A light illuminated the darkness of the Zero Mountain.
Its not the right time to say this, but its beautiful.
I wasnt the only one who thought that.
It sparkles so much that it soothes me. So pretty
The sphere of light was so bright that you could feel its warmth.
For a variety of complex reasons.
Dmitry, who frowned at the mere mention of Hoyeol, faltered.
What is he doing?
He had been very nervous when he entered the portal.
He didnt show it because he was afraid Camilla would make fun of him.
For tankers, there was no battlefield more threatening than a dark forest.
There were some kind of monsters in the dark forest.
You never knew where they would come out.
Besides, this was no ordinary forest.
This was Zero Mountain.
Back when Arcana was just a game.
He hadnt even experienced the low-level area.
And yet, they came to this middle area that had never seen before.
Dmitry, here it comes.
Suddenly, he heard Roxs voice.
When he snapped out of it, he saw a rabbit rushing in.
Dmitry raised his shield.
Okay!
Thud!
He held on tight.
Still, Dmitry continued thinking.
If the light hadnt lit up the darkness
Bang!
Ugh!!
Would he have been able to prevent the current attack?
On the outside, it looked no different from a common rabbit.
But on the subject of rabbits.
From the way they picked which players to attack first.
He could tell he shouldnt let his guard down just because of its cute look.
Swish!
A bowstring was being pulled.
Camilla said with an arrow in her mouth.
Hou mani greak thingss theyv ean? (How many great things they have eaten?)
The fact they could survive in the middle area of Zero Mountain.
That alone was proof that it was not a normal rabbit.
But like he said, the light existed.
Stay in line. Even if its level is high, its a normal monster. Its pattern is obvious.
Under Roxs command, Shining skillfully responded to the rabbits surprise attack.
Was it because of the extreme experience they had while dealing with demons in the rupture?
If not that, was it because of the light that lit up the darkness?
Brush
Camilla swept up her red hair.
I think the welcome greeting is over~
Thud.
Dmitry then put down his shield without saying a word.
He was unusually quiet?
Camilla caught on and spoke.
Whats wrong with your reaction? Thats not like our maknae.
I dont understand.
Huh? About what? Whats wrong~
What do you think is the reason hes doing this?
Slide
Dmitrys thick finger pointed to the sphere of light.
Oh, that one?
Camilla grinned.
Well, if I knew, wouldnt I have run away from Shining?
Like their Jessie.
Camila, Im listening.
Gasp. Look at you having a straight face. Its a joke. Its just a joke, Rox.
Camilla continued, laughing.
Actually, what does the reason matter?
?
Its nothing new, isnt it? This is not the first time our Commander-in-Chief has done this. How many times do you think hes gone through this cumbersome and tiring process? No way, you dont think this is the first time, do you, Dmitry?
Dmitry closed his mouth and tried to remember.
Hes level 900 at minimum
And that was a number that had been predicted a long time ago.
Dmitry was also a ranker, so he was well aware of it.
It took a huge amount of effort to keep your position.
Even if I spend all my time leveling up, it wont be enough.
What kind of steps did Lee Hoyeol take?
The ruptures where Dmitry put all his best effort seemed trivial to Lee Hoyeol.
If there were beings that posed even the slightest threat to humanity, including the demon king.
He nipped them in the bud.
However, he was not arrogant or conceited.
He even helped the growth of players who lagged behind by moving the Arcana forces he had built.
Indeed.
[Quest: Unfinished Holy War]
The quest that appeared before Dmitrys eyes was proof of his consistency.
Shake
Dmitry shook his head.
Maybe I was looking at the trees, not the forest.
At such a man, he only looked with an envious gaze.
Are you pretending to realize it now? Still, its not cool~
For today, he deserved to hear something like that from Camilla.
Slap!
Dmitry slapped his cheek roughly with both hands.
Okay, Ill have to be a little more serious from now on.
Rox smiled bitterly at Dmitry, who had made up his mind.
At this point, it would be strange not to admit it.
Not only Jessie.
Hoyeol even changed Dmitrys free-spirited personality.
He completely lost to Lee Hoyeol.
Rox looked at the path of light that decorated the mountain range.
Then he raised his sword and shield.
If its unfair, I have no choice but to pursue it diligently.
What did you say, Rox?
No, I didnt say anything.
Yeah, he was an underdog.
No matter how hard he tried.
Since the beginning, he was a hunting dog obsessed with chasing someone.
Rox ordered the support team.
Lets set the base camp at the place closest to the portal. Weve cleared out the monsters in the area, so this place wont be bad either. Well then, I leave it to you. everyone.
Its over already? Hey, theres no way, right? Rox?
Right. The manly passion has just been ignited!
Of course, out of sincerity, we should go further.
Just as Shining was about to take a step.
Float
?
The spheres of light suddenly rose into the air.
Wow, whats that? Its so pretty.
They were surprised by the spectacle.
Swish!
The light became a ray of light and crossed the Zero Mountain.
!!!
Not only Shining.
Everyone in the Zero Mountain could guess.
Hoyeol was at the end of the ray of light.
Vision expansion skill, [Eagle Eye].
Camilla looked around Zero Mountain with the Eagle Eye.
She uncharacteristically stuttered.
W-Wait, how high did he go?
He was so high up that even [Eagle Eye]s vision couldnt reach him.
Just like what she saw.𝒂ll new st𝒐ries at n0ve/lbi/𝒏(.)c𝒐m
The ray of light stretched towards the top of the mountain range.
The surprise soon turned into astonishment.
Because of the sound from far away.
Bang!
What a loud roar.
Was it possible for a sound to reach this far away?
What on earth was going on up there?
Dmitry spoke in wonder.
Wait, the area near the top is near the dragons nest, right?
*
[Baton of Rhyme]
[Grade: Epic]
[Restriction: None]
[Effect: When worn, acquires extensive musical knowledge and gives everything under the control of the wearer with a buff of effects that match that musical knowledge.]
[Description: A magic tool with effects as noble as its noble appearance.]
Indeed.
Along with [Map That Connects All Things] and [Evil Eyes Telescope], this was the demon kings loot obtained during the demon kings oppression. Perhaps because of the effect. I was able to spit out musical terms as if I were familiar with them.
Slide
Vivace. Lively and fast.
But out of all things, why does it have to be Vivace!
Whether it was getting incredibly fast or just being fast.
That would have been enough.
Did you have to add lively in a place like this, Grandfel?
I almost wanted to ask if he had lost his sense of direction after coming through the portal. If you just looked up slightly, you would see the dragons nest!
Crack
Really.
While loudly pouring out magic under the dragons nest.
I was truly concerned.
Had the dragons woken up from their sleep because of loud noise?
How stressing the racket must be?
If they woke up, their anger naturally would be directed at me.
Dealing with Shegwin in front of me was already difficult enough and now I would have to deal with dragons.
It was something I absolutely wanted to avoid.
In order to do that.
I had no choice but to win as quickly as possible.
I had put in all my effort.
Shegwins movements were difficult to follow with my eyes.
However, from the moment I raised the [Baton of Rhyme], I was the one commanding the battlefield.
Yeah, it was thanks to that damn Vivace. Of course, the baton couldnt improve my physical ability.
If it could do that, its grade would be more than epic.
But that was enough.
The light moved quickly under my command.
My exploration, interference, and manifestation were no less quick.
Light and mana spheres were each manifested in different magic and began to pressure Shegwin. Fire magic, ice magic, and even hallucinatory magic that disrupted vision.
The number of magic that I poured out was so great that even I couldnt fathom it.
Is this because of the circle?
It was not a level of transcendence that was attained fairly.
I could feel it just with the current effect.
There was a reason why Elder Mage Yugwid was excited about it.
However.
I dont feel overwhelmed at all.
The circle was definitely too much for me.
However, I was freely using the effect of the circle.
No, more than that.
I finally felt like I was putting forth my full power.
His innate magical talent is such that he can imitate most magic just by looking.
Yeah, now that I had formed the circle.
I felt like Grandfels setting was showing off its might.
Swish
I looked at the baton that I swung indifferently.
I felt like a real conductor at this point.
Sword Saint and the continents only Grand Sword Master.
Shegwin was busy avoiding the pouring magic.
It was like a section that creaked from the pouring notes.
What did he call it again?
A duet between rough heartbeat and screams?
You really make your words come true. Grandfel.
However, I shouldnt underestimate him.
Likewise.
No, unlike me who took the shortcut.
Shegwin was a transcendent who reached this point through his own power.
As if responding to my speculation.
Slash!
Soon the pressure from the strong wind blew away the pouring magic notes.
A shitty magic tool.
Sss
Dust rose in the mountain.
Shegwin appeared from there.
His pupils were revealed in the cleared-out dust.
And this shitty sensation.
Blackened eyes.
They confirmed that Shegwin had truly degenerated into a demon.
But the pupils were trembling.
To be precise, he couldnt make eye contact with me.
There is no way that transcendents would be intimidated by force.
Then there was only one reason.
As a demon hunter vs. a demon.
Shegwin and I were not in the same weight class.
Demon of the true name, Shegwin. Hes not a demon king.
To be in the same weight class, he had to be a demon king.
Among the demon kings, he had to have experience in confronting demon hunters.
To put it in a simpler way, he should have overcome the natural enemy relationship.
Only then he could remain unfazed even in the face of natural enemies.
Its a similar case to Greed.
Greed of the Seven Deadly Sins, who committed suicide and were reborn.
Even if he was a great evil, he had no resistance to demon hunters. In the past, when I had been much weaker than I was now, he couldnt even fight me back and was thrown into hell.
Shegwin was the same case.
It hasnt been long since he became a devil.
He had no resistance to natural enemies.
He smelled like an immature demon.
As expected, it was good news for me.
So I was able to speak confidently like this.
That form is as ugly as ever.
Shegwin crookedly raised the corner of his mouth.
Ive felt it at the social gathering, but your speaking habits are really amazing. Those eyes that look down on the world are also arrogant and impudent.
He got offended by my casual speech.
Even if you regain your youth, you cant lie about your age.
By the way, I thought you would say harsh comments at least once, Grandfel.
I realized it from the moment he used casual speech to Senios until the end.
Of course, that said, Shegwin.
Im not saying that you deserve honorifics.
I answered back.
You are mistaken.
?
Youre talking about a conversation that could be had between humans.
!
Are you still mistaking yourself for being a human being?
Flash
Shegwins face distorted.
At this point, I was certain.
Really, I dont think he had any intention to be a demon.
But it didnt change anything.
No, it was actually even worse.
He made a deal with the demons simply to regain his youth.
Even if he had been deceived by the demons, his crime was a different case.
Shegwin didnt seem to have any intention of refuting it either.
I have no illusions or regrets. I can still clearly hear the sound of humans crying in my ears. But what is so wrong about that?
His black pupils reflected madness.
Their life would have been trampled by the demons anyway. I simply offered those people as sacrifices. Whats wrong with that? It was bad enough that the damn bastard demon insulted me. Shut up!
There was a surge of demon energy.
I thought about the meaning of Shegwins words.
It was true that the Arcana Continent was trampled by demons.
But to me, and to Grandfel, these words were not worth hearing.
A cold voice came out of my mouth.
No, you just turned a blind eye to it.
I turned a blind eye?
You just turned a blind eye to achieve your ugly purpose.
I didnt mean to preach, but I also had no intention to listen to his excuse.
And most of all, I, Grandfel, had a right to say this.
By struggling to death.
I brought peace to the Arcana Continent, even if only for a moment.
I had the right to talk about it.
I slowly opened my mouth.
But if that frivolous excuse is the pride you have been carrying out.
Then I slowly put down my baton.
I will break you with true pride.
Right.
Here it came.
Grandfels punishment for Shegwin.
I continued.
I deliver this to the social gathering of time and space.
?
I challenge the Transcendent, Shegwin, to a duel of time and space.
!
Then my vision changed.
Raise your sword. I will also raise my sword.
Yeah, my new sword.