Leveling with the Gods

C417

At first, he thought he was mistaken.

Not just Hargan, but everyone seemed to feel the same way.

Why is he here if he's not someone who should be here?

"Why? Who is he?"

Of course, not everyone knew the Player stepping onto the stage.

Despite their rankings, not all Rankers had been in the business for a long time. There were some people in the crowd who didn't recognize many faces, so they asked their peers about the man.

Then...

"Don't you know?"

They looked at the group that asked the question as if they were pathetic.

For the regular audience in the Colosseum, knowing information about High-Rankers was essential. They needed to know their rankings and other information to make decisions on where to bet.

"It's Kim YuWon..."

"Really?"

"Wow, it's the first time I've seen his face."

Most people must be like that, right?

The crowd stood up to see YuWon, who had appeared in the Colosseum.

Despite his reputation, he wasn't so well-known by his face. This was partly because his career as a Player was relatively short compared to other Rankers.

That was understandable.

YuWon ascended the Tower only a few years ago.

And YuWon and Hargan...

"Why are you here?"

Upon YuWon's same question, Hargan had no answer.

There was only one reason why they might be on the 64th floor right now.

"...the meeting?"

"That's right."

"Anyway, why the hell are you suddenly entering the Colosseum?"

Hargan scratched his head as he spoke.

Well.

He had also suddenly jumped into the Colosseum, so he realized he had no right to say anything.

"Let's talk about it later."

"Alright. Let's finish the fight first."

With YuWon's consent, Hargan clenched his fists and assumed a stance.

Originally, this fight was like his debut stage before becoming a Ranker. He thought there would be no better debut than surviving in a fight where Rankers competed with overwhelming skills.

But now, the plan had to change.

'Somehow, I'll survive.'

The opponent was Kim YuWon.

The friend who had somehow become one of the most powerful High-Rankers, even rivaling his father, Zeus.

A presence that had come so far that it would be too much to bring out his pride.

Against YuWon, the more he could withstand, the more his own worth would increase.

"Begin the fight!"

Boom!

Crack!

At the referee's call, Hargan threw a punch.

An intense blow that he had been preparing before it began. That golden stream of electricity engulfed YuWon along with his body.

"Good luck, competitors!"

The opponent was the 11th ranked High-Ranker in the Rankings.

To bet even a single breath against an opponent like YuWon, he couldn't afford to hide anything.

Bang!

Hargan moved forward with force.

Filling his fists with golden lightning, he gripped tightly.

"Come!"

So when Hargan gathered his determination and rushed towards YuWon.

"He's quite good."

A golden wave began to gradually recede.

Within that wave, YuWon's and Hargan's eyes met.

And at that moment, Hargan had a hunch.

The moment YuWon couldn't be shaken by the first blow... This fight had practically already ended.

Flash!

A light of the same color as the one he had just emitted burst before Hargan's eyes.

Crack!

A Golden Bolt filled the Colosseum.

Hargan was swept away by that Bolt, thinking:

'Oh, sh*t...'

And that was it.

And that was the last thing Hargan thought.

The consciousness that had slowly drifted away began to return.

Before his eyes opened.

Along with the feeling of someone approaching, he heard a sighing voice.

"Aigoo, you idiot."

It was the first time Hargan, who had regained his consciousness, heard those words.

His sight returned blurry. In Hargan's eyes, he saw Yolche looking down at him.

"...Listen to me."

"Eh?"

"...You should have listened to me."

Although her words were sharp, Yolche remained resolute.

"I told you to listen to me."

Yolche was the only teammate on the team who wasn't afraid of Hargan. At times, she didn't hesitate to sharply criticize Hargan, who sometimes acted impulsively.

At first, there were times when Yolche's words and actions seemed unpleasant, but as time went on, Hargan got used to Yolche's way of speaking and felt more grateful for it.

Because she was the only teammate on the team who could control him.

This time was no different.

Yolche sat by the bed and squinted, looking at Hargan.

"Why don't you listen to what I say?"

A critique that hinted that if Hargan had stopped when he was told, he wouldn't have gone through this humiliation.

That was true, but Hargan also had something to say.

"How was I supposed to know that guy would participate in the fight, huh?"

Even though it was an excuse to avoid a reprimand, Yolche didn't have much to say in this situation.

Given the situation, maybe it wasn't so far-fetched that one or two high-ranking Rankers would participate in the fight, but Kim YuWon was beyond all consideration.

"And him? Where is he?"

"He's here."

Just at that moment, YuWon entered through the door with a basket of fruits in hand.

"I came because I was told you were in the hospital."

"You talk like I had an accident on the road somewhere."

"I came because of me. That's why I'm here to see you as well."

YuWon threw an apple that Hargan caught with an unsatisfied expression.

"Couldn't you have waited a little?"

"I know what you're thinking, but save your debut for next time. There will be other opportunities."

YuWon looked through the reasons behind Hargan's participation in the fight. So, Hargan asked with an expectant voice.

"Is there any good opportunity?"

"Probably."

"Probably," YuWon said. He never spoke empty words. Among the people Hargan knew, YuWon was the most realistic and straightforward.

There should be a better scenario. If it wasn't just empty words, there would surely be a scenario that wouldn't compare to Valhalla's Colosseum.

"It's okay. Let's overlook this for now."

"Your attitude is quite strong."

"You didn't shoot a deadly Lightning Bolt, did you? I just lost consciousness. I'm not seriously injured."

"That's because I didn't think of killing you, but still, I didn't expect you to be in such good condition."

"Why? Did you want to leave me nearly dead?"

Hargan thought YuWon was joking and chuckled to himself, but upon seeing YuWon's unsmiling expression, he asked seriously.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes."

"Should I curse you like a friend, or should I thank you?"

When he thought about it, YuWon wasn't the type to consider his friends too leniently. It's not that he was prone to unnecessary harm, but he also wasn't known for being especially compassionate to avoid hurting someone.

So, that meant he was even tougher than YuWon thought.

"If I had known you'd be so well, I wouldn't have even come."

YuWon was surprised to see Hargan, who had been hospitalized in a nearby hospital.

Hargan seemed much better than YuWon had imagined.

In reality, Hargan seemed to be in a condition to be discharged immediately, even if he thought about it.

YuWon, who had come for no apparent reason, sat on a chair that Yolche had left vacant.

In any case, there was nothing much to do until the Gathering started.

With no need to stay in bed, Hargan got up from his bed.

So, when Hargan left the hospital along with YuWon, a giant-like man entered the hospital entrance.

"You took quite a while for a little outing."

A green-eyed man leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.

Hargan's older brother, Hercules.

"Suddenly, I made a friend."

"A friend?"

Hércules turned his head to look at Hargan.

When their eyes met, Hargan quickly nodded in greeting.

"Nice to see you again, big brother."

"So, you're Hargan."

"Yes, I'm Hargan."

"Why are you so nervous? Relax. Make yourself at ease."

"Thank you."

Even though it wasn't their first meeting, Hargan couldn't feel completely at ease in front of Hércules.

Hércules, the Giant Slayer and the Hero of the Gigantomachy, was a figure Hargan had admired for a long time.

No matter how hard he tried to stay calm, it was only natural to feel tense in his presence.

Hércules looked at Hargan, who bowed in greeting, and began to speak.

"The fact that you came here..."

"Yes, exactly!"

"Is that so?"

Hércules nodded and then turned to YuWon.

"If you've finished your business, let's go."

"Alright."

"It was a pleasure meeting you. Anyways, we'll see each other again soon."

"Please take care, big brother."

As they bowed and said their goodbyes, YuWon and Hércules slowly walked away.

Hargan watched them walk away and thought to himself, "This Gathering is no joke."

Even just by watching YuWon and Hércules walk away, Hargan could tell that this Gathering would be of significant scale.

YuWon was ranked 11th in the Rankings. And Hércules, who was standing right next to him, had risen to 16th place after Satan's death. Just by looking at these two, each of them had enough power to compete with a Great Guild.

The fact that both of them were participating in this Gathering already indicated it would be of great magnitude.

"Yolche."

"Yes."

"The list of participants in the Gathering hasn't been published yet, right?"

"It will probably be released today. However, most of the important Rankers have already been announced as guests, but..."

Yolche was thinking the same thing as Hargan.

"Looking at those two, it doesn't seem like that's necessarily the case."

High-level Rankers affiliated with Guilds had to take a stance on their participation in the Gathering because their Guilds had interests at stake. But people like YuWon and Hércules, who weren't affiliated with any Guilds and acted independently, were different.

In some way, it seemed like this Gathering was going to be much bigger than they expected.

"But in reality..."

Hargan looked at the back of YuWon, who walked alongside Hércules, and thought, "Who the hell were you trying to tell you came here to?"