Leveling with the Gods

C421

Vishnu's green eyes blinked.

It was at that moment when they looked at each other.

Vishnu felt for the first time in his life that someone was reading his thoughts.

"You are not allowed to meet..."

Although a subject was missing in the sentence, Vishnu immediately understood who YuWon was referring to.

"Why?"

"You won't get the outcome you desire."

YuWon approached Vishnu and leaned on the railing.

"They just won't be able to meet, so leave before it's too late."

Vishnu was sure of one thing.

The reason YuWon was here was to stop him.

"I don't know if you'll believe this, but I see fate."

He believed it.

Because it was none other than Vishnu.

But what he called "fate" was not as grand as it sounded.

"Even though I call it fate, it's just a limited fragment."

"Regardless of what you believe, what's the reason for telling me this?"

"I have seen fate."

The long red thread he had been casting.

When he saw the fate at the end of that thread, Vishnu decided to attend this meeting.

"A fate that cannot be avoided."

"What was it?"

"I can't say."

"Why?"

"Once I say it, fate changes. And it tends to change toward something more negative."

YuWon had never seen what Vishnu called "fate."

So he didn't know what fate was or why he shouldn't talk about it.

But not only at this moment but also in the distant future.

Vishnu had never revealed to anyone what he had seen as fate.

"It's to prevent it."

"Can't you find another way?"

"There's no other way."

An absolute refusal.

YuWon sighed as if he had known that there was no way to persuade this stubborn old man.

He had unwavering faith in the fate he had seen.

More than anything else.

'The problem is that fate is unchangeable.'

YuWon hadn't anticipated this situation.

Vishnu had seen the fate.

Even if it was fragmentary information, if the accuracy of that information was 100%, then it was not information that could be ignored.

"To see Vishnu talk like this, it's definitely not a good fate... Moreover, Vishnu has acted to stop that fate..."

Vishnu looked at YuWon's expression from the side. After a considerable amount of reflection, YuWon asked a question.

"When you say 'fate,' exactly which moment are you referring to?"

"Which moment?"

"I'm asking about the period of time. Is it today, tomorrow, or how many years from now?"

Vishnu had a confused expression.

As if the explanation had been insufficient, YuWon added:

"I'm asking when this fate you're trying to avoid will happen."

"What do you want to know for?"

"Did you say that if the fate is revealed, it will become worse?"

After some deliberation, YuWon devised a trick.

He still wasn't sure if it would be possible.

"If you tell me when it will happen, I will figure it out on my own."

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!"

YuWon's eyebrows furrowed.

Time was not on his side. The situation was not conducive to taking things slowly.

'I guess I should hurry.'

You couldn't predict what was going to happen.

But Vishnu had clear reasons for speaking so urgently.

To prevent Vishnu from making a hasty decision, it was crucial to prevent what was going to happen tomorrow.

"There's not much time. Haven't I said it? There is no other way."

"Maybe there's no way for you, not for me."

"Do you have a way? You, who don't even know what's going to happen?"

"From now on, I'm going to find one."

YuWon touched Vishnu's shoulder.

"So for now, stay put until tomorrow..."

As he was about to continue speaking, YuWon turned his head.

For a while now, he had felt an unsettling presence that was now directed straight at him.

Step by step, a well-dressed man with neatly combed black hair advanced toward YuWon and Vishnu. Despite his slender physique, he emitted a considerable threat.

His face resembled young Hades. He approached YuWon and Vishnu, exuding a menacing energy.

"What do you mean by 'stay still'?"

For some reason, he had overheard the conversation but wondered why they were silent.

Instead of responding to the young man's question, YuWon looked at Vishnu with a frustrated expression.

"Did you call your friend?"

"This friend is very hasty by nature, you know."

Vishnu sighed deeply, as if he hadn't desired this situation.

"If you don't want to die, run away for now. Even if you escape now, you might survive. You're not destined to die yet."

"Of course. Why would I want to die?"

YuWon observed the man who was gradually approaching while emanating dark energy.

At that moment, information about a High-Ranker popped into YuWon's mind.

'Asura, he's the 15th in the High-Ranker rankings. The leader of Deva.'

Deva had three leaders: Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva.

Despite the differences in their ranks, they all held equal positions within Deva. Additionally, they never acted together and changed leaders every few millennia. So far, they had made Deva into the most powerful Guild rivaling Asgard.

Currently, Shiva was leading Deva.

The black-haired man before his eyes was Shiva.

Yuu-.

Shiva came to a stop in front of YuWon.

Barely five steps away.

And for a High-Ranker player like Shiva, that distance was virtually non-existent.

"You don't plan to run, do you?"

"Run... well..."

The corner of YuWon's lips lifted.

An expression of disdain.

"Even if you've secluded yourself from the world and lived in isolation, I don't think you wouldn't know who I am."

"Of course I know. You've been very famous in the Tower in recent years."

Naturally, Shiva was familiar with YuWon.

After not being active for thousands of years, Vishnu and Brahma couldn't compare to Shiva's status, who led Deva. He must have had information about YuWon.

"But what does that matter?"

As if the Rankings were irrelevant, Shiva looked at YuWon with determination.

"Do you think you're special because of your ranking, or because the Administration has raised your potential? Either way, your words a moment ago were a bit arrogant."

He had been listening to the conversation between Vishnu and YuWon all the time.

YuWon sighed in response to Shiva's words and then looked at Vishnu as if he were a little annoyed.

"I guess I also have a chance to make a friend, right?"

In this situation, YuWon, who still appeared calm, gave a faint smile as he looked at Vishnu.

After a long time, Vishnu also smiled slightly.

It was a fun situation they hadn't experienced in a long time.

"Well, of course."

Approval came ominously.

"It was a good idea to follow you."

Ruuuuuumble.

The sky in Valhalla turned red, and an intruder burst through the three of them, including YuWon.

"It would be a shame to miss this kind of fight."

Juuk-.

If Shiva was by Vishnu's side, YuWon was being followed by Diablo as he walked out onto the balcony.

Shiva looked at Diablo, who openly radiated his energy. He was a red-haired man with a gaze that could kill someone with just a glance, and his eyes burned with a red energy that seemed lethal.

Although he had only seen him once, his impression was unforgettable.

"Is this Diablo?"

"We are leaders of powerful guilds."

Both of them were leaders of Great Guilds. Although they had only crossed paths once before, Shiva and Diablo had met on that occasion.

At that time, Shiva, who was the leader of the Deva Guild, was interested in the Great Heaven Demon War.

"I heard that you completed the Great Heaven Demon War without our help. But in the end, you relied on humans."

"Don't talk nonsense if you don't even know. This guy is half-demon, after all."

Clearly frustrated, Diablo began to raise his horns above his head.

"So he became our race's second-in-command."

In other words, he was suggesting they shouldn't mess with YuWon unless they wanted to deal with the Demon Kings.

And Diablo was more than willing to see that situation through, even more than anyone else.

Since he had encountered Shiva in the past.

Diablo had been waiting for the day when he would finally fight him.

"I'm not one of those people who talk too much. So let's stop the nonsense and..."

Diablo's eyes widened.

A fist that completely filled his field of vision.

Jwaa-!

Thwaaack-!

Diablo's body, which received a punch to the face, flew off the balcony, defying gravity, and rolled across the floor.

It happened in an instant.

Even YuWon, who wasn't using the Golden Cinder Eyes, could barely follow the incredibly fast movement.

Or rather.

'He leaped a distance.'

Like the Flash Step that bends space and moves through it.

Shiva didn't leap toward Diablo; he literally leaped through space to deliver the punch.

It was a peculiar ability.

He thought that if he had a skill like that, he wouldn't lose in a speed contest.

Furthermore, he had the strength to send someone like Diablo, who had an extremely tough and resistant body, flying.

"Rankings really aren't reliable."

Diablo, who was flying through the air before landing on the ground, got back up in his place.

Although he might have been upset before, he now had an even broader smile than before.

"Rank 15, huh?"

Diablo had encountered many High-Ranker characters.

But with just one recent move, he had learned a lesson.

Rankings were just number games.

Ziiing-.

Diablo's horns rose above his head.

The red hue in the sky grew darker. Diablo had decided to reveal his true form to fight Shiva.

It was an explosive situation.

Psh-.

YuWon and Vishnu moved at the same time and interposed themselves between the two.

"Stop it."

"Are you thinking of destroying the castle?"

Vishnu blocked Shiva's path, and YuWon blocked Diablo's.

Unlike Diablo, who seemed to be asking what they were doing, Shiva accepted Vishnu's suggestion without issue.

"Don't do useless things."

"I know."

Vishnu looked at YuWon as if asking if this would be the end of it.

But YuWon's words clearly turned into a thorn in his throat.

"Let's go."

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

The moment Diablo tried to shove YuWon and run toward Shiva.

Swooosh-.

The appearances of Shiva and Vishnu became an illusion and disappeared. Diablo, who had pulled out his horns and was about to release his Demon Energy, let out a laugh as he relaxed, feeling his strength being unleashed.

"He escaped?"

"To say he escaped, it was you who got hit."

Juuk-.

YuWon, who confirmed that Shiva and Vishnu had disappeared, began to walk.

Diablo, who had come out onto the balcony with the excitement of a fight, now asked curiously when YuWon tried to leave his spot.

"Where are you going again?"

"I'm not going to fight this time, so don't follow me."

"Where...?"

YuWon jumped from the balcony down to the garden of Valhalla Castle before Diablo could keep bothering him.

After landing in the garden of Valhalla Castle, YuWon continued to walk out of the castle.

"Shiva and Vishnu have met."

From the moment Vishnu originally began moving, the meeting between the two was destined to happen.

He couldn't force them to separate.

"Now, first, I have to find out what this new variable that has arisen is."

Fireee~

YuWon's eyes gleamed golden as he began to glimpse the future.

"What fate has Vishnu seen?"