"Among the summoned Heroes so far, who has the highest rank?"
A pure white temple so tall that it seems to reach the sky and so vast that the end is invisible.
This place, where even just looking at it made one feel sacred, was the heart of the sacred kingdom of Aier.
"That's an interesting question."
The high priest, hearing Seong Yura's question, stroked his chin, recalling the information.
"According to the remaining records, S class would have been the highest rank."
"…S-class?"
Seong Yura thought to herself, 'Is that high?' Of course, she was well aware that it was a high rank, but wasn't she herself an SS-rank?
'And that guy is SSS-rank.'
As Seong Yura's expression subtly changed, the high priest burst into laughter.
"So, this summoning was particularly successful. Until now, the most summoned at once were nine individuals."
More than ten times that number.
Even combining all the warriors summoned so far couldn't match this time.
It was such a successful summoning that it was natural for many high-ranking individuals to appear.
"How did the person who received the S-rank fare?"
"Well, I only know from the records, so I don't know the details. However…"
"However?"
As the high priest trailed off, Seong Yura asked with a sly smile.
"It's not much, but it is recorded that quite a lot of sacrifices were made during the Advent War."
It was an incomprehensible matter.
The highest-ranked warrior was summoned, yet there were significant sacrifices?
Shouldn't it be the opposite?
"I don't really know the reason."
The high priest scratched his head and shook his head.
It was an event that happened hundreds of years ago.
Many details of the situation at the time were lost, even in the records.
Whether there was an issue with the S-rank Hero, or if it was due to some other reason.
"Still, this time, about a hundred Heroes have come, so we shouldn't expect such losses."
The high priest looked at Seong Yura with a reassuring expression.
"What about the lowest rank?"
With many people, high-ranking Heroes emerged.
Then, the opposite case should be true as well.
"It's D Class."
At that answer, Seong Yura could immediately think of one person.
"Is D-rank considered very low?"
"Probably. According to the records, they didn't play a significant role during the Advent War. If there hadn't been other warriors, it could have been a real disaster."
Seong Yura nodded.
Before scattering to each kingdom, she could understand the discrimination that the D-rank man received from other soldiers and knights.
"If you're of no use, there's nothing to say even if you face such discrimination."
"Well, there's a story about a D-rank Hero defeating the Demon King."
"…Is that possible?"
"That's just a story. There's no official record of such tales."
Well, that makes sense.
It seemed like a story straight out of a novel.
People like underdog stories.
Stories where ordinary and socially weak individuals surpass their circumstances and succeed.
Isn't Cinderella like that too?
The popularity of D-rank Hero stories might be due to similar factors.
"Oh, I heard that another D-rank Hero has been summoned this time."
"That's right."
"Well… of course, that Hero could become somewhat stronger with growth. It might not be comparable to you, Yura, or others, but still."
It was a natural thing to say.
D Class and SS Class.
A staggering difference of 5 ranks.
It's a commonly accepted fact that you can't overcome the gap even with a one-rank difference, so how about 5 ranks?
Comparing them was absurd.
"Do you know which kingdom the D-rank Hero went to?"
The Head Priest asked with a curious expression.
"I know."
Seong Yura was confident in one thing: her memory.
She might not remember everything after just one glance, but she could memorize most things after two or three times.
So, she remembered where most of the Heroes went.
"I think it was called Sion."
"Ah…"
The Head Priest made a bitter expression.
"That Hero might not be seen again."
"What do you mean?"
Seong Yura blinked and asked.
In response, the Head Priest sighed and answered.
"At this time, Sion is practically a war zone."
* * *
"Ah, damn."
He meant it.
He'd rather fight the Snow Wolf Pack alone than deal with this.
At least, he could wield a sword and fight them.
"How on earth can one confront such a creature?"
Even if you were to slice a steak of my size, you would have to keep chopping all day.
But that thing is a monster.
With just one sword in hand, I can't think of a way to resolve this situation.
"Can you at least give me a gun?"
Of course, it seemed unlikely that even a rifle could inflict any significant wounds.
It seemed like bringing a tank might somehow help in dealing with it.
'No, this is not the time for such thoughts.'
Unintentionally, he found himself escaping from reality.
The Ice Bug was looking down from high above.
While its overall appearance resembled a centipede, its mouth was filled with teeth even larger than Seo Woojin's.
'That thing that looked like that was a lamprey, right?'
Even with just its forearm, it was so grotesque, and at a size of about 10 meters, it instilled a sense of terror.
Kwagwak-!
The ground in front of the Ice Bug, or rather, Lamprey, shot up revealing a tentacle.
It was smaller than the one fighting Van Slaine and the knights, but it was overwhelming for Seo Woojin to handle alone.
'You have to avoid it!'
Seo Woojin quickly leaped away.
And that decision was very appropriate.
Kwaaaah-!
The place where Seo Woojin had just been standing was shattered by the creature's tentacle.
He barely avoided it and swallowed his dry saliva.
'I can't fight this.'
Unless it's someone like Testeron or Gerard, it seemed impossible to face this creature alone.
No, even they would find it challenging.
"I should be at the level of the lord to handle it."
It would be impossible if it weren't Van Slaine.
But strangely, he wasn't trembling.
Seo Woojin was the one who trembled at first even when fighting a Snow Wolf.
But now, facing a monster more dangerous than anything before, he was surprisingly calm.
In fact, he was more composed than at any other time.
Although he was scared and wanted to run away, his body and head did not freeze.
He even wondered if his head was affected by fear.
"Seo Woojin!"
At that moment, Irene's urgent voice came from the other side.
Without looking back, he ran towards her. It seemed like she noticed the Ice Bug too late and came back after realizing it.
"Let's run!"
Seo Woojin shouted towards Irene.
There would be no change in this situation just because she came back.
Just one more corpse would be added.
But naturally, Irene had no intention of running away.
Especially in this situation where Seo Woojin was in danger because of her mistake.
"Slowly step back!"
Irene shouted and attracted the attention of the Ice Bug.
She couldn't afford to lose Seo Woojin in a place like this.
It was a problem involving the dignity of Sion, but when someone lost their life due to her mistake it was even more undesirable.
Regretting her thoughtless actions, Irene rushed towards the Ice Bug.
Crack!
One tentacle was split in half.
It was at least three times the thickness of Irene, but it was cut by a single sword.
Although there were still dozens of tentacles left, it was not meaningless.
The gaze of the Ice Bugs, which had been directed towards Seo Woojin, turned to Irene.
'Again!'
Seo Woojin turned and tried to run away.
Now that Irene had caught its attention, he could have easily run away.
Yet…
His damn leg moved forward, not backward.
It was incomprehensible, just like it was during Dreicas.
'It's obvious that going there will only cause trouble.'
It would be more helpful for Irene to escape.
There was no need to distract that thing by protecting her.
Moreover, he would be of no help to Irene.
But why did he keep running forward?
"Damn it!"
He couldn't bear to just run away when someone was about to die in front of him.
To be precise, he didn't want to see Irene die with his own eyes.
Seo Woojin wanted to save Irene.
Even if the probability was ridiculously low.
"ugh!"
The Ice Bug was not looking at Seo Woojin.
The tentacles were just swaying instinctively.
Nevertheless, Seo Woojin was almost about to die.
A shattered ice fragment, struck by a tentacle, flew towards him, tearing his face apart, causing blood to gush out.
Without a chance to wipe it away, he moved on, eventually reaching the proximity of the Ice Bug.
"Is this a living organism? It's more like a building."
The size of the Ice Bug, seen up close, was truly enormous, reminiscent of a commercial building that used to be in front of his house.
*Gulp*
On the other side, Irene's figure was not visible, hidden behind the Ice Bug's body.
Although he could still hear the sounds of her fighting, it seemed like she was still unharmed…
"What should I do?"
He had managed to come this far in the midst of the battle with Irene.
But now, he wasn't sure what to do next.
"For now, stab it."
Seo Woojin clenched the sword with both hands and thrust it forward with all his strength.
*Thud!*
"Huh?"
The sword went in more easily than he thought.
However, the problem was that it was all there was to it.
Even with all his strength, Seo Woojin's sword, which couldn't carry proper magical power, didn't inflict any damage on the creature.
At best, it would only cause a slight pain, like being pricked by a needle.
No, the Ice Bug seemed unaware that it had been stabbed by the sword.
Still, since it was possible to attack, that was fine.
If once doesn't work, then ten times.
If that failed, then a hundred times.
Until then, it seemed the Ice Bug wouldn't notice him…
'Other than that, there's no other way, right?'
Seo Woojin withdrew the sword and thrust it in again.
With a wide surface area, there were plenty of places to stab.
Puff puff-
It was a very crude attack compared to its momentum… … .
Still, it hit the mark.
Flinch-!
Unlike before, where there was no sign of any reaction, a flinch was felt.
"It worked!"
Seo Woojin, who had smeared the blood of the Ice Bug all over his body, looked up with a triumphant expression.
"How about that, you bug…"
With enthusiasm to proudly proclaim his achievement, Seo Woojin closed his mouth.
One tentacle was falling straight towards him.
"Ahhh, Fuck."