Leveling with the Gods

C463

Odin shook his head in response to YuWon's question.

"I don't know very well either."

"You don't know?"

"This wasn't brought by me but by Zeus. I found out it was something from the future thanks to Mimir."

"Zeus?"

How the hell did he have it in the first place? Although curiosity consumed him, at this moment, he was angry with himself. He knew that, given Zeus's nature, he wouldn't easily reveal the information even if he asked.

Finding out the origin of an item wouldn't be so difficult for Mimir. He would have been wise enough to play a key role in the creation of the Clock Mechanism along with Odin.

"Mimir is probably already asleep at this moment."

"...Yes."

"We'll have to wait a hundred years to see him again."

"I wish it were so."

The response was a bit strange.

I wish it were so?

"Is there a problem with Mimir?"

"He lost an eye."

"...An eye?"

It wasn't the first time he had heard that story.

Through Son OhGong, who had come from the future a little later than him, he had heard the story that Mimír had lost an eye.

That meant...

"Are you talking about the current Mimir?"

"From what you say, it seems that the Mimir from the future also had the same thing happen to him."

"At least it's not now. And I'm not sure it's for the same reason either."

YuWon mumbled as if he were thinking aloud.

"So, what? What's the reason Mimir lost an eye?"

"He made a deal."

"A deal? With whom?"

"With a mysterious hooded man."

"A hooded man...?"

YuWon's face twisted.

Foolish Chaos.

It was he who made a deal with Mimir.

Previously, Foolish Chaos and YuWon made a deal.

They formed an alliance to confront Shub-Niggurath, the public target of everyone. In the end, they joined forces.

The most desperate were the High-Rankers of the Tower, including YuWon. Even if Foolish Chaos hadn't appeared at that moment, it wouldn't have been surprising at all.

From Foolish Chaos's point of view, it would be beneficial if Shub-Niggurath weakened the Tower's power even a little.

But...

'If he made a deal with Mimir's eye... Is the calculation correct?'

He wondered what would have happened if Foolish Chaos hadn't appeared at that moment.

There might have been more dead and wounded. Perhaps not only Valhalla, but also some more worlds could have been destroyed.

It was complicated.

That Mimir sacrificed an eye for Foolish Chaos to move in time.

"If he had lost an eye... It might take him hundreds of years longer to wake up."

Now that he understood Odin's concern, YuWon looked at him with compassionate eyes.

Then...

"It's not one."

Odin smiled sadly and said.

"Both."

"Both?"

"Where the hell would he have left it? He came with both eyes closed."

Mimir, who had lost both eyes.

He had heard that Mimir lost an eye to send Son OhGong to the past, but he couldn't even imagine it.

"Both eyes...."

Did he really use both eyes in the deal with Foolish Chaos?

Or did he use the other eye for something else?

'I can't wake him up to find out.'

Due to the Curse of Knowledge, Mimir who slept once wouldn't rise for anything. Even if you stab a dagger in his neck or throw him into a pit of fire, it won't make any difference.

In the current state, Mimir was practically dead.

In the end, there was no way to know what Mimir used his eyes for.

"I'm going crazy."

Apparently, Odin didn't provide a detailed explanation, judging by the situation, not even a prior hint.

Perhaps he trusted that he, being smarter, wouldn't do foolish things.

"In the end, there's no way to know how this happened."

YuWon muttered as if he were expressing his difficulty.

But as YuWon made that face...

"Why are you laughing so much?"

Somehow, a strange laughter seized him.

It was brighter than ever. It was so genuine that it was chilling, considering that he usually only made ironic, sarcastic, and mocking laughs.

"It's just that..."

Zzz-

YuWon looked at the sword he held in his hands and responded as if he were appreciating something.

"It's a bit comforting."

"Comforting?"

"I'm not sure how they sent it, but I think I know why they sent it."

Among so many items, the reason they chose to send his sword.

It wasn't necessary to think so deeply.

After returning to the past using the Clock Mechanism, YuWon had always thought he was fighting alone. Abandoning those who were left behind, he fought hard to change the past.

Fortunately, when Son OhGong returned with him, the burden seemed to have decreased, but even if two people shared a burden as heavy as the sky, it wouldn't change anything.

However...

Clang-.

Looking at the sword, it seemed to know.

"They're fighting there too, aren't they?"

They were still fighting.

In that distant future. Like those who experienced the battle first.

They did not abandon YuWon and continued the fight.

'I will gladly accept this gift.'

It truly was.

The meaning of this gift. And also the item itself.

He was thinking of looking for a new sword since the Edge of Nightfall was becoming heavy, so he was pleased.

Of course.

"It's been a while since I saw you."

He didn't plan to use the sword in that state.

"Ahjussi."

YuWon didn't stay long.

The moment he grabbed the sword, YuWon started moving immediately.

Odin's words asking why he was in such a hurry were in vain. YuWon, with the sword in hand, seemed excited about something.

Crack-.

Leaving the mansion like that, Odin looked up.

"He's gone."

A ship floating above the mansion and a clear sky.

Odin spoke up. It was unclear whether he was talking to the ship or the sky.

"Didn't you hear everything? You too."

"...."

No response.

Whether it was uncomfortable or because he had no thoughts at all. Probably, he found it quite embarrassing to have gotten angry without reason.

"That guy moved right away. Although he could have taken a day off."

Baang-!

A Lightning Bolt fell from the clear sky.

With it, Zeus appeared behind Odin and asked with annoyance:

"What are you saying?"

"You should know too, right? I don't think that guy wasted time for a year playing and enjoying himself."

"...."

YuWon spoke about the future he experienced.

He knew Zeus was paying attention to his voice. After all, the mansion and the room they were in were not soundproof at all.

Still, YuWon didn't hide the existence of the Clock Mechanism or the fact that he came from the future.

He wouldn't stop.

Never.

"He really seems not to have changed at all."

"By the looks of it on the outside, but for sure, when the time comes, he'll surprise us as always."

Odin's opinion was completely opposite to Zeus's.

He looked at YuWon, who didn't seem to have changed at all, and had even higher expectations.

"I wonder what that impatient guy was trying to achieve by stopping in one place. And whether he succeeded or not."

"Selling beautiful hair ribbons! Made from high-quality silk, beautiful hair ribbons!"

"Come and see the ties made from luxury silk! It's not something you see every day!"

"Something special from the upper floors arrived from afar-!"

A bustling market.

The market of the Tenth Floor in the Murim World was always like this. So congested that there was no room to take a step, people bought and sold goods every day.

At first glance, it seemed like just the bustling market floor.

Unlike other upper part worlds, it didn't seem so developed at first glance.

However, unlike what it seemed on the outside, the Murim World market was known for producing quite valuable items.

Tap~

That's why...

"Hmm-."

That was the reason why Hephaestus set foot in this world after the first floor.

"Why the hell do all the merchants sell things made of silk?"

"It's the most popular item in the Murim World. It refers to silk that comes through the Celestial Mountain."

"Following fashion eventually makes you like everyone else. Useless things."

"Aren't you setting standards too high? Although they may seem that way to Hefesto-nim, they are also living intensely."

A small forge located in a corner of the market.

Hephaestus, who entered there, examined a box full of various equipment. This forge was a place Hefesto used to go to get materials since he settled in the Murim World.

"These items are in a total mess too."

"Don't look at me with so much pity. Wasn't it Hefesto-nim who asked to bring defective items? We also have many high-quality products in our store."

As the blacksmith said, his forge had quite good quality equipment.

Certainly, they were items too advanced for Tenth Floor Players. Some of them were items that even higher-level Players might desire.

However, the problem was that what Hephaestus chose this time were defective products that failed to make those items.

"Even though they are defective, this is an affront to iron."

"...Should we cancel the transaction?"

"It seems like the points are rotting. Do as you please."

"No, no, I'm so sorry...!"

A brief dispute.

Hephaestus finally paid and picked up the box full of broken items.

"But, what the hell are you going to do with these broken items?"

"I don't know."

"If you have the chance, come visit us later."

There was no reason to stay in such an unattractive forge after the business was completed.

With the box full of swords, spears, and iron armors in his hands, Hephaestus headed to his own forge.

When the man with the large box moved, the murmuring people separated to make way for him.

And so he reached a not-so-distant place.

Thud-!

Clunk-!

Hephaestus lowered the box from his shoulders and sat on the chair he had left nearby.

While massaging his sore shoulder with one hand, suddenly...

"What the hell?"

Suddenly, Hephaestus looked down the stairs of the forge with narrowed eyes.

He had spent quite some time setting up expensive formations and magic circles around the forge in case there were thieves.

But apparently, an unauthorized outsider had entered while he was out for a moment.

Creak-.

Hephaestus grabbed the hammer he had left aside.

If the intruder didn't come out immediately; he had the impulse to smash the entire forge in one blow.

With that ruthless spirit, an unauthorized outsider appeared below the stairs.

"Greetings, Ahjussi."

Waving his hand, YuWon climbed the stairs from below. It wasn't clear when they had last seen each other, but seeing his face after so long was very pleasant.

Come to think of it, Hephaestus was the first companion YuWon met after setting foot in the Tower.

And at the moment when YuWon revealed his hidden figure under the stairs...

"Yes."

With a gaze full of anger, the muscles in Hephaestus's arm swelled.

Boom-.

Thus, with all his power, Hephaestus threw the hammer at YuWon's face.

Clang-!