Ranker Who Lives Twice

"Ohyohyo. A visit from the Heavenly Demon's son. Sun Wukong has done a truly worthless deed." In a dark place, a goblin in a suit with a monocle in one eye reviewed numerous screens that were floating in front of him. He was Yvlke, the first and oldest Guardian who had existed since the creation of the Tower. Everything regarding the goblin's background was shrouded in secrecy.

Recently, Yvlke was focusing his attention on the player whose real name was 'Son Jae-Won'. All the data of players entering the Tower were stored separately in the Tower's cloud system. Although the Tower's cloud system was managed with a strict security system that did not allow anyone to access it, the top Guardian, Yvlke, was an exception.

Thus, Yvlke knew that Vivasvat shared the same bloodline as the Heavenly Demon, the entity that Yvlke hated yet also wanted to become close to. No, before checking on the cloud system, Yvlke already 'intuitively' knew Vivasvat's background when he met him in the tutorial. Checking the player's data in the cloud system was just for confirmation. Moreover, as if to prove his royal bloodline, Vivasvat showed an outstanding, exceptional performance that no one had ever seen before.

Throughout all this, Yvlke noticed early on that Vivasvat was hiding the extent of his skills and powers. Of course, Yvlke had no intention of exposing this fact to the outside world. Even if he did not know Vivasvat's ultimate purpose or goal, Yvlke was not going to miss this interesting sight.

"Maybe it's a good opportunity to see what the hell the Heavenly Demon is up to."

Even if nothing was revealed, it was clear that Vivasvat's presence would cause some fuss in the Tower, where there was not a single day of silence with so many transcendent beings vying for something or another. Yvlke knew that there was nothing more terrifying than a teenage kid acting out his pubescent angst and dissatisfaction against his parents.

"Ohyohyo, Ohyohyo!" Yvlke's laughter echoed through the dark interior of the Central Bureau's Administrative office.

***

Vivasvat was showered with interest from the heavenly world, lower world associations, and various guilds. He had made quite the name for himself as a super rookie player.

"Come to Olympus. Then, I promise to place you at the top seat."

After bringing down Kronos, Olympus was in the process of forming a new organization under the three existing Olympian gods.

"I sense the aura of a leader from you. Additionally, your name has a relationship to our past."

There was an Olympian elder named Vivasvat, who was once also a part of Deva.

"Don't you want to learn the true aesthetics and nature of death? Come to us."

Memphis called out to Vivasvat as well.

"Hahaha! There's nothing wrong with being a demon. Do you have any desires? Let me make your desires a reality."

There were love calls from L'Infernal and Niflheim as well. Other than these major heavenly world societies, various other godly and demonic societies, large and small, all attempted to connect with Vivasvat. Also…

"Do you yearn to fight? I can see it in your eyes. If you feel this way, I think we would be the best fit for you."

The place that Vivasvat ultimately chose was a surprise to everyone: Asgard. It was a place where infinite, perpetual fighting was the supreme value, and a place that always prepared for the ultimate war in the great prophecy, the 'Twilight of the Gods (Ragnarök)'. 'I can continue to develop my skills here.'

As soon as Vivasvat entered the Tower, the first thing he felt was that he could not freely act as he did in the outside world. There were just too many strong divine beings. If he happened to make any missteps, there was a high chance that he would die before even having the chance to meet his father.

Though Vivasvat felt that he made the right choice in choosing Asgard, he was not completely at ease.

'It's the same here… Just like the outside world.'

Could it be that the fate of mortals under the rule of transcendent beings was inevitable? The sights Vivasvat had seen since coming into this universe flashed past his eyes. As he saw the many sights of mortals succumbing to divine beings, Vivasvat could not help but feel a pain in his heart.

Asgard treated mortals much more harshly than the other heavenly world societies. It was in Asgard where developing players with excellent power were treated as kings while those who did not rise to the top were all treated as beings that were inferior to slaves.

'As long as one has skill and power, one can move up the ranks faster… So it'll be easier for me to get to the central leadership of the society.' Vivasvat planned to win the favor of Asgard soon and ultimately enter 'Valhalla'. 'Once I become an Einheri, I'll be able to gather more information on Odin's state.'

Einheri, meaning 'one who fights alone' or 'one who cannot die', was the highest honor an Asgard warrior could attain. The Einheri only followed the instructions of Odin, the main god of Asgard. They had such high powers and positions that even other society's gods could not treat an Einheri rudely.

Valhalla was the hall where such Einheri were gathered, so Vivasvat intended to enter Valhalla and confirm Odin's condition, as Odin had not made a public appearance in a very long time.

'Based on the circulating rumors, it seems that something critical is happening behind the scenes.'

Vivasvat had heard that Odin had fallen asleep due to something called the Heavenly Demon disease. Not only that, but rumors had spread among the mortals in the lower world that a significant number of the main divine beings of each heavenly world society had been forced into a deep sleep after they used up their powers to attack the Heavenly Demon, who had imprisoned them in the Tower.

Of course, the heavenly world societies did not say much about this topic, so many players and beings within the Tower dismissed the rumors as just fanciful thoughts. However, Vivasvat had a slightly different idea. 'It makes sense. Based on father's personality and temper, he would definitely target all the annoying guys first so that they can't talk anymore.' It was a conclusion that could only be drawn from someone who knew the true character and personality of the Heavenly Demon.

Therefore, by choosing to join Asgard, Vivasvat was not only preparing to develop his skills but also quickly rise through Asgard's ranks.

'I was told that someone would come to get me. How come they're so late?' Since the promised time had passed, Vivasvat could not help but grimace, as no one showed up to the meeting spot. Could it be that something went wrong and that his admission into Asgard was rejected? As he thought that this might be the case, Vivasvat was about to come up with some alternative options…

"Ugh! Oh! He really is here. You! Hiccup! Are you the player named Vivasvat? Hiccup!" A woman suddenly spoke to Vivasvat with a reddened face.

Vivasvat frowned. The woman must have been drinking alcohol during broad daylight, as the smell of alcohol drenched the surrounding air and pierced his nose. She even held a large glass bottle in one hand. 'What the hell is this…!' Vivasvat could not help but feel taken aback by the situation.

However, whether she knew what he was thinking or not, the woman started poking and prodding Vivasvat all over while chuckling. "Even though you look small like a dwarf, your muscles are quite strong and developed. Oh, there's calluses on your hands too. You must have had a relatively easy childhood? Even your face is nice and handsome… Hey, you're my type."

Vivasvat could not stand the woman's smiles and giggles. Suppressing his displeasure, Vivasvat asked, "Who are you?"

"Me? Uhm…? Have you gotten the news? You're being assigned to a unit immediately, so I was sent to come get you."

"Then you…?"

"Yeah, that's right. My name is Garmr. I'm your direct superior, so let's work well together." Garmr extended her hand toward Vivasvat. However, since she constantly swayed because she could not control her body, Vivasvat could only stare at the wavering hand.

Vivasvat was torn as to whether he should grab Garmr's hand or not. From the looks of it, it seemed that this Garmr was going to be his direct superior and the commander of the unit he would have to serve before rising through the society's ranks… Vivasvat was unsure whether he could trust the woman in front of him. 'A person who has been drinking in broad daylight and openly made inappropriate comments to a subordinate… It's hard for me to place any faith in her.'

If it was any other occasion, Vivasvat would have gotten up from his seat and walked away without having another thought. Even if Asgard possessed something that he wanted, it was not as if Vivasvat could not find another society with a main god suffering from the Heavenly Demon disease. Although it would take time to rise through any society's ranks, Vivasvat was confident that he could one day reach the upper levels no matter where he decided to go. However, the reason why Vivasvat did not immediately leave…

'There's something in her eyes.'

Though Garmr's eyes were arced, as she was smiling broadly, and even though her eyes were bloodshot red from drinking, there was a deepness in her eyes. Vivasvat knew that this meant she possessed a tremendous amount of inner strength and power. This observation and realization made it difficult for Vivasvat to leave.

"…"

"…"

So, while Vivasvat was mulling over what he should do…

"You don't want to come? I guess there's nothing I can do about that."

As Garmr was about to pull her hand away with a sullen face, Vivasvat quickly caught her retreating hand. He said, "No, I didn't change my mind. I was just a little preoccupied with other thoughts. Yes, let's work hard and well together."

Smile! Garmr laughed out loud once more. The stench of alcohol drenched the surrounding air once more, and Vivasvat once again contemplated whether he should back out from joining Asgard.

***

[This is the eleventh floor, the Gate to the Dream World.]

"So, the fact that the Olympians were forced to take the scraps from the beginner section below the tenth floor was all thanks to my performance…!"

'I've lost count on how many times she's repeated the same story. Where the hell is this city called Kuram?'

In Vivasvat's eyes, Garmr seemed to have an unreliable personality. She constantly wanted to retell stories of her prosperous years 'back in my day'. Vivasvat wondered if even those stories could be trusted to be true.

Based on Garmr's retelling, ten years ago, there was a very big clash between Asgard and Olympus, where Asgard obtained a big victory, which ultimately forced Olympus to recruit players in the beginner's area, from the tenth floor and below. The beginner area did not present many interesting opportunities. On the other hand, Asgard was able to acquire a vast area, and the ability to recruit from the eleventh to the thirtieth floor.

Also based on Garmr's retelling, the deciding factor that tipped the scales towards Asgard's favor was all thanks to the performance of Garmr and her unit 'Bifrost', in which she was the commander…

Vivasvat let her words go into one ear and out the other. If he responded to her, Vivasvat knew that there would be no end to her story. However, though one could possibly ignore something if it was told once or twice, with the sheer number of times Garmr brought up the story, Vivasvat could not help but memorize the entire story down to the nitty gritty details.

'Anyway…' Vivasvat ignored Garmr, who was trying to go back and retell her story once more and focused on their surroundings. '…even though it's a mess here, it's a bit too messy.'

Vivasvat knew that Asgard had a particularly strong disregard for mortals in comparison to other societies, but the moment he saw the disheveled and messy situation, his anger naturally started piling up.

Possessing an innumerable number of mythical beasts, the eleventh floor boasted a very beautiful stage. Furthermore, there were many outstanding resources on the floor, so many 'slaves' could be seen in every part of the floor. On the arable farmlands, skinny farmers were tirelessly plowing the land. With the danger of not knowing when an explosion would occur, people were constantly being put into a mine to bring out each mine's resources. In one village, Vivasvat even saw people trying to forcibly drag a young child away from his family, saying that they were conscripting soldiers.

In all these scenes of abuse, low-level gods and servants, who all seemed to be affiliated with Asgard, were tightly intertwined. To see such lowly ranked Asgard affiliates act like kings in front of the weak… If Vivasvat had not made a firm commitment to control his temper before meeting his father, he would have already blown up.

'Sorry… Just a bit longer… Please wait and be patient a bit longer.'

Persecution and exploitation. Oppression and violence. The world of the Tower was a savage world where only the law of strong over the weak prevailed. It was like a house of maggots… If things continued down this path, Vivasvat was certain that something explosive would occur. Vivasvat even thought that he would probably have to flip everything upside down and tear down the entire Tower…

'Father… What were you thinking when you created this place? I have no clue.'

What was the significance of this Tower's existence? If his father simply needed a prison to keep the damned transcendent beings all in one place, the Heavenly Demon could have just imprisoned the divine beings. Why did he have to bring mortals into the Tower with an 'invitation'? Vivasvat felt his heart become heavier the more he thought about it, and the more he thought, the more he sighed.

"…At that critical moment, I stood up and then… Huh? Hey, are you listening to me?"

As soon as Vivasvat suddenly stopped, Garmr stopped her nonstop chattering and frowned as she looked towards Vivasvat. She did not know why Vivasvat was exhibiting such abnormal behavior. Then, she noticed that Vivasvat's gaze was fixed on a field in the distance.

There was a being named Grani in that field. He possessed a cruel personality, as he liked to bully the weak and torture his prisoners. Garmr did not care much for Grani. Still, he possessed some unique skills, and his background was great, so people around Grani could not treat him badly. Grani was about to whip a girl who had fallen to the ground. Judging by Grani's stained clothes and the intense anger on his face, it seemed that the girl had made some mistake and was about to be punished for it. It would be impossible for any mortal human to survive such a whipping.

'This guy, is he really planning on jumping into the fray?'

As if attempting to save the girl, Vivasvat was about to extend a helping hand. The coldness in his eyes were so sharp that Garmr could not help but feel her drunkenness instantly disappear. Bam! Garmr reflexively grabbed onto Vivasvat's wrist.

Vivasvat's sharp gaze turned toward Garmr. "Let go of this hand."

Respectful, but obviously a warning. Garmr could make out a hint of murderous killing intent in Vivasvat's eyes. Of course, the killing intent was pointed towards Grani. Realizing this, Garmr could not let go of Vivasvat's hand. With a distorted expression, she asked Vivasvat, "If I don't let you go, what will you do?"