Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Demon King
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The Demon King.
Riding the steed of despair, wielding the sword of terror, blowing the trumpet of screams—ultimately, the one who brings annihilation.
This world had already faced the Demon King's invasion seven times.
Each time, they had barely repelled it with the power of heroes, but the cost was devastating.
Countless lives lost, the land ravaged.
That was why the Demon King was a being feared by all nations and races.
'The problem is that it's me...'
Seo Woo-jin scanned his surroundings with a serious expression.
The other 99 heroes were chattering noisily, swapping stories from the past year.
But aside from Lee Ji-ah, who had briefly chatted with him before leaving, no one approached Seo Woo-jin.
Thanks to that, he could hunker down in a corner and focus on his thoughts.
'First off, my class becoming "Demon King" is unavoidable.'
But did he feel like destroying the world as the "Demon King"?
No.
He had no such intention, nor any desire for it.
He was just an extremely ordinary human with the class "Demon King."
'So, does that mean there's a real Demon King separate from me?'
That made sense.
The real Demon King and the class "Demon King."
They were distinctly different entities, and the Demon King the heroes needed to stop wasn't Seo Woo-jin—it was the real one.
'But will these guys understand that?'
He could tell just from eavesdropping on their conversations.
The heroes were drunk on their own power, brimming with eagerness to crush the Demon King right now.
He had once considered revealing his class to clear up the misunderstanding.
But doing so might get his head chopped off.
No, it definitely would.
Of course, he wouldn't go down easily...
'But taking on all those guys alone is impossible.'
Even a strong man can't fend off ten hands with one.
No matter how strong Seo Woo-jin was, handling that many heroes solo was out of the question.
"Why are you off in the corner by yourself?"
Then, a familiar voice called out.
"Ailin."
Ailin had returned after saying she'd step out for a bit.
"You probably never got to enjoy a feast like this in Zion, so isn't it okay to relax for just one day?"
As she said, he'd never even seen a banquet in Massive Guardian.
It had been training, training, and more training every day.
Here, unlike military rations, there was delicious food, and no knights ready to ambush at any moment.
In other words, he could eat and have fun without worry.
"I don't know many people here."
But it was also true that this spot felt too awkward for Seo Woo-jin to join in.
Staying holed up here, pondering the future, was more comfortable.
"Well, you're not the social type, Woo-jin."
Ailin giggled softly and stood beside him.
She had changed a lot since before.
'She used to be expressionless all the time. Now she even knows how to smile.'
That was thanks to getting comfortable around Seo Woo-jin.
"Where'd you go?"
"Just had some business."
Ailin vaguely dodged the question.
She'd been acting like this often since arriving at the empire.
'Something she can't talk about?'
He was a bit curious but didn't press.
"Anyway, there sure are a lot of strong people here."
Ailin changed the subject.
"Yeah... they are heroes, after all."
Unlike Seo Woo-jin, these heroes had grown strong with all sorts of support and carries.
In terms of pure levels and stats, they were incomparably stronger.
'But that's not all there is to it.'
He was confident he wouldn't lose.
No, in a one-on-one, he could beat most people here.
"Especially those ones are amazing."
The ones Ailin pointed to were the five stunning figures he'd seen on summoning day.
They still radiated brilliant light.
"All S-grade or higher."
S-grade "Super Flame Mage."
S-grade "Diamond Warrior."
S-grade "Dragon Tamer."
SS-grade "Saintess Candidate."
And... SSS-grade "Sword God."
He'd heard those five were nearly level 40.
'That puts them on par with half a Slaine, huh?'
Obviously, higher levels meant slower growth.
Required experience ballooned exponentially.
Even Seo Woo-jin, with his "Immeasurable" grade and blazing growth speed, wouldn't have hit that level after a year of pure hunting.
He wondered just how much support they'd gotten to grow that fast.
"That one's the empire's famed hero, right? The one with all the rumors."
Ailin pointed at the "Sword God" and asked.
"Yeah. Probably the strongest here."
"The first hero to get SSS-grade."
Most people were already convinced the "Sword God" would behead the Demon King.
'I hope that Demon King isn't me.'
As Seo Woo-jin absentmindedly scratched his neck,
"Uncle, Uncle!"
"Ugh."
Lee Ji-ah's boisterous shout rang out.
Things had gotten quiet for a moment, but she was back.
Complete with a bunch of hangers-on.
"This is Hong-seol unnie, this is Jin-ho oppa, and this is Da-hye! My friends!"
Without being asked, she rattled off introductions, then shoved them toward Seo Woo-jin for greetings.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Seo Woo-jin."
He forced an awkward smile and bowed; they blinked and bowed back.
"I'm Lee Jin-ho. I've heard a lot about you."
The guy Lee Ji-ah called Jin-ho oppa.
He looked about Seo Woo-jin's age, with a handsome face.
'Why am I "uncle" and he's "oppa,' though?'
A strange sense of defeat washed over him.
But he couldn't show it, so Seo Woo-jin played it cool.
"Heard a lot, you say...?"
"You're famous, you know. For being D-grade."
"Oh, right. Yeah, that's me."
As expected.
Talk about Seo Woo-jin was all about his grade anyway.
Nothing else noteworthy—no gossip material.
"If I may ask, what's your level now?"
'If you know it's rude, don't ask.'
Lee Jin-ho's expression said it all.
The guy was treating him like dirt to boost his own ego.
Seo Woo-jin pondered briefly, then answered honestly.
Everyone would find out soon enough; no point hiding it.
"Level 10."
"Ah..."
"They say low grades grow slower."
The others murmured upon hearing his level.
"Yeah! Uncle's level 10. He didn't hunt, just played around, right? Haha!"
Only Lee Ji-ah treated it casually and teased him openly.
'She's either pure or an idiot.'
But since it was without malice, it didn't bother him.
The whispers from behind were far more irritating.
"Level 10... that's pretty low. Oh, by the way, I'm B-grade, level 25."
Lee Jin-ho undercut him while slyly bragging, drawing a hollow laugh from Seo Woo-jin.
"Must be nice, hitting level 25."
No way sweet words would come from Seo Woo-jin's mouth.
"Your words have a bite. Did I do something wrong?"
His tone was polite.
But no one missed the intent beneath it.
Well, maybe Lee Ji-ah.
'Idiot.'
Seo Woo-jin smirked at her chattering with Ailin, then eyed Lee Jin-ho.
"Don't you have something to say to me?"
He'd heard this snark and disdain countless times in Massive Guardian.
Compared to those soldiers, Lee Jin-ho was mild.
Far from hurt, it was laughable.
"I was trying to be nice, but you're so rude."
Lee Jin-ho dropped the mask.
The polite facade vanished, leaving a thug in its place.
"I tried to get along since we're both heroes, but does low grade mean low character?"
'You'd be F-grade then.'
The atmosphere chilled.
Chatter halted; all eyes turned their way.
"I don't get what gives a D-grade level 10 the balls to strut in here."
Lee Jin-ho raised his voice for all to hear.
"While you slacked, we risked our lives fighting monsters to level up. If you're low-grade, at least work for it. Level 10? What the hell is that?"
A scoff escaped Seo Woo-jin.
Risked your lives? Who? You?
Chopping the throats of half-dead monsters tossed by knights.
What? Risked your lives?
It was beyond ridiculous—pathetic.
But no one here knew what hell Seo Woo-jin had endured, except Ailin.
So the heroes' gazes weren't kind.
Except one.
"Wait! Wait, wait! What's going on all of a sudden? Why's the vibe like this?"
Lost in chit-chat, Lee Ji-ah looked flustered at the shift.
"This was supposed to be for making friends—why fight? Who started it? What's the deal?"
She squeezed between them to stop it.
But Lee Jin-ho, sensing opportunity, wasn't done.
"Did I say anything wrong? Ji-ah, doesn't this piss you off? We're suffering to save the world, and some guy's freeloading without effort."
Adding 'people need conscience,' Seo Woo-jin decided not to hold back.
Even when broke, he'd chugged testosterone because he knew he wouldn't die.
Same now.
He was tired of enduring.
"If it bugs you, come at me, asshole."
He wouldn't kill.
Couldn't.
But he'd make sure the guy couldn't eat properly for days.
B-grade level 25?
'So what?'
B or S-grade didn't matter.
He had plenty of power to shatter that yapping mouth's teeth.
"Ha, you really wanna die, huh."
Lee Jin-ho let out a hollow laugh at the provocation.
He cracked his neck and stepped forward.
"Fine. You'll learn after a beatdown."
Pointless posturing.
If this were a real deathmatch, Seo Woo-jin would've beheaded him ten times over already.
"Wait...!"
Lee Ji-ah tried stopping it again, but momentum favored them now.
The others just watched curiously, not intervening.
Lee Jin-ho got right in Seo Woo-jin's face, forehead to forehead.
"Hit me, D-grade. Let me taste that weak punch. Show us how strong it is."
He was sure he could tank it.
"Fine, have a taste then."
Naturally, Seo Woo-jin didn't refuse.
Bam!
One shot.
Lee Jin-ho's fist slammed dead-center into his face, spewing white teeth into the air as he blacked out.
"Anyone else wanna go?"
Seo Woo-jin scanned the room.
No one answered.