Chapter 138 - Kim Si-Hun's Return (1)
Winter arrived, snow piled up, and icy winds blew. Three months had passed since the war at the Manchurian Plain.
The Demon Cult had ceased all activities and hid themselves as if they’d come to some sort of agreement among themselves. Rumors spread that the Demon Cult had run away with their tail between their legs.
The world leaders and the top Rankers knew that was nothing but wishful thinking, even though China and Korea had beaten the Demon Cult. They all thought that there was no way that was the extent of the Demon Cult's forces.
Time flew by like the calm before the storm.
* * *
"Yawn."
As rays of sunshine shone into the room through the window, Oh Kang-Woo stretched out and got up from bed. He'd slept for only an hour, but that much sleep was enough to reinvigorate him. That was possible because a demon's body didn't need sleep in the first place.
"Hmm."
He leaned his back on the pillow and picked up his smartphone. He'd received a few texts from Cha Yeon-Joo and Tian Suyan.
Kang-Woo thought of what he'd done for the past three months.
He'd focused on two things since returning to Korea—Demon Cult activities all over the world and Mythic-grade equipment. Kang-Woo had been searching for signs of the Demon Cult's activities so that he could devour demons, and he looked for Mythic-grade equipment so he could replace the now-useless Black Pearl Coat.
'I haven't made much progress with either, though.'
Tsk. He clicked his tongue.
Demons had been summoned, but those who summoned them had been insignificant members of side branches that had formed as a result of the Demon Cult rapidly expanding their forces. Those members hadn’t even been true members of the Demon Cult.
As for the summoned demons, they had been low-ranking demons that resided in the upper Hells—the First, Second, and Third Hells. They weren't even worth devouring.
'But at least I'd made some progress on that.'
On the other hand, Kang-Woo's search for Mythic-grade equipment had been hopeless. He'd thought at first that he could just acquire materials for Mythic-grade equipment by killing boss monsters in SS-rank Gates, but he changed his mind after entering the Gates in Sapporo and Vladivostok.
The problem wasn't how strong the boss monsters were. It was that it was really difficult to find the boss monsters inside the Gates, and even when he managed to find and kill them, they didn't always drop Mythic-grade materials. Additionally, unlike video games, they did not respawn in fixed time frames, so it was impossible to hunt them frequently.
"Ngh."
Consequently, Kang-Woo had spent the last three months without any significant progress. Of course, he'd gotten better at using the Key of the Demonic Sea and created new combinations of Authorities and made them into skills… However, he had not been able to raise his stats or level up.
'Others have improved much more than I have.'
Yeon-Joo, Kang Tae-Soo, Han Seol-Ah, and the others had gotten stronger after traveling the world with Kang-Woo.
Yeon-Joo had managed to break through the Limit of Talent—the end of the Ninth Awakening—and achieved her Tenth Awakening. She was now strong enough to be on par with a World Ranker.
Baek Hwa-Yeon and Goo Hyun-Mo had also achieved their Ninth Awakening.
There was no need to even mention Tae-Soo and Seol-Ah, who had been very talented right from the beginning. They had both broken past the Limit of Effort and achieved their Seventh Awakening. A few days ago, they even managed to reach their Eighth Awakening.
Choi Eun-Bi, who was a mage-class player, fell slightly behind in terms of growth, but she'd also managed to break past the Limit of Effort without difficulty.
'They've all grown so much.'
It was as if an author who had failed to balance the characters had forcibly made them stronger. They were getting stronger at a pace that couldn't be compared to that of normal players… Such miraculous growth had only been possible thanks to Kang-Woo carrying them.
"Well, it needed to be done sooner or later."
There was a limit on how many things he could do alone. If his allies didn't become strong enough to defend themselves, things could become quite bothersome.
'I wonder how things are going with Si-Hun.'
It had been three months since Kim Si-Hun left for Shanghai with Tian Wuchen. Kang-Woo was linked to Si-Hun through the Authority of Subordination, so he knew Si-Hun was alive. Nevertheless, he wasn't sure how strong he'd become.
'I'm looking forward to it.'
Kang-Woo had high hopes since it was Si-Hun, who had always been exceptional.
Knock, knock.
"Are you awake, Kang-Woo?" Seol-Ah asked after knocking on the door.
Kang-Woo stopped thinking and got up.
"Yeah, just a second."
He got up and opened the door. Seol-Ah was standing in front of his room with a worried expression.
"What's wrong?" Kang-Woo asked.
"Uhmm…" Seol-Ah dragged out the end of the sentence. She looked around to make sure that there wasn't anyone around. Then she said cautiously, "I got my Eighth Awakening a few days ago, right?"
"You did."
"A-After that, something strange appeared."
"Something strange appeared?"
Kang-Woo looked at her while tilting his head.
Seol-Ah swallowed nervously.
"A weird symbol appeared… on my back."
She turned her back toward him and carefully pulled down the hem of her shirt, showing him her fair skin.
'Hallelujah,' Kang-Woo thought.
There was no symbol in his field of vision; he only stared at her bare back with intense eyes.
"...Kang-Woo?"
"Oh, sorry. My sight's still a bit blurry."
He had only slept for an hour, so his vision would naturally be blurry.
'Yeah, there's nothing I can do about it.'
He was a human being. How could he possibly be okay after sleeping only for an hour?
Kang-Woo gulped. He pretended to rub his eyes and narrowly opened his eyes.
He once again took a look at Seol-Ah's back and saw that there was a symbol that resembled angel wings on it.
"This is…"
"It appeared a few days ago," Seol-Ah said.
Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes.
"What Trait did you get with your Eighth Awakening?"
"It's called Wings of Light."
"Hmm."
Kang-Woo gulped. He wasn't sure if the symbol had appeared because of the Trait’s influence or if there was another reason.
"Have there been any other changes besides the symbol?"
"No, nothing yet."
Kang-Woo took a closer look at the symbol.
He was having a hard time brushing the symbol off as just being because of Seol-Ah's Trait. Perhaps it was because Echidna had told him about the beings of the celestial realm.
'But still, it’s not like there's anything I can do about it.'
It was a frustrating situation.
Seol-Ah, who realized Kang-Woo was worrying about it, said with a smile, "It's just a symbol. Nothing else happened, so you don't have to be so worried."
"I can't do that."
After all, Seol-Ah was very special to him.
Kang-Woo extended his hand and touched the symbol.
"Eek!" Seol-Ah shrieked.
She flinched, and her face became as red as a tomato.
Kang-Woo ignored her reaction and used an Authority.
'Authority of Protection.'
The Authority of Protection checked the changes in the target's body in real-time and created a powerful barrier depending on the situation. It continuously consumed demonic energy, so he avoided using it if he could. However, he had to use it now.
While looking at her back with a serious expression, Kang-Woo told Seol-Ah, "Make sure to let me know if you notice any other changes. Even small things like a nightmare or feeling a little sick. Okay?"
"O… O-Okay, Kang-Woo."
Seol-Ah was surprised because Kang-Woo reacted more seriously than she'd expected.
She bowed her head to hide a smile that she couldn't hold back.
'I'm happy.'
Seol-Ah wriggled around due to the feelings rising within her. An inexplicable feeling swept through her from seeing that Kang-Woo cared so much about her.
"Kang-Woo…" she murmured with a wet voice.
Seol-Ah was having a hard time controlling her feelings.
She was about to turn toward Kang-Woo and say something when…
"Kang-Woo, Seol-Ah, what are you doing here?" Echidna called out.
This scene of Seol-Ah with the back of her shirt pulled down and Kang-Woo staring fixedly at her exposed back was a breeding ground for misunderstandings.
"N-Nothing!" Seol-Ah quickly shouted.
Echidna tilted her head and then tugged on Seol-Ah's clothes.
"Seol-Ah, I'm hungry."
Growl. A cute sound rang out.
Seol-Ah smiled awkwardly and pulled her shirt back.
"Just a second. I’ll get breakfast ready in a flash."
She quickly ran toward the kitchen.
A few moments later, a delicious smell spread through the house. It was the fragrance of kimchi stew. Kang-Woo had insisted on it, so kimchi stew was always served for breakfast.
[Oh, is it time to eat?]
Vaal Zahak opened the door of his room.
When they were outside, he always hid in Kang-Woo's shadow, but otherwise, he just roamed around in his normal form.
"Good morning, Vaal Zahak," Seol-Ah, who was cooking, greeted him.
At first, she and her mother Kim Mi-Jeong were scared by the sight of the skeleton walking around. Nonetheless, after some time passed, they both got used to him. They had now reached a point where they were no longer shocked to see Vaal Zahak even in the middle of the night.
Tap.
"Breakfast is ready."
Everyone quickly gathered around the dining table. Breakfast began with a rowdy atmosphere.
Vaal Zahak grabbed a piece of meat with the chopsticks, which he'd gotten used to using.
Munch, munch.
[Hehe. A satisfying feast of blood as always,] Vaal Zahak exclaimed while taking a sip of kimchi stew.
The sight of a skeleton eating kimchi stew was extremely bizarre, but the others did not seem to mind.
[Haha! I can feel the taste deep inside my bones!]
"…"
Kang-Woo let out a laugh.
After seeing a skeleton say something like that, he couldn't help but laugh.
'What terrific reactions.'
None of the characters that had been created to react to the food in cooking manhwas would be able to fulfill the role as perfectly as Vaal Zahak was doing right now.
[Huhu. It was a delicious feast, human girl,] Vaal Zahak said pridefully.
Kang-Woo's hands shot at the speed of light.
Bash!
[Gyaaaaa! M-My skull!] Vaal Zahak screamed.
"I told you not to talk to Seol-Ah like that."
[Kurgh. I-I'm sorry, Master,] Vaal Zahak replied while grabbing the back of his skull.
"Then I'll leave the dishwashing to you."
Kang-Woo patted Vaal Zahak's shoulder and stood up.
The yellow lights in Vaal Zahak's eye sockets shook.
[Kuh. Why must I, Vaal Zahak, have to…]
Washing dishes… Doing such a thing was unimaginable for him during his days on the continent of Aernor. However, he couldn't go against his master's commands.
Vaal Zahak quickly collected the tableware and put on rubber gloves. He grabbed a sponge and put dish soap on it.
Clack, clack.
He'd become accustomed to washing dishes in the past three months. Vaal Zahak washed the dishes perfectly to the point that they shone.
He had to finish cleaning up the dishes quickly.
'I have to fold the laundry too.'
If he didn't do that, he wouldn't have enough time to clean the house in the morning.
After being forced to do the housework for the past three months, Vaal Zahak had a schedule of what to do in his head.
'Why do I, a demon king, have to…'
Demon King Vaal Zahak—the ruler of death, who had made Aernor tremble in fear—had been reduced to a slave.
Once he was done with the dishes, he moved on to folding the laundry.
He trembled while doing that.
'I can't keep living like this.'
Vaal Zahak's eyes shone.
He put the laundry down and stood up angrily.
[Master!]
"Yeah?"
[I have tried to endure it all this time, but I cannot take it anymore!]
It was a voice with deep anger.
[I must tell you off today!]
"What? You don't want to work?"
[No! That's not the problem!]
Boom. Vaal Zahak stomped on the ground.
[Master!]
He exuded intense demonic energy as he extended his hand and showed Kang-Woo what was in his hands.
[How many times must I tell you not to put your socks in the washing machine inside out?!]
"Oh."
[You probably have no idea how important this is when folding laundry, Master!]
"Uhh, yeah. Sorry."
[Hmph. Please be more careful next time.]
Vaal Zahak turned around and walked toward the drying rack where he had hung the laundry. He collected the laundry that had dried in the sunlight. The smell of the fabric softener tickled his nose.
[Good.]
Vaal Zahak let out a smile.
[They’ve dried nicely.]
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