Leveling with the Gods

C479

"Empty the country?"

"What are you saying now?"

"If we're talking about... this country?"

"Are they telling us to leave even though we're well-established here?"

"Even if you're a High-Ranker, what kind of absurdity is this?"

There was a murmur around Hercules's words.

It was natural.

To ask them to vacate a land where they lived comfortably. Who wouldn't oppose that?

And that absurdity was felt by Siegfried as well.

"What are you saying now?"

"Exactly that."

"I didn't know that the great Hercules, the Hero of the world, was going around doing thug-like things."

The Hercules known throughout the world was a Hero.

The Hero of the Gigantomachy. And the reason he was called a "Hero" was because the achievements accumulated by Hercules were worthy of a Hero.

A representative High-Ranker who protected the weak and fought against the strong. Legends about him were not hard to come by even among Rankers.

But now, that same Hercules was attempting to take over a country.

This was something befitting Satan or Asura, infamous for their wickedness.

"If you continue like this, the Administrator might intervene, do you really want that?"

"I know. That's why I'm asking you."

"It sounds more like a threat than a request."

"That's also correct. It's half and half."

Son OhGong intervened suddenly in the conversation.

He looked at Siegfried with gleaming red eyes and spoke as if joking.

"So, cooperate a bit. Unless you want trouble."

His words carried a different weight than Hercules.

Though Hercules had strength, he respected and showed courtesy to his opponent. Son OhGong was different.

Son OhGong had a personality that could resort to force at any moment if necessary. Moreover, he had the ability to turn his words into actions.

Additionally...

'Perhaps... Kim YuWon is also on the same boat.'

Three single-digit High-Rankers were moving together. Even if Asgard intervened, it couldn't be guaranteed they could stop them.

And the same held true even if an Administrator intervened.

Even the great Administrator probably couldn't face those three.

"No response?"

The voice was still in a playful tone.

Hercules took a step back and shrugged, as if such threats weren't in line with his spiritual attitude.

In this case, Son OhGong suited better than Hercules.

"Well, it doesn't matter."

Puff, puff, puff, puff!

Dense smoke rose into the sky.

Above that smoke, thousands and thousands of Son OhGong's clones appeared.

"Do you need help making a decision?"

Fwoosh-.

Numerous Golden Cinder Eyes looked towards Nibelung. Even the Dragons in the sky were overshadowed by the presence of Son OhGong.

Son OhGong's clones filled the sky.

Mounted on the Flying Nimbus and wielding the Ru Yi Bang, Son OhGong's clones made the Nibelung knights falter in their presence.

This threat from a single person was more terrifying than the arrival of the Dragons.

Siegfried looked at Son OhGong's clones, hands sweaty as he held Balmung.

'There's no need to fear the quantity of clones. They don't all have the same strength.'

It was a well-known fact among the 'Celestial Realm,' a Guild that had long been fighting against The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

The clones of The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal weakened as their number increased. The first clone had the strongest strength, while the last created could be comparable or inferior to a common Ranker.

This was a fact that any Ranker well-informed to a certain extent knew.

But knowing it and experiencing it were two different things.

Looking at this scene now...

Who could ignore Son OhGong's clones before them?

Even for a brief moment, Siegfried couldn't help but admit he was nervous about the clones.

He had to admit it.

The moment the King got scared, this fight was practically lost before it began.

But still...

"Wagner."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Right now, seek cooperation from nearby Great Guilds. Tell them that Hercules and The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, are causing havoc."

"What?"

The eyes of Wagner, the knight who received the order, trembled at Siegfried's reckless decision. Whether by declaring war against the Dragons or, in this case, making enemies of Hercules and The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

Even in the face of the King's order, this choice by Siegfried was by no means reasonable.

And in the face of that order from Siegfried...

"As I thought..."

Son OhGong narrowed his eyes, illuminating his red eyes.

"You never intended to protect your country from the beginning."

And at that moment...

Clack-.

Someone grabbed Siegfried's head from behind.

Thud-!

YuWon remembered Nibelung as a kingdom that vanished in history.

By the time he became a Ranker, Nibelung had already been destroyed by The Dragon War, and Floor 91 was desolate, with hardly anyone living.

When they first spoke of Floor 91, the only source of information on The Dragon War was Siegfried.

There was no adequate information available.

Siegfried's claim was that Dragons attacked Nibelung suddenly, and if that were true, the Dragons should have been a race deserving of extinction.

But...

After meeting Siegfried again, YuWon's opinion changed a bit.

'I need to verify it again.'

Siegfried was a fellow fighter.

He was clearly a High-Ranker with a fair and calm personality. However, the Siegfried YuWon knew and the Siegfried in the strategy against Ubbo-Sathla were clearly different people.

YuWon wondered.

Why Siegfried specifically?

He disappeared without a sound. Siegfried, who moved to catch Ubbo-Sathla, was actually Ubbo-Sathla himself.

After that, YuWon wondered.

Was it pure chance that Nibelung stood on Ubbo-Sathla?

'It can't be.'

That was the reason YuWon sought Siegfried first.

"There are only three things to consider."

Before reaching Nibelung.

When he met Son OhGong, YuWon extended three fingers and said:

"Did he intentionally start The Dragon War? If he did it intentionally, did he intend to protect Nibelung at that time? And..."

He closed the three fingers.

It wasn't a difficult story. Son OhGong also agreed with YuWon's words that they had to focus on those things.

"If it's not?"

"Then I will personally apologize to Siegfried. For suspecting him."

"So, if one of the three is correct?"

"If it's not the last one, let's try to understand it somehow."

"If only one? What if it's two?"

"In that case..."

A moment of reflection.

Nevertheless, in the future, they were companions. It wasn't easy to rid oneself of him, even if his past was known.

But still, there was no other choice.

"We will consider Siegfried as an enemy."

Bang!

Crack!

YuWon grabbed Siegfried's head and brought it down with a blow.

The area fell silent for a moment due to the sudden incident.

But that too was for a moment.

"Your Majesty!"

"What are you doing!"

Shing, shing!

The knights of Nibelung drew their swords. Some, blinded by loyalty, even thrust their spears directly at YuWon.

But...

"Grow..."

The extending spears couldn't reach YuWon.

"Ruyi."

A giant staff stood between YuWon and the knights.

The representative item of the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

Commonly known as Ru Yi Bang (Golden Folding Staff), it was a golden staff representing the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

"Do not interfere, get out of here!"

"It seems my head hurts more when you interfere."

Click!

Hercules pushed Son OhGong's head down.

It meant for him to be silent.

Son OhGong, who had experienced this several times in the future, looked at Hercules again with rolled eyes.

Despite that, Hercules continued.

"I'm sorry."

Hercules bowed to the knights of Nibelung and the nearby residents.

"But now I ask for cooperation. If you stay here, you will all die. Please cooperate for your own good."

Son OhGong's stern action contrasted with Hercules's attitude.

In response, the residents and Players who were nervous for a while showed a more relaxed reaction.

"Aren't they enemies?"

"Yes, it's Hercules."

"He wouldn't do this without reason."

"Could it be related to those dragons?"

"Well... Shouldn't we listen to what they say?"

"Yes, there may be a reason for this."

The atmosphere changed at Hercules's words.

Until a moment ago, Son OhGong seemed about to confront all of Nibelung, but, unlike his eagerness, Hercules persuaded those unaffiliated with the Guild only with words.

That was the difference between Son OhGong and Hercules.

Having power but not using it indiscriminately.

Even due to this difference, YuWon decided to associate Hercules with Son OhGong.

Growl~

YuWon pressed down on Siegfried with his strength.

No one moved to save him.

No, they didn't even dare.

It was natural, as he was being protected by The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

The knights who rushed to rescue Siegfried were already lying on the ground, unconscious.

Thud.

Applying force to his abdomen, he tried to get up with a groan, but it was in vain.

Siegfried could never overcome YuWon with strength alone.

[The power of a Giant resides in your arms.]

Thud, thud.

Now, with an enhanced ability, he could roughly mimic half of the abilities of Hercules.

Gigantification.

His strength rivaled that of the two behind him.

"You're... making a mistake."

Siegfried spoke with anger.

"Do you think the Administrator will let this go? What will the other Great Guilds do if you do this?"

Siegfried refused to yield.

He thought that if he used more force, he might understand what he was saying.

"You will be enemies of the Tower. You will be pursued by the Great Guilds."

"Is it because of the Dragons in front?"

YuWon looked at Siegfried, who was under his control, with strange eyes.

"It's strange, you. You don't resemble the one I know at all."

"What?"

"Do you think we're doing all this for a piece of land?"

Siegfried's eyes, under control, stirred.

Definitely, none of the three, including YuWon, were interested in Guild territorial fights.

YuWon and Son OhGong were not affiliated with any guild, and although Hercules was under Olympus, he was also famous for not having an interest in Guild matters.

So, why?

It was at that moment that Siegfried's thoughts deepened.

'From...'

"No way..."

A voice that came out of his mouth without thinking.

Frrr~!

Fiery red eyes.

In the moment the mask concealing Siegfried's face broke, YuWon could sense it. (Note: The mask is representative)

"After all, you knew, right?"

That the establishment of Nibelung in this land was not simply a coincidence.

So, even more.

"It seems you have a lot to tell me."

At first, he hesitated.

Should he kill Siegfried immediately or just leave him unconscious?

But it seemed those respectful methods wouldn't solve the problem.

Swoosh.

From the ring on his middle finger, the Uranus Heart, dark attribute magic flowed.

Dark magic flowed from YuWon's hand into Siegfried's body. Though he tried to resist hastily, it was futile.

"What are you trying to...?"

Before he could shout what he was trying to do, Siegfried's mouth closed.

The voice didn't come out. The sound also disappeared, just like the surrounding noise.

Absolute darkness that showed nothing.

Unconsciously, Siegfried was in the midst of that coal-black darkness.

[Tartarus Invitation received]

[Status suppressed]

[Cannot reject]

'What the hell...?'

There wasn't much time to think.

Instead of thoughts, there was a step.

With the message, his body was absorbed more rapidly into the darkness.

[You are entering 'Tartarus'.]