Chapter 45: Demon God’s Territory (2)
Thuuud!
With a loud sound, the doors of the Sky Library opened.
However, no one came out.
No, technically there was a girl who came out after 2 days.
Bae Suzy.
A small girl who seemed to be only about 10 years old.
And if she came out of the Sky Library before the designated 3 days had ended, that only meant one thing.
She earned a top-ranked skill!
The top ranked skills from the Sky Library were all extraordinary.
As long as you got one, it allowed you to be above average.
Also, she appeared to have broken the record for the youngest contestant so far.
The news spread like a wildfire.
In a blink of an eye, people started to crowd the entrance of the Sky Library.
If it was an average record, it wouldn’t have been such a big impact.
But, it wasn’t an average record.
It was a situation where people believed Suzy’s class was also at least above a rare rank.
‘Jackpot!’
The giants who learned of this all thought the same.
It had been a very long time since they had a big shot beginner like her.
Due to this, she was stuck in front of the Sky Library against her will.
“How did you earn a top-ranked skill?”
“Won’t you tell me what kind of skill you learned from there?”
“Did you get easier trials? What kind of trials did you face?”
Questions flooded in.
The large groups were unable to act recklessly as she was getting too much attention.
They could have used force if only Suzy was older or wasn’t a big deal.
From the start, not many kids passed through the gate.
If there was any, less than five in a year.
The people who settled in the Underworld were bound to be a bit sympathetic towards kids who passed through the gate.
Since they were kids who came from Earth and not a 2nd generation.
Therefore, it would ruin the reputations of large groups if they used force to keep a kid under their control and used her infinite potential for their own.
The reason why giant guilds were able to keep their place for tens of years might have been due to their influence but more so because of their honor and their cause.
It was most important for members of large groups to have a sense of pride in their group.
Therefore, they used dirty organizations like the Forest of Death to do their dirty work and for it to be completed without any rumors.
It was a lot more complicated for them to touch her.
And Muyoung only told Suzy to leave as he was certain that Suzy’s life would be safe as the established groups were cowards who had a lot to keep.
Anyhow…
If anyone was to take Suzy in, they would become a hot topic for a while.
It was highly likely that she would be able to energize the lifeless city as well as develop into a ‘strong’ character.
The strength of a group relied on how many strong individuals they had.
It was better to have 1 strong person than 100 nobodies.
Especially, the fighting strength of those who were known as ‘Transcendent Beings’ were beyond one’s imagination.
Normally, a person would be considered a Transcendent Being if all the person’s important stats were above 500. However, it was impossible for a normal person to achieve this as there would be a wall at every interval of 100.
A Transcendent Being could do the work of 10 strong individuals.
If they searched everyone in the Underworld, there may be about 50 Transcendent Beings in total?
‘She has the foundation to become a Transcendent Being.’
Suzy had the potential to become a Transcendent Being.
As the number of Transcendent Beings increased, they would gain a strength that no one could disregard, so the large groups couldn’t help but covet her.
However, it was too late to do anything as she was already the center of attention.
They might have been able to do something if Suzy only had a top ranked skill or a class ranked higher than a unique class but she had both.
It was a problem because she had both.
More so, many people believed that 1st generations developed faster than 2nd generations.
Who would give up a person who had the potential to become a Transcendent Being?
“First, let’s wait and see if anyone else will come out of the Sky Library.”
The representatives of each group made an agreement.
However, no matter how long they waited, no one came out.
“Did they all die?”
“It looks like everyone’s dead since no one has come out after all this time.”
An unprecedented situation. There had never been a case like this in the past 10 years.
“What exactly happen inside?”
“…I don’t know.”
Suzy just shook her head.
Her face turned pale as if she really didn’t know anything.
It was because Suzy heard people chat about how everyone might have died.
‘That can’t be true.’
A guardian angel couldn’t die. If he did, that meant he wasn’t an angel.
She secretly thought he would always stay nearby, watch out for her and protect her.
‘Mister…’
Suzy touched the one talisman she received.
A tear drop fell to the floor.
“Suzy!”
“She’s my child. Please move aside!”
Suzy’s father and Taehwan who received the news late came to see her but were unable to get close.
There were a lot of people and it wasn’t a situation where a beginner could push their way through.
In the center of where people were gathered, the giant groups were having a heated discussion about Suzy.
“The head of Imperial clan really wants to meet that child.”
“You think only your head will want to?”
“That girl needs to be in our Heavenly Maid clan. Can the other places even raise her properly?”
“With what capability would Heavenly Maid clan have if they aren’t even part of the Five Great Clans? Know your place before cutting in.”
Their voices became louder.
Although none of the leaders appeared, the people with high standing in each group were present.
No one was willing to yield.
Then, the tall man wearing a Sun helmet opened his mouth.
“Honestly, I don’t think it’s a matter we can decide on our own. It’s a waste of time to continue to this pointless discussion. Instead, why don’t we let the girl choose?”
“Hmm… Certainly, that seems to be the best solution.”
“I will give you wealth and fame.”
“They don’t know a woman’s delicacy.”
“With your skills, you will definitely be the next candidate for the guild master. Depending on how much you try, you can live better than any king.”
Another competition had started.
Suzy was confused. She couldn’t understand what was going on.
They tried to persuade her with different kinds of words but no place spoke of what she really wanted the most.
‘Where are you, mister?’
Suzy flopped down onto the floor.
She closed her eyes and ears.
At that moment, someone roared.
“What are you guys doing against one girl!”
Roar!
Space shook.
Only then were they able to see the muscular mysterious man who screamed.
The eyes of the people who knew of this mysterious man widened.
“Y, you…!”
“Fighting King Lucien!”
“How are you here?”
Fighting King Lucien.
The closest man to the top 10 individuals of humanity.
Only looking at fighting strength, he didn’t lose out to any for the current top 10.
He chuckled.
“I’m the king. Who dares stop the path of a king?”
That was right. He wasn’t called the Fighting King simply because he was good at fighting.
Like a king, his words contained power.
Even if he was banned from all the cities, because he was a king he was able to go wherever he wanted.
“I’ve spent days and sleepless nights because I thought someone interesting had shown up… But you guys still running around and doing such shameless things?”
“Tsk, tsk.” Lucien clicked his tongue.
Someone from the temple had broken his record.
He had come because he was curious what the person looked like but there was only a commotion.
Then, the man with a Sun helmet approached him and slightly bowed his head.
“Fighting King, this is the Great City. Even if the strength of the Fighting King has reached the sky, you cannot start a commotion here.”
“Commotion?”
Lucien laughed as he found it ridiculous.
And spoke.
“If you really don’t want me to start a commotion, fuck off.”
“Gnash…!”
The man with a Sun helmet ground his teeth.
It was a king’s power that the Fighting King had.
The thing people called ‘the words of a king’ and ‘the words of an emperor’.
After, a surprising event occurred.
The man started to move away from Lucien.
“I feel like getting rid of all of you but since it gets annoying when people with big asses show up, I’m going to stop here. I won’t do such things to a child no matter how crazy I am.”
In other words, he meant that they were crazier than him.
Then, Lucien approached Suzy.
And just held her wrist.
‘Indeed, you really are worth coveting.’
Lucien nodded as if he seemed interested after learning about her physique in an instant.
As he was an initiate who learned traditional ancient martial arts, he had the ability to know a person’s potential just by feeling the person’s pulse.
The skill Suzy had was top class.
It wasn’t just the skill or class; her physique was outstanding.
“Child, can you stand up?”
“…Who are you, grandpa?”
Suzy opened her eyes and looked at Lucien and she asked after noticing the unexpected change.
“I am a person known by others as the Fighting King. Anyways, weren’t you scared?”
“I wasn’t scared at all. Mister will scold them all.”
“Mister? Who’s that?”
“That’s…”
Suzy tightly clenched her lips.
And shook her head.
Lucien was surprised by this.
‘She defied my words?’
His words always contained power. Even if it wasn’t intentional, it would naturally be expressed.
But, young Suzy defied him.
Lucien stretched his hand and placed it on top of Suzy’s forehand for a moment.
“I have no intentions of hurting you. But, I’m a bit curious. Could you tell me who this Mister is your referring to?”
“N… no.”
It was almost a reflexive reaction.
Lucien knew of the reason for this type of reaction.
‘Someone has implanted a safeguard.’
And the only people who could implant this kind of subconscious safeguard was himself and one other person.
‘The King of Shadows!’
Lucien trembled for a moment in excitement.
‘Finally, I found a clue!’
Lucien had been looking for a certain man regarding something for quite some time.
No one knew of his existence, only Lucien knew.
The bastard who ran the huge assassin organization called the ‘Forest of Death’ and deceived others in the shadows.
He’s been following him for more than 40 years and still wasn’t able to find a single clue.
But… a clue had appeared in an unusual place.
Of course, the defense mechanism was a bit lacking compared to him but it seemed certain that this ‘mister’ was related to him in some way.
He couldn’t let this opportunity pass by.
‘This place isn’t good.’
He needed time to break through the defense mechanism to find out the truth.
Lucien made his decision before he spoke.
“I will take you to a safe place. How does that sound? If it’s necessary, I will even teach you the skills necessary to survive. At least, it would be better than this place.”
“My dad, we need to take my dad.”
Suzy’s instinct was crying out loud that she had to follow him to live.
But, Lucien shook his head.
“Just you. I can’t be certain if we will survive if it’s more than two people. If those old monsters got off their asses, one of the two will definitely die.”
“Then, I don’t want to go.”
“You don’t want to go? You can’t. Going with me is safer than this place.”
Lucien persisted.
It was unlike for the Fighting King to act this way but Lucien wasn’t normal in the first place.
He really wanted the clue and even he couldn’t help but covet over Suzy’s potential.
People who were watching his actions started to raise their weapons.
“Fighting King! Are you really planning on becoming our enemy?”
“Don’t think you can just walk away after starting a commotion like this!”
The Fighting King frowned.
“Move aside, weaklings.”
Crack!
The ground beneath him cracked every step he took.
The ground shook and even the air pressure had changed.
The people who weren’t prepared fell to their knees.
“Child, don’t worry. If he is alive, I will make sure you meet him again. I never go back on my word.”
Lucien had always done things his way.
It wasn’t different this time.
As he gently pressed his hand on Suzy’s forehand, Suzy fainted and closed her eyes.
After placing Suzy on his shoulder, he stomped on the ground.
He started to quickly leave the Great City after he jumped high in the air.
“S, Suzy…!”
Suzy’s father who was looking at the whole situation from a far lifted his head but the two had already disappeared.
It was a daylight kidnapping.
* * *
The Hellhorse got mad.
Muyoung didn’t seem like he would ever use a favor.
But, it never expected Muyoung to vanish like that.
It would be its greatest disgrace if Muyoung died in a random place.
Even if he didn’t like Muyoung, it had to finish its contract.
Neighhhh!
He cried out loud.
Bang! Claaash!!
Numerous lightning bolts fell down all around the Hellhorse.
He was still able to know the location of Muyoung as they were connected through a contract.
Though it was a place very far from here…
The Hellhorse resolved itself to fly as fast as it could through the air to reach Muyoung before he got into trouble.
Muyoung opened his eyes.
As he looked around, it really was the place he remembered.
Black sky, black clouds, black Sun and a dead wasteland.
Huge black mountains were erected all around him.
‘The Demon God’s Territory…’
A location barely touched by a human.
The location where people would only find and start exploring in about 5 years.
Muyoung quietly nodded.
‘I have arrived faster than I’ve expected.’