Leveling with the Gods

C468

It felt as if he had closed his eyes for a brief moment and then opened them again.

When he regained consciousness, he realized that his world had changed.

Frrr...

The flames around him extinguished.

Tulzscha's flame had faded. It meant that the owner of the name had changed.

'Has it transferred to me?'

Frrrr...

Just before, the Holy Fire that fiercely rejected him now followed him as before.

No...

Rather, it was much more obedient than before. What used to exist as a skill now felt like arms and legs, like part of his own body.

He didn't remember anything, but he understood what was happening.

'Again.'

This was not something new.

It was the same with Shub-Niggurath.

Later, he had investigated this over the past year.

Thanks to that, he had gained some clues about that moment.

Free...

But, as expected, this time too, the headache returned without fail.

It was a reaction that occurred every time he tried to remember, but now it didn't hurt as much.

"Fortunately, Names are everywhere."

He said it with his own mouth, with the same voice.

But it wasn't him who said it.

'...Is this a gain or a loss?'

Considering the gains and losses revealed to him, there were more gains than losses. But, as with stocks outside the Tower, there was always danger in inexplicable events.

The same happened now with him and Danpung.

Frr...

"You were my toy and my dancer."

"However, somehow, you boldly coveted my name."

His forehead furrowed with the headache. Fortunately, every time this happened, memories returned little by little.

That's how he began to understand Son OhGong's heart.

In some way, he could get an idea of how the one wearing the Golden Headband felt in their daily life.

'If this continues, someday I might never be able to go back.'

It was a concern he had many times while delving into Danpung's memories after the fight against Shub-Niggurath.

Although now it seemed like it only blinked for a moment, who knows?

The concern didn't last long.

YuWon extended his hand and lifted the Holy Fire on his hand.

Frrr...

'Since when have I been thinking about this?'

From the beginning, he was already prepared for this level of determination.

Since the fight against Shub-Niggurath when he reached out to Danpung born from the Egg.

'It's okay.'

That's how YuWon responded to the little Danpung who said it was dangerous.

It wasn't a lie to say that it was just to borrow a little of his strength and reassure that small being.

But those words were sincere at that moment.

The same happened now.

And the word "okay" didn't mean safety.

Even if it was dangerous, it meant that it was okay.

Frrr...

'I don't remember properly, and I still don't know how to use this power correctly.'

This shouldn't be taken into account in the calculation.

Variables are things that happen in unpredictable circumstances. Including this in the calculation would only lead to misfortune.

However...

Frrr...

['The Dancer Who Dances With Fire' rules over 'The Flames of Death and Corruption'.]

There was no reason not to use the name he already had.

Whoosh...

Flash!

When the flames dissipated, the sound of Lightning Bolt was heard.

The sky glowed golden several times. The guy who still didn't show his face seemed to be extremely noisy.

"...I said Names are everywhere."

Although it wasn't him who said that, he repeated the words with the same mouth.

This couldn't be overlooked.

Flash...

Again, Lightning Bolt descended.

If things continue like this, all those Names would be lost.

Although most were nothing more than remnants of Names divided into pieces.

'If I stay still, I might lose them all.'

So, YuWon advanced to join the battlefield.

...Won-!

From somewhere, a blurry voice calling him resonated.

A thick and rough voice, a familiar voice.

He tilted his ear and could clearly hear the mumble of: "Where the hell have you been, brat?".

"Ahjussi?"

Although he was clearly busy forging a sword inside, he didn't understand why he had come here, putting himself in danger like this.

"Hey! Kim YuWon, hey!"

Hephaestus opened his throat wide and shouted.

Several tentacles approached pointing towards the sword he held, but it was in vain. Thanks to the Lightning Bolts falling from the sky, targeting like snipers the Outers aiming at Hephaestus, he was able to save himself.

Bang, clang!

Thus, in the middle of the battlefield where Lightning Bolts fell...

"What are you doing here now?"

YuWon appeared in front of Hephaestus.

Hephaestus reflected a relieved expression as if thanking his luck.

Although, anyway, it seemed like he had felt something in his chest, he exhaled a held breath and asked.

"Where did you go?"

"Nowhere."

"You haven't been responding even after calling for several tens of minutes."

"Several minutes?"

Had it been that long?

'It seems like I've been unconscious for quite a while.'

He didn't remember the flow of time, perhaps because he had no memories of when he lost consciousness. Naturally, YuWon didn't think that Hephaestus had been looking for him for so long.

"Then, how did you get here, Ahjussi...?"

Bang!

Another thunderous Lightning Bolt echoed.

When Zeus manifested, YuWon could realize why Hephaestus had managed to come out unharmed.

'It seems it was thanks to that guy.'

Still, bloodlines are bloodlines.

He couldn't let him die right in front of him.

"I know what you're thinking, but it's nonsense. What my father is trying to save is not me but you."

"What are you saying?"

"I have already played my role in Olympus. To my father, I am now just an abandoned son of the past. In his eyes, someone like me is nothing more than one among many Rankers."

"Then why...?"

"What my father is protecting is this."

Hephaestus extended the sword he held.

Still unfinished, a rough sword without adornments.

It turned out that this was the reason Zeus was protecting him.

"Why this?"

"It seems that my father considers it useful. Probably because those are targeting it."

With the word "those," YuWon's gaze turned to the enormous pupils descending from the sky.

From the beginning with Tulzscha, now even that guy was appearing.

The situation was much more serious than he thought.

"A blacksmith is useful until the war begins, and a warrior is useful when the war has already begun. Now is the time when you are more needed than me."

Clack!

YuWon accepted the sword Hephaestus handed him.

The feeling in his hand was familiar. The size, shape, weight, and balance hadn't changed at all since the last time.

He had surely mixed two items to make this.

'How is this possible?'

When he gripped the new sword, the feeling was different. Although Kusanagi was also a good enough item, Hephaestus's sword was more familiar to him.

"It's okay."

"You'll probably like it more when you use it."

A reaction full of confidence.

His expression seemed even more self-sufficient than when he created the Edge of Nightfall.

Hephaestus with that expression never disappointed him.

"I'll use it gratefully. And..."

Swoosh-.

Susanoo rose from YuWon's shadow.

Chunk-.

Suddenly handing Kusanagi to Susanoo, YuWon spoke.

"Accompany him until it's safe."

-And now, instead of ordering me to kill people, you're telling me to protect them?

Susanoo naturally expressed his complaint. He had never protected anyone; he had only killed people.

"For a moment, think of Ahjussi as Tsukuyomi."

-Tsukuyomi...?

Just for a little while.

In Susanoo's mind, looking at Hephastus's rugged face, Tsukuyomi's face appeared.

And then, both overlapped right after.

In front of Hephastus's face, with his long silver hair fluttering, Susanoo made an expression as if he was about to vomit.

-Are you talking about this ugly guy?

"Speaking like that in front of him doesn't seem like a good idea."

Hephaestus wasn't handsome, no matter how well portrayed. No, he looked more like an ugly man, which was rare among Zeus's lineages.

It makes you wonder if he really shares the same blood as Apollo, who is famous for being extremely beautiful.

And for Hephaestus, Susanoo's words were no different from touching a sore spot.

-Shut up. Or I'll cut you into pieces right now.

Where did so much anger come from?

Susanoo, with his blood about to boil, stared at Hephastus. Apparently, YuWon's words about "Tsukuyomi" were the catalyst.

It had to be done somehow.

Ignoring Susanoo's reaction, YuWon reassured Hephaestus.

"Even if he speaks like that, he will fulfill my order."

"If you say so."

Not a very pleasant response.

Well...

Even if he had skills, there probably wouldn't be many people who would want someone radiating murderous intentions towards themselves as a bodyguard.

Hephaestus was no exception to that.

However, this was inevitable because YuWon had to move urgently.

"I'm sorry, but please understand. Then I'll go."

"I know it's urgent, but let me ask you one more thing."

When YuWon was about to move, he turned to Hephaestus again.

Seeing him stop despite knowing it was urgent, it probably wasn't something trivial.

When YuWon turned his head, Hephaestus hesitated for a moment before asking.

"Did I, by any chance, make that sword you brought...?"

A question that seemed absurd no matter how you looked at it.

Perhaps that's why Hephastus's voice trembled a bit. However, somewhere, in those eyes that asked like that, there was certainty.

And YuWon hesitated for a moment.

How should he answer?

It could be a quite long story. It wasn't a question that could be answered simply with yes or no.

Craaack, bang-.

It was time to make a decision.

The color of the sky, which flashed in golden, began to gradually turn red, and the pupils floating above him began to open slowly.

It seemed like it was going to start.

"I guess I'll have to give you the answer later."

"Later? Hey-"

Hephaestus's next words didn't reach his ears. Because YuWon was flying too far to hear them.

Pat-, pat-.

Jumping over the twisted tentacles writhing in the sky, YuWon looked up at the huge eyes that were emerging.

In the center of an eye the size of a decent castle, there was a red pupil embedded. The eye that was slowly opening looked at the world from above.

Was it an illusion?

YuWon felt as if that eye was looking at him.

And at that moment...

['The 'King of the Dead' warns the appearance of a new king']

The title inside YuWon trembled, and in front of the "eye" that appeared, an alarm rang out.

But unlike that warning...

"It seems like a pretty useful Name."

YuWon, as if things were going well, tightly gripped the newly taken sword in his hand.

A Name crossed his mind.

To win this fight, he first had to blind that eye.