Chapter 373
Chapter 373
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 373
Chapter Title: Heavenly Demon's Welcome
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The people who heard the Heavenly Demon's words doubted their own ears.
"......What did you just say?"
"He said he came back well."
"Did the two of them know each other?"
"Was the incident from a year ago that impressive?"
"No matter how impressive it was, would he really greet him like that?"
"Wasn't it meant for his daughter?"
"Can't you see? She's facing Lee Soo-hyuk, not acting as his manager?"
Though they whispered with hushed voices, so many were murmuring that the surroundings naturally grew noisy.
The Heavenly Demon flicked his gaze toward them. The mouths of those who had been speaking softly clamped shut like clamshells.
But even with mouths closed, their eyes still gleamed with disbelief.
The Heavenly Demon, saying something like that?
The image that came to mind when people thought of the Heavenly Demon was that of an unpredictable disaster at the tip of his blade, a demon who slaughtered everyone who dared cross his path.
That's right. To players, the Heavenly Demon was a demon. That was players' perception of him.
And in reality, he was exactly that.
A year ago, when Jin Do-ha had failed to kill the Heavenly Demon, he had massacred several unrelated guilds—people who had nothing to do with it—as a warning not to mess with him.
And yet, he was saying "you came back well"? In such a friendly tone?
After leaving a single word right in front of Soo-hyuk's nose, the Heavenly Demon spun around briskly. It was a refreshing attitude, as if he'd done his greeting and that was that, but the brief exchange left a massive impact.
Soo-hyuk memorized the name of the viewer who sent that sponsorship.
Just moments ago, this was the guy mocking Blue Eyes, asking if they were a Demonic Cult guild. Now questioning if he'd become friends with the Heavenly Demon—it seemed he was desperately looking for any opening to nitpick.
Soo-hyuk pondered briefly in response to the sponsorship question.
Friends? Absolutely not.
If he had to describe their relationship...
"Not friends. Enemies."
With those words, Soo-hyuk turned his head. His gaze landed on Jin Woon, who stood at the very back of the group.
Arms crossed behind his back, he was pretending to be calm with his eyes closed.
But one could tell what kind of glare those closed eyes would have just from the trembling at the corners of his eyelids.
'Uncle.'
He couldn't even begin to imagine what Jin Woon must be feeling facing the Heavenly Demon. He had probably anticipated the possibility of running into him on the way here.
For some reason, despite knowing she was the Heavenly Demon's daughter, he cherished Unhyang deeply. Perhaps he was projecting the image of his own deceased daughter onto her.
'You're holding up well.'
He hadn't been unconcerned about this situation. If Jin Woon encountered the Heavenly Demon? His blood would probably surge in reverse, boiling like lava.
Yet he wasn't exploding because of Soo-hyuk and Unhyang. He knew how important today was for Soo-hyuk, so he was enduring.
And Soo-hyuk had no intention of letting that effort go unnoticed.
Soo-hyuk's gaze shifted back to the Heavenly Demon's back. He seemed utterly oblivious to Jin Woon's presence. Deliberately ignoring someone wasn't in his character.
"Soo-hyuk-nim!"
At that moment, someone came running while calling out to Soo-hyuk.
A familiar face. It was Cha Min-woo.
"Long time no see. You made it up here."
To participate in the main tournament of the Inter-Guild War, there was a minimum qualification: passing at least one preliminary round.
In the last prelims, Cha Min-woo had faced Soo-hyuk and been eliminated. But now that he was here, it seemed he'd proudly passed this time's prelims.
"If I hadn't aimed to face you back then, I would've come up sooner. I'm not one to sit out."
He tried to sound cheerful, but Cha Min-woo was tense. It was different from last year.
Well, the situations had changed a lot since then.
"Feeling uncomfortable?"
"Honestly, yeah. Didn't expect you'd grow this fast."
"You said the same back then. That if not now, there'd be no chance to fight."
"I was wrong then too. And you've grown ten times faster than I imagined."
Cha Min-woo himself was called a genius elsewhere, yet he wasn't bruised by the memory of defeat. If anything, he took pride in that loss.
"Thanks to you, my perspective broadened. Thank you. I didn't get to greet you properly back then, so I wanted to say it now."
Cha Min-woo definitely exuded a different aura than before. Even while tense, there was a sense of composure.
He had shed one layer that had confined his limits as a player. Now it made sense why he'd once been hailed as the next-gen Lee Soo-hyuk.
However.
"Did you leave your guild?"
There was no guild mark on his chest.
"Yeah, that's what happened."
Cha Min-woo smiled awkwardly. As their brief conversation paused, he turned the question back.
"Not curious about the reason?"
"You must have had your reasons."
"So you're not uninterested in me?"
"With that sharp intuition, the 'blind swordsman' label doesn't fit."
Cha Min-woo laughed happily at Soo-hyuk's joke.
Was he really not curious? He probably had a good guess and was being considerate to avoid stirring up unnecessary stories on the broadcast.
By not prying, Soo-hyuk had shown respect to Cha Min-woo.
"Thank you."
Cha Min-woo bowed politely and headed back. Today was a crucial day for Soo-hyuk; he couldn't take up more time.
The last person whose eyes met Soo-hyuk's was Kim Il-su, smiling from afar.
He hid half his face with a mask and the other half with an expression.
And at that moment.
This was the second time in this life he'd seen that message floating in the sky.
The players participating in the Inter-Guild War had various goals.
A chance to raise their value. Fame and honor. Devotion to their homeland...
Reasons varied slightly from person to person, but the biggest share by far was fame.
Once a guild's name spread, they could expand their business, and naturally, more money flowed in. People staking their lives on the war craved the strongest guilds and rankers.
The tower was full of underrated rankers.
Or more precisely, rankers who believed themselves to be underrated.
And to them, Blue Eyes was delectable prey.
Galaxy Guild's high ranker Gerbion was one such person. Right after obtaining high ranker status, he'd devoted his life to honing his power.
'Kim Ye-ryeong. Kim Si-woo. Lee Hyo-min.'
And so Gerbion was confident.
'And Lee Soo-hyuk.'
Confident he could take down one of them and prove his hidden value to the world.
This day was what he'd prepared for. And now, the perfect opportunity had presented itself.
Just moments ago, the sight of them arriving under Blue Eyes' banner had given even him chills. Topped off with the Great Mage's appearance—it was truly impressive.
As before, it started with last year's champion, Hielz.
She picked someone at random. As if it didn't matter who, she didn't even look properly at their face.
The chosen opponent forfeited. He probably wanted to show a gallant figure in defeat, but figured against Hielz, he'd just look pathetic.
Gerbion waited for his turn. His eyes had been fixed on Lee Soo-hyuk the whole time.
And right on cue.
Gerbion would fire the first shot of this Inter-Guild War. The opening match had ended in a forfeit.
That must have been why.
He saw it as fate.
Wasn't there a saying like that? Luck comes to the prepared. Only the prepared seize it.
Gerbion was convinced he was that protagonist of fortune.
That was why.
He could designate without hesitation, no second thoughts.
"Lee Soo-hyuk."
"I will fight you."
The moment the designation ended, Gerbion saw it. The eyes behind Soo-hyuk's mask were smiling.
'Smiling?'
Gerbion took it as Soo-hyuk looking down on him. After all, he was soaring in popularity right now.
Even so, Gerbion had become a high ranker far earlier.
'Strutting after taking down the Martial God with his allies' help.'
Whoosh—.
Soo-hyuk's figure vanished from the arena first. Moments later, Gerbion's vision flashed white and returned.
Before he knew it, he stood in the middle of a city. This was the stage chosen for this Inter-Guild War.
'Lots of terrain features.'
Plenty of buildings to block sightlines. It wouldn't be a simple brute-force brawl; he'd need to leverage the environment and variables.
Gerbion drew the two swords from his waist. The moment he gripped them, confidence welled up as always.
No matter the opponent, he'd slice them apart with these blades!
Such ambition surged in his chest. And he had the skill to back it up.
But.
Boom—!
A sound like the city itself was crumbling rang in his ears.
The sound came from far away.
Boom, boom boom boom—!
Like something exploding. It approached at rapid speed.
What was charging at him?
He knew it was Lee Soo-hyuk, the one he'd designated, yet Gerbion still thought that. As if a monster from afar was coming to devour him.
Soon, the source of the noise revealed itself from down the street.
Flash—!
Something flew in amid blinding light.
Gerbion's confidence had basis. He'd dared this reckless challenge because he had the skill.
His twin blades moved toward the light. The moment he crossed them to block, one thought flashed.
'......Insane!'
Nothing but curses came to mind.
Soo-hyuk's sword, flying like light, danced dazzlingly. He wielded two blades, yet it felt like Soo-hyuk had more.
Clang, clatter clang—!
Each clash of Gerbion's swords with Soo-hyuk's sliced the buildings behind him clean. That was how sharp and powerful Gerbion's blades were.
But while distant buildings crumbled, Soo-hyuk remained utterly serene.
Distracted by the swordplay.
Kaboom—!
Something slammed into his chest.
It was Soo-hyuk's palm.
Unbelievable. Thrusting a hand between his twin blades? One slip and the arm could've been severed.
Gerbion's body launched into the air. It crashed into a building.
The impact collapsed it. The ground quaked, but Gerbion's chest hurt worse than the debris pinning him.
He thought his ribs had cracked. No, they probably had.
But there was no time to tend wounds.
Crackle—.
The pile of stones covering him tumbled to the ground. A sliver of sky became visible through the gap.
And through it, he saw clearly.
Crackle crackle—.
Lightning flashing in the sky like divine retribution gathering.
No dodging, no blocking.
It was already plummeting down.
Rumble—!