan’s real identity being a dragon as well.

It was true that Min-Cheol could not figure out why the castellan was here and what his aim was.

Min-Cheol threw a question towards the unshaken castellan, Mithrael.

“Why is that no one else is around? I thought that because you’re the castellan, you’d be living in extensive security.”

“They were here until a few days ago. However, all of them were used to sate my hunger.”

“That’s quite the nasty hobby.”

“While it wasn’t the cleanest of blood, what can you do? In a situation like this, I have to be content with what I can get.”

“Is that why you took the maidens and Protectors…”

“Cease now. I am already hungry again. Kuhaha!”

“…”

Mithrael rudely continued on with a smug expression.

The maidens and young that had been kidnapped by Swesi and sold to the nobles to die in a cruel fashion.

All because of Castellan Mithrael.

If Min-Cheol hadn’t been able to destroy Swesi and rescue Berlette, then she would’ve been murdered to sate the hunger of the castellan as well.

Min-Cheol felt shivers run down his spine looking at his face as Mithrael spoke about such a horrific deed as if it wasn’t anything significant.

While Min-Cheol wanted to swing his sword and and cut Mithrael’s head off that instant, he held back and calmly continued his questions.

“Why is a dragon breaking down order in the society of humans?”

“Kuhu. You knew of my identity? Well, it would be strange if you didn’t know after getting rid of the Dragon’s Scar and appearing before me.”

“It doesn’t seem as though you want to create your own kingdom. I just don’t understand your reasoning.”

“Yeah. As you said, I’m a dragon. In a far away memory, I can still recall when I used to live together with my kin.”

“…”

“However, while I do not recall when, I ended up in human society. I now had to live with these lower lifeforms. Me, a great dragon.”

“But you still wanted to be king among them?”

“Haha! It’s a given that a superior lifeform like I outshine the rabble.”

“So you had no reason to come here and have no goals? So you’re saying that you didn’t come here of your own will?”

“That’s right.”

“How funny. I just cannot understand or get used to this shitty world that Karupedan has created.”

“In such a dull life, an interesting situation has finally come. You two’s appearance only affects me that much. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Seems you’re not much different from those from the celestial plane.”

“I am not interested in such a pitiful fight. And it hasn’t been long since I finished my meal. Hurry and disappear from my sight.”

Mithrael turned his body around to go back further into his residence.

It was as if he wasn’t interested in Min-Cheol’s life at all.

However, Min-Cheol had no plans to let him go in one piece.

Grabbing onto his sword, he summoned his clones that he could not do without.

Sensing that, Mithrael stopped his steps and sighed as if he had to play along with an annoying foe.

“Whew… Don’t you have any desire to return without causing a fuss?”

“I already told you. I wouldn’t disappoint you.”

“It seems that there are humans that do not value their own life.”

“Ugh!”

“With this, it’s over. You won’t be recovering from the Dragon’s Scar by chance again, and you will not be able to stand once more.”

“Argh!”

The situation hadn’t changed at all from before.

Mithrael was able to make Min-Cheol kneel without moving in the slightest.

A massive amount of blood poured out between his armor, soaking the white space in dark red.

Almost as if trying to bleed out every drop from his body, the bleeding continued like a raging waterfall.

A weak scream was the only sound heard, and Min-Cheol shuddered uncontrollably while holding onto his chest and stomach.

However, the clones stood still without any movement.

Perhaps amused at the sight, Mithrael spoke with a snicker.

“Pff. Seems that even the clones that follow you refuse to help a weak master. It seems that I was foolish for expecting something from a lesser being such as a human.”

“Ugh…”

Turning his back on the collapsed Min-Cheol, Mithrael’s steps went further and further away.

The way that Min-Cheol’s clones were acting was different from before and strange.

It would be normal for them to drag Min-Cheol towards them to heal him or retaliate against Mithrael.

However, the clones were completely laid back.

As if Min-Cheol’s situation had nothing to do with them, they acted as if they had abandoned their owner, Min-Cheol, like Mithrael had said.

However, they hadn’t rescinded their loyalty to Min-Cheol.

Their reaction was only possible because they completely saw through Min-Cheol’s plan and knew that the power of the Flame Dragon’s Talisman would activate.

Mithrael, who was walking his own way, suddenly shuddered and stopped in his tracks.

His body shook slightly due to being excited uncontrollably.

His stiff facial muscles tightened, and he regained his energy.

And as if finding hope in a bleak situation, he muttered with overwhelming joy.

“This energy…”

“Pain is quite interesting. No matter how many times that I experience it, I cannot get used to it. Even if it was the same pain I’ve already experienced.”

“How can you…”

“How about it? Is it somewhat amusing now?”

“This cannot be. However. However…”

Mithrael looked at Min-Cheol with disbelief.

In his view stood a perfectly healthy Min-Cheol.

He was no longer letting out groans as if he was going to die at any minute.

Not only did his wounds heal and his bleeding stop, but Min-Cheol was now letting out a completely different and vast amounts of energy.

The energy emanating was exactly the same as his.

And just like that, the power of the Flame Dragon’s Talisman that Min-Cheol owned activated.

It was true that Min-Cheol did not exactly know the conditions for the talisman to activate.

He had visited Mithrael without any plan, and had tried to find the solution through him.

However, the way to activate that he discovered accidentally was far simpler than he had thought.

“Seems I have to completely become a husk first. To use this overhyped power of the dragons.”

“D-Dragon… This is definitely the energy of the dragon!”

Only after Min-Cheol lose all the power he had that the power of the dragon was able to flow through him.

He had to become a complete husk first to accept the power.

However, he did not permanently lose all the power he had obtained so far after obtaining the dragon’s power.

He had recovered and evolved from the power of a dragon, which increased even his original strength.

Mithrael had become extremely excited after facing the power of his own kind after hundreds of years.

This wasn’t an excitement that comes from meeting a familiar face in a long time.

This was joy from being able to trade blows in a fight against an opponent equal in strength.

Mithrael walked towards Min-Cheol, step by step.

Walking but refraining from moving quickly, he came close and spoke quietly.

“The power of my kin. An overwhelming amount of power. And not only one, but six…”

“It won’t be long, but it’ll be fun.”

“Yes. It definitely will be.”

---

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244. Getting Back on One’s Feet (2)

“M-Master…”

“Feels like it’s forever since I slept so well. I forget how long it has been since I’ve actually gotten any…”

“Oh! Are you well again?”

“Master!”

“You’ve been through a lot. You’ve also worried a lot, Count Audu?”

“Sniffle…”

“It’s a relief to see that you’ve recovered. It really is most fortunate!”

Min-Cheol stood up, just like that.

He had recovered after eating the food given by that old woman, Gera.

The scroll merchant Gera and her granddaughter Karupedan…

While he wasn’t sure that if this only amounted up to a coincidence, they did provide assistance to Min-Cheol.

Hoping for his swift recovery, Dan and Audu were elated when their hopes came true.

The 5 clones that had continued to cast their healing spells now lined up with satisfied looks, as if waiting for Min-Cheol’s orders.

Min-Cheol patted the shoulder of Dan, who cried with his head lowered, and asked him a question.

“You’ve really been through a lot. It’s alright now.”

“I really thought that you wouldn’t be able to stand up ever again.”

“Thank you for your hard work. But let me ask, how many days since I’ve been out for the count?”

“Three days. But many things have changed since.”

“What of the remaining marquises…”

“Yes. Demon. No, the one that master calls Barub has taken all of them out.”

“So what I have worried about has come. Then the only one left is the castellan, Mithrael?”

“Yes… However…”

“Don’t worry about it. I won’t lose to someone I’ve lost to already.”

“Have you really recovered fully?”

“Yes. Both my body and mind have returned to normal.”

“I felt like I was grasping at straws. It’s really fortunate.”

While Min-Cheol had completely recovered and dusted himself off, the situation wasn’t that good.

Barub had already grown stronger than Min-Cheol by far, and the only way to overcome the gap was to defeat Mithrael after all.

However, Mithrael wasn’t an easy adversary.

He had slammed Min-Cheol in a single hit without moving at all.

And on top of that, he had caused Min-Cheol to be bed ridden for days in a row like a NEET.

But Min-Cheol spoke calmly, as if he had predicted all of this ahead of time.

“So what did you do? I really thought this was the end.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I’m asking how you’ve treated me. I don’t think I’ve gotten back up from the healing skills my clones were using.”

“Ah… Well. I just brought some food and fed you.”

“Hm?”

“Soup and bread.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes. Do you remember the old woman who we met at the skill scroll shop before?”

“I remember. The elder who gave me the cursed scroll, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct. All I did was to feed you the food she made.”

“Hm…”

“I don’t think she’s a regular person. She knew you were defeated the moment that she saw me, and I feel as though she has some mysterious power.”

“Is that so. Seems I must give her thanks before returning.”

“More importantly, what will you do now?”

“What do you think? I need to close the gap and need to overcome Barub.”

“Then you’ll need a way to grow stronger. I’m asking who will be the target.”

“He’s right here.”

“Huh?”

“Aren’t you a Protector yourself?”

“Eh?”

“No need to be shocked. It’s a joke. As I said, everything ends if I can defeat Mithrael. Then there is no way that Barub can overcome me.”

“…”

It was to be expected that Dan could not say anything but squirm.

Min-Cheol raised his body off the bed.

His body was the same state as before being defeated by Mithrael, and it wasn’t as if he had grown stronger since.

Since Min-Cheol, who had been defeated by the castellan in such a complete fashion, was so confident at facing him, Dan couldn’t help but wonder.

He had thought that Min-Cheol might be repeating the mistake he had made before.

However, Min-Cheol had always surprised Dan so far.

He did have faith that his confidence wasn’t just false hopes.

Fully standing up, Min-Cheol gave orders to his clones.

“Bring my armor and sword.”

“I shall go.”

“Yeah idiot, you go do it.”

The firstborn clone seemed so pleased with Min-Cheol waking back up that he brought the armor and sword with all smiles.

The clones had cleaned the bloodied, dirty equipment ahead of time.

Min-Cheol had received a massive amount of damage, but the armor looked new, without a single dent.

Receiving the armor, Min-Cheol stared at the where the Protector talisman was socketed.

And with his sword, pulled out the talisman.

“Master. Why are you suddenly removing the Protector talisman?”

“Don’t you remember?”

“What is it?”

“Remember that I’ve received something nice before? I didn’t expect that I’d have to use it though.”

“No way! The Flame Dragon’s Talisman?”

“Correct. Gotta catch a dragon with a dragon.”

Min-Cheol removed the talisman that protected the armor from destruction.

The reason why this armor was left unscathed without as much as a dent was because of this talisman.

Revealed was the Flame Dragon’s Talisman that he had received from defeating an elite monster, socketed backwards.

The armor that Dump crafted had two spots to socket talismans.

He had asked it to be prepared in advance just in case, but Dump had already crafted the armor that way before Min-Cheol had requested it.

Min-Cheol then pulled out the Flame Dragon’s talisman that had been socketed backwards as well.

Then he flipped it to the correct side and slotted it in.

-click.

In an instant, the armor glowed bright.

Only a single Protector’s talisman attached to the armor could be in effect at any given moment.

Even though you could make any socketable areas to put in talismans in the armor, it was pointless.

There was a reason why Min-Cheol had put the Flame Dragon’s Talisman backwards.

It was because he wanted the talisman that protected the armor from destruction to be in effect over any others.

However, the situation had changed.

Seeing that Mithrael’s real form was a dragon, he realized that he needed more power.

“That’s right… The old woman said that.”

“What did she say?”

“That the reason why master could not wake up was because of the ‘Dragon’s Scar.’”

“Dragon’s Scar? That old woman truly has quite the mysterious ability. Wonder how she knows that I’ve been defeated by a dragon.”

“Huh? Then the words you’ve been saying that sounded more like sleeptalking were…”

“I’m sure of it. Mithrael isn’t a human being. After I lost my consciousness from his strike, what I saw right after was a dragon.”

“A dragon…”

“A dragon that glowed bright blue. That is his true form and identity.”

“So you’re telling me that you’re going to use the power of the Flame Dragon’s talisman to defeat Mithrael?”

“That’s right. If the talisman had been socketed correctly, then I wouldn’t have lost so thoroughly to him a couple days ago in our fight.”

“So you’re sure of it?”

“Of course. With this, I will turn the tables again.”

“But you don’t know the conditions required to activate the Flame Dragon’s talisman.”

“It’s not clearly stated. But, don’t you get a sense of it?”

“What feeling are you talking about?”

“Mithrael’s true identity is that of a dragon. He did not receive the power of a dragon through a Protector’s talisman and is instead a real dragon.”

“So what are you saying?”

“It means that the answer will be made clear once I meet him. The catalyst that will activate the power of the talisman will be him after all.”

“Isn’t this too risky? Master?”

“Risky? I don’t have anywhere to back-peddle. Dying while resisting the castellan, or dying a week later after traveling to another dimension is the same thing.”

“True…”

Min-Cheol put on the armor that he socketed the new talisman into, and then twisted around to stretch his rigid body.

And then he laid on the bed again.

Flabbergasted by his behavior, Dan asked while sighing.

“Didn’t you say that you’re going to overtake Barub?”

“I did say that.”

“But is continuing to lay on the bed going to allow you to overtake Barub?”

“Yep.”

“Are you sure that you’re better now? Does your head hurt or…”

“Yep.”

“Whew… Take it easy with the jokes. Should someone who just came back after a near death experience act like this?”

“Dan. Right now, we have to hide and stay low.”

“Why?”

“Barub probably expects his victory and has hid somewhere, or probably consumed with trying to kill a strong Protector, right? Barub is already stronger than me, so there is no reason to try fighting against Mithrael after all.”

“That’s true…”

“But think about what would happen if I try to move to fight against Mithrael when there are still days left and I get discovered by Barub. Maybe it would be possible if I could activate the Flame Dragon’s talisman at will. If that’s not the case, then things would end before I could even get to the castellan.”

“So you plan to strike right before returning back?”

“That’s correct. Why didn’t you feed me the soup a couple days later? So I could sleep for a couple more days.”

“Hey now. That’s a really dark joke.”

“You must’ve been through a lot over the past few days because of me, so you should take a break as well. You don’t have to worry and can rest as well, Count Audu.”

“Yes. I understand.”

“And the rest of you, return back to me.”

With Min-Cheol’s command, the clones followed his command and disappeared.

While Min-Cheol did suggest rest, Dan, whose face wasn’t revealed to Barub, left to gather information once more.

And with that, Min-Cheol was able to take a brief respite after 90 days of arriving in Hell.

3 days ago, at dawn.

Barub had defeated all the remaining marquises in Larkenta.

On top of that, Barub took caution against the castellan’s movements while killing all the Protectors within the castle before going into hiding.

As Min-Cheol had expected, Barub had gone into hiding.

While Barub had no idea what happened to their enemy, Min-Cheol, they realized that Min-Cheol had stopped taking action at some point.

The remaining 3 marquises was what determined the victor from the defeated, but Barub had been able to absorb their strength without contest after all.

They had guessed that Min-Cheol had been done in by Castellan Mithrael.

Barub thought to themself that they had already taken an incontestable lead in their bet.

Min-Cheol, who had tried to grow stronger had disappeared.

Even if he was still alive, Barub now had more power than Min-Cheol did.

The only biggest threat to their assured victory was Mithrael.

That’s why after obtaining all that power, Barub was hidden as far as possible from the castle.

They had hid themself far away from the unexplored hunting grounds as well.

After all, if they just hold out until the time to be summoned back the celestial plane came, then this long yet amusing bet would come to an end.

****

And with that, 6 days had passed.

During that time, Min-Cheol lived a life of a complete shut-in.

Because he had no need to even eat, he did not leave the inn for a total of 6 days.

All he did was to silently guard his spot on the inn’s bed the entire time.

Now, exactly 24 hours remained before the promised 100 days would pass.

Both Min-Cheol and Barub would be summoned back to the celestial plane.

And with both of them summoned, their final battle would unfold.

The loser would obviously lose their life, and the winner would receive unfathomable power.

After all, this was a bet with the seat of an absolute god as the reward.

Min-Cheol currently was at the most important part of the bet right now.

No. You could say that he was at a lifetime’s crossroad that would never come again.

This single fight would determine everything, and it would also greatly affect the future face off as well.

With a determined expression, he put on the armor and gripped onto his sword.

He planned to go to Mithrael’s castle.

Dan and Audu did not come along.

This would be Min-Cheol’s last fight, and there wasn’t any guarantees that he would win.

And he had already seen the face of Castellan Mithrael.

There was no way that Min-Cheol could forget the one that had completely stomped him.

“So we can see you again after the fight?”

“Of course. You and Count Audu. And I cannot forget to say goodbye Mr. Dump and Berlette as well. Ah! And I also need to do so for the elder at the scroll store.”

“Please come back safe. I won’t worry. I’ll just patiently wait for you.”

“Yeah. I’ll be back.”

With that, Min-Cheol shook hands with the two of them before tearing the scroll to head for the castle.

---

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243. Getting Back on One’s Feet

“Back then… About the grasshopper that dried out from the sun! Right?”

The person addressing Dan was the the elderly owner of the skill scroll shop.

She was the same elderly woman who nicknamed Dan as dried out dead grasshopper and handed the cursed scroll over to Min-Cheol.

Dan was taken aback by her sudden appearance, but went into the store to ask about the current going-ons inside the castle.

It was difficult to find anyone to talk to because everyone was busy hiding away.

There was a bowl of recently boiled hot soup and well baked bread on a table inside the store.

The elderly woman nodded towards that table, and Dan quickly understood, sat near the table, and look towards her.

“Kuhuhu. Are you still holding onto that?”

“Well, not really…”

“You are as timid as you look. Kuhuhu.”

“Right now isn’t the time for small talk. More importantly, has anything changed?”

“What do you mean?”

“All the counts and marquises of Larkenta have been murdered overnight. It all happened in that short amount of time while everyone was in sweet dreamland.”

“Of course. That’s right. Something similar to the level of chaos when the first monsters appeared has happened.”

“Yes… I’m asking if anything has changed or anything suspicious going on.”

“Many days have passed since its occurrence, but nothing has changed.”

‘“…”

“It must be even scarier because of that. Isn’t it far more suspicious that the usual calm remains in a situation like this? For people like us without any power, we can only try to read the mood.”

“Hm… “

“You must’ve seen it yourself too. The people who’ve lost their usual liveliness, locking the marketplace and doors before going into hiding. They’re all afraid… Afraid of what is to come.”

“Nothing has changed…”

“However, for an old woman like me who could drop dead at any given moment and no one would bat an eye, there is no need to be afraid. Listen before the food cools. I’ve prepped it to pass it onto you.”

The old woman pointed towards the foodstuffs on the table.

Fresh and a perfect amount. She had foreseen Dan’s visit.

Dan laughed over her groundless words, but thought that it was possible.

After all, she had identified him in a single glance.

While there was no way for Dan to be sure, he could still tell that what Min-Cheol and the old woman had claimed back then wasn’t a joke.

Unable to do anything but picking at the food without much care, Dan looked towards the old woman and asked.

“When you saw me just a bit ago, you said that I’ve lost my owner. What did you mean by that?”

“I’ve said it because the person who came with you last time hasn’t shown up. Has he died?”

“No. But the situation is bleak to the point where he is as good as dead.”

“Must’ve been caught in a trap that another demigod has prepared. Poor thing.”

“Grandma, what are you talking about? And how do you know so well what has happened to my master?”

“Hm? Do you still not believe me? That this grandma has a very special talent. Perhaps it’s because I’m near death’s door? Kuhuhu.”

“So there’s a way, right? And you know of it, right grandma?”

“Hurry up and eat the soup before it cools. You must have been through a lot, seeing that you were next to him…”

Dan slammed down on the desk and stood up.

It seemed that she knew something, but because the old woman spoke in riddles he could not understand, Dan had expressed his anger.

The old woman wasn’t shocked in the slightest, looking at Danwith a smile.

Lumbering next to the old woman, Dan asked with a rough voice.

“Please tell me what to do.”

“Kuhuhu. What do you mean?”

“My master, the one you talked about! A way to revive my master.”

“He’s not destined to die here. Isn’t he recovering slowly as we speak?”

“You already know! Please, I beg of you. Please!”

“You’re quite blessed with good company, young one. However, will you really believe in the words of a crazy bat?”

“Yes. Time is of the essence. Hurry!”

“Kuhuhu. His illness isn’t from the heart. It’s probably true that he had lost his determination due to the overwhelming power that had subjugated him. However, there is a far bigger issue left.”

“…”

“Dragon’s Scar.”

“Dragon’s Scar?”

“You could call it a parasite that eats away at his body and heart. His body should’ve recovered already ages ago. However, his recovery is constantly being sapped away by Dragon’s Scar.”

“What’s the solution? How do we get rid of it!”

“Kuhuhu. Seems you are quite the impatient grasshopper. I shall package the bread and soup I’ve given to you, so go and feed it to your master.”

“Is that going to get rid of Dragon’s Scar? But the reason why my master collapsed isn’t because of hunger!”

“Please trust in this old woman. Or do you have another way?”

“…”

Finishing her words, the old woman stood up and headed for the kitchen, located in the corner of the store.

Each of her steps were weak enough to make anyone watching worry.

However, Dan could only trust in her right now.

From science to myths. He wanted to hold onto any hope he could.

If he could get Min-Cheol to stand up on his feet again, he would feed Min-Cheol anything at this point.

Putting Dan behind her, the old lady muttered to herself while packaging the food that would be delivered to Min-Cheol.

“I do not know if this is the correct choice. However, it seems I must have faith. It’s the last bit of help I will be giving them.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Nothing. Now! Here it is. Feed it to him before it cools. There’s nothing as difficult to swallow than cold soup.”

“…”

“Why are you standing idly? Why don’t you hurry and go?”

“You’re really saying that my master will get better with these packaged foodstuffs?”

“Hurry and go. Isn’t the soup cooling already?”

“If nothing else, please tell me your name. If the master does get better, then I want to come back and repay the debt.”

“Kuhuhu. What’s the point of learning the name of a dying old woman… Gera. My name is Gera.”

“Thank you, and I sincerely hope to meet you again…”

Dan bowed and then left the store.

There was only one thing on his mind.

It was that he had to revive Min-Cheol. It was to make sure that he would create the world he wanted and planned for with his own hands.

In his arms were the foodstuffs the old woman had handed over.

Running as fast as he could, he sprinted right past the gates of the castle.

The old woman stood and watched him go from afar.

A little child ran up next to her and hugged her, then spoke.

“Grandma. Who is he? Is he a customer?”

“Of course. He is a very important customer.”

“Seems he’s very busy. He can’t run like that. He’s going to get hurt if he falls. Right?”

“Kuhuhu. Of course. Of course.”

“Grandma, I’m hungry…”

“Fortunately for you, I’ve already boiled the soup you love so much.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Now let us go back inside, Karupedan…”

****

“Huff… Huff…”

“Dan. Has something happened? Why have you run back here as if you were being chased by someone?”

“Huff… Hurry, the soup.”

“Hm? Soup? Take a breather and speak slowly.”

“Before that, the soup… Huff.”

Dan did not stop and ran all the way to the inn that Min-Cheol and Audu were at.

While he was a Protector, he wasn’t interested in brute force and combat.

When he worked for Swesi, he had taken on the role of a manager for the guards after all.

Even though he had far greater stamina and stronger physique than the average person who hasn’t Awakened, he was still just an average Protector.

Because he had run all the way to their residence, which was located quite far away from the castle, he was panting too much to even continue speaking.

The inn’s room that Dan returned to hadn’t changed at all.

The clones kept casting healing on Min-Cheol, and Audu looked at the window from the corner of the room, lost in worry about the future.

As Dan steadied his shaky legs with his hand and continued to walk, the firstborn that saw him spoke.

“He’ll die before Min-Cheol. Keep him alive.”

“Do as you’d like. Even cursing you out is tiring now.”

“Thank you. You didn’t call me an idiot.”

“Whew… Idiot.”

“Huh? Still keeping him alive.”

The firstborn clone treated Dan.

He must’ve thought that Dan was in a far critical state than Min-Cheol, who laid ill.

Dan’s breathing steadied in an instant.

Because he wasn’t that strong to begin with, the massive amount of power the clone had easily healed him to full in an instant.

Patting the firstborn clone’s shoulder, Dan stood in front of Min-Cheol.

“Thank you.”

“No worries.”

Following that, he was unpackaging the soup and was preparing to feed him.

Audu could not understand Dan’s behavior.

Min-Cheol was refusing to eat and laying ill.

And what he had brought all out of breath was just soup.

And he was also trying to feed him a tough dried out piece of bread as well.

“Hey. Are you really trying to feed him that?”

“Yes. With this, he can get better!”

“Hey now…”

Dan moved his body with diligence.

It happened as he was about to push a spoonful of soup into Min-Cheol’s mouth.

“Urk!”

“You can’t. Min-Cheol cannot eat right now.”

“Please let me go. I have to feed him this! That’s the only way my master can get back up!”

“He’s not hungry.”

“I am aware. However this…”

Dan’s hand that moved to feed Min-Cheol his soup had been stopped by the second oldest clone.

While he had simply grabbed onto Dan’s wrist, it was enough of an overwhelming force to make Dan scream out in pain.

There was enough force to prevent Dan from escaping no matter what he did all being concentrated on his wrist.

It seemed that the adamant second oldest would not allow Dan to go on.

It was then.

“Let go. It’s fine.”

“Idiot, stay out of this.”

“This is for Min-Cheol. Let him go.”

“…”
“It’s alright. Min-Cheol will get back up. And Min-Cheol is hungry right now. Let go of his hand.”

“…”

The firstborn nodded at Dan, and Dan immediately brought the soup to Min-Cheol’s mouth.

As the old women had hoped for, and because of Dan’s efforts, the soup hadn’t cooled yet.

While it wasn’t as hot as when it was freshly scooped out of the pot, it was at a temperature perfect to eat.

He poured some into Min-Cheol’s mouth, and Min-Cheol swallowed reflexively.

Perhaps because Min-Cheol was quite hungry, he ate the soup without any resistance.

Encouraged by Min-Cheol’s reaction, Dan dipped the bread into the soup and brought it before Min-Cheol’s mouth.

The firstborn clone had a pleased expression, watching Min-Cheol eat until the bottom of the bowl was visible.

It wasn’t long before Dan spoonfed the last bit of soup into Min-Cheol’s mouth.

With a defeated expression, he stood by Min-Cheol’s side.

While he didn’t 100% believe in the old woman’s words, it was true that he did have some hope that it would work.

However, it seemed that Min-Cheol had no plans to get back up.

Disappointment apparent on his face, Dan muttered to himself.

“To think that I hoped my master would get back up with something as simple as soup… Even for me, this is…”

The disappointment didn’t last long, however.

His head that was lowered straightened up with a single sentence, and his expression brightened.

The hand that came out from under the blanket stopped right on top of Dan’s shoulder.

And everyone, including Dan in the room, could hear it clearly.

“Good work.”

---

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242. Screenplay

Min-Cheol, who lept into the air towards the castellan, fell onto the ground.

Mithrael had only turned around to leave.

He didn’t do anything other than that, and it wasn’t as if the remaining nobles had attempted to attack either.

Even if they did attack, Min-Cheol wouldn’t have been done in by them.

However, Min-Cheol groaned in a massive amount of pain and collapsed.

It was a situation that demonstrated the huge power gap between Castellan Mithrael and Min-Cheol.

A massive amount of blood spilled out from Min-Cheol’s armor.

Only the whites of his eyes remained, and even those eyes were soaked red.

Min-Cheol, who had never lost to anyone, had been taken down.

Min-Cheol groaned in pain loudly enough to pop a vessel on his neck and forehead.

“Urgh!”

“Was I unsuccessful at holding back my strength? I apologize.”

“Ugh…”

With that, the castellan left the estate.

The second oldest clone hurriedly ran towards Min-Cheol and began to heal him.

Like foxes trying to take charge after the tiger left, the nobles were all riled up to charge.

While Min-Cheol did not have a bounty like Barub did, the nobles still wanted to nip the bud so to speak because Barub still had told the nobles about him.

After all, they had no idea when Min-Cheol, who was stronger than them, would attack.

However, those who prevented such a thing occurring were the clones with the exception of the second oldest one.

While Min-Cheol did not explicitly command them to do so, they knew that they could get rid of the nobles.

Min-Cheol groaned in pain as if he would breathe his last at any moment.

Putting him behind, the clones charged at the counts and marquis.

It was to protect their main body and to grow both themselves and Min-Cheol stronger.

If they were just any old regular summons, they would not be able to think of such a thing.

The situation was taken care of in an instant.

The nobles stood no chance against the clones.

Butchering the nobles in a single strike, the clones returned and stood around Min-Cheol.

While the amount they could heal were far lower than the second oldest clone, they still had the same skills that Min-Cheol had.

Standing in a circle around Min-Cheol, they all used their own healing skills.

Since there was only a single target, it seemed as though Min-Cheol would heal at a rapid pace.

“Ugh…”

“Strange. Min-Cheol is not healing.”

“Idiots. Focus on healing!”

“What do you expect when it’s not working? Even Status Denial doesn’t work.”

“Damn it. It is strange. So much that it’s hard to believe that he was done in by a person or a monster.”

“Should we kill him and resurrect him?”

“You shouldn’t try to think, idiot.”

“…”

The one to nod in the middle of that, the youngest clone, slowly closed his eyes.

The healing from the clones continued.

To think that it was a wound that couldn’t be healed with Status Denial.

The clones couldn’t help but be puzzled.

All that they had managed to do was to heal Min-Cheol to the point where he wasn’t groaning out in pain anymore.

He still remained unconscious and his breath was shallow, as if nearly dead.

At this speed, they did not know how long it would take before Min-Cheol would fully recover.

The healing process was slow enough to raise suspicion.

It seemed as if Mithrael’s attack had the same ability as the Piece of Space and Time that Min-Cheol had obtained.

Specifically referring to the inability to heal debuff.

That was when the oldest clone spoke.

“With this, it’ll work.”

“I told you not to speak, remember?”

“…”

The oldest clone deflated at the second oldest’s remark, closed his mouth, and started to search through Min-Cheol’s pockets.

The item that he was looking for the King’s Marbles.

While there were only 3 left, when would be a better time to use this than now?

Realizing how serious that situation was, the oldest clone had remembered when Min-Cheol had swallowed a marble.

He had noticed Min-Cheol swallow those marbles each time that Min-Cheol had obtained a massive amount of power and felt his body go out of balance.

Finally finding the marble from the inside pocket of the armor, the oldest clone spoke with a bright smile.

“This. If Min-Cheol eats this, he heals.”

“Right… I saw it too. Hurry up and feed him.”

“As expected of the oldest. I am smart. Are you all stupid? Think for once.”

“I’m going to only let this slide once. Hurry up and feed him.”

“Eh… Feeding him now.”

The oldest clone opened Min-Cheol’s mouth and dropped the marble in.

Min-Cheol swallowed on reflex and it didn’t take long before he was able to recover at an astounding rate.

Normally, King’s Marbles would be able to heal 100% of the damage taken by the enemy.

However, it was not the case this time around.

It was only enough for Min-Cheol to regain consciousness and to stop the bleeding.

Barely able to raise his body back up, Min-Cheol leaned on a pillar.

With a deep sigh, Min-Cheol spoke in a whisper.

“He’s not human… He’s a monster.”

“Are you okay, Min-Cheol?”

“Are you alright?”

“Have to run…”

Min-Cheol did not reply to the clones inquiries.

While in the brief period of unconsciousness, Min-Cheol had seen something horrific.

And with that, he had developed a fear for Castellan Mithrael.

When he had lost his consciousness, he was wading in a deep darkness.

No matter how many times he closed his eyes and opened them again, or rubbed his eyes, there was nothing he could see.

It was a darkness so profound that it was hard to believe even with one’s eyes closed.

It was then. Seeing a blue light in the distance, he moved towards it without much thought.

While it hadn’t been that long since he was knocked out, it felt like a long time for Min-Cheol to walk towards the light.

Even though he should’ve been getting closer to the light with each step, it felt as though the distance refused to close.

A long time had passed in Min-Cheol’s mind and then the light in the distance disappeared.

Suddenly, the same light flew up into the sky and spun many times before crashing down towards him.

Min-Cheol was blinded for a brief moment due to the sudden bright light, and it was quite a while before he was able to open his eyes again.

What appeared before him was a dragon letting out hot steam through their nose.

It was a type of dragon you could easily find in fantasy movies.

The dragon was half translucent and glowed bright blue all over.

Min-Cheol was able to tell without much difficult that the dragon was Mithrael.

Due the overwhelming size and power, Min-Cheol lowered his head as if surrendering.

It was obvious because he had defeated Min-Cheol in a single hit without moving in the slightest.

It was similar to how Barub had tasted a humiliating defeat before to Millions.

Before Min-Cheol regained his consciousness, the dragon’s Hell Breath covered Min-Cheol.

An extreme amount of pain embraced him all over, but he was able to snap back to reality with the King’s Marble the oldest clone fed him before long.

The mental shock was far greater than anticipated.

Not only had he lost his will to fight, but he had been swallowed by fear after all.

Min-Cheol moved his hands with great difficulty to tear the Return Scroll, heading back to the inn where no one would be present.

****

Refusing to eat or drink, Min-Cheol laid in bed for 3 days.

Dan and Audu were standing next to him, guarding him from possible threats, but they were unable to speak to him at all.

He shuddered like someone who had lost their sanity and seemed to have nightmares every day.

His body and face became noticeably skinnier with each passing day.

The clones that he did not dismiss also guarded him as well.

The clones also did not have a need for food or water as well.

They did not leave even once and kept focusing on healing him.

They had used all of the remaining King’s Marbles on Min-Cheol, but they had been unable to heal him fully.

During that time, Barub had defeated all of the remaining marquises.

Starting from the day Barub had started causing trouble, the situation had been concluded before the sun had risen back up.

The only one remaining was Castellan Mithrael.

It seemed that the castellan was allowing Barub to roam freely.

It was almost as if Min-Cheol’s inability to fight and Barub’s growth were part of script that Mithrael had created.

Comparing the amount of power both had obtained so far, Barub was overwhelming stronger now.

To be precise, Barub had become far stronger by defeating the remaining marquises.

However, Min-Cheol would probably hold out for a bit by using his clones.

Still, the clones could not be summoned back for a certain period of time if killed, so if Barub targeted the clones and took them out to have a 1v1 with Min-Cheol, it was obvious that Barub would win.

Min-Cheol had no time to understand the situation he was in with the mental shock he had received though.

No longer were the thoughts of Barub, the celestial plane, and the bet between the two of them in Min-Cheol’s head.

However, Dan was aware.

He knew that Barub’s was stronger than Min-Cheol at this point.

Min-Cheol had been always full of spirit and boldness.

In Dan’s eyes, his actions embodied justice and were without hesitation.

He always won and was without indecision to the point where it could be mistaken that Min-Cheol enjoyed battle.

Dan had only seen such a side of Min-Cheol so far.

However, Min-Cheol was broken to the point where you could call consider him useless.

The person he had trusted and followed had fallen from grace.

Filled with frustration and regret, Dan yelled with anger at Min-Cheol.

“Master. Are you going to keep this up? You have to do something!”

“…”

“Barub already have defeated all the marquises and are way ahead of you. It’s a real possibility that Barub will challenge Mithrael soon!”

“Mi-Mithrael… That’s not a person.”

“What are you saying over and over again? Ugh… I think I’m about to lose it. Really. Please get up already. Please!”

“…”

“Are you going to lose to Barub and stay still after being defeated by Mithrael? Are you planning to give up everything?”

“Dan. Please stop. Don’t you think that the shock he received must be immense if he’s acting like that?”

“I’m aware too. That’s why I’m even more frustrated! Master is not that type of person. He’s the type of person to shake off the dust and stand back up to prepare for a counterattack!”

“I know how you feel. However, let us wait a couple more days before seeing how it’ll go. I also have nowhere to go without him. I had turned my back on the nobles in the hopes for a new world, betraying them in the process.”

“…”

“I have also become as frustrated as you. So please be patient a bit longer and wait. Don’t you know better that he’s not the type to fall here?”

“Ugh… Damn it!”

Min-Cheol’s two compatriots were now in quite the difficult situation.

Following him, they had turned their backs on everything to try changing the world.

That meant that they had nowhere to return now.

However, Min-Cheol, the person who was the heart of the plan, had completely given up.

The two of them believed in Min-Cheol and only wished for him to get back up on his feet.

After all, it wasn’t as if there was anything else they could do.

Dan traveled towards the castle with frustration in his heart.

It was to find out about the atmosphere and information on the castle.

It was also to see if Barub had done anything rash and to see if Castellan Mithrael had done something in response.

The energetic crowd at the castle’s entrance and the lively markets within the castle had lost their enthusiasm.

It seemed that they were struggling to get used to the world that changed so rapidly overnight.

Sparse were people on the castle’s streets, with everyone hiding inside the stores and homes to peek out and observe what was going on.

It seemed true that the castellan and Barub hadn’t done anything new as of yet.

It happened as Dan was passing by the stores.

“Seems you’ve lost your owner.”

“…”

---

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241. Stepping on the Trap

A total of 5 people were inside the estate that Min-Cheol arrived at.

It was easy to see that all of them had statuses equal or higher than counts.

After all, their clothes oozed out classiness, and they wore expensive accessories that both the common folk and nobles of lower rank could not dare afford.

Confirming their numbers, Min-Cheol immediately contacted Dan.

It was to find out their identities before attacking.

“Dan. You’re with Count Audu, right?”

“Yes. I am with him.”

“I’m going to start listing their characteristics, so tell me who they are. Okay?”

“Yes, I understand.”

“One of them is short, about 160cm tall, has a mustache, and a button nose.”

Dan immediately told Audu what Min-Cheol said, and they were able to easily identify him as Count Snuck.

Dan did not question why like he usually does.

It was because he believed that there was an important reason why Min-Cheol was acting the way he was.

As if partaking in a speed quiz, Dan quickly and accurately answered Min-Cheol’s questions.

Without any hesitation, Dan worked together with Audu to answer what they believed was the most likely.

“It’s Count Snuck. His name is on the accounting book as well.”

“Good. Next is…”

Min-Cheol’s questions continued nonstop.

That meant that Dan’s answers also continued without interruption.

With that, they were able to confirm 3 counts and a marquis.

While it was impressive of Min-Cheol to pick out their special characteristics accurately and explain it to the two of them, the assistance that Dan and Audu provided was impressive as well.

It is not easy to guess a person’s identity correctly from descriptions alone after all.

However, it was easier because the pool to guess from was the remaining counts and marquises.

Min-Cheol’s eyes rested on the last person.

“A tall person, about 2m in height, long straight hair, and has blue eyes.”

“Tall and has straight hair. And blue eyes…”

“Is it difficult? They look toned and quite pretty.”

“Hm…”

The answer to the last question did not come so easily like the rest.

Fully aware that Dan and Audu were doing their best to ponder, Min-Cheol did not rush them and instead waited quietly.

However, because no answer could be reached, a voice mixed with a sigh came through the messenger spell.

“Master. I don’t think that person is a noble of Larkenta?”

“Is that so? He seems to stand out.”

“While that is true, I can’t think of anyone that fits your description.”

“I see.”

“I apologize.”

“No. If you and Count Audu believe that to be the case, then it cannot be wrong.”

“Then.. Do you plan to attack regardless?”

“Of course. How can I not attack when the situation is this dire. I shall be shoving the unidentifiable man into my storage and wipe out the rest.”

“Yes. Then please contact us when you need us again. We shall be on standby.”

“Alright.”

While it wasn’t perfect, the majority of them had been identified.

Watching out for the unidentified man, Min-Cheol snuck into the estate.

He planned to watch them for a bit in order to make sure that no unforeseen events would occur.

However, they weren’t any different from the nobles he had seen so far.

Like those before them, they spoke about the troubles that Demon had caused for them and other small talk.

Min-Cheol’s plan had not changed since meeting with Audu.

There was no way that he could drag someone innocent into harm’s way.

The plan was to shove the stranger into the storage safely and begin fighting.

Right as he was about to appear before them, Min-Cheol was unsettled by the words that came next.

“Count Snuck.”

“Yes, sir marquis.”

“It seems that we’ll have to command the new slaves coming in to undertake a massive cleaning of the estate.”

“Yes, of course. How could we not when the area has become a mess filled with the stench of blood?”

“That’s one thing, but it seems that the estate is filled with scurrying rats.”

“Huh? Rats?”

“Do you not see?”

“…”

“That big rat that is staring at us.”

The one to speak to Snuck was the only marquis present, Marquis Palia.

His words carried a hidden meaning.

It wasn’t to point out that the estate was dirty.

Palia knew exactly of Min-Cheol’s presence.

After all, he pointed where Min-Cheol was hiding while saying that there was a big rat.

Min-Cheol was a bit shaken by what he had said, but since he was going to step forward to fight anyways, he moved with relative calm.

His calm demeanor was only possible because he knew that someone as strong as a marquis could see through stealth without much difficulty.

“A rat… Where do you mean?”

“It seems that your eyesight isn’t that good. There. Right over there.”

“Hoho. I don’t see anything… A-Ah! Who are you?”

“Isn’t it rude for a noble to call someone a rat?”

“Then how do you suggest I call someone who quietly hides and eavesdrops on the conversation? Now reveal yourself already!”

“I’ll apologize firsthand that I’m not Demon, the one you’ve all been waiting for.”

Like before, Min-Cheol tossed the pages of the accounting book.

However, the nobles did not laugh and taunt Min-Cheol after seeing the accounting book, but instead looked at the unidentified man for confirmation.

While they did not say a single word, they rolled their eyes while keeping their heads low.

The stranger had a smirk, looking at Min-Cheol as if amused.

Palia stepped forward and spoke.

“So you’re the one who destroyed Swesi.”

“We didn’t fully believe what Demon said, but it seems that what was said was true, sir marquis.”

“So Barub was the one to give it away?”

“Today is the last day you do as you please!”

“Do you really think so?”

In an instant, 5 clones were summoned behind Min-Cheol.

The nobles were hesitant after seeing the clones let out a significant amount of power.

However, the unidentified man’s smile alone grew wider.

As if to say that this situation was incredibly amusing.

Ignoring him, Min-Cheol prepared to fight.

However, there was something he had to do before annihilating them all.

It was to shove the smiling man into the storage so that he wouldn’t get caught up in the battle.

While Min-Cheol couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling, he still moved according to his original plan.

After opening the storage, Min-Cheol charged towards the group of nobles.

Grabbing the man by his collar, Min-Cheol put strength into his arm to toss him into the storage.

However.

“Hm?”

“You little! How dare you do that?”

“What… I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Oh! Are you alright?”

The man did not budge an inch even with Min-Cheol ’s strength.

He did not move an inch as if rooted to the ground, and only his clothes were torn instead.

However, the ones more shocked than Min-Cheol right now were the counts and the marquis.

They were stomping on the ground and circling in panic.

Min-Cheol realized that something was very wrong.

He felt the sudden uncertainty that the person he had tried to protect was the most dangerous person here.

Despite all this, the man showed how relaxed he was with a smile.

It happened as everyone, including Min-Cheol , were frozen in shock.

The firstborn clone charged at Min-Cheol , wrapped his arms around Min-Cheol ’s waist, and then jumped back.

These clones did not do anything without Min-Cheol ’s command.

However, the only explanation for this behavior was that they moved on their own will.

The firstborn clone let Min-Cheol go and whispered in his ear.

“Bad feeling. Bad energy.”

“…”

Hearing what the firstborn clone said, the second oldest clone swore in anger.

As if polar opposites, it seemed that the second oldest clone did not like anything the oldest clone did.

“Idiot. Don’t move without command!”

“He’ll die. Min-Cheol. If Min-Cheol dies, we all perish.”

“Let whatever happens happen. Tsk.”

“…”

Surround by his clones, Min-Cheol looked at the man.

And then he was able to realize that what the firstborn clone did was not to be berated for.

The man’s face was pale.

However, his skin that was exposed from the torn clothes was not pale like his face.

It was filled with a darkness that seemed like it could suck in anything.

So pitch black that it reminded Min-Cheol of a black hole.

It was dark enough to not only suck the light around him, but the sun in the sky.

The firstborn clone had been able to somehow sense how strong the stranger was.

That was why the clone had charged in to protect the main body that was Min-Cheol .

Min-Cheol ’s head was filled with thoughts.

A man that he had no information on. But he seemed stronger than anyone here.

While Min-Cheol could not confirm it, the aura around him suggested it so.

It happened as Min-Cheol thought that he could possible be the castellan.

-A Soul Messenger has arrived from ‘Dan’.

-Will you accept?

“Yeah. Dan.”

“Master! The fight hasn’t started yet, right?”

“Not yet. So speak to me calmly.”

“You need to flee immediately! Right now!”

“Is the person that I asked about last… the castellan?”

“Yes! That’s correct. Because the two of us only thought about the counts and marquises, we had missed him. That guy is the castellan of Larkenta, Mithrael!”

“I had thought that the aura around him wasn’t anything to scoff at…”

“Master. You need to retreat immediately. You understand, right?”

“…”

“Please! Now is not the time to be stubborn! Don’t you know that those who put all their eggs in one basket meet a terrible fate? Please come back and let’s make a plan, yes? I’m sure that there is a better way!”

“I understand what you’re saying.”

“Master. Master?”

Min-Cheol quickly ended his call with Dan.

And then he looked towards the castellan to speak.

“I had my doubts, but to think that you were the castellan.”

“You shut your mouth!”

“The rest of you, stay out of this. If you want to continue living a bit longer that is.”

“What! You dare!”

“Seems you have quite the strange hobby.”

“You’re quite amusing.”

“First, I’ll apologize. Sorry. I should’ve had your name at the very top of this accounting book’s page. Seems you really enjoyed picking off maidens and young Protectors.”

“Do their worthless lives really matter? Have you come to berate me for my wrongdoings?”

“The trial for your wrongdoings has already ended. The death penalty.”

“Kuhuhuhu. If you’re finished talking, then hurry up and escape.”

“Huh?”

“Do you really think that you’re able to face me right now?”

“That’s for me to find out. But, you plan to let me go? You’re really insane, aren’t you?”

“There’s no need to show my strength in such a boring fight, no?”

“…”

“You will eventually need my strength. I shall make it so.”

“What?”

Finishing his words, Mithrael turned around immediately.

It seemed that he had no desire to fight at all.

Min-Cheol did not have any intentions of letting Mithrael walk away like that.

Commanding the youngest clone to deal with the count and marquis, Min-Cheol charged at the castellan.

However.

“Urk!”

“I told you to go back.”

---

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240. Name Reclaimed (2)

Barub and Millions were tangled in an all out brawl for a long period of time.

Both of them concentrated all of their power into their hands and poured it out against each other.

They weren’t interested in the slightest in healing themselves.

After all, a single strike could decide the outcome of the battle at this very moment.

The amount of damage taken from looking away to heal would far exceed the amount healed at this moment.

And if the damage taken is critical, then it would lead to defeat.

This meant that instead of raising a shield, it would make far more sense to stab forward with a spear.

The two of them were beyond ragged at this point.

They looked as though they could collapse at any given moment, and anyone who looked at them would have difficulty believing that they were alive.

Their conditions had gotten to the point where enduring it wouldn’t be possible without a significant amount of power and mental fortitude.

Millions’ attack slowed noticeably.

It was the same for Barub’s Vacuum.

The force of suction and shredding power had severely weakened.

Barub’s hands still clutched at their opponent’s chest and nape.

However, the Vacuum skill that was being casted were growing weaker.

“Urgh.. Ugh….”

“Hu…. hu…”

Breaths too ragged to mock or taunt each other, the two continued their attacks.

It seemed as though it wouldn’t be strange if either of them died at any given moment.

However, the fire in their eyes roared fiercer than anyone else.

Their eyes were filled with a desire to to reach their goal, beliefs, and killing intent.

It would be over if 1/100th of a second, nay, 1/10000th of a second long window of opportunity presented itself.

Focusing everything on the fight, they poured everything they had into their attacks.

It was then.

“Urk!”

“…”

Millions’ fist flew towards Barub’s stomach.

The momentum behind the punches had decreased since the start, but since Barub’s defensive capabilities had fallen as well, the amount of dealt was about the same.

The punch went into Barub’s stomach, which had been shredded to the point where the intestine was showing.

Millions twisted his fist inside Barub’s stomach to destroy all of their intestinal organs.

Barub’s eyes became bloodshot and they began to puke blood.

Despite that, Barub did not make distance between the two and continued to cast Vacuum.

Most would’ve canceled casting Vacuum and made distance to start treating the critical injuries in this situation.

That would be what was expected in a normal fight.

For those with a lot of combat experience, such as Min-Cheol, they would do just that, and it would be the same for the average person who was sane.

However, Barub did not have any plans of doing so.

It wasn’t out of arrogance kept from the time they were a god that made this foolish decision.

It was because they saw a slim chance even in such a disadvantageous situation.

“Augh!”

“Kuh… Hu…”

Millions’ heavy breathing and Barub’s screams filled the air.

And it seemed as though victory was leaning towards Millions.

Despite how powerful Barub was, it wouldn’t take long before they would perish with a wound this severe.

However, the situation changed to something more amusing.

“Urk!”

“AHH!”

Millions’ stomach and nape had been pierced by Barub’s Vacuum.

Millions’ skin that seemed like it would never be pierced started to show cracks from Vacuum.

And with that, the tables were turned.

Millions’ hand that was stuck within Barub’s body began to lose its grip.

He was barely staying conscious, but it was obvious that Barub would deal a wider and greater amount of damage than his bare hand.

Vacuum absolutely destroyed Millions’ organs.

Not only that, but it also damaged his spine that supported his entire body.

And with that, it didn’t take even a full minute before Millions lost all feeling in his body.

That meant that the fight was decided.

The two hands that tortured Barub extensively sprawled onto the floor.

From his hands dripped Barub’s blood, splattering against the ground.

The droplets broke the still surface of the pool of blood that had formed.

Millions leaned on Barub’s body for support and spoke with great difficulty, coughing up what little breath remained.

“You said your name was Barub.”

“Kuh…Hu…”

“Your unwillingness to let go of a prey you’ve once bitten is something else.”

“…”

“I’ve lost. I have lost the fight between raw power.”

“Kuha! Have you become weak now that you’re at death’s door? It’s an emotion fitting that of a loser.”

“A real wild beast. My eyes did not deceive me. You really are a wild beast.”

“Do you think that your death will have any honor by speaking to me that way? The loser does not even have the right to speak. Urgh!”

“Agh! Even though it is late, I congratulate you on getting your name back.”

“Lowly human.”

“Barub. Hahahaha…”

Millions’ loud laughter rang out.

And with that, he drew his last breath.

However, Barub did not stop casting Vacuum on his body until the very end.

They did not stop until it seemed as though they planned to destroy his body until not a single bone or speck of flesh was left.

Barub really was without equal in how cruel and cold one could be.

A brutal revenge was being carried out to the one who had first given them the taste of defeat.

Some time later.

“Kuhu…”

Soaked in blood, Barub kneeled in the middle of the battleground.

The area around was the same.

Sticky blood had made a swamp of the area.

Barub did not have any strength to self congratulate themself for the victory obtained.

Breathing heavily, they could only heal themself to kindle the flickering flame that was their life.

Millions had been defeated by Barub.

One could say that they were evenly matched to the dot.

Barub’s victory could be attributed to luck.

After all, the fight had been decided with Barub coming out just the slightest bit ahead.

Barub received all the power that Millions possessed.

However, due to the sheer amount of damage received, Barub could not feel any increase in power.

With how their life could be snuffed out with any given moment, there was no time to sense how stronger they had become after all.

Calling forth what strength they had left, Barub increased the speed of their recovery.

While it wasn’t possible for Barub to recover as fast as when they reattached their dismembered arm, their organs and body began to slowly heal.

Recovering enough to just barely move their body, Barub stood up and walked forward.

Their eyes rested on the artifacts that they had left behind.

Barub’s golden armor had already served its purpose and was utterly destroyed.

The armor had lost its stat bonuses and had become just a piece of scrap metal.

However, Millions’ armor that had taken far more damage was surprisingly recovering its form slowly.

Was this the difference between the higher tier and the highest tier equipment?

Barub had just realized much too late how important artifacts were.

On top of that, Barub learned just how important proper usage of skills decided the outcome of a battle.

“Urk… The great Barub, brought so low.”

Barub tossed aside their armor they could no longer use.

At the same time, Barub put on the armor that Millions left behind.

Millions’ armor that had holes here and there recovered back to its original form, and also readjusted itself to fit Barub’s form.

There was no remorse in Barub’s mind for Millions.

Instead, one could only see Barub preparing to hunt the next prey.

With the armor equipped, Barub forcefully moved their horribly thorn facial muscles to smile.

“Kuha! This equipment is on another level compared to what the counts used. Millions. To think that you would lose even with armor like this. It seems that it cannot be helped for lowly humans.”

The slow healing picked up at an insane rate as Barub recovered their body and regained their strength.

And since they had defeated Millions, their strength was now nearly two fold.

While kindling the flame of life was difficult, putting the firewood of great power on the flames created a roaring inferno that could not be stopped.

This resulted in Barub recovering from all their wounds in less than 5 minutes, and their attention shifted to seeking out the next target.

At this point, many requests for summons had arrived in their status window.

After all, they had contacted the remaining 6 marquises to let them know of Min-Cheol’s plans.

They half believed the information that Barub had leaked, but the price on Barub’s head was something that they could not ignore.

The remaining marquises probably had no idea that Barub had defeated two marquises at this point.

They must be thinking that only a few counts they lost contact with were the only ones done in by Barub.

After recovery and feeling the immense amount of newfound strength, Barub spoke.

“They all are shouting over each other to be killed. I now hold the upperhand of this bet.”

Barub did not accept the summons.

Instead, they sent a summon request for one of the marquises that had sent a summon request.

It was because Barub knew that if they were grouped, they would not be able to avoid a difficult fight.

Marquises that had no idea how strong Barub were.

Each of them will fall into the hole that Barub had dug up one by one, as if entranced.

The marquises will come without realizing that the bottom of the hole is where Hell and death awaits.

It didn’t take long before the system’s sound announcing that a marquis had accepted the summons sounded.

-‘Sir Dopel’ has accepted the summons.

“This dawn could not get any better!”

****

With his plan exposed by Barub, Min-Cheol moved on his own.

It was because he could not risk Dan and Audu from getting into danger.

He searched after the marquises on his own.

However, this was a lot more dangerous than what seemed on the surface.

It wasn’t as if Min-Cheol knew all the faces of marquises and counts, and he had never met the castellan.

It was a fact that it’d be difficult and there would be limitations for Min-Cheol to confirm the identity of each person encountered using just the accounting book in his hand.

Because Barub had defeated Millions, there were only 6 marquises remaining.

And the 6 of them weren’t exclusive preys for Min-Cheol.

After all, Barub had summoned the one named Dopel to themself.

This meant that no matter how quickly and successfully he moved, he could only obtain 5 marquises at best.

And Barub wouldn’t be watching idly by.

In the current situation, if Barub killed 3 marquises excluding Dopel, then there was no way to know for sure who would win the best.

Even though Min-Cheol had the insanely powerful cloning skill, if he did not keep increasing his own strength, then it would be the same as a frog stuck in a well.

If that happened, then the only thing Min-Cheol could do was to attack the Castellan Mithrael.

Min-Cheol had his assistants Dan and Audu. On top of that, no one in Larkenta knew just how powerful the castellan was.

To go against him was the same amount of recklessness as when he smashed the gate back on Earth and charged in without a plan.

However, if the situation had become so that he could not match up against Barub’s strength, then it would be do or die.

Min-Cheol was even thinking about the worst case scenario ahead of time.

And so he decided to move alone in order to prevent that worst case scenario from happening.

“Going to the estate of a marquis isn’t really ideal…”

Despite hesitating, Min-Cheol headed for the estate of a marquis without much of a choice.

He could hear that there was quite the commotion coming from within the estate.

Casting the stealth skill again, he carefully opened the door with haste.

---

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239. Name Reclaimed

Barub’s body was strengthened, enveloped in black.

Barub had casted a body strengthening skill that would not be easily penetrated by most attacks.

On top of that, they casted Vacuum ¹ , which they had used to butcher many slaves.

Both the tips of their hands tried to pull everything near them like black holes while seeming to desire spreading out and destroying everything.

The corpses of slaves and the knights sprawled out across the floor. And the weapons and armors they used too were instantly sucked into the tips of Barub’s fingers.

What happened after was horrifyingly brutal.

Like how vegetables and fruits in a blender, whatever that was sucked in was ground apart.

However, the situation with Millions was different.

It seemed that Barub’s Vacuum was far too weak to pull in Millions.

As if his feet were fixed to the lobby’s floor, he did not even budge.

Instead, the only thing that moved was his hair due to the air around being sucked in.

Barub had expected that Vacuum would not be able to defeat Millions.

However, Barub was a bit shocked at how Millions would not even budge.

They obtained the power of a marquis, the same title Millions held. Seeing that their attacks did not even work in the slightest even though they had obtained the power of some counts on top of that, it couldn’t be helped that Barub would be shocked.

Barub eventually had to cease casting the skill.

Realizing that they could not damage Millions from range no matter what, they stopped to conserve energy instead.

Instead of spreading their power evenly, Barub planned to focus it all on close quarter combat.

Millions mockingly laughed and looked down at them.

“So you boasted so loudly to show me a pathetic attack like this… How laughable.”

“Kuha. How about this then?”

In an instant, Barub dashed behind Millions.

This was the skill that they had used in the fight with Jurassic before.

It was a movement that looked as if the user was just passing by the opponent without doing anything else, but the overwhelming amount of brute force that followed would cause the target to take massive amounts of damage.

The only person who knew about this skill and how it worked was Barub.

That was why all those who fought against Barub in the Festival of Blood were defeated without being able to retaliate.

After Barub landed to the opposite side of the lobby, massive shockwaves filled the lobby.

It was as if a massive metal bat was repeatedly bashing into someone.

“…”

Complete silenced fell.

Because of the large noise that passed before, it seemed even quieter.

Barub stood up with their back to Millions.

However, strangely Millions stood still without any movement.

It was as if they had died from a single strike with their body frozen in place.

However, Barub’s doubt and the silence that blanketed both of them were broken immediately by Millions’ laughter.

“Pfft!”

“…”

“Haven’t you forgotten? I am your owner.”

“What?”

“Demon. I’ve observed every fight you partook in the festival without missing a single one. Saw countless slaves lose their lives to your tricks.”

“…”

“And you still think that this skill would work on me? How much more do you plan to disappoint me? This attack is so pathetic that it’s enough to make me lose what old fondness and compassion I have left for you.”

“Urgh…”

Millions turned around and looked at Barub.

There was not even a small scratch that could be seen on Millions’ body.

Not only that, but the armor that he was wearing shined as if it had just been repaired and was without a single scratch.

This meant that he had prevented even a single hit from going through with just his bare hands.

Barub looked a Millions with disbelief.

While this wasn’t their most powerful attack, it was true that Barub had expected it would at least do something.

Because Barub believed that they were evenly matched, it was that much more shocking for them.

Millions slowly approached Barub, who was lost in shock.

“Frozen stiff? Have you kneeled in defeat to my overwhelming power?”

“…”

“As expected. There’s nothing else that fits you better, no?”

“Kuhahat. To think that you’d be this strong.”

“Seems you’ve killed at least a marquis before coming to me, but do you think that’s enough to defeat me?”

“The fight isn’t over yet.”

“Then try taking this head on. The attack from your master, who will remain your master till death!”

“Urk!”

In a blink of an eye, Millions’ body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow towards Barub.

Before Barub was able to mount a defense, the attack flew in.

The attack was so swift that most Protectors wouldn’t be able to see it with their eyes.

However, Barub didn’t just allow the attack to connect so easily.

It was obvious that blocking using an artifact would only destroy the artifact.

Instead, Barub decided to use their fists to block Millions’ punches.

They were demonstrating the fight of raw strength against raw strength that Barub had talked about.

So many shockwaves were produced that it was hard to believe that it was from a clash of fists.

At this point, it wasn’t surprising that sparks flew as if metal were clashing against one another.

After raining down tens of swings, Millions made distance in an instant to cast his spells.

The movements flowed smoothly and naturally like water, and it did not allow the opponent enough time to react.

On the other hand, Barub focused completely on defensive techniques.

It was obvious that if Barub did not pay attention to their defensive techniques even for a moment, they would receive a massive amount of damage.

“You little…”

“Because this is my first fight in a while, it seems that my skills have rusted considerably. The real attacks begin now. See if you can handle it!”

“Urk!”

In an instant, Millions finished casting his magic.

Behind him were thousands of sword auras formed up already, and each of it seemed imbued with either electrical or ice elements.

Anyone could tell from a glance the sheer number of sword auras and the power they exuded were overwhelming, and they flew towards Barub without any delay.

If this wasn’t a brutal fight of spilling blood and rending flesh, one could see this scene as a spectacle.

Barub did everything they could to defend against the sword auras.

Because they didn’t have any methods of defense, Barub could only defend the onslaught using their own body and brute force.

It wasn’t as if Barub had obtained a skill or held an amazing artifact either.

And to make things more difficult, the sword auras didn’t simply just fly in a single direction.

Like Min-Cheol’s Piercing Sword, these sword auras moved as the owner willed, and they also chased after the target as well.

No matter how even the match-up, there was no way to block every attack with their bare hands.

Barub allowed quite a lot of sword auras to slip through, and their body that was covered and enhanced by a pitch black aura was starting to show chips and streaks of red blood.

While it wasn’t a fatal and deep wound, they were receiving damage like a stone slowly being chipped away.

And so a decent chunk of time had passed with Barub defending and removing the sword auras.

Seeing all of this from quite a distance away, Millions spoke with a smile.

“To think that you can’t do anything against an attack as simple as this. And you wanted a fight between raw strengths? Pffhaha!”

“Urugh…”

“Now witness what true power is! Oraa!”

As soon as he had finished speaking, Millions charged at Barub.

The sword auras didn’t stop though.

His skill continued to draw Barub’s attention and forced them to focus on defense.

The reason for him closing the distance was to land a close quarters attack alongside the skill.

Barub saw what Millions was doing, but did not make any moves.

It seemed that they were busy defending, completely focused on dealing the sword auras.

And keeping his hands hidden while getting close to Barub, Millions gathered a massive amount of power in his fists.

At the same time, only about half the number of sword auras remained.

It must be that since power was spread out, he was reducing the output on the skill and focusing the close quarters attack.

Both his fists compressed with power let out a bright glow.

In an instant, the light from Millions filled Barub’s field of view.

Those fists flew towards Barub’s face.

Right as Millions’ attack seemed to land on Barub…

“Kuhahat!”

“Hm?”

Barub gave up defending against the sword auras.

While the number did shrink in half, despite knowing that the number of sword auras still remained as a staggering amount, Barub completely shifted their focus onto grabbing Millions.

The disturbing sound of flesh being torn filled the air countless times.

After all, the sword auras that succeeded in attacking didn’t disappear and continued to tear apart Barub.

With Barub’s difficult to believe response, Millions couldn’t help but be taken back.

It was enough to make Millions wonder if Barub had lost their mind from the continued onslaught of attacks.

Even though defending wasn’t enough already, they had given up on defense and grabbed onto him for a reason Millions could not fathom.

Barub’s blood flew all over the place.

Their battlefield was coated in red and the smell of iron filled the air.

And so Millions believed that this short confrontation was over.

He believed that Barub had given up.

With his new conclusion in mind, he planned to deal the finishing blow.

The sword auras disappeared and Millions’ fists grew brighter.

It was the moment when he was dealing a blow to Barub, who was clinging on like a spider.

“Huh?”

“Kuhat. Don’t you know that victory and defeat are decided in a single crucial moment, Millions.”

“Up to your little tricks again!”

“There is nowhere to run. Meet your death.”

“Bastard!”

Barub used Vacuum on both their hands to put one near Millions’ stomach and the other on the back of his head.

Vacuum wasn’t very powerful from a distance, but what would happen if it was in close quarters?

Their hands that completely attached themselves to Millions’ body began to suck in with great force.

While Barub did attempt this attack, it wasn’t as if Millions’ hand were tied.

Millions tried to remain as calm as possible and landed his fists onto Barub.

Not 100% of the force was properly delivered due to being too close to one another, but it was definitely a powerful attack since all the power that he could gather was behind it.

“Ugh! I shall endure it a hundred and a thousand times.”

“Urk!”

Right now, the situation for the two of them was equal to two snakes swallowing each other’s tails.

With no defensive tactics in play, both were putting everything into offense.

Who had the more powerful attack was an important factor in determining who would win.

Millions’ strikes continued, and Barub poured in greater amounts of power into the skill.

It was then.

“Urgh!”

“Kuha! Seems now it’ll be a fair fight! A fight between raw power and raw power, Millions!”

“…”

Millions’ armor that protected the back of his neck and his stomach crumpled due to Vacuum.

Now Millions’ body was completely bare.

With that, Barub’s Vacuum tore into his body without remorse.

It was hard to know how long each would last.

Barub wasn’t in a good situation either.

They were in a half beaten to death due to Millions’ strikes.

The side of their stomach, their back, and their face was destroyed to the point where it was hard to recognize.

After all, their body was torn up to the point where their intestines were visible.

The fight between the two snakes biting each other’s tail would have its winner be decided in a single decisive blow to come.

---

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