Ranker Who Lives Twice

Click. Click. Something broken inside of Yeon-woo was reassembling, the sound of its movement reminding him of turning cogs. He exclaimed in astonishment over how his body was undergoing this process without any interference or direction. 'Are the springs pieces of divinity?'

Yeon-woo didn't know what the very small spring was since he hadn't seen it yet. All he had seen was a system message, but he could already feel that it had changed his body. His level had increased, and his divine positions were being created. There were two domains. One was something Yeon-woo was familiar with: death. As a result of combining with the Demonism, the domain the Demonism possessed was being introduced to Kronos, which meant Kronos was awakening as an Apostle of the Black King.

Yeon-woo was taken by surprise. 'I thought I'd be able to hear the Black King's voice since Kronos is the Black King's Apostle… I guess not.' Yeon-woo laughed at himself for thinking it would be that easy. Although it was true being an Apostle could get you closer to the god you served, if speaking with the Black King were that easy, he wouldn't have had to go through all this trouble. He even thought it might even feel a bit dispiriting if he learned about the Black King like this. 'No. If the Demonism's identity is what I think it is, becoming the Black King's Apostle as a result of combining with him isn't too unexpected.'

If he could see Kronos' status window, it would probably say "Apostle of the Black King" under the "title" section.

After combing with the Demonism, Yeon-woo felt a powerful gaze looking at him from high above. No, it wasn't quite accurate to say it was from high above. It could be from below him or even right next to him. It was a gaze that watched him from beyond space or several dimensions away,

He didn't know if it was the Black King himself. However, it was clear the owner of the gaze was so superior that mortals couldn't even imagine his strength, especially since the gaze could even focus on Kronos, a divine being who had conquered countless universes and dimensions.

In contrast, the other domain created along with death was very unfamiliar: time. 'I thought this domain, like death, was from the Black King…but it's from Uranus.' The holy power Uranus had given Kronos to put the Demonism to sleep went through new changes after mixing with darkness. Its nature changed.

'Uranus symbolizes the sky, which means he rules over space…but did the power change to being able to move space itself through contact with darkness?' Yeon-woo extended his hand. Wavy patterns appeared in space, and everything in the room suddenly stopped—the curtains shifting in the breeze, the flowers inside the vase that were about to fall, and even the air.

However, this only lasted for a little while, and the world returned to its usual movement. Air flowed, and the curtains moved again. 'The range of this domain's power is too small and only works for a short while. How am I supposed to use it?' Yeon-woo couldn't grasp how he was supposed to use this domain. 'If only I could identify the mechanisms to use the power, I might be able to use the domain even when the quest is over.'

Even if he failed the quest, he thought he'd be able to activate Kronos' power if he learned the structure of this power. He had a strong feeling that the method Mother Earth and Persephone used to steal holy power from the paused Kronos was related to this.

Ding!

[Your understanding of the domain of 'death' is profoundly high.]

[Your understanding of 'time' has dramatically increased. Your abilities to sense the 'springs' have improved.]

[The synchronization percentage has increased.]

[10% → 12%]

'This again.' His forehead wrinkled when he saw the message that popped up. It was true the synchronization percentage that began to appear after finding the very small spring was helpful. The more Kronos' synchronization percentage increased, the greater its effect on Yeon-woo's soul.

In other words, Yeon-woo was stealing Kronos' legends, which meant his level and divine positions were growing as well. If Kronos became a supreme god as he had in the past, Yeon-woo's soul would grow significantly. Right now, Yeon-woo could barely reach that level after combining with the Demonism. After this, he wouldn't have to use tricks like that anymore. But of course, this wasn't without its troubles.

"Why do you look so dumbfounded? When your father makes time to talk with you, you should at least try to pay attention to the conversation. Tsk!"

Yeon-woo swallowed his emotions and turned. "You're up?"

"Hmph! I'm sure a vile son like you would hope I stay asleep forever, but that won't be happening." Uranus looked like an ordinary neighborhood old man.

Yeon-woo felt like his heart was being squeezed when he looked at Uranus. After giving Yeon-woo all his holy power, Uranus looked visibly weaker. More wrinkles appeared on his face, his skin became drier, and more age spots appeared. The vigorous Uranus who had enthusiastically beat Yeon-woo up was no more.

Olympus was filled with uneasiness at the rumors that their king might fall. The tensions between the potential successors of the throne became worse, and a civil war seemed to be brewing. However, Yeon-woo didn't pay attention to any of it and focused on caring for Uranus. He had no plans to get involved in a battle of power for the throne in a world that wasn't his. This was the only way he could think of to rid himself of his strange emotions around Uranus. The more his synchronization with Kronos progressed, the more intense his emotions became. Yeon-woo was concerned that his ego might get lost in the legends at this rate. At the same time, he was taken aback that Kronos loved Uranus so much. "I never wished for you to sleep eternally."

"Then?"

"Do you think I'd go that far? I only hoped you had a nice, restful sleep."

"What?"

"You know, they say you start sleeping more when it's time to rest in peace."

"What?" Uranus' eyebrow twitched. He contemplated slapping the brazen face that was spewing bullshit. Just as he considered using the last of his holy power to summon a bolt of lightning, the door suddenly burst open.

Thud! Yeon-woo instinctively stood in front of Uranus and activated his holy power.

"What is the meaning of this?" Uranus' voice was genuinely furious, completely different from when he was bickering with Yeon-woo.

Soldiers marched in through the door and surrounded Yeon-woo and Uranus. There was fear on their faces, but they still looked determined. It was impossible to think of such a thing happening in such a hierarchical godly society. There could only be one reason behind it.

'A coup.'

Stomp! Stomp! Familiar faces walked through the sea of soldiers, and Yeon-woo summoned more strength to protect Uranus. Theia, Iapetos, Hyperion, Phoibe, Krios, Koios… Uranus seemed shocked that the adopted children he'd raised lovingly had incited a coup.

"How could you…!"

The leader of the coup, Theia, spoke with a slight bow of her head. "Father, you are responsible for this. A position like yours comes with responsibilities, but you weren't able to fulfill them." Theia glanced at Yeon-woo with cold eyes and turned back to Uranus. "You should have designated your successor clearly, but…this is all a result of you spoiling our unsuitable youngest."

"You wicked…!"

"Do not worry. We'll take Olympus to greater heights. Our youngest will always be by your side as well." She was announcing that she would steal the throne and imprison Uranus and Yeon-woo.

Uranus wanted to drop a bolt of lightning on them while he still had the strength to do it, but he couldn't bring himself to. They were still children he had cherished. Yeon-woo didn't take his eyes off of Uranus' trembling hand even as Theia and the others left, laughing scornfully.

* * *

A civil war began. Oceanus managed to escape Theia's coup and raised his own forces against her. An unexpectedly large number of beings agreed with his mission to find Uranus, and Olympus grew divided.

Yeon-woo faced a decision to make as he watched Uranus' health rapidly decline.

[You have two choices. Your choice may influence whether or not you will be successful in finding the remaining 'springs'.]

[The synchronization percentage will also be heavily affected.]

[Will you stay silent, or will you rise?]

In fact, he'd already made a decision. Yeon-woo had already realized that the higher the synchronization percentage, the better the chances of finding the springs. He could raise the percentage by ensuring the legends were played out as they had happened in the past. Even if that weren't the case, he found it too difficult to continue looking at Uranus' suffering face.

Everything was annoying. What did he have to do in order to turn the grim situation around? After contemplating for a short while, he realized there was only one thing he could do. That night, he secretly left Uranus' room. There soldiers guarding him weren't able to stop him.

"What are you doing here?" Rhea looked up from her book with a glare when she saw Yeon-woo appear. The murderous intent was plain to see in her eyes.

'Right, the family of my…mother wasn't on good terms with Kronos.' Before Uranus integrated multiple godly societies into Olympus, Kronos' family and Rhea's people fought a long war that lasted ages. Yeon-woo had never learned the details, but Kronos had killed quite a few divine beings during this war, one of many that peppered the legends about the creation of the universe.

Apart from that, Yeon-woo intentionally avoided Rhea because seeing her face made his heart ache. He didn't have the confidence to rein in his emotions. Even though he might ruin the quest, he had to face it now. "Let's work together." Yeon-woo tried to control his shaking voice and said only what was necessary.

However, Rhea seemed to interpret his attitude differently. She smirked. "Why? Oh, I guess you want to sit on the throne now. Or was this your plan from the beginning? I thought you came to your senses and you were finally obeying Father, but was that only to get on his good side? But things aren't going your way, so you're…!"

"I don't care about any of that. I just don't want to watch this shitty situation any longer. If you want the throne, you can sit on it." Yeon-woo had never received a sharp look from his mother, and Rhea's harsh gaze felt strange. However, he managed to endure it.

Rhea narrowed her eyes and looked Yeon-woo up and down. She quietly muttered under her breath. "Is he telling the truth? Impossible…" Then, she slowly stood up. "Fine. I don't know what you're scheming, but I'm also angry about what's happening. I'll turn a blind eye to your plans. How can our siblings be ruining the peace Father created…!"

Out of all the siblings, Rhea respected Uranus the most. Despite their resentment of Kronos' family, her people had joined Olympus because Uranus' ideals resonated deeply with her.

"But even if we work together, how do you plan on turning the tide? Right now, the situation is too delicate. You might divide Olympus further." Rhea was asking what he could contribute.

"I have a way."

"What is it?"

Yeon-woo's eyes flashed. "Overwhelming power."

* * *

Boom! Boom! Fire blazed and storms whirled after countless attacks. The planet that had been chosen as the battleground was already in ruins and about to explode at any moment. It was a horrifying place destroyed by the clashing laws of nature. Theia's forces, who had taken over Olympus, and Oceanus' forces, who were trying to take it back, stopped at nothing to destroy each other.

It was a war of the Titans, who were well known for being a warlike race. A huge number of divine beings were destroyed, and the blood of their soldiers stained the ground. However, neither side could declare a clear victory, and they were about to retreat when the world suddenly stopped.

Boom! It was only for a short moment, but all physical laws and powers had stopped. But because their minds were intact, the divine beings screamed internally, shocked that Yeon-woo could control space with his domain alone and without resorting to enforcing his laws. Before they could get over their shock, another strange phenomenon followed.

Chhhhhh. Black haze floated over the ground that flowed with lava. From it rose an army no one had seen before.The soldiers wore black helmets and armor and carried various weapons. The energy of death whirled around them, unnerving even some of the greater divine beings. What was even more shocking was that this army of death consisted of familiar faces.

『Cerevesta! Why are you here?』

『Allon? You just died rescuing us! How…?』

『Wh-what's going on!』

They were all dead soldiers from Theia and Oceanus' forces. The living soldiers shouted the names of the beings in the army of death in shock, but they received no answer. The soldiers of death just stood still, exuding sharp auras. As soon as the dead beings of the battlefield rose again, they pointed their spears at both sides.

The two sides froze. How could they defeat an enemy who stopped time and ruled over death? When Yeon-woo slowly appeared in the center of the army, all the divine beings on the battlefield were overwhelmed by the strength that stormed around him.

He was the new Uranus. "Everyone, stand down." Yeon-woo lifted a corner of his mouth. "Unless you want to die and join my army."