Command with My Own Eyes
It was command with my own eyes. Not Hoyeol, but true command. Precisely, it was Gwicheol issuing commands over the Zero Mountains. The Gwicheol gripped in my hand and swung.
If asked why I spoke of it as if it were some otherworldly sword from another house...
—Hahaha! Excellent, rampage even more fiercely, O wild one!
It was too embarrassing to claim it as my sword.
Every swing brought forth another proclamation. Part of me wanted to post a question on the community forums.
Surely, the responses would roll in like this.
What did that imply? In the end, an unsolvable dilemma.
Just tell Gwicheol to shut up? I wanted to. But if only it were that simple.
“Unyielding savagery to the very end. You were all honorably worthy.”
This damn mouth! As you can see, Grandfell and Gwicheol's sensibilities were a match made in heaven.
Which meant the one suffering on both ends was none other than me, Lee Hoyeol.
Still, let's think positively.
‘...It's better than before.’
Back when I'd just awakened as a player, lecturing goblins on etiquette.
Compared to those days, now I had an excuse even if someone caught me like this. Why? The mob I'd just slain was a whopping level 700 monster, after all.
[Title: The Last Adventurer, Noble, Transcendent]
[Class: Demon Hunter]
[Level: 601]
[Available Points: 0]
A new daily routine added. It had been four days of steadily hunting monsters in the Zero Mountains.
Thanks to that, I'd broken through the level 600 wall, gaining one more level.
But levels weren't the point. More fundamental than levels—how much had my core abilities grown?
That's what I'd started focusing on.
In that sense, there had been decent progress.
For starters, when facing monsters, I'd avoided using magic as much as possible. Why? Balance breaker.
Magic amplified by circle effects. Hunting monsters with transcendent-level magic was just mindless EXP grinding.
“Efficiency is key in all things.”
Time for afternoon tea... No, no, that's not it. Laws more precious than gold.
Plus, EXP could be farmed on the Arcana Continent or at the Quirnburk Mechanical Tower.
Legacies are the best, after all.
Now, real-world hunts weren't just for EXP anymore.
Smooth—refining incomplete swift swordsmanship, of course.
And crossbow archery skills too.
In every way, like a true demon hunter.
Focusing on building core abilities.
‘There's potential to evolve it into something extraordinary.’
Of course, if players knew, they'd be horrified at this training method.
Just masochism, they'd say.
Then I'd reply:
“Sometimes, one must stroll slowly to see what lies ahead.”
No need for such romantic flair, though...
—How true those words are, my master.
Don't chime in on crap like that, Gwicheol.
Anyway, the biggest achievement of these four days.
I'd properly gauged the full power of High El and Diend during this rare downtime.
I opened my mouth.
“High El, Diend.”
“High El answers the call of her lord.”
“You summoned us, my lord?”
Why? They say doppelgangers kill on sight.
Here I was, facing three—High El, Diend, Gwicheol.
Dizziness already creeping in, but hold it together.
‘Diend's as expected, at least.’
I'd never seen Diend's power with my own eyes, but I'd guessed its strength.
From its debut, making senior spirit mage Payan Lot's contracted spirit, Fire Drake, tense.
At least upper spirit-class, I'd figured.
‘But I overlooked High El.’
I'll admit it—prejudice.
I knew High El's past, so I unconsciously assumed it was still just flashy on the surface, like in the Predator's Swamp.
‘High El, who can halt even elves.’
Yet High El was a true unique spirit, recipient alongside me of the First World Tree's Blessing.
{Nature} affinity not combat-specialized? Still beyond ordinary monsters.
Proof was right there.
Beast-type monsters all bowing their heads to High El...!
They weren't tame.
Even [War Maniac Reindeer], herbivore that terrifies predators with its ferocity, mixed in.
In simple terms...
‘You trained them too, huh, High El.’
Wonder who it takes after. One-shot instructor material.
Watching High El, it started making sense.
Why the pointy-hatted grand mages cowered at the sight of me.
‘Guess I get the reason now?’
Even I, the person involved, was newly shocked.
High El, chosen by the first World Tree.
Gwicheol, who overwhelmed sword saints.
Diend too.
Even setting aside my frothy self, handling all three at once?
Anyone would flinch.
In that sense, utterly reassuring.
So there should be nothing to fear in this world.
Yet my heart wasn't calm right now.
“I have preached the tenets of my lord's etiquette to the forest beasts.”
Because High El was now autonomously spouting nonsense without prompting?
“I too shall emulate it, my lord.”
Or Diend learning from the spectacle?
—Indeed...!
Or Gwicheol marveling at the bizarre scene?
Normally, this alone would have me crying mental anguish.
But right now, my mind was treating this as a minor hiccup.
Yes.
Because of what Skal had told me.
Precisely, news of the ‘Great House’.
Dragon Assembly
📍 The Elder Dragon cries out.
The ‘Great House’ has returned to the Arcana Continent.
All dragons wish to verify the truth of the matter.
👁 Witness the dragons assembling on the continent.
Skal shared his dragon knight class quest with me.
The moment I saw it, my vision spun.
‘Great House’
A setting overlapped that phrase.
‘The heir to the Great House, but the house fell to demons. Grandfell Claudi Arpeus Romeo, the sole survivor of the Claudy family, walked the path of the demon hunter to avenge that demon.’
Why, out of all descriptors, ‘Great’ house of all things?!
I thought as coldly and rationally as possible.
Claudy.
Like Grandfell, a fictional house from my chuunibyou days.
Couldn't exist on the Arcana Continent.
‘Must be another house.’
Moreover, the Great House had returned?
‘At least I'm still hiding my past and name well.’
Forcing composure inwardly.
Still, unease lingered.
Because I was feeling it now—the settings I'd piled onto Grandfell, cherry-picking the best!
‘Scale's different, of course.’
Recalling Claudy family lore hazily.
Back then, the angsty me attached ‘Great’ to it.
In short.
Settings as cringey as Grandfell's, packed to the brim, sincerely.
...If, just if, those settings became real?
If traces of House Claudy lingered on Arcana?
I swear.
I couldn't hold my head high anywhere on the continent.
So, prevent that at all costs.
Why?
[Grandfell Claudi Arpeus Romeo]
I had zero intention of revealing this cursed name.
Not on Arcana, not in reality.
‘Especially if my enemies found out...!’
So I'd declared to Skal.
— “I won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes.”
Not what I meant.
But the icy words slipped out unintended.
Sorry to Skal, but understand, please.
This was life-or-death—shame hanging in the balance!
*
Since the AAU Yusra branch was established, exchanges between branches had surged.
Not just chiefs, but staff too.
Far more frequent than before.
Yoon Sugyeom waved lightly at the camera.
“Man, how long's it been since I last saw your faces?”
“Doing well, Tom? Katrina looks the same as ever.”
“No contact till now, and you wave like nothing happened.”
“C'mon, you know who our boss is.”
“True, slaving away under the infamous Mr. Park, huh?”
AAU Korea branch chief, Park Minjae.
The legendary figure who'd confronted Cosmo CEO Raymon Sean head-on.
His rebel spirit was infamous across branches since AAU was still Cosmo.
Tom and Katrina had offered condolences when he was appointed chief—and Yoon Sugyeom's boss.
“Still, sometimes I envy you guys.”
“Crazy? Envy me? Why?”
“You're close to him, right? Player Lee Hoyeol.”
“Agreed.”
Hoyeol's name dropped, and Katrina shoved her face to the camera.
Yoon Sugyeom, closer to Hoyeol than them.
Katrina pressed eagerly.
“There must be some connection or exchange! So, spill? Info on Yusra chief overseer Lee Hoyeol that only Korea branch knows? I swear secrecy. I'll even toss Tom out if needed.”
That was the question?
Totally barking up the wrong tree.
Yoon Sugyeom shook his head.
“You know what pride is?”
“Pride? Yeah. That line Chief Overseer Lee Hoyeol always says.”
“Exactly. Think such a man has special treatment?”
“Ah...”
They nodded instantly.
Makes sense, given Hoyeol's actions so far...
No favoritism for Hoyeol.
Not even sacrificing the small for the great.
Pure equity—that was Hoyeol.
The three, done with wild goose chase, got to the point.
“Reviving old memories, huh?”
“Yep. Those days piecing together stories.”
“Sorry to kill the vibe, but does it even matter now?”
“Tom, please. If sorry, don't bring it up.”
“Katrina, smack his side.”
Bickering like old times.
But couldn't just laugh.
Couldn't go back to those days.
Tom, rubbing his smacked side, spoke.
“First, acknowledge what we must. Maybe Arcana slipped our control even as a game. That's our premise.”
“Agreed.”
“Okay. Only Raymon knows the truth, probably.”
Pessimistic in words, but sharp in action—that was Tom.
“That means mountains to climb ahead, scary as hell. Why? Pre-demons, Arcana Continent was pretty peaceful, right?”
“Can say that. Big events like Empire Wars, but kid stuff compared to this holy war. So, what's your point, Tom?”
“Simple core.”
And incisive.
“That peace had a reason.”
“...Long peace had a cause?”
“Not just demons updating and wrecking shop?”
Tom shrugged.
“Premise laid? Everything existed from the start. Unknown settings and backstory always there. Recent Mage Tower's a prime example.”
“Demons not appearing wasn't just setting, but...”
“Some hidden circumstance, like the Tower Master's absence?”
“Right. So...”
Tap—Tom typed, text appearing.
[There was a reason for the Arcana Continent's peace.]
And added:
“And a reason that peace shattered.”
.
.
.
Spacetime Salon.
Black locks.
Where the sun rises first in the east.
The warrior from that dawn lacked knowledge of the Arcana Continent.
He'd only set foot here thanks to the Demon Realm tectonic shift.
Naturally, he didn't know.
“Brave, to utter that name.”
One transcendent spoke; the dawn warrior nodded.
The Southern Sea Witch.
Couldn't forget her reaction.
Such an expression possible?
Distinct from the lethargy he'd seen in the salon.
Thus, natural question arose.
What was that name to provoke such...?
But the dawn warrior couldn't speak.
“From the Legend's Return to the Great Calamity subjugation.”
“Even that incident passed down in your homeland.”
“Warrior from the east, can you believe it?”
“One house behind all those events.”
“Yes. Claudy.”
“Because Claudy existed, the continent maintained peace till now.”
“With Claudy's disappearance, the continent became this mess.”
“...!!!”
Past so shocking, words failed.