Chapter 206: Two Serpents  

The outcome of their meeting in Gyeonggi-Do had been decided.

'War with the Demon King.'

The events that were happening all over the world—no, even just what had happened in England was enough to bring the Demon King into the public eye. He had sunk the island of England into the ocean.

While a large number of people were still alive in a state of suspended animation in Merlin’s subspace, it was still an unarguable fact that more people had died in that disaster than anywhere else.

The Demon King was driving the world to ruin in the cataclysm. They would go to war with him. However, they required an equivalent amount of preparation to his strength.

“Merlin and Arthur will bring Horus and the Hunters from Egypt.”

Fortunately, Egypt had contacted them. Horus and the Egyptian Hunters had overcome the cataclysm despite the odds and wanted to help Lee Jun-Kyeong. They had decided to help in the war against the Demon King and wanted to come to Korea. Since they only had a limited opportunity to connect the world through gates using Merlin’s powers, they had to handle several things all at once.

“Jeong In-Chang and Won-Hwa will be going to China.”

With the seeds they had sown, the Frost Giants and the surviving Chinese Hunters, they would gather all of their strength.

“Try to get in touch with Liu Bei and his brothers, the Hunters, and Thjazi and Thrymr. Although they’ve settled down in China, as long as the Demon King exists, none of them will be safe.”

“Understood.”

“We’ll definitely convince them.”

With the mighty enemy called the Demon King before them, they’ll gather the strongest with Lee Jun-Kyeong as the center. This was their preparation for war.

“Zeus and Athena…” Lee Jun-Kyeong looked at Zeus and Athena.

Their destinations hadn’t been decided yet. All Zeus had said was that they would deal with a destination on their own.

“Ah ah. Well, speaking of which, we’ve decided.”

“...”

“Athena is thinking of going to America. Considering how much land they have, there have to be survivors there. Because there were quite a few skilled Hunters, there’s no way they would have been annihilated.”

However, what Zeus had to say made sense.

‘Athena would be sent to America.’

But if that was the case, where was Zeus going?

“What about you?”

“Well, I…” Zeus smiled and curled up his lip. Although his face had a mischievous expression, there was a hint of seriousness in it. “I’m going to Seoul.”

“…”

“Didn’t you say we were at war with the Demon King? Then the location of the Demon King has to be identified.” Zeus continued, “Seoul is where Odin, Baldur, and Asgard are supposed to be. If you want to get information out of that place, which is pretty much a hellscape, we’re going to have to send someone that’s at least on my level.”

It was something that they had to get done anyway, and fully understanding Zeus’ reasoning, Lee Jun-Kyeong nodded.

–If you could look for any information on Heimdall, I’ll leave it to you.

Zeus nodded in understanding.

“Ungnyeo.”

He next called out to Ungnyeo, who was praised as a priestess in Gyeonggi-Do.

“Please…”

“I already know. All I have to do is go around the rest of Korea and gather people, right?”

“Yes, and…”

“If they aren’t at a level where they can take part in the battle, I can just send them to the south of the province.”

“That’s right.”

The Rulers should have already appeared in large numbers. They weren't sure how many people could have survived in places where there weren’t any concentrations of Hunters. However, hope was not lost.

“If there are any Rulers in the way, I’ll kill all of them.”

Lee Jun-Kyeong nodded as he heard Ungnyeo, her voice full of venom. But, she wouldn’t be able to kill the Rulers. Or, to be more accurate, no one in the world could kill a Ruler. There was only one person who could: Lee Jun-Kyeong. That was why they had to spend as much time as possible gathering people before the Ruler would resurrect.

“Take Fenrir with you. He’ll be useful.”

Fenrir had become the owner of Gleipnir and absorbed Sangun, who had become a Ruler.

[<The Sky of the Apocalypse> watches over you.]

He might be able to kill a Ruler. Moreover, at the same time, not only was Fenrir a member of his Familiars, but he was also the child of that bastard, <The Sky of the Apocalypse>. It was worth waiting to see what would happen.

“Snort.” Fenrir snorted as if he was offended at being left behind again, but eventually agreed and stood next to Ungnyeo.

Now, he had to order the members who were left. “Hel, Hyeon-Mu, Heracles, Odysseus.”

They looked over to Lee Jun-Kyeong.

“We’re going to Japan.”

They were the companions who would go to Japan with him. Everything had been set. Now, it was time to depart.

“Everyone back up,” Merlin's elegant voice echoed through the space. They all backed up as if they had been waiting for this moment. In front of them, a huge tremor diffused into the surroundings.

Riip!

The mana flowing from Merlin’s fingertips began to draw runes into the air. All of a sudden, shapes and formulas that were too difficult to even begin to comprehend began to shift and flow. They started to overlap and begin to emit light, with the number of runes only ever increasing.

Finally, what appeared before their eyes were thousands of magic circles, connected to each other like gears in a machine, beginning to revolve as one. “Wow.”

Even Zeus watched it all with admiration. “If this was an offensive spell, wouldn’t it be able to blow up a city?”

“Oh my god… and she really understands it and can use it?!”

“As expected…”

Everyone admired the sight of Merlin’s spell, but Merlin just concentrated on the task at hand, unable to even wipe off the cold sweat running down her brow.

Crack!!

The magic circles finally began to emit an even more intense light.

[Warning.]

[The gazes of the Sponsors are focused on the display of mana.]

[The Sponsors fully focus on the display before them.]

[The Sponsors are concerned about the excessive use of mana.]

[Some Sponsors show goodwill and interest.]

[Some Sponsors express fierce hostility.]

For the first time in a while, Lee Jun-Kyeong heard a rapid amount of notifications in his head, enough to make him dizzy. It was like proof that what Merlin was doing was of great significance. Sponsors continued to express either their warnings or their favor, but there were no significant changes to what she was doing.

“To think there would be Multiple Sponsorship…”

“There must be dozens of people becoming Hunters right now.”

Judging by the light emanating from the bodies of the ordinary people and some of the Hunters who stood far away, it seemed that the Sponsors who had expressed interest were choosing more candidates. As a little more time passed, the sound returned in Lee Jun-Kyeong’s head.

[Scritch, scritch.]

BANG!

Then, just like that, as if the dimensional void had been torn apart, a huge blue gate appeared.

***

The ground was burning and in the distance were destroyed lands and forests.

“Wow!!! I feel so great!”

Centered in the wasteland were Hunters. Jeong In-Chang raised a massive greatsword in one hand and shouted once more, “AHHHH!”

“You’re being loud,” Won-Hwa playfully teased, but Jeong In-Chang couldn’t seem to hide his excitement.

Lee Jun-Kyeong wondered if it was because it was the first time they had entered a gate after a long while. This was a place that they hadn’t been able to enter once the cataclysm had begun.

“This is the feeling!” Jeong In-Chang shouted as he ran across the open land.

“I think his greatsword has changed a little…” Lee Jun-Kyeong said as he looked at Jeong In-Chang’s sword.

“Mr. and Ms. Park looked at it a bit,” Won-Hwa explained as soon as Lee Jun-Kyeong mentioned it.

“They said something about discovering a possibility while studying Gleipnir… I’m not quite sure about it myself, but at least Mr. Jeong seems to be much more satisfied.”

Park Jae-Hyun and Park Yu-Jin had remained in Gyeonggi-Do.

They hadn’t gone anywhere and were intending to produce weapons in preparation for when everyone would reunite later.

“How great,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, staring blankly at his spear.

Muspel’s Spear had been created by Park Jae-Hyun. Due to the fact that it was a growth type, it possessed great power even to this day, and it continued to grow alongside him, possessing abilities comparable to divine power.

‘I wish they had looked at you, too.’

He regretted that he hadn’t asked Park Jae-Hyun to take a look at the spear. It had been because there was so much to do that he had forgotten.

“Don’t worry about it. They asked me to let you know that they would prepare something amazing for you the next time you come back.”

“Something amazing?”

“It seems they are looking for a way to strengthen Muspel’s Spear.”

“Oh…”

When Lee Jun-Kyeong showed a happy expression, Won-Hwa smiled and shook his head. It wasn't just Jeong In-Chang who was excited.

“Waaaaaa!”

A bear-like man also roamed around, banging the huge steel gauntlets he wore on both hands together.

“You crazy bastard! I told you, you’re destroying everything!” Odysseus was shouting at Hercules.

Everyone was still together at the moment as the gate that Merlin had opened was shocking. Dozens, no, hundreds of gates had been connected simultaneously. That was why there were dozens and hundreds of monsters residing in the gate dimension. Moreover, there were even dozens or hundreds of boss monsters as well.

The party was hunting all of them as they waited for more sponsorship. People like Zeus, Merlin, Arthur, and the Knights of the Round Table silently cleaned up their surroundings.

"Ah."

“Is something wrong?” Won-Hwa asked as Lee Jun-Kyeong seemed to sigh.

“It’s a chance for me too.”

"Pardon?"

Tap tap!

Lee Jun-Kyeong pushed off the ground before Won-Hwa realized it and soared high into the sky.

“It’s an opportunity for me to level up.” “Ah…are you talking about that ability?” Won-Hwa asked.

However, Won-Hwa’s voice didn’t reach Lee Jun-Kyeong. The Hunter was floating high in the sky. He put away Muspel’s Spear as he spread his hands.

“It’s also an opportunity to put what I’ve learned to use.”

No one could hear what he said, but Lee Jun-Kyeong muttered to himself as he began to radiate azure mana from his hands.

Shine!

The visible mana began to spread around the inside of the gate like rain.

–AHHH!

–UGH!

–CHWIIIIK!

Then, dozens of screams were heard.

“What sort of method is this?”

“Did you just pick out only the boss monsters and kill them?”

They were all the terrified screams of monsters that were at a boss level. Pillars of flame rose from everywhere.

Whistle.

For the first time, Lee Jun-Kyeong whistled, admiring the spell he had just cast with all of his might. However, it wasn’t over yet.

Whistle~

WOOSH!

The inside of the gate began to fill with a whirlpool of flames.

***

“My level didn’t rise…” Lee Jun-Kyeong, who was a bit sullen at the fact that his level still hadn’t risen even though it seemed like he had slaughtered tens of thousands of monsters, spat out to himself.

Zeus came to him and said, “Is magic really that easy to learn?”

“I seemed to have been able to learn it after I tried.”

As soon as he responded in a tone that sounded as if it had been nothing special, Zeus clicked his tongue. “How irritating.”

“At the very least, I don’t think that’s something I should be hearing from you of all people.”

“Even I can’t do something like this. I mean, look over there.”

When Lee Jun-Kyeong looked where Zeus was pointing, he saw Merlin smiling happily.

“That’s definitely a laugh full of joy.”

“Is it possible for you to live a normal life?”

Lee Jun-Kyeong wondered if it was because they were all departing soon. Did he think that they may not ever see each other again? For some reason, at this moment, Zeus felt a little more intimate.

Lee Jun-Kyeong and his party all gathered in one location after sweeping away all of the monsters inside the gate.

“This will reduce the appearance of monsters for a while.”

The presence of the monsters that threatened everything in the cataclysm originated from the gates. The gates would break as soon as they appeared, pouring out monsters everywhere.

Merlin had created the space by connecting the gates immediately prior to forming, and by wiping out all of the monsters in this interconnected gate, they had been able to reduce the number of monsters that would appear in the future.

The work that had to be done inside the gate was over, and now it was time for them to part ways in order to complete their individual tasks. Merlin reached out with a hand and grasped her magic circle.

Sssss.

However, several of the slowly rotating circles suddenly began to disappear with the sound of steam draining from a hole.

“...!”

Merlin was flustered.

“Is there a problem?”

“Why is it…?”

“Merlin doesn’t seem to have fully recovered her mana yet. Because she has to use a lot of mana to maintain the lives of the people suspended in her subspace…” Gawain explained in her place.

“Then is the schedule going to be delayed again…”

“We can’t have that happening,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, walking out among the panicking people.

[Shuffle.]

The disappearing magic circles began to regain their structure.

“Wh…what?”

“There’s no way!”

A blue thread-like mana that came out of Lee Jun-Kyeong’s hands was assisting Merlin.

“You learned that in that short span of time?”

Bang!

In the midst of everyone’s dismay, several gates were created. If the gates that they had entered were the entrance to the gate dimension, these were the exits.

“Oh my god."

Merlin’s voice filled with admiration rang out after she stopped focusing on the spell formation.

“Everyone…” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, just smiling in return. “Let’s all survive and meet again.”

The Heroes stood in front of the gates they each had to go to. They looked at each other for a moment. Then, they all just nodded at one another and walked into the gates.