Leveling with the Gods

C420

The day had dawned.

Several Great Guilds had gathered in a city.

Thanks to that, Valhalla's expansive castle was about to overflow.

Thok...

"Oh, damn."

A Celestial Realm Ranker named Gyo Ryangjin grumbled when he bumped into someone's shoulder.

He was already tense, as his position didn't allow him to relax, but suddenly his irritation shot up when someone approached and bumped his shoulder.

"What the hell. You bumped my shoulder."

Then, a red-haired man stopped as he walked down the street and turned to face Gyo Ryangjin.

On the face of the man who ran into Gyo Ryangjin, there was a cheerful smile.

"So, are we going to fight then?"

"...?"

His tone seemed to take for granted that if you bumped shoulders, you had to fight.

And the confidence in his voice and expression was evident.

As Gyo Ryangjin started to realize something was amiss, he recognized the man's face.

"D-D-Diablo..."

"Let's fight."

Thud...

Then.

Someone grabbed Diablo's shoulder and pulled him away.

Pull pull...

Diablo, who was dragged without moving, looked at the man holding him with an unsatisfied expression.

"What are you doing, Belial?"

"Did you come all the way here to cause trouble?"

"So, are you saying we should just overlook a shoulder bump?"

Most demons were combative. Their world was full of fights, to the extent that they often referred to cities and villages where many fights occurred as "the demon world" contemptuously.

To them, not fighting after bumping shoulders was something that didn't make sense.

Moreover, Diablo, the Demon Lord, was more combative than any other demon.

"This isn't the Demon World, it's Asgard, and Valhalla is the holiest place of all."

"Weren't the Valkyries a warrior people?"

"Don't think we're the same as them, idiot."

"Are you calling me an idiot...?"

At that moment...

Sniff...

Diablo's nose reacted.

In the midst of the crowded people.

He had found an interesting opponent.

"That guy has a scent."

"Scent? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Mana and Demon Energy also have a scent. It's like the scent of all humans is different even if they're the same."

Thud...

Diablo pulled away Belial's arm that was holding him and smiled with delight.

"This is that guy's scent."

Diablo pulled away Belial's arm that was holding him and quickly made his way through the crowd. Some who bumped shoulders with him looked at him with anger, but soon recognized his face and lowered their heads.

Despite the many Rankers gathered in the place, no one was brave enough to challenge Diablo.

Finally, reaching the end of the crowd...

Thud...

Diablo grabbed the shoulder of a black-haired man.

"As I expected, you were here."

YuWon's eyes met Diablo's as he turned his head.

It hadn't been long since they parted, but Diablo had been constantly looking for YuWon.

"I knew you would come."

"You also participated as a Demon Lord?"

"There was something fun to do, so why not?"

Sss...

A red energy began to slowly emerge from Diablo's foot. It was a bad habit that Diablo showed every time his excitement grew.

"The world is really exciting these days. There never seems to be an end to the fights."

"Stop that. Today is the day of the Gathering. Are you going to ruin it? You could get us in trouble."

Grrr...

Diablo's eyebrows furrowed. There was something in those words that bothered him in the ear.

"You? Me?"

YuWon raised his head as if he were challenging Diablo with a provocative question.

"Even if it's not me, this is still Asgard."

Swoosh...

YuWon's gaze roamed around him.

Unbeknownst to him, the eyes of many had centered on him and Diablo. Among them were several Rankers.

And, as expected...

"The young friend is saying the right thing."

Diablo's attitude was always bothersome, so there was someone who tried to help YuWon.

An elderly man with green hair.

It was Lee Rangjin, a High-Ranker who led the Celestial Realm after the death of the Jade Emperor.

"You don't need to light the flame here. You should know that this place is where we will discuss what lies beyond our known world."

"And what does that have to do with me?" Diablo menacingly stared at Lee Rangjin as his red eyes burned. Through Diablo's eyes, Lee Rangjin could read his fiery temperament.

Although they were meeting face to face for the first time, Lee Rangjin didn't seem willing to back down easily.

"You look just like that Monkey I know."

Lee Rangjin muttered, thinking of Son OhGong, and his grip tightened. Then, his hand moved to his back, where he carried his curved sword.

"If you truly want to fight, this old man is willing to face you, even here."

The two contenders clashed.

Diablo, who would never give up no matter what, and Lee Rangjin, who had fought on the battlefields of the Celestial Realm all his life. Despite their differences in appearance, when these two clashed, sparks flew without fail.

It was at that moment, amid the growing tension...

Kabooom!

Someone else's Arcane Power infiltrated in the midst of their fight, deflecting them.

A chill ran down their spines.

At the same time as the Arcane Power and Demon Energy that accompanied their confrontation, they felt the presence of someone else.

Diablo and Lee Rangjin's eyes naturally turned to that presence.

"Today, you should control your temper. If you wait a bit longer, you can fight with joy again."

YuWon said this as he offered Diablo the glass of red wine he was drinking.

Although the situation seemed stifling to most Rankers, YuWon seemed exceptionally calm.

In fact...

"Look at that bastard?"

Diablo squinted at YuWon, who had controlled both him and Lee Rangjin solely with his presence.

For a moment, he thought that the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal might have come.

Having turned the Celestial Realm into a battlefield and fought monsters outside the Tower, the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, was one of the strongest within this Tower.

In reality, it was the power of YuWon's Golden Cinder Eyes that had simultaneously suppressed Lee Rangjin's Arcane Power and Diablo's Demon Energy.

This meant that YuWon's Golden Cinder Eyes possessed power rivaling that of the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

"Aren't you going to accept it?"

Diablo looked at the glass of wine that YuWon was offering. It wasn't just alcohol he was offering.

It was like a handshake, a gesture of reconciliation.

Normally, he would have rejected this immediately with his previous personality...

"I might not mind if it's alcohol."

Diablo accepted the glass and downed it in one gulp.

There was a moment of calm. Onlookers who had been watching the situation with tense faces dispersed. Lee Rangjin also lowered the hand that was heading for the Indestructible Sword.

YuWon, trying to calm the situation, reached for the snacks laid out on the side rather than the unpalatable drink, and said:

"Good choice."

"And you, what the hell happened to you?"

Diablo's voice softened.

It was a vaguely condescending question, as if he were trying to understand what was going on.

YuWon, chewing on a chocolate sweet, responded:

"What's wrong with me?"

"How the hell did you change so much out of nowhere?"

Diablo started thinking differently about the Rankings at this moment.

YuWon, who was right in front of him, had made his point. With a single move, he had broken the momentum of both Diablo and Lee Rangjin.

An expert of this caliber, and he was only Ranking 11.

Given the turmoil in the Tower, it seemed that the Rankings would also undergo a major shakeup.

YuWon nibbled on the chocolate and turned his head.

There, Zeus and Hercules were in an uncomfortable meeting.

"They are the same."

"Both of them?"

"The grander the Myth they create, the higher their status."

Zeus and Hercules were beings who had written such significant Myths within this Tower that they could count as some of the best. In particular, the Divine Status that Hercules had attained was even more significant than Zeus's in terms of size, and certainly not smaller.

With a look that seemed to say, "Do you understand what I'm saying?" YuWon turned to Diablo, who was gazing at him with a puzzled expression.

"Your 'Great Heaven Demon War' is not small either. It might not be perfect since I ended it myself, but..."

YuWon stood up from his seat at that moment.

As the atmosphere in the place began to heat up, just then, the central figure of the location, Odin, was starting to make his appearance.

YuWon moved in the opposite direction.

"Where are you going?"

"The conversation will be quite apparent."

"Well, there's nothing more boring than a speech."

The truly important place was not here at this moment.

There was a separate place where only top-level Rankers and Guild leaders who were the core of the Guild gathered.

This place was something of a "showcase" where all the leaders of medium to large-sized Guilds came to display themselves.

There was no need to waste time in a place like this when the important part lay ahead.

"But then, why did you come here? You could have arrived late like the others."

"I came because I had someone I wanted to find."

"Did you find that person?"

"Yes."

There was no time to waste.

YuWon turned his back to Diablo and started walking in another direction.

"I've found him."

Valhalla Castle was filled with ceaseless activity.

A green-haired man who had gone outside for some fresh air due to the oppressive feeling leaned on the railing and let the wind caress him.

And then, next to him.

Step by step, a man approached.

"Did you follow me?"

Vishnu's voice sounded inquisitive as YuWon deliberately approached, showing his presence.

"I also came to get some fresh air."

"You're good at lying."

"They say that if you know it's a lie, you're bad at lying."

"Anyway, no one can deceive me."

Vishnu turned to YuWon after withdrawing his arm from the railing and faced him.

"You may be quite a famous Ranker, but I have no interest in the world, so I don't know who you are. Please understand."

"I understand."

"I am Vishnu."

"I am Kim YuWon."

The two shook hands.

Despite his renown, YuWon was not surprised.

He thought Vishnu, the man with the ability to perceive even fate with a single fine thread, might feel this way.

"And anyway, you seem rather relaxed, unlike the others. You speak as if it's not the first time you've seen me today."

YuWon was not surprised.

He thought Vishnu, the cleverest man he knew, might feel this way.

If Mimir was the smartest person he knew, then Vishnu was the one with the keenest senses.

There was no need to be surprised.

"Looks like you have something to tell me."

Once again, he understood that there were only two people in this Tower he should not lie to.

One was Mimir, and the other was the Vishnu before him.

There was nothing wrong with it.

After all, YuWon wasn't a fan of beating around the bush in his conversation, especially with Vishnu.

"I know why you're here."

So YuWon got straight to the point.

"You're not allowed to meet."